Intel's Core Duo meets the desktop

F.E.A.R.

The Core Duo T2600 was the fastest dual-core chip in our CPU-limited test by seven frames per second, but trailed behind the Athlon 64 FX-55 and FX-57 at its default clock speed. When it is operating at the same speed as AMD's flagship FX-60 chip, it simply beats it into a pulp, recording a frame rate some 23% higher. The overclocked T2600 was nearly 30 frames per second faster than AMD's highest performing chip in this test.


At 1280x960 with maximum details, the pack is bunched up somewhat - the Core Duo T2600 performs as well as Intel's flagship Pentium Extreme Edition 965, and in line with the similarly-priced Athlon 64 X2 4800+. When the chip is running at the same clock speed as AMD's FX-60, it performs the same. This is surprising to some extent, especially when you consider the performance lead that this chip had in our CPU-limited test.