In the world of computer processing units, two names have reigned supreme for decades: Intel and AMD. Although Intel has commanded the lion’s share of the CPU market, this rivalry has only heated up in recent years, with AMD’s new Ryzen processors rising to challenge Intel’s dominance. Rumor has it that Sony may even be using an AMD Ryzen processor for the company’s next console.
Although the Intel i-series processors remain more popular in laptop and desktop PCs, AMD CPUs are often seen in gaming consoles owing to their excellent price-to-performance ratio. Nonetheless, AMD processors typically lag slightly behind Intel’s offerings. That’s changing: The new second-gen AMD Ryzen units are quickly closing this gap, making these CPUs a very attractive choice for PC builders (who are, understandably, a fairly picky lot).
The AMD Ryzen 7 7200 processor is a second-generation replacement for the Ryzen 7 1700, and boasts similar specs with some speed improvements. It’s an eight-core CPU – more than ideal for modern systems – with a 20MB cache. The 3.2GHz clock speed out of the box can also be boosted to 4.1GHz when you need some more juice for gaming and other demanding tasks.
Along with the Ryzen 5 2600, the 7 2700 is one of the more power-efficient members of the Ryzen lineup, drawing 65 watts of power (the same power draw as the first-gen 7 1700 despite the 2700’s boosted speed and snappier performance). The AMD Ryzen 7 2700 also comes bundled with the Wraith Spire LED cooling fan. This model of the Spire has an RGB LED ring around the fan housing, which you can control with the companion app from CoolerMaster – the perfect way to give your desktop tower a bit of custom style.
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700 and Wraith Spire LED cooler bundle typically goes for $300, but a $35 discount lets you score this great CPU and fan from Amazon for just $265 today only. If you’re assembling your own custom PC, or if you’re just upgrading the CPU, then this is one of the best current-gen processors for any desktop build.
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