Computers & Laptops

[Question81534]

What is a cpu?

[XL]

This is the brain of computer.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_processing_unit

[rtem]

Hey there

Wikipedia overcomplicates things for those who are new to the computer world. As mentioned above it is basically the brain of the computer. It is the main part of the computer, which for the most part determines the speed of your PC. CPU stands for Central Processing Unit.

I hope I cleared something up

[Credible_Chris]

There are a number of things that factor into the quality and performance of a CPU.  Hre are the ones I can think of (higher number = better)

-Series (example:  Intel Core i5)

-Model (example:  460M)

-Number of cores (1 to 6)

-Clock speed (example:  2.26 GHz)

-Threading capabilty (hyperthreading technology)

-Processor cache (example 4MB L2)

-Any power saving features

There are probably others, but I think these are the main ones.