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AMD set to update Phenom X3 chips

AMD will refresh its triple-core X3 processor lineup with versions that fix an outstanding bug.

Brooke Crothers Former CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
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Brooke Crothers
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AMD Phenom X3 logo
AMD Phenom X3 logo AMD

Advanced Micro Devices will refresh its triple-core X3 processor lineup with versions that fix an outstanding bug. A number of online resellers already list the upcoming processors.

Currently, AMD offers the X3 8400, 8600, and 8700. These are so-called "B2" versions of the processor that contain an extremely rare "TLB" bug. AMD will update this series with a B3 version that fixes the bug in silicon.

A number of resellers already list the Phenom X3 processors as the 8450, 8650, and 8750. The "50" suffix indicates that the bug fix is integrated into the chip.

Though pricing may change, on Friday afternoon, TheNerds.net listed more than 1,000 Phenom X3 8750 (2.4GHz) processors in stock at a price of $218.99. Newegg listed the same processor at $195.

Consumer systems from Hewlett-Packard and Gateway that use the Phenom X3 8400 are on the market today. These desktops are available at Best Buy for as little as $550.

The Phenom X3, when paired with the 780 series chipset, can provide a "full HD experience" and, with the AMD Unified Video Decoder (UVD), can process HD playback on the graphics processing unit (GPU) rather than the CPU, AMD said.

During AMD's first-quarter earnings conference call, AMD chief financial officer, Robert J. Rivet, said that the B3 version of the triple-core Phenom should contribute to AMD's bottom line in the second quarter. Rivet said he expects improvement as AMD continues "to increase the lineup of Phenoms available. (The) quad-core architecture that we also use for triple-core will have good benefit right away," he said.

He also noted that AMD's processor and graphics lineup is consumer-centric. "The wild card issue is the environment we're in...in the consumer space, which is the world we play in mostly."