The overclockers' favourite

Remember the days when you could take a cheap processor, overclock it to rude levels using basic air cooling, and then achieve the kind of performance normally reserved for far more expensive chips? Those days are largely gone, more's the pity, because AMD's base CPU performance isn't great while Intel limits overclocking on cheaper non-K processors by locking the maximum all-core multiplier and base clock ratio to the chip's default level. Want to go faster, spend the extra and buy a K-series chip.

In a somewhat surprising move disclosed earlier this month, Intel decided to launch a budget processor with K-class overclocking credentials. Said chip is the Pentium Anniversary Edition, based on the same Haswell architecture as the latest Core series, but now with an unlocked multiplier that paves the way for end-user tinkering.

Launched to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first Pentium processor, this new budget chip is actually known as the Pentium G3258. Imbued with two cores and able to process a total of two threads, G3258 is nominally clocked in at 3.20GHz and backed with 3MB of cache. It isn't the fastest Pentium G-series chip on paper; that honour goes to the G3450, which is able to run at a maximum of 3.40GHz. Here's how select Intel processors line up against one another.

Better than it looks on paper

Desktop Intel 'Haswell' Feature Comparison Intel Core i5-4670K Intel Core

i3-4130 Intel Pentium G3450 Intel Pentium G3258 Intel Pentium G3220 Launch Date Q2 2013 Q3 2013 Q2 2014 Q2 2014 Q3 2013 Cores 4 2 2 2 2 Threads 4 4 2 2 2 Unlocked multiplier Yes No No Yes No CPU Clock Speed 3.4GHz 3.4 GHz 3.4GHz 3.2GHz 3.0GHz CPU Turbo Speed 3.8GHz - - - - Smart Cache 6MB 3 MB 3MB 3MB 3MB TDP 84W 54W 53W 53W 53W DDR3 Memory Support 1,600 1,600 1,600 1,333 1,333 Integrated Graphics HD 4600 HD 4400 HD HD HD IGP Execution Units 20 20 10 10 10 IGP Base Clock 350MHz 350 MHz 350MHz 350MHz 350MHz IGP Max Clock 1.20GHz 1.15 GHz 1.10GHz 1.10GHz 1.10GHz QuickSync Video Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Wireless Display Yes Yes No No No ClearVideo HD Yes Yes No No No InTru 3D Yes Yes No No No Displays Supported 3 3 3 3 3 PCI Express Revision 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 PCI Express Configurations Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4 Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4 Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4 Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4 Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4 Max PCI Express Lanes 16 16 16 16 16 Turbo Boost Yes No No No No Hyper Threading No Yes No No No vPro Yes No No No No AES New Instructions Yes Yes No No No Socket LGA1150 LGA1150 LGA1150 LGA1150 LGA1150 US Box RRP $242 $125 $93 $72 $64

The dual-core Pentiums sip on less juice than the Core i5-4670K that most enthusiasts will be familiar with. A leaner architecture - both in terms of CPU and baked-in GPU - means that Pentium Gs are rated to just 53W. Most enthusiasts would likely think the G3258 too low rent for a decent PC, but the very fact that it is unlocked, and has the potential to run at way past 4GHz with a bit of novice tweaking, may have them thinking again, especially with regards to gaming.

Too good to pass up?

We already know that the Pentium G3220, priced at £40, offers excellent value for money. Increasing the budget by a tenner, to this model, is sure to provide significantly more performance once it is adequately overclocked. It's an easy chip to recommend, too, as cheap LGA1150 boards are plentiful, dual-channel memory is widely available, and constructing a base platform hardly breaks the bank.

Putting ourselves in the position of the reader, we'd like to know if default-clocked performance is adequate for a mainstream PC, and whether overclocked performance gives vastly more expensive Core processors a good run for their money. Let's answer both with a slew of benchmarks.