3DMark2001SE	Source: MadOnion

3DMark2001SE is the latest installment in the 3DMark series by MadOnion. By combining DirectX8 support with completely new graphics, it continues to provide good overall system benchmarks. 3DMark2001 has been created in cooperation with the major 3D accelerator and processor manufacturers to provide a reliable set of diagnostic tools. The suite demonstrates 3D gaming performance by using real-world gaming technology to test a system's true performance abilities. Tests include: DirectX8 Vertex Shaders, Pixel Shaders and Point Sprites, DOT3 and Environment Mapped Bump Mapping, support for Full Scene Anti-aliasing and Texture Compression and two game tests using Ipion real-time physics. Higher 3DMark scores denote better performance.

3DMark2001SE Benchmark Results
	Processor	3DMarks	Ranking
1.	Pentium 4 2 GHz	7514
2.	AthlonXP 2000+	7816
3.	AthlonXP 2100+	8869*
4.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	9179*

3DMark2001SE is much more system intensive then its predicessor and here the AthlonXP 2100+ produces some very nice stock numbers, going as high as 9179 3DMarks when overclocked. *Please note there is a driver difference between these two systems.

PCMark 2002	Source: MadOnion

PCMark is a new benchmark from our pals at MadOnion which a whole system benchmark. It can be used on desktop PC's, Laptops and even Workstations and tests everyday computing from home to office usage. PCMark specifically stresses the CPU, memory subsystem, graphics subsystem, hard drives, WindowsXP GUI (if WinXP is used), video performance and even laptop batteries. This benchmark was released March 12, 2002 and can be downloaded from Madonion if you would like to give it a test run on your computer for comparisons sake... don't cry to hard when you compare your numbers to the ones listed below!

PCMark2002 Benchmark Results
	Processor	PCMarks	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	5195
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	5662
	Memory
3.	AthlonXP 2100+	3293
4.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	3505

Since PCMark2002 is a brand new benchmark, we were not able to include the AthlonXP 2000+ or the Pentium 4 2 GHz systems in this benchmark. We were also not able to get consistent HDD results, so they have been omitted. We benchmarked a P3-700E (not overclocked... yes we're ashamed!) for fun and it scored a lowly 1707 CPU PCMarks.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein	Source: ID Software

Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a relatively new game benchmark. However, RTCW takes up where Quake III left off and continues to form the basis of the first person shooter system stressing that QIII has become a hallmark for. Based upon the Quake III engine, RTCS is obviously going to be quite taxing on even a top end system. Higher numbers denote faster frames per second (FPS), and hence, better performance.

RTCW (Normal 640x480 atdemo6) Benchmark Results
	Processor	(FPS)	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	61.6
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	67.3

RTCW (Normal 640x480 atdemo8) Benchmark Results
	Processor	(FPS)	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	165.4
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	184.3

RTCW (MAX 1024x768 atdemo6) Benchmark Results
	Processor	(FPS)	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	59.2
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	62.7

RTCW (MAX 1024x768 atdemo8) Benchmark Results
	Processor	(FPS)	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	139.4
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	155.1

For the RTCW benchmarks, we only had the AthlonXP 2100+ benchmarks handy. With a AthlonXP 2100+ and a GeForce3 Ti500 playing RTCW is a pleasure. In fact any game would look great!

DroneZ	Source: Zetha Gamez

The game DroneZ was developed to leverage features unique to the GeForce3 nfiniteFX engine and is primarily an OpenGL benchmark. In this rolling demo 423 unique vertex shaders can be are used to create inspiring graphics from a host of game play scenes and provide a realtime test of the DroneZ engine and graphics.

Higher numbers denote faster frames per second (FPS), and hence, better performance.

DroneZ (1024x768) Benchmark Results
	Processor	(FPS)	Ranking
1.	AthlonXP 2100+	113.6
2.	AthlonXP 2100+ (oc'ed)	121.2

DroneZ is one of the newer games out there with many features that can stress a computer to the max, however our AthlonXP 2100+/GeForce3 Ti500 combo doesn't have any problems!

Conclusions:

Did AMD really need to release the AthlonXP 2100+? Well, without the 0.13micron thoroughbred on store shelves AMD needed something compete with Intel over. While the AthlonXP 2100+ does not offer anything in the way of new technology, not every single processor release can realistically be a revolutionary step in new chip design.

Setting aside the obvious performance gain that the extra 67MHz in clock speed bring to the user, this is really a case of keeping up with the Jones's. In this case, AMD has definitely built the faster chip, and given Intel aficionados a reason to scurry. On the other hand with Intel release of the Northwood P4's at 2.2GHz, Intel has managed to take back many of the benchmarks it had previously held.

Since consumers will always be driven to shop by value, AMD will fulfill their requirements by offering a competitively priced processor which simply kicks butt.

The performance of the AthlonXP 2100+ is as good as we have hoped, and from the overclocking perspective, better than I had expected. We were honestly expecting to get not much higher than 1.8GHz with the AGOIA, but were able to POST it as high as 2.015GHz!!! Mind you, POSTing really isn't good for anything more than bragging rights, but still, it looks like AMD is on the cusp of 2.0GHz processors...

Whether or not the Palomino core will live to see another Megahertz stepping remains to be seen, but one thing is for certain, AMD's AthlonXP lineup continues to be an excellent processor for the money (~$420USD)... that, and green is a much better colour.