Strengths: Cost, Dual-Core, 800 MHz FSB, great overclocking potential

Weaknesses: Fair performance of the included stock heatsink/fan

Summary: This is an awesome dream chip for every overclocker. This chip is easily overclocked to 2.8 GHz with Gemenii heatsink. I didn't bother to make any other manipulation in BIOS. With the enclosed Intel stock heatsink/fan, I can only make it go to 2.1 GHz without any concern over core temperature.

Strengths: Highly overclockable

Weaknesses: none

Summary: highly recommended if you wanna build a power machine but don't wanna break your budget. Paired it with the GA P35-DS3L motherboard and stock fan, overclocked to 2.88, but couldn't push it higher. I saw many people had it running at 3.2, though.

Strengths: low cost, performance, overclocking capability

Weaknesses: small level 2 cache, overclocking potential varies from processor to processor

Summary: This review is targeted to those who are looking to overclock their processor as this particular chip is well known to overclock significantly. Those who just want a chip to run at stock speed are better off with the slightly faster E2180, E2220 or one of the lower end Core 2 Duos like the E4400 or E4500.I recently decided to build my first computer. I am above average in computer knowledge, but up to now I have always found it cheaper to buy a pre-built computer. I was intitially looking at the E4400 Core 2 Duo which is currently priced at about $120. However, I was intrigued by the Pentium Dual Core, which is essentially a Core 2 Duo with only 1MB cache instead of 2MB or 4MB. I am not a gamer and don't do any video editing or intensive computing, so the smaller Level 2 cache did not dissuade me. There are a couple features absent from the Dual Core (for example, virtualization technology) but for the average computer user these features will not be missed.A heat sink is included in the retail box, but I decided to purchase an after market heat sink because I intended to overclock the processor to its maximum capability. Many users have reported that the stock heat sink can handle an overclock up to about 3Ghz, which is nothing to complain about.My chip has the M0 stepping (as of July 22, 2007 all Dual Cores have been manufactured with M0 stepping rather than L2 stepping). The jury is still out whether or not the M0 version overclocks better than the L2 stepping.The maximum stable processor speed I was able to achieve on an abit IP35-E without exceeding the recommended core voltage was 2.92GHz. This is about average to slightly below average compared to other reports I have seen so far for this chip. The maximum overclock I was able to achieve was 3.33Ghz at 1.5V.I decided to settle on a slightly slower speed (3.1GHz) since running the processor at such high voltage can shorten its life. At 3.1 Ghz, performance is roughly comparable to the E6750 which runs at 2.67Ghz but has a 4MB cache. Since I paid less than $80 for the processor, that makes it an incredible value compared to the higher priced Core 2 Duos. Realistically, I could have gotten by with the stock heat sink, but I only paid $7 after rebate for a Geminii cooler.Performance at 3.1 Ghz is snappy. My previous computer had a 3Ghz Pentium 4 processor and my new rig is twice as fast. I would highly recommend this processor to the budget minded do it yourselfer.

Strengths: Highly overclockable, Affordable

Weaknesses: 1mb L2 cache

Summary: That?s right, you get the same performance from the e2160 dual core chip that rivals the more expense e6850. Disclaimer: The performance is based on overclocking this chip to 3.2Ghz, which is easily done with the right motherboard, memory and power supple. This chip is highly overclockable, some has reached 100% overclockability. Clearly, this is the best bang for you buck. If you?re not going to overclock, look elsewhere, the 1mb L2 cache will hold you back in gaming performance, but is decent for everyday computing.

Strengths: Cheap and fast

Weaknesses: None

Summary: This is essentially a detuned core 2 duo. They are based on the same architecture. It only runs at 1.8GHz but can easily be overclocked with the right board. I have a DG965WH and cannot overclock with it. For the price you can't beat it.