AMD is replenishing its ranks with five "new" processors which include an ultra affordable dual-core model and a modestly priced hexa-core processor. One of the most interesting processors in this launch is the Phenom II X6 1075T which will be situated between the 1055T and 1090T Black Edition processors in terms of price and performance.
While the Phenom II X6 1055T operates at 2.80GHz and the 1090T Black Edition at 3.20GHz the new 1075T slots in-between them with an operating frequency of 3.0GHz. Along with this new hexa-core processor we also have the Phenom II X4 970 Black Edition, Phenom II X2 560 Black Edition, Athlon II X4 645 and Athlon II X2 265.
The Phenom II X4 970 Black Edition is coming in at the current price point of the Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition ($185), which will have the latter model dropping to $165 where the 955 is right now. The Phenom II X4 925 has already been cut down and the same will likely happen to the 945 which is currently going for $135. This means that the Phenom II X4 lineup will consist of the Phenom II X4 970 Black Edition ($185), 965 Black Edition ($165) and 955 Black Edition ($155), all of which are effectively the same processor. If this happens as planned, then what is most relevant to the consumer is that the Phenom II X4 955 BE will become slightly more affordable.
It is a similar story with the new Phenom II X2 560 Black Edition which will arrive at the same price point of the Phenom II X2 555 BE, effectively bumping it down a level. The Phenom II X2 560 BE is set to cost $99, pushing the Phenom II X2 555 BE down to $89 and likely seeing the end of life for the Phenom II X2 550.
The Athlon II X4 range is also receiving a small performance bump at no added cost. The king of the hill in this family was the Athlon II X4 640 which has now been overruled by the 645 which operates at 3.1GHz and comes in at $99. The Athlon II X4 processors are priced just $5 apart and offer 100MHz speed increments. There are no unlocked "Black Edition" processors in this series, so you are buying a higher clock multiplier as you spend more bit by bit.
Finally we have the new Athlon II X2 265 (3.3GHz) which should come in at around $72 and provide a 100MHz speed bump over the 260 which we imagine will drop down to $66, then the 255 will drop to $63, the 250 should go for $58, and at last the 245 will become the cheapest dual-core processor offered by AMD at just $51.