What is the Speed of Your Computer CPU?

There are so many different types of speeds associated with various components within your personal computer and many people get these variations confused. The computer pcdesigner speed is also known as the computer’s clock speed or clock rate. It means the number of cycles per second that your computer will perform its basic functions. These speeds are measured in hertz frequencies or the frequency of the clock in a synchronous circuit.

Today’s computer CPU is measured in megahertz or gigahertz speeds. So the CPU speed or clock speed or frequency is how many machine cycles can be performed or processed by the CPU in a given amount of time. If you are not a computer scientist this can all seem slightly intimidating or confusing. The bottom line of this determines how fast your personal computer can process your requests or the requests of the operating system and applications you are utilizing.

The key to understanding your computer CPU is to not get it confused with other components within your personal computer or other component speeds. Sometimes people confuse BUS speed with CPU speed. They are not one and the same. CPU is the processor chip within your computer and the BUS is the connection between your CPU and all the other components of your computer. The BUS speed is determined by how quickly the CPU communicates with the other components.

Another common misunderstanding about your computer CPU is that it is the memory. Again the CPU is the processor chip and not memory. Although the CPU utilizes physical and cache memory to aid in its overall processing, these are distinct different functions and components of your overall personal computer. The CPU or processor actually reads or writes to and from these types of memory locations.