Processor Speed
O One measurement of the processing speed of a CPU is the CPU clock speed. O Computer has a built-in system clock that emits millions of regularly spaced electric pulses per second (known as clock cycles). O It is typically rated in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz). O It takes one cycle to perform a basic operation, such as moving a byte of data from one memory location to another. O Normally, several clock cycles are required to fetch, decode, and execute a single program instruction. O Hence, shorter the clock cycle, faster the processor. O A higher CPU clock speed means that more instructions can be processed per second.
Processor Speed
O For instance, a Core i7 processor running at 3.2 GHz would be faster than a Core i7 processor running at 2.66 GHz if all other components remain the same. O CPUs for the earliest personal computers ran at less than 5 MHz; today’s fastest CPUs have a clock speed of more than 3 GHz. O Although CPU clock speed is an important factor in computer performance, other factors (such as the number of cores, the amount of RAM and cache memory, the speed of external storage devices, and the bus width and bus speed) greatly affect the overall processing.