Editing Athlon

{{Short description|Brand of microprocessors by AMD}}
{{about|the microprocessors|the sports magazine|Athlon Sports|the 2016 Marsheaux album|Ath.Lon}}
{{distinguish|Athlone}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2013}}
[[File:AMD-Athlon-Processor-Logo.svg|thumb|Original AMD Athlon logo]]
[[File:Athlon_logo.png|thumb|Logo used since 2018 for Zen-based Athlon processors]]

'''AMD Athlon''' is the brand name applied to a series of [[x86|x86-compatible]] [[microprocessor]]s designed and manufactured by [[AMD|Advanced Micro Devices]]. The original Athlon (now called Athlon Classic) was the first seventh-generation x86 processor and the first desktop processor to reach speeds of one gigahertz (GHz). It made its debut as AMD's high-end processor brand on June&nbsp;23, 1999.<ref name="A"/> Over the years AMD has used the Athlon name with the 64-bit [[Athlon&nbsp;64]] architecture, the [[Athlon II]], and [[Accelerated Processing Unit]] (APU) chips targeting the [[Socket AM1]] desktop [[System on a chip|SoC]] architecture, and [[Socket&nbsp;AM4]] [[Zen (microarchitecture)]].<ref name="anandtech-20180906">{{cite news |url=https://www.anandtech.com/show/13332/amd-athlon-200ge-55-usd |title=AMD Announces New $55 Low-Power Processor: Athlon 200GE |access-date=2018-09-06 |publisher=AnandTech |last1=Cutress |first1=Ian}}</ref> The modern Zen-based Athlon with a [[Radeon|Radeon Graphics]] processor was introduced in 2019 as AMD's highest-performance entry-level processor.<ref name="F">{{cite news |author=Lucian Armasu |title=AMD's Unlocked Athlon 3000G APU Starts Shipping at $49 |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/news/amd-athlon-3000g-apu-release-specs-price |work=Tom's Hardware |date=November 19, 2019}}</ref><ref name="C">{{cite news |author=Hilbert Hagedoorn |title=AMD Athlon 3000G review |url=https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_athlon_3000g_review,25.html|work=Guru3D |date=December 3, 2019 }}</ref>

== Brand history ==
=== K7 design and development===
The first Athlon processor was a result of AMD's development of K7 processors in the 1990s. AMD founder and then-CEO [[Jerry Sanders (businessman)|Jerry Sanders]]<ref name="HPCwire: 1998"/> aggressively pursued strategic partnerships and engineering talent in the late 1990s, working to build on earlier successes in the PC market with the [[AMD K6]] processor line.<ref name="Sanders promotes: 1998">{{cite news |author=CNET News Staff |title=IBM PCs tout AMD chips |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/ibm-pcs-tout-amd-chips/ |work=CNET |date=April 7, 1998 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref><ref name="WSJ by Brammer: 2002">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=The Next Big Thing |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1028292261927297480 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=August 5, 2002 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> One major partnership announced in 1998 paired AMD with semiconductor giant [[Motorola]]<ref name="HPCwire: 1998">{{cite web |url=http://www.hpcwire.com/hpc-bin/artread.pl?direction=Current&articlenumber=13625|title=Motorola Prepares to Manufacture AMD's Upcoming K7 Chip |publisher=HP |date=August 7, 1998 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928004540/http://www.hpcwire.com/hpc-bin/artread.pl?direction=Current&articlenumber=13625 |archive-date=September 28, 2007}}</ref> to co-develop [[Copper-based chips|copper-based semiconductor technology]], resulting in the K7 project being the first commercial processor to utilize copper [[Semiconductor device fabrication#Back-end-of-line .28BEOL.29 processing|fabrication technology]]. In the announcement, Sanders referred to the partnership as creating a "virtual gorilla" that would enable AMD to compete with [[Intel]] on fabrication capacity while limiting AMD's financial outlay for new facilities.<ref name="HPCwire: 1998"/> The K7 design team was led by [[Dirk Meyer]], who had previously worked as a lead engineer at [[Digital Equipment Corporation|DEC]] on multiple [[DEC Alpha|Alpha]] microprocessors. When DEC was sold to [[Compaq]] in 1998 and discontinued Alpha processor development, Sanders brought most of the Alpha design team to the K7 project.{{Citation needed|date=August 2020}} This added to the previously acquired [[NexGen]] K6 team, which already included engineers such as [[Vinod Dham]].<ref name="TechSpot and Overview">{{cite news |author=Graham Singer |title=The Rise and Fall of AMD |url=https://www.techspot.com/article/599-amd-rise-and-fall/|work=TechSpot |date=November 21, 2012 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref>

=== Original release===
The AMD Athlon processor launched on June 23, 1999, with general availability by August 1999. Subsequently, from August 1999 until January 2002, this initial K7 processor was the fastest x86 chip in the world.<ref name="A"/> Wrote the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' on October&nbsp;5, 1999: "AMD has historically trailed Intel’s fastest processors, but has overtaken the industry leader with the new Athlon. Analysts say the Athlon, which will be used by [[Compaq]], [[IBM]] and other manufacturers in their most powerful PCs, is significantly faster than Intel’s flagship [[Pentium&nbsp;III]], which runs at a top speed of 600MHz."<ref name="LA Times: 1999">{{cite news |author=Charles Piller |title=AMD Boosts Lead Over Intel With New Version of Its Athlon Chip |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-oct-05-fi-19012-story.html |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=October 5, 1999 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> A number of features helped the chips compete with Intel. By working with Motorola, AMD had been able to refine copper interconnect manufacturing about one year before Intel, with the revised process permitting [[180 nm|180-nanometer]] processor production. The accompanying die-shrink resulted in lower power consumption, permitting AMD to increase Athlon clock speeds to the 1&nbsp;GHz range.<ref name="AMD by Press Release: 2000">{{citation |url=https://www.amd.com/us/press-releases/Pages/Press_Release_729.aspx |title=AMD Announces First Revenue Shipments From Dresden "MEGAFAB" |publisher=AMD Press Release |date=June 5, 2000 |access-date=January 6, 2012 |archive-date=March 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316164430/http://www.amd.com/us/press-releases/Pages/Press_Release_729.aspx |url-status=dead }}.</ref> The Athlon architecture also used the [[Alpha 21264#External interface|EV6]] bus licensed from DEC as its main system bus, allowing AMD to develop its own products without needing to license Intel's [[Gunning transceiver logic|GTL+]] bus.<ref name="Buses: Mile Beebee">{{cite news |author=Gary Mauler, Milt Beebe |title=I/O subsystems and capacity planning for clusters |work=Clustering Windows Server: A Road Map for Enterprise Solutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5kx6MWu2eIC&q=EV6+bus+athlon+licensing&pg=PA113 |date=December 19, 2001 |isbn=9780080488493 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> By the summer of 2000, AMD was shipping Athlons at high volume, and the chips were being used in systems by [[Gateway, Inc.|Gateway]], [[Hewlett-Packard]], and [[Fujitsu Siemens Computers]] among others.<ref name="Voume: 2000">{{cite news |author=Richard Ricthmyer |title=AMD's chips hit high gear |url=https://money.cnn.com/2000/08/28/technology/amd/ |work=[[CNN]] |date=August 28, 2000 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref>

===Later Athlon iterations===
The second-generation Athlon, the Thunderbird, debuted in 2000. AMD released the Athlon&nbsp;XP the following year,<ref name="A"/> and the Athlon&nbsp;XP's immediate successor, the [[Athlon&nbsp;64]], was an AMD64-architecture microprocessor released in 2003.<ref name="AMD Press: 2003"/> After the 2007 launch of the [[AMD Phenom|Phenom]] processors, the Athlon name was also used for mid-range processors, positioned above brands such as [[Sempron]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071211104023/http://www.amdboard.com/amdid.html "AMD Athlon/Duron/Sempron CPU identification and OPN breakdown"], amdboard.com.</ref> The [[Athlon&nbsp;64&nbsp;X2]] was released in 2005 as the first native dual-core desktop CPU designed by AMD,<ref name="The Register for Athlon 54: 003"/> and the [[Athlon&nbsp;X2]] was a subsequent family based on the Athlon&nbsp;64&nbsp;X2.<ref name="HotHardware"/>  Introduced in 2009, [[Athlon&nbsp;II]] was a dual-core family of Athlon chips.<ref name="Regor: 2009"/>

A USD$55 low-power Athlon 200GE with a [[Radeon]] graphics processor was introduced in September 2018, sitting under the [[Ryzen&nbsp;3]] 2200G.<ref name="anandtech-20180906"/> This iteration of Athlon used AMD's Zen-based ''Raven Ridge'' core, which in turn had debuted in Ryzen with Radeon graphics processors.<ref name="Again for Anadtech: 2018">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=May 26, 2018 |title=Two New 35W Raven Ridge Parts: AMD Athlon 200GE and Athlon Pro 200GE |url=https://www.anandtech.com/show/12816/two-new-35w-raven-ridge-parts-exist-amd-athlon-200ge-and-athlon-pro-200ge |access-date=August 4, 2020 |work=Anandtech}}</ref> With the release, AMD began using the Athlon brand name to refer to "low-cost, high-volume products", in a situation similar to both Intel's [[Celeron]] and Pentium Gold.<ref name="anandtech-20180906"/> The modern Athlon 3000G was introduced in 2019 and was positioned as AMD's highest-performance entry-level processor.<ref name="F"/> AMD positions the Athlon against its rival, the [[Intel Pentium]]. While CPU processing performance is in the same ballpark,<ref name="Tom's Hardware and Carbotte: 2019"/> the Athlon 3000G uses [[Radeon RX Vega series|Radeon Vega]] graphics,<ref name="F"/> which are rated as more powerful than the Pentium's [[Intel UHD Graphics]].<ref name="Tom's Hardware and Carbotte: 2019">{{cite news |author=Kevin Carbotte |title=AMD Athlon vs Intel Pentium: Which Cheap Chips Are Best? |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/news/amd-athlon-intel-pentium-showdown,38737.html |work=Tom's Hardware |date=March 4, 2019 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref>

== Generations ==
{{Main|List of AMD Athlon processors}}

===Athlon Classic (1999)===
{{Infobox CPU
| name = Athlon Classic
| image = AMD-Athlon-Processor-Logo.svg
| caption = The logo of the Athlon "Classic"
| produced-start = June 23, 1999
| produced-end = 
| slowest = 500 | slow-unit = MHz
| fastest = 1400 | fast-unit = MHz
| fsb-slowest = 100 | fsb-slow-unit = Mhz
| fsb-fastest = 133 | fsb-fast-unit = Mhz
| size-from = 250 nm
| size-to = 180 nm
| manuf1 = AMD    
| core1 = Argon (K7)
| core2 = Pluto/Orion (K75)
| core3 = Thunderbird
| predecessor = [[AMD K6-III|K6-III]]
| successor = [[Athlon XP]]
| sock1 = [[Slot A]]
| sock2 = [[Socket A]]
| sock3 = [[Socket 563]]
| arch = [[x86]]
}}

The AMD Athlon processor launched on June 23, 1999, with general availability by August 1999. Subsequently, from August 1999 until January 2002, this initial K7 processor was the fastest x86 chip in the world.<ref name="A">{{Cite web |url=http://www.cpu-collection.de/?l0=co&l1=amd&l2=athlon |title=amd athlon |website=cpu-collection.de |access-date=2017-02-24}}</ref> At launch it was, on average, 10% faster than the Pentium&nbsp;III at the same clock for business applications and 20% faster for gaming workloads.<ref name="Shimpy for AnadTech: 1999">{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/355/3 |title=AMD Athlon |date=August 9, 1999 |access-date=January 6, 2012 |quote=The performance of the K7, then clocked at 500&nbsp;MHz, was on par with a Pentium&nbsp;III&nbsp;500.}}</ref> In commercial terms, the Athlon "Classic" was an enormous success.<ref name="Anandtech Heaven: 2001"/>

;Features
[[Image:Amd athlon classic.jpg|left|thumb|Logo on Slot A Athlon cartridge]]

The Athlon Classic is a cartridge-based processor, named [[Slot&nbsp;A]] and similar to Intel's cartridge [[Slot&nbsp;1]] used for Pentium&nbsp;II and Pentium&nbsp;III. It used the same, commonly available, physical 242-pin connector used by Intel Slot&nbsp;1 processors but rotated by 180&nbsp;degrees to connect the processor to the [[motherboard]]. The cartridge assembly allowed the use of higher-speed cache memory modules than could be put on (or reasonably bundled with) motherboards at the time. Similar to the Pentium&nbsp;II and the Katmai-based Pentium&nbsp;III, the Athlon Classic contained 512&nbsp;KB of L2 cache. This high-speed [[Static random-access memory|SRAM]] cache was run at a divisor of the processor clock and was accessed via its own 64-bit [[back-side bus]], allowing the processor to service both [[front-side bus]] requests and cache accesses simultaneously, as compared to pushing everything through the front-side bus.<ref name="Aces Hrdware by Gels: 1999">{{citation |author=De Gelas, Johan |url=http://aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=71|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011225163156/http://aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=71 |title=Clash of Silicon, The Athlon 650 |publisher=Ace's Hardware |date=September 29, 1999 |archive-date=December 25, 2001 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref>

The Argon-based Athlon contained 22 million transistors and measured 184&nbsp;mm<sup>2</sup>. It was fabricated by AMD in a version of their CS44E process, a 250&nbsp;nm [[complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor]] (CMOS) process with six levels of [[aluminium interconnect]].<ref name="JSSC-1999-11-11">{{citation |author=Golden, Michael |year=1999 |title=A Seventh-Generation x86 Microprocessor |journal=[[IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits]] |volume=34 |issue=11 |pages=1466–1477 |doi=10.1109/4.799851|bibcode=1999IJSSC..34.1466G |display-authors=etal}}.</ref><ref name="MPR-1998-10-26">{{citation |author=Keith Diefendorff|author-link=Keith Diefendorff |title=K7 Challenges Intel |journal=[[Microprocessor Report]] |date=October 26, 1998 |volume=12 |issue=14 |url=http://www3.hi.is/~hh/kennsla/ht/Athlon.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www3.hi.is/~hh/kennsla/ht/Athlon.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> "Pluto" and "Orion" Athlons were fabricated in a 180&nbsp;nm process.<ref name="PC Hardware in a Nuthshell"/>

[[Image:Athlon arch.png|thumb|left|350px|Athlon architecture]]
[[Image:Slot-A Athlon.jpg|thumb|250px|An open Slot A cartridge. MPU die is in the center.]]
[[Image:Argonathlon.jpg|thumb|250px|Athlon Slot A cartridge. Note heat sink and cooling fan assembly on rear side.]]
The Athlon's [[CPU cache]] consisted of the typical two levels. Athlon was the first x86 processor with a 128&nbsp;[[kilobyte|KB]]<ref>{{BDprefix|p=b}}</ref> split level-1 cache; a [[CPU cache|2-way associative]] cache separated into 2×64&nbsp;KB for data and instructions (a concept from [[Harvard architecture]]).<ref name=PaulHsieh /> SRAM cache designs at the time were incapable of keeping up with the Athlon's clock scalability, resulting in compromised CPU performance in some computers.<ref name="Anandtech again: 2000">{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1189&p=2|title=AMD Athlon 1&nbsp;GHz, 950&nbsp;MHz, 900&nbsp;MHz |publisher=Anandtech |page=2 |date=March 6, 2000}}.</ref> With later Athlon models, AMD would integrate the L2 cache onto the processor itself, removing dependence on external cache chips.<ref name="PC Hardware in a Nuthshell">{{cite news |author=Robert Bruce Thompson, Barbara Fritchman |title=PC Hardware in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kG8LcWfruOAC&q=thoroughbred+A+die+shrink+palomino&pg=PT64 |work=Thompson |date=July 24, 2003 |isbn=9780596552343|access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> The Slot-A Athlons were the first multiplier-locked CPUs from AMD, preventing users from setting their own desired clock speed. This was done by AMD in part to hinder CPU remarking and overclocking by resellers, which could result in inconsistent performance. Eventually a product called the "Goldfingers device" was created that could unlock the CPU.<ref name="Overclockers: 2000">{{citation |author=Jim Noonan; James Rolfe |url=http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/r_gfd1/ |title=Athlon Gold-Finger Devices |publisher=Overclockers.com.au |date=March 21, 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201190219/http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/r_gfd1/ |archive-date=February 1, 2009 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref>

AMD designed the CPU with more robust x86 instruction decoding capabilities than that of K6, to enhance its ability to keep more data in-flight at once.<ref name=PaulHsieh>{{citation |author=Paul Hsieh |url=http://www.azillionmonkeys.com/qed/cpujihad.shtml|title=7th Generation CPU Comparisons |date=August 11, 1999 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> The critical branch-predictor unit was enhanced compared to the K6. Deeper pipelining with more stages allowed higher clock speeds to be attained.<ref name="De Gelas: 2001">De Gelas, Johan. [https://web.archive.org/web/20011124231810/http://www.aceshardware.com/Spades/read.php?article_id=50 The Secrets of High Performance CPUs, Part 1], Ace's Hardware, September 29, 1999.</ref> Like the AMD K5 and K6, the Athlon dynamically buffered internal micro-instructions at runtime resulting from parallel x86 instruction decoding. The CPU is an [[Out-of-order execution|out-of-order]] design, again like previous post-5x86 AMD CPUs. The Athlon utilizes the [[Alpha 21264]]'s EV6 bus architecture with [[double data rate]] (DDR) technology.{{citation needed|date=August 2020}}

AMD ended its long-time handicap with [[floating point]] [[x87]] performance by designing a super-[[Pipeline (computing)|pipelined]], out-of-order, triple-issue [[floating-point unit]] (FPU).<ref name=PaulHsieh /> Each of its three units could independently calculate an optimal type of instructions with some redundancy, making it possible to operate on more than one floating-point instruction at once.<ref name=PaulHsieh /> This FPU was a huge step forward for AMD, helping compete with Intel's [[P6 (microarchitecture)|P6]] FPU.<ref name="Pabst for Toms: 1999">{{citation |author=Pabst, Thomas |url=http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/performance,124-7.html|title=Performance-Showdown between Athlon and Pentium III |publisher=Tom's Hardware |date=August 23, 1999 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> The [[3DNow!]] floating-point [[Single instruction, multiple data|SIMD]] technology, again present, received some revisions and was renamed "Enhanced 3DNow!" Additions included [[digital signal processing|DSP]] instructions and the [[extended MMX]] subset of [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|Intel&nbsp;SSE]].<ref name="Womack for Womack: 2012">{{citation |author=Womack, Tom |url=http://www.tom.womack.net/x86FAQ/faq_features.html |title=Extensions to the x86 architecture |access-date=January 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120115195956/http://www.tom.womack.net/x86FAQ/faq_features.html |archive-date=January 15, 2012 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}.</ref>

;Specifications
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (data + instructions)
* L2-cache: 512&nbsp;KB, external chips on CPU module with 50%, 40% or 33% of CPU speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]]
* [[Slot A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]:100&nbsp;MHz (200MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.6&nbsp;V (K7), 1.6–1.8&nbsp;V (K75)
* First release: June 23, 1999 (K7), November 29, 1999 (K75)
* Clock-rate: 500–700&nbsp;MHz (K7), 550–1000&nbsp;MHz (K75)

===Athlon Thunderbird (2000–2001)===
[[File:KL AMD Athlon XP Thunderbird.jpg|right|thumb|150px|Athlon "Thunderbird"]]

The second-generation Athlon, the '''Thunderbird''' or '''T-Bird''', debuted on June&nbsp;4, 2000.<ref name="A"/> This version of the Athlon was available in a traditional [[Pin grid array|pin-grid array]] (PGA) format that plugged into a socket ("[[Socket&nbsp;A]]") on the motherboard, or packaged as a Slot&nbsp;A cartridge. The major difference between it and the Athlon Classic was cache design, with AMD adding in 256&nbsp;KB of on-chip, full-speed exclusive cache.<ref name=SandpileK7/> In moving to an [[CPU cache#Multi-level caches|exclusive cache design]], the L1 cache's contents were not duplicated in the L2, increasing total cache size and functionally creating a large L1 cache with a slower region (the L2) and a fast region (the L1),<ref name="Ares for Ares Technica: 2005">{{citation |author=Stokes, John |url=https://arstechnica.com/old/content/2005/02/amd-hammer-1.ars/9|title=Inside AMD's Hammer: the 64-bit architecture behind the Opteron and Athlon 64 |publisher=Ars Technica |page=9 |date=February 1, 2005 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> making the L2 cache into basically a [[CPU cache#Victim cache|victim cache]]. With the new cache design, need for high L2 performance and size was lessened, and the simpler L2 cache was less likely to cause clock scaling and yield issues. Thunderbird also moved to a [[CPU cache#Associativity|16-way associative]] layout.<ref name=SandpileK7>{{citation |url=http://www.sandpile.org/impl/k7.htm |title=K7 microarchitecture information|publisher=Sandpile.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991013102053/http://sandpile.org/impl/k7.htm |archive-date=October 13, 1999 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref>

The Thunderbird was "cherished by many for its overclockability" and proved commercially successful,<ref name="TechSpot and Overview"/> as AMD's most successful product since the [[Am386|Am386DX-40]] ten years earlier.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Red Hill CPU Guide: transition to the 386 |url=https://www.redhill.net.au/c/c-3.html |access-date=2020-06-06 |website=www.redhill.net.au}}</ref> AMD's new [[Semiconductor fabrication plant|fab]] facility in [[Dresden]] increased production for AMD overall and put out Thunderbirds at a fast rate, with the process technology improved by a switch to copper interconnects.<ref name="EEtimes and Robertson: in 2000">{{cite news |author=Jack Robertson |title=Dresden fab is putting AMD back on the manufacturing map |url=https://www.eetimes.com/dresden-fab-is-putting-amd-back-on-the-manufacturing-map/ |work=EE Times |date=April 24, 2000 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> After several versions were released in 2000 and 2001 of the Thunderbird, the last Athlon processor using the Thunderbird core was released in 2001 in the summer, at which point speeds were at 1.4&nbsp;GHz.<ref name="A"/>

[[File:Athlon Tbird 900 slot A.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Open Athlon Thunderbird Slot&nbsp;A cartridge]]

;Specifications
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (data + instructions)
* L2-cache: 256&nbsp;KB, full speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]]
* [[Slot A]] & [[Socket A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]: 100&nbsp;MHz (Slot-A, B-models), 133&nbsp;MHz (C-models) (200&nbsp;MT/s, 266&nbsp;MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.70–1.75&nbsp;V
* First release: June 4, 2000
* Transistor count: 37 million
* Manufacturing process: /180&nbsp;nm
* Clock rate:
** [[Slot A]]: 650–1000&nbsp;MHz
** [[Socket A]], 100&nbsp;MHz FSB (B-models): 600–1400&nbsp;MHz
** [[Socket A]], 133&nbsp;MHz FSB (C-models): 1000–1400&nbsp;MHz

===<span id="Athlon XP/MP"></span>Athlon XP (2001–2003)===
{{See also|List of AMD Athlon XP processors}}

{{Infobox CPU
| name =AMD Athlon XP
| image = File:AMD Athlon XP Logo.jpg
| caption = AMD Athlon logo used for Athlon XP
| produced-start = October 9, 2001
| variant = 
| predecessor =Athlon Thunderbird
| successor =[[Athlon 64]]
|core1=''Palomino''<br>''Thoroughbred''<br>''Thorton''<br>''Barton''<br>''Corvette''<br>''Dublin''|soldby=AMD|created=|fsb-slowest=266|fsb-slow-unit=MT/s|fsb-fastest=400|fsb-fast-unit=MT/s|designfirm=AMD|slowest=850|slow-unit=MHz|fastest=2333|fast-unit=Mhz|manuf1=AMD|microarch=K7|sock1=Socket A|size-from=180 nm|size-to=130 nm}}

Overall, there are four main variants of the Athlon XP desktop CPU: the ''Palomino'', the ''Thoroughbred'', the ''Thorton'', and the ''Barton''. A number of mobile processors were also released, including the ''Corvette'' models, and the ''Dublin'' model among others.

====''Palomino''==== <!-- This section is linked from [[Duron]] -->

[[File:KL AMD Athlon XP Palomino.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Athlon XP "Palomino" 2000+]]

On May 14, 2001, AMD released the '''Athlon XP''' processor. It debuted as the '''Mobile Athlon&nbsp;4''', a mobile version codenamed ''Corvette'', with the desktop Athlon&nbsp;XP released in the fall.<ref name="A"/> The third-generation Athlon, code-named ''Palomino'', came out on October&nbsp;9, 2001, as the Athlon&nbsp;XP, with the suffix signifying ''extreme performance'' and unofficially referencing [[Windows&nbsp;XP]].<ref name="AMD for AMD: 2007">.</ref> ''Palomino's'' design used 180&nbsp;nm fabrication process size.<ref name="PC Hardware in a Nuthshell"/> The Athlon&nbsp;XP was marketed using a [[Performance Rating|performance rating]] (PR) system comparing it to the Thunderbird predecessor core.<ref name="Wasson for Tech Report: 2001">{{citation |author=Wasson, Scott |url=http://techreport.com/articles.x/3086/1|title=AMD's Athlon XP 1900+ processor: Pouring it on |publisher=The Tech Report |page=1 |date=November 5, 2001 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> Among other changes, ''Palomino'' consumed 20% less power than the Thunderbird, comparatively reducing heat output,<ref name="Wasson for Tech Report Again: 2001">{{citation |author=Wasson, Scott |url=http://techreport.com/articles.x/2975/1|title=AMD's Athlon XP 1800+ processor: 1533 > 1800 |publisher=The Tech Report |date=October 9, 2001 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> and was roughly 10% faster than Thunderbird. ''Palomino'' also had enhanced K7's [[Translation lookaside buffer|TLB]] architecture and included a hardware data [[Instruction prefetch|prefetch]] mechanism to take better advantage of memory bandwidth. ''Palomino'' was the first K7 core to include the full [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|SSE]] instruction set from the Intel Pentium&nbsp;III, as well as AMD's [[3DNow!|3DNow! Professional]].<ref name=Athlon4Anand>{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/766/4|title=AMD Athlon 4 – The Palomino is Here |publisher=Anandtech |pages=4–5 |date=May 14, 2001 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> ''Palomino'' was also the first socketed Athlon officially supporting dual processing, with chips certified for that purpose branded as the '''Athlon&nbsp;MP''' (multi processing),<ref name="Anandtech Heaven: 2001">{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/780|title=AMD 760MP & Athlon MP – Dual Processor Heaven |publisher=Anandtech |date=June 5, 2001 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}</ref> which had different specifications.<ref name="AMD KY: Year 2005?">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=AMD's Technical Specifications for 7th generation CPUs |url=http://www.amd.com/gb-uk/assets/content_type/DownloadableAssets/K7_Electrical_Specification_Rev_ENG.pdf|work=AMD |date=2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051211094608/http://www.amd.com/gb-uk/assets/content_type/DownloadableAssets/K7_Electrical_Specification_Rev_ENG.pdf |archive-date=December 11, 2005 }}</ref> According to [[HardwareZone]], it was possible to modify the Athlon XP to function as an MP.<ref name="HW Zone: Modding">{{cite news |author=Jimmy Tang |title=Modding the Athlon XP into an MP |url=http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=393|work=Hardware Zone |date=March 15, 2002}}</ref><ref name="HW Zone 2: Modding Barton">{{cite news |author=Jimmy Tang |title=Modding the Barton XP to a Barton MP |url=http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=747|work=Hardware Zone |date=May 12, 2003 }}</ref>

;Specifications
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (data + instructions)
* L2-cache: 256&nbsp;KB, full speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]], [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|SSE]]
* [[Socket A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]: 133&nbsp;MHz (266&nbsp;MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.50 to 1.75&nbsp;V
* Power consumption: 68&nbsp;W
* First release: October 9, 2001
* Clock-rate:
** Athlon 4: 850–1400&nbsp;MHz
** Athlon XP: 1333–1733&nbsp;MHz (1500+ to 2100+)
** Athlon MP: 1000–1733&nbsp;MHz

====''Thoroughbred''====
[[File:KL AMD Athlon XP Thoroughbred.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Athlon XP "Thoroughbred B" 2400+]]

The fourth-generation of Athlon was introduced with the ''Thoroughbred'' core, or ''T-Bred'', on April&nbsp;17, 2002.<ref name="TbredCoreStep">{{citation |url=http://www.cpu-world.com/Cores/Thoroughbred.html|title=AMD Athlon Thoroughbred core |date=May 2, 2011 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> The ''Thoroughbred'' core marked AMD's first production 130&nbsp;nm silicon, with smaller die size than its predecessor.<ref name="PC Hardware in a Nuthshell"/> There came to be two [[Stepping level|steppings]] (revisions) of this core commonly referred to as ''Tbred-A'' and ''Tbred-B''.<ref name="TbredCoreStep"/> Introduced in June 2002, the initial A&nbsp;version was mostly a direct [[die shrink]] of the preceding ''Palomino'' core, but did not significantly increase clock speeds over the ''Palomino''.<ref name="PC Hardware in a Nuthshell"/> A revised ''Thoroughbred'' core, ''Thoroughbred-B'', added a ninth "metal layer" to the eight-layered ''Thoroughbred-A'', offering improvement in headroom over the A and making it popular for overclocking.<ref name="AnandTbredB">{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/972/3 |title=Introducing Thoroughbred Revision B |publisher=Anandtech |date=August 21, 2002 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref>

;Specifications
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (data + instructions)
* L2-cache: 256&nbsp;KB, full speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]], [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|SSE]]
* [[Socket A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]: 133/166&nbsp;MHz (266/333&nbsp;MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.50–1.65&nbsp;V
* First release: June 10, 2002 (A), August 21, 2002 (B)
* Clock-rate:
** Thoroughbred "A": 1400–1800&nbsp;MHz (1600+ to 2200+)
** Thoroughbred "B": 1400–2250&nbsp;MHz (1600+ to 2800+)
** 133&nbsp;MHz FSB: 1400–2133&nbsp;MHz (1600+ to 2600+)
** 166&nbsp;MHz FSB: 2083–2250&nbsp;MHz (2600+ to 2800+)

====''Barton'' / ''Thorton''====
[[File:KL AMD Athlon XP Barton.jpg|thumb|150px|Athlon XP "Barton" 2500+]]

Fifth-generation Athlon ''Barton''-core processors were released in early 2003. While not operating at higher clock rates than ''Thoroughbred''-core processors, they featured an increased L2 cache, and later models had an increased 200&nbsp;MHz (400&nbsp;MT/s) front side bus.<ref name=AceBarton>{{citation |author=De Gelas, Johan |url=http://www.aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=50000364 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030324002539/http://www.aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=50000364|title=Barton: 512 KB Athlon XP Reviewed |publisher=Ace's Hardware |date=February 10, 2003 |archive-date=March 24, 2003 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> The ''Thorton'' core, a blend of ''Thoroughbred'' and ''Barton'', was a later variant of the ''Barton'' with half of the L2 cache disabled.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cpu-world.com/Cores/Thorton.html |title=AMD Thorton core}}</ref> The ''Barton'' was used to officially introduce a higher 400&nbsp;MT/s bus clock for the Socket&nbsp;A platform, which was used to gain some ''Barton'' models more efficiency.<ref name=AceBarton /> By this point with the ''Barton'', the four-year-old Athlon EV6&nbsp;bus architecture had scaled to its limit and required a redesign to exceed the performance of newer Intel processors.<ref name=AceBarton /> By 2003, the [[Pentium&nbsp;4]] had become more than competitive with AMD's processors,<ref name=BartonAnand>{{citation |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/1066|title=AMD's Athlon XP 3000+: Barton cuts it close |publisher=AnandTech |date=February 10, 2003 |access-date=January 6, 2012}}.</ref> and ''Barton'' only saw a small performance increase over the ''Thoroughbred-B'' it derived from,<ref name=AceBarton /> insufficient to outperform the Pentium&nbsp;4.<ref name=BartonAnand /> The K7-derived Athlons such as ''Barton'' were replaced in September 2003 by the [[AMD K8|Athlon&nbsp;64]] family, which featured an [[Memory controller|on-chip memory controller]] and a new [[HyperTransport]] bus.<ref name="Wasson for Tech Report again I think: 2020">{{cite web |url=https://techreport.com/review/6070/amds-athlon-64-3400-processor/|title=AMD's Athlon 64 3400+ process|author=Scott Wasson |date=January 6, 2020|publisher=The Tech Report |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref>

Notably, the 2500+ Barton with 11× multiplier was effectively identical to the 3200+ part other than the FSB speed it was binned for, meaning that seamless overclocking was possible more often than not. Early Thortons could be restored to the full Barton specification with the enabling of the other half of the L2 cache from a slight CPU surface modification, but the result was not always reliable.

;Specifications:
''Barton (130&nbsp;nm)''
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (data + instructions)
* L2-cache: 512&nbsp;KB, full speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]], [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|SSE]]
* [[Socket A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]: 166/200&nbsp;MHz (333/400&nbsp;MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.65&nbsp;V
* First release: February 10, 2003
* Clock rate: 1833–2333&nbsp;MHz (2500+ to 3200+)
** 133&nbsp;MHz FSB: 1867–2133&nbsp;MHz (2500+ to 2800+); uncommon
** 166&nbsp;MHz FSB: 1833–2333&nbsp;MHz (2500+ to 3200+)
** 200&nbsp;MHz FSB: 2100, 2200&nbsp;MHz (3000+, 3200+)

''Thorton (130&nbsp;nm)''
* L1-cache: 64 + 64&nbsp;KB (Data + Instructions)
* L2-cache: 256&nbsp;KB, full speed
* [[MMX (instruction set)|MMX]], [[3DNow!]], [[Streaming SIMD Extensions|SSE]]
* [[Socket A]] (EV6)
* [[Front-side bus]]: 133/166/200&nbsp;MHz (266/333/400&nbsp;MT/s)
* Vcore: 1.50–1.65&nbsp;V
* First release: September 2003
* Clock rate: 1667–2200&nbsp;MHz (2000+ to 3100+)
** 133&nbsp;MHz FSB: 1600–2133&nbsp;MHz (2000+ to 2600+)
** 166&nbsp;MHz FSB: 2083&nbsp;MHz (2600+)
** 200&nbsp;MHz FSB: 2200&nbsp;MHz (3100+)

====Mobile Athlon XP==== <!-- This section is linked from [[Transmeta]] -->
[[File:Athlon XPM 2400l.jpg|thumb|225px|Athlon XP Mobile "Barton" 2400+]]

The ''Palomino'' core debuted in the mobile market before the PC market in May 2001, where it was branded as '''Mobile Athlon&nbsp;4''' with the codename "Corvette". It distinctively used a [[Pin grid array|ceramic]] [[interposer]] much like the ''Thunderbird'' instead of the [[organic pin grid array]] package used on all later ''Palomino'' processors.<ref name=Athlon4Anand /> In November 2001, AMD released a 1.2&nbsp;GHz Athlon&nbsp;4 and a 950&nbsp;MHz Duron.<ref name="ZAdnet and Broersma: 2001">{{cite news |author= Matthew Broersma|title=XP blacks out AMD power management |url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/xp-blacks-out-amd-power-management/|work=ZDNet |date=November 13, 2001 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref> The Mobile Athlon&nbsp;4 processors included the [[PowerNow!]] function, which controlled a laptop's "level of processor performance by dynamically adjusting its operating frequency and voltage according to the task at hand",<ref name="Newowin and Parker: 2001">{{cite news |author=Steven Parker |title=Windows XP Patch: AMD Power Now availability in XP |url=https://www.neowin.net/news/windows-xp-patch-amd-power-now-availability-in-xp/|work=Neowin |date=October 19, 2001 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref> thus extending "battery life by reducing processor power when it isn't needed by applications". Duron chips also included PowerNow!<ref name="ZAdnet and Broersma: 2001"/> In 2002, AMD released a version of PowerNow! called [[Cool'n'Quiet]], implemented on the Athlon&nbsp;XP but only adjusting clock speed instead of voltage.<ref name="Extremetech by Hachmann in: 2002">{{cite news |author=Mark Hachmann |title=AMD Offering Version of PowerNow! For Athlon XP |url=https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/72736-amd-offering-version-of-powernow-for-athlon-xp |work=ExtremeTech |date=January 25, 2002 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref>

In 2002 the '''Athlon XP-M''' (Mobile Athlon XP) replaced the Mobile Athlon&nbsp;4 using the newer ''Thoroughbred'' core,<ref name="Extremetech this time: 2002">{{cite news |author=March Hachmann |title=Update: AMD Launches Mobile Athlon XP|url=https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/50960-update-amd-launches-mobile-athlon-xp|work=Extreme Tech |date=April 17, 2002 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref> with ''Barton'' cores for full-size notebooks. The Athlon XP-M was also offered in a compact microPGA [[socket&nbsp;563]] version.<ref name="ExtremeTech again: 2003">{{cite news |author=Mark Hachman |title=Update AMD Announces Mobile Athlon XP |url=https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/53682-update-amd-announces-mobile-athlon-xp|work=Extreme Tech |date=March 12, 2003 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref> Mobile XPs were not [[CPU multiplier|multiplier]]-locked, making them popular with desktop [[overclocking|overclockers]].<ref name="Toms again: 2013 this time">{{cite news |author=Don Woligroski |title=14 Of The Most Legendary Overclocking-Friendly CPUs |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/picturestory/636-best-overclocking-cpu.html |work=Tom's Hardware |date=2013 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref>

===Athlon 64 (2003–2009)===
{{See also|List of AMD Athlon 64 processors}}

The immediate successor to the Athlon XP, the [[Athlon&nbsp;64]] is an AMD64-architecture microprocessor produced by AMD, released on September&nbsp;23, 2003.<ref name="AMD Press: 2003">{{cite news |author=John G. Spooner |title=AMD's Athlon steps up to 64 bits |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/amds-athlon-steps-up-to-64-bits/ |work=[[CNET]] |date=September 23, 2003 |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref> A number of variations, all named after cities, were released with 90&nbsp;nm architecture in 2004 and 2005. Versions [[List of AMD Athlon 64 processors|released in 2007 and 2009]] utilized 65&nbsp;nm architecture.

===Athlon 64 X2 (2005–2009)===
{{See also|List of AMD Athlon X2 processors}}

The [[Athlon 64 X2]] was released in 2005 as the first native dual-core desktop CPU designed by AMD using an Athlon&nbsp;64.<ref name="The Register for Athlon 54: 003">{{cite news |author=Tony Smith |title=AMD launches dual-core Athlon 64 X2 |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/31/amd_athlon_64_x2/ |work=[[The Register]] |date=May 31, 2005 |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref> The [[Athlon&nbsp;X2]] was a subsequent family of microprocessors based on the Athlon&nbsp;64&nbsp;X2. The original ''Brisbane'' Athlon&nbsp;X2 models used 65&nbsp;nm architecture and were released in 2007.<ref name="HotHardware">{{cite news |author=Jeff Bouton |title=AMD Athlon X2 BE-2350 and BE-2300 "Brisbane" Processors |url=https://hothardware.com/reviews/amd-be2350 |work=Hot Hardware |date=June 5, 2007 |access-date=August 3, 2020 |archive-date=July 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200706180719/https://hothardware.com/reviews/amd-be2350 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Athlon II (2009–2012) ===
{{See also|List of AMD Athlon II processors}}

[[Athlon II]] is a family of central processing units. Initially a dual-core version of the Athlon&nbsp;II, the [[AMD 10h|K-10]]-based ''[[Athlon II#Regor (45 nm SOI with immersion lithography)|Regor]]'' was released in June 2009 with 45-nanometer architecture. This was followed by a single-core version ''Sargas'',<ref name="Regor: 2009">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=AMD Regor Core |url=http://www.cpu-world.com/Cores/Regor.html|work=CPU World |date=2009 |access-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref> followed by the quad-core ''Propus'', the triple-core ''Rana'' in November 2009,<ref name="Tom again: 2009">{{cite news |author=Patrick Schmid and Achim Roos |title=AMD Athlon II X4 620: Quad Core For The Masses At $100 |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/athlon-ii-propus,2414.html |work=Tom's Hardware |date=September 16, 2009 |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref> and the ''Llano'' 32&nbsp;nm version released in 2011.<ref name="Tom's Hardware Llano: 2012">{{cite news |author=Don Woligroski |title=Picking A Sub-$200 Gaming CPU: FX, An APU, Or A Pentium?|url=https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120.html |work=Tom's Hardware |date=January 30, 2012 |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref>

=== Piledriver and Steamroller-based Athlon X4 (2013–2016) ===
{{main|Athlon X4#"Kaveri" (2014, 28 nm)}}
Various Steamroller-based Athlon X4 and X2 FM2+ socketed processors were released in 2014 and the years after. The preceding Piledriver-based Athlon X4 and X2 processors were released before 2014, and are socket compatible with both FM2+ and FM2 mainboards.

=== Excavator-based Athlon X4 (2017) ===
{{main|Athlon X4#"Bristol Ridge" (2017, 28 nm)}}
The ''Bristol Ridge'' Athlon X4 lineup was released in 2017. It is based on the [[Excavator microarchitecture]] and uses 2 Excavator modules totalling 4 cores. It has a dual-channel [[DDR4]]-2400 memory controller with clock speeds up to 4.0&nbsp;GHz. It runs on the new [[Socket AM4]] platform that was later used for Zen 1 to Zen 3 CPUs.

===Zen-based Athlon (2018–present)===
{{Infobox CPU
| name =Zen based Athon
| image = <!-- AMD-Athlon-Processor-Logo.svg --> Athlon_logo.png
| caption = AMD Athlon logo used for Zen-based models
| produced-start = September 6, 2018
| produced-end = 
| slowest =  | slow-unit = 
| fastest = 3.5 | fast-unit = GHz
| size-from = 14 nm
| size-to = 6 nm
| manuf1 = [[AMD]]
| core1 =  ''Raven Ridge''
| core2 =  ''Picasso''
| core3 =  ''Mendocino''
| predecessor = Athlon Classic<br>Athlon Thunderbird<br>Athlon XP/MP<br>[[Athlon 64]]<br>[[Athlon 64 X2]]<br>[[Athlon X2]]<br>[[Athlon II]]<br>[[AMD APU]]
| successor =
| sock1 =
| sock2 =
| sock3 =
| arch = [[x86-64]]
| microarch = [[Zen (first generation)|Zen]] (with [[Radeon]] Graphics)<br >[[Zen+]] (with Radeon Graphics)<br >[[Zen 2]] (with Radeon Graphics)
}}

The [[Zen (microarchitecture)|Zen]]-based Athlon with [[Radeon]] graphics processors was launched in September 2018 with the Athlon&nbsp;200GE.<ref name="A Shilove for Anadtech: 2018">{{cite news |author=Anton Shilov |title=AMD's Athlon 22GE Processors Now Available |url=https://www.anandtech.com/show/13376/amds-athlon-200ge-processors-now-available |work=[[Anandtech]] |date=September 21, 2018 |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref> Based on AMD's ''Raven Ridge'' core previously used in variants of the [[Ryzen&nbsp;3]] and [[Ryzen&nbsp;5]],<ref name="Again for Anadtech: 2018"/> the Athlon&nbsp;200GE had half of the cores but left [[Simultaneous multithreading|SMT]] enabled. It also kept the same 4&nbsp;MiB [[L3 cache]],<ref name="A Shilove for Anadtech: 2018"/> but the [[L2 cache]] was halved to 1&nbsp;MiB.<ref name="CNET: 2018"/>

In addition, the number of graphics compute units was limited to 3 in the Athlon&nbsp;200GE,<ref name="AMD Press release:2018">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=AMD Reimagines Everyday Computing with New "Zen" Based Athlon™ Desktop Processors, Expands Commercial Client Portfolio with 2nd Generation Ryzen™ PRO Desktop Processors |url=https://www.amd.com/en/press-releases/2018-09-06-amd-reimagines-everyday-computing-new-zen-based-athlon-desktop-processors |work=AMD |date=September 6, 2018 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> and the chip was multiplier-locked.<ref name="Guru Hegaedoom: 2018">{{cite news |author=Hilbert Hagedoorn |title=AMD Athlon 200GE review |url=https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_athlon_200ge_review,28.html |work=Guru3D |date=December 21, 2018 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> Despite its limitations, the Athlon&nbsp;200GE performed competitively against<ref name="TechSPot Budget: 2018">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=The Best Entry Level Gaming CPU: Athlon 200GE vs. Pentium G5400 vs. Ryzen 3 2200G |url=https://www.techspot.com/review/1739-budget-cpu-athlon-vs-pentium-vs-ryzen/ |work=Tech Spot |date=November 2, 2018 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> the 5000-series Intel Pentium-G, displaying similar CPU performance but an advantage in GPU performance.<ref name="Toms and Tom and Author: 2018">{{cite news |author=Kevin Carbotte |title=AMD Athlon 200GE vs. Intel Pentium Gold G5400: Cheap CPU Showdown |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/news/athlon-200ge-vs-pentium-gold-g5400,38260.html |work=Tom's Hardware |date=December 19, 2018 |access-date=August 4, 2020}}</ref>

On November 19, 2019, AMD released the Athlon 3000G, with a higher 3.5&nbsp;GHz core clock and 1100&nbsp;MHz graphics clock compared to the Athlon&nbsp;200GE,<ref name="F"/> also with two cores.<ref name="C"/> The main functional difference between the 200GE was the Athlon 3000G's unlocked multiplier,<ref name="F"/> allowing the latter to be overclocked on [[B450]] and [[X470]] motherboards.<ref name="Overclocking: 2019">{{cite news |author=Joel Hruska |title=AMD Launches Budget Athlon 3000G With $49 Overclocking Support |url=https://www.extremetech.com/computing/302345-amd-launches-budget-athlon-3000g-with-49-overclocking-support |work=Extreme Tech |date=November 20, 2019}}</ref>

Zen 2-based Athlon with Radeon Graphics processors, codenamed "Mendocino", were released on September 20, 2022, for the entry-level laptop market, alongside the more powerful quad-core [[Ryzen#Mobile 6|Ryzen 7020]] mobile series under the same codename.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Carrasqueira |first1=João |title=AMD unveils Zen 2-based Ryzen 7020 series "Mendocino" processors |url=https://www.xda-developers.com/amd-ryzen-athlon-7020-series-mendocino/ |website=XDA Developers |access-date=29 June 2024 |language=en |date=20 September 2022}}</ref> Featuring two processing cores, with two threads on Athlon Silver and four threads on Athlon Gold models, Athlon 7020 series mobile processors are equipped with two compute units (CUs) of RDNA&nbsp;2 graphics. These 7020U series models were followed by the release of Ryzen/Athlon 7020C series for Chromebooks on May 23, 2023.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bonshor |first1=Gavin |title=AMD Launches Zen 2-based Ryzen and Athlon 7020C Series For Chromebooks |url=https://www.anandtech.com/show/18868/amd-launches-zen-2-based-ryzen-and-athlon-7020c-series-for-chromebooks |website=www.anandtech.com |access-date=29 June 2024 |date=23 May 2023}}</ref> Unlike prior Athlon generations, AMD has not released desktop variants of Mendocino.

;Specifications
''Raven Ridge'' (14&nbsp;nm), ''Picasso'' (12&nbsp;nm) ''(see [[List of AMD Athlon processors#Athlon (Zen-based)|the list article]] for more details)''<ref name="CNET: 2018">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=AMD Athlon 200GE / 3.2 GHz processor Specs & Prices |url=https://www.cnet.com/products/amd-athlon-200ge-3-2-ghz-processor/|work=[[CNET]] |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref>
* L1 cache: 192&nbsp;KiB (2×64&nbsp;KiB + 2×32&nbsp;KiB)
* L2 cache: 1&nbsp;MiB (2×512&nbsp;KiB)
* L3 cache: 4&nbsp;MiB
* Memory: dual-channel DDR4-2666, 64&nbsp;GiB max.
* Socket AM4
* TDP: 35&nbsp;W
* First release: September&nbsp;6, 2018
* CPU clock rate: 3.2 to 3.5&nbsp;GHz
* GPU clock rate: 1000 to 1100&nbsp;MHz

''Mendocino'' (6&nbsp;nm) ''(see [[List of AMD Athlon processors#Athlon (Zen 2 based)|the list article]] for more details)''
* L1 cache: 128&nbsp;KiB (2×32&nbsp;KiB + 2×32&nbsp;KiB)
* L2 cache: 1&nbsp;MiB (2×512&nbsp;KiB)
* L3 cache: 4&nbsp;MiB
* Memory: dual-channel LPDDR5-5500, 16&nbsp;GiB max.
* TDP: 15&nbsp;W
* First release: September&nbsp;20, 2022
* CPU clock rate: 2.4&nbsp;GHz
* GPU clock rate: 1900&nbsp;MHz

==Supercomputers==
A number of [[supercomputer]]s have been built using Athlon chips, largely at universities. Among them:
* In 2000, several American students claimed to have built the world's least expensive supercomputer by clustering 64 AMD Athlon chips together, also marking the first time Athlons had been clustered in a supercomputer.<ref name="Computing: 2000">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Students build super cheap supercomputer |url=https://www.computing.co.uk/news/1862502/students-build-super-cheap-supercomputer|work=Computing |date=June 8, 2000 |access-date=August 2, 2020 }}</ref>
* The PRESTO III, a [[Beowulf cluster]] of 78 AMD Athlon processors, was built in 2001 by the [[Tokyo Institute of Technology]]. That year it ranked 439 on the [[TOP500]] list of supercomputers.<ref name="The Register: 2001">{{cite news |author=Drew Cullen |title=AMD cluster sneaks in Supercomputer top 500 list |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2001/07/02/amd_cluster_sneaks_in_supercomputer/ |work=[[The Register]] |date=July 2, 2001 |access-date=August 2, 2020 }}</ref>
* In 2002, a "128-Node 256-Processor AMD Athlon Supercomputer Cluster" was installed at the [[Ohio Supercomputer Center]] at the [[University of Toledo]].<ref name="OSC: 2002">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Ohio Supercomputer Center Awards Cluster to University of Toledo |url=https://www.osc.edu/press/ohio_supercomputer_center_awards_cluster_to_university_of_toledo |work=Ohio Supercomputer Center |date=August 6, 2004 |access-date=August 2, 2020 }}</ref>
* [[Rutgers University]], Department of Physics & Astronomy. Machine: NOW Cluster—AMD Athlon. CPU: 512 AthlonMP (1.65&nbsp;GHz). Rmax: 794&nbsp;[[Gigaflops|GFLOPS]].{{citation needed|date=August 2020}}

==See also==
* [[List of AMD Athlon processors]]
* [[List of AMD Duron processors]]
* [[List of AMD Phenom processors]]
* [[List of AMD Opteron processors]]
* [[List of AMD Sempron processors]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Athlon}}
*[https://www.amd.com/en/processors/athlon-mobile Athlon Official Website]

{{AMD processors}}

[[Category:Computer-related introductions in 1999]]
[[Category:AMD x86 microprocessors]]
[[Category:AMD microarchitectures]]
[[Category:Superscalar microprocessors]]
[[Category:X86 microarchitectures]]