A processor (also sometimes called a chip) is like the fuel injector in the engine of a car. It’s basically the device that controls and pushes gas through your computer.
There are essentially two big manufacturers of processors, Intel and AMD. For at least the last decade, Intel has been the leader in developing the fastest and strongest processors. At the moment, both companies are basically trying to make the fastest processors as quickly and as cheaply as possible.
Regardless, the competition between Intel and AMD has created faster, less expensive processors for us consumers. While you’re looking at computers, you may notice that faster machines (and not necessarily more expensive ones) have Intel processors. On average, it seems that computers with Intel processors seem to be more powerful than their AMD counterparts.
If you’ve been shopping, you may also notice that a processor often has something in its description like, “3MB Cache, 2.80GHz.” Here’s the translation: The “MB cache” indicates how much information the computer can show you on your computer screen while you’re using the computer. Simply put: The higher the MB Cache or GB Cache number is, the more things you can keep open on your screen!
As for the “2.80GHz,” think of it as miles (or kilometers) per hour. Thus, the higher the GHz number, the faster your computer can think.
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