From AMD, the Athlon II X2 260, Athlon II X3 445, and Athlon II X4 640 are available to purchase. As we've recently put these three new models through some rigorous gaming testing versus their sub-$150 Intel counterparts. 

Of particular interest to readers of the Best Gaming CPUs For The Money articles, the Athlon II X3 445 has earned a place in our recommendations, as does the Phenom II X4 940 and 945. For that matter, Intel's Core i3-530 shows off its gaming prowess and ends up on the list. But the Core i3-540 isn't able to make its value as apparent, given a higher price tag, and has been stripped of its honorable mention status.

From the Intel camp, we have the Pentium E6700, Core i5-655K, and Core i7-875K now available to buy. The Pentium E6700 is another speed bump in the dual-core Pentium series of processors, boasting a 3.2 GHz clock rate, but little else of interest. We do see this being a viable upgrade for folks holding on to a slow single-core LGA 775 system who are looking for a cheap upgrade.

The Core i5-655K and Core i7-875K are another matter entirely. Essentially, these are Core i5-650 and Core i7-870 CPUs that have their multipliers unlocked. The K suffix is Intel's equivalent to AMD's Black Edition moniker, and these models allow overclockers to push their CPUs to the limit without stressing the rest of their system. The really interesting thing about these new CPUs is how Intel priced them. The Core i5-655K costs about $20 more than its Core i5-650 predecessor, but the Core i7-875K costs $250 less than we're used to paying for a Core i7-870. While it's true that the Core i7-870 was overpriced, it's a staggering move to add an overclocking feature and slash the price in one quick swoop. That's an un-Intel-like move, and we have to applaud it. The only people who aren't happy about this development are folks who recently purchased a Core i7-870. In any case, you can read our Intel Core i7-875K And Core i5-655K Battle Beyond 4 GHz review if you're interested in more information about these models.