As we have shown both the Ryzen 3 1300X and Ryzen 3 1200 are tailor made for value orientated buyers as they are both packed with value. The very fact that AMD was able to offer such a value packed CPU like the Ryzen 3 series for only $130 or less just shows exactly how efficient their binning process is. So much so that we doubt AMD is leaving much on the table so to speak, and instead is able to create working CPUs from darn near the entity of each and every wafer. This combined with their building block design means that they are simply able to offer consumers more bang for their buck regardless of what class of Ryzen CPU they are looking at. With that being said these two Ryzen 3 models differ drastically in their performance abilities. These two CPUs really are aimed at radically different consumers and purchasing the ‘wrong’ one may lead to some disappointment.
Put simply the Ryzen 3 1300X is one of the best values in the existing Ryzen lineup. So much so that potential buyers of the Ryzen 5 1500X are going to have to carefully consider exactly what they are going to be using their system for. Do they need better single threading and multi-threaded performance… or could more RAM or a better SSD be a better use of their budget? After all the difference between a Ryzen 5 1500X and 1300X is sixty dollars and yet SMT and more L3 cache is basically the only thing the 1500X offers over the 1300X. Sixty dollars is not chump change when talking about a budget build! Honestly this is a rather difficult decision only you can make based on your particular requirements. Such a difficult decision is testament to just how good the ‘little’ Ryzen 3 1300X really is.
This brings us to the Ryzen 3 1200. This CPU is the slowest Ryzen in single threaded applications and only offers four threads of performance. That is not a slam against the Ryzen 3 1200, rather it just looks less than optimal compared to its higher priced siblings. Yes, it is going to be the slowest of all the various Ryzen CPUs but that is still a is a lot of power for an entry level system. So much so it is bordering on overkill… all for a mere $110. That too is a testament to just how packed with value the Ryzen 3 lineup is.
In the end only you can decide which of these two processors are right for your needs, but for those whose budgets can stretch the extra twenty dollars we would recommend the Ryzen 3 1300X as it is going to be a more optimal solution. For those who simply have zero wiggle room in their budget, rest assured that the Ryzen 3 1200 is still a very decent CPU whose performance will be more than enough for the typical consumer. After all, Intel has been hammering this home with ‘four cores are more than enough for mainstream buyers’ for years now. Mainstream performance at entry level pricing is indeed a rather impressive combination.
