Windows 7: Cool'n'quiet Pros and Cons

What are the pros and cons of running CnQ in Win 7 with a processor like mine?

Pros:

- Lower temps and power consumption when not under load.
- Extends the life of the CPU (in theory).

Cons:

- Some people say that the constant throttling is actually bad for the CPU (grain of salt).

That's pretty much it IIRC.

Yes, that's the part I'm interested in , does it actually extend the life or the throttling shorten it ?

The biggest enemy of the cpu is overheating and physical damage. Throttling downclocks the cpu to control thermal output, no way its bad for the life of the cpu.

In theory it should extend it.

Now, this whole 'the constant throttling is actually bad for the CPU' talk is more of a he said/she said situation, it hasn't been confirmed by a legitimate source, so I'd take with a grain of salt.

It really depends on the kind of use you're going to give your PC. If all you're going to do is web browsing and everyday stuff, then I'd leave it ON.

I do casual work a lot, but also i do gaming (i.e. The Witcher, The Saboteur, Mafia II, CoD MW, NFS etc).

Use the Windows 7 power options to do the cpu switching for you. When you are doing casual work, stick to a Balanced option. For gaming, you dont want throttling, so switch to a high performance plan.

Leave it on,

AMD Cool'n'Quiet you used? - Guru3D.com Forums

and ignore the guy there that uses power saver mode.

I don't think it would be necessary to manually switch this. The gaming will present a heavy enough load that the box won't be throttling anyway.

Since CNQ & Intels EIST are essentially the same thing, my opinion would be geared towards both camps.

I would say, leave them on as they only provide benefits with no real downsides.

They only throttle when the system is under a light load, or not busy.
Once you go to do something that requires a bit of processing power, they ramp it all back up as it would noramlly run.

As far as reducing the life of the CPU, I would say its just the opposite.
With More Power, Voltage going to the CPU than is needed at a constant rate, as well as more heat.

I would think NOT using it would would be much more likely to reduce the CPU lifespan than having it on.
(Not that it does, only that it would seem more likely)

Just my 2cents.