RenoGeek's Computer Terms Glossary - Clock Speed

Clock speeds are the rate at which a computer chip can complete a processing cycle. Typically measured in gigahertz. One gigahertz equals one billion cycles per second. This means that a 4 GHz processor can finish 4 billion cycles in one second.

But clock speed is only just one factor in a computers overall performance. Other factors, like mainboard bus speed, cache(s) and hard disc access speed also contribute to the performance of any computer system. So the processor's clock speed is just one indicator of how fast a computer is.

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