AMD general performance vs Intel in Budget Build

[Herr Kutz]

Hi,

I am planning to build a low budget rig, but I am having reservations about purchasing an AMD computer. I have had no experience with computers using an AMD processor so I have no idea how their well their general performance is.

I have read benchmark after benchmark, but I'm having trouble translating these into real world performance. I am specifically looking to determine which is better for general usage and multitasking. I would like to know how smoothly AMD systems run compared to Intel systems and if their is any difference (Athlon ii x3 435 vs i3 530 at STOCK speeds - I know these are in a slightly different class but they are the two I am considering) in the amount of time it takes to launch programs, boot up Windows, and minimizing windows when in games (read about my game usage below).

Assuming the systems have identical ram, identical hard drive, and the only difference is the motherboard and CPU, which of the processors would be better suited for the following usage:

Usage: Quite often I have several Firefox windows, a few pdfs, a few word documents, and sometimes excel files or Photoshop all running at the same time. With my current processor (core duo t2500 @ 2.0ghz - laptop) it can become a little laggy at times. I also occasionally watch flash movies online (think hulu).

Would I notice any difference between using either of those two processors for these tasks?

I also occasionally (read: 2-3 times per month) play AOE3, day of defeat (whatever the first version is called), or runescape (don't laugh), but gaming is not very high on the priority list.

Note: I do not have much tolerance for lag and the smoothness of the system is key.

Recap: Is there any difference between general usage (launch speeds, boot up, etc) between Athlon ii x3 435 vs Intel i3-530. The price difference for the systems I am pricing out is $50 (or about $25 if I go with x4 630), and I would like to know if I would see any performance difference for my usage that would justify the extra $$.


I hope that wasn't too badly put (I'm not the best writer), but I would appreciate any feedback. If there are any more details I need to provide to receive better feedback, please let me know!!!

Thanks in advance!

 

[edplayer]

I don't think you will notice any difference by the way you describe how you will be using it.

I would say go with the cheapest setup (AMD X2 Regor) with a good motherboard and save your money. If you want to eliminate lag, get a SSD. You can upgrade to an X4 when they drop in price. They will end up less than $100 someday (probably towards the end of this year/sometime next year, I'm talking about the good ones, the BE 955 or 965)

 

[soccerballtux]

unless you have a microcenter then AMD has Intel beat on price/performance.

AMD is no different from Intel, processors don't just "break", you don't need to worry about purchasing AMD.

 

[Herr Kutz]

unless you have a microcenter then AMD has Intel beat on price/performance.

AMD is no different from Intel, processors don't just "break", you don't need to worry about purchasing AMD.

Unfortunately I have no microcenter near me.

I am not worried about the processors breaking at all, just worried about performance!



Thanks for the responses so far!

 

[Rhoxed]

you will not notice one iota of difference between the 2 setups for what you will be using them for.

 

[Krazy4Real]

I think your issue is more hard drive and memory related than processor. If you don't have enough RAM and you have all those applications open at the same time, you might be running out of RAM. If your computer needs to use the paging file on the hard drive, it really slows down your performance and can cause lag switching between open applications.

Check how much memory you have. I would probably run at least 4 GBs if you have all that stuff open. How fast is the hard drive? If it's 5400 rpm, you can get another speed bump by moving up to 7200 rpm. The nice thing about upgrading your hard drive is that boot up times and application launching times are reduced.

To answer your question though, for what you're looking to do the AMD will work just fine. Especially if you're not looking to overclock.

 

[f4phantom2500]

i have an x3 435, and it's a great processor. i would go with that in your position, i really don't think that an i3 is worth the extra money, plus i'm pretty sure the x3 will perform better with regards to multitasking. regarding gaming, it's still definitely up to par, especially since you don't really game.