Comparing netbook cpu's

[jaydee]

I am interested in buying a netbook before Christmas. The main purpose will be to stream/record live data of OBD2 protocols and CAN protocols from a cars DLC port. If I can do some data processing on it, all the better, but mainly just want to stream the data via USB and/or bluetooth. Also do some web surfing and maybe watch encoded videos.

I already assume the Intel Atom is the weakest cpu out there and should be avoided. But what about the VIA Nano, or Core 2 Solo? Specifically, I'm looking at these two:

Acer 1410 for $425

Lenovo S12 for $377

Any thoughts? Is AMD going to be in the picture anytime soon? I've got until around Christmas is there anything just around the corner? Or should I just hang on until black Friday or holiday specials?

Thanks,
Jim

 

[IlllI]

amd already is. look at the Gateway LT3103

 

[DaveSimmons]

via 1.8 GHz is faster on some benches but in some cases that may be its media/video hardware acceleration that won't help with your tasks.

For compression and encoding they are about the same, and 1/4 the speed of a Pentium E5200 at 2.5 GHz (so about the same speed as a core solo 1.25 GHz?)

 

[F1shF4t]

Originally posted by: IlllI
amd already is. look at the Gateway LT3103

Got this netbook earlier this week. Actually typing this on it now.

Pros.
- Works fine with vista (2GB ram)
- Ati gfx card
- Full sized keyboard
- High resolution screen
- One of the more usable touch pad

Cons
- Does get a bit hot when stressed
- Battery life is only around ~4 hours


Overall fairly nice. Its more of a mini notebook than a netbook.
I just use it at work to have access to my files and progs not available on work comp.

If anyone has any requests I can do some benchmarks.

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: F1shF4t

Originally posted by: IlllI
amd already is. look at the Gateway LT3103

Got this netbook earlier this week. Actually typing this on it now.

Pros.
- Works fine with vista (2GB ram)
- Ati gfx card
- Full sized keyboard
- High resolution screen
- One of the more usable touch pad

Cons
- Does get a bit hot when stressed
- Battery life is only around ~4 hours


Overall fairly nice. Its more of a mini notebook than a netbook.
I just use it at work to have access to my files and progs not available on work comp.

If anyone has any requests I can do some benchmarks.

Have you tested it with any Linux distros yet?

 

[F1shF4t]

Originally posted by: Bateluer
Have you tested it with any Linux distros yet?

I've never ran linux. But i can load up ubuntu on it to give it a try.

At the moment I have Vista basic on it, and its quite snappy. Ofcourse vista did trash the HDD first day after install, and its not an ideal os for battery life.

 

[sgtwiltan]

You might also want to try PCLOS 2009.2
I'd be more interested in that since That's what Linux distro I use. I've been waffling on getting that netbook due to Linux's crappy ati drivers.

 

[jaydee]

I guess for now I'm going to keep an eye for holiday deals on these two:

Gateway LT3103u AMD Athlon 64 (L110) 1.2Ghz for $399

Gateway EC1803u Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500(1.40GHz) for $449

Right now I'm leaning towards the Intel (I'm an AMD fan btw). The Core 2 Solo seams like such as better processor with a little higher clock speed (1.4 Ghz vs 1.2 Ghz) and lot more cache (3MB of L2 vs 512Kb of L2). Plus that specific unit comes faster DDR2 RAM (667 Mhz vs 533), HDMI and 30% longer spec battery life (7 hours vs 5 hours). The AMD system probably has a better video card. They appear to have the same exact screen and hard drive. I assume they'll both come with Win7 installed starting next week.

If I can catch the Intel for less than $400 this holiday season, I'll probably jump on it. Probably around $325 is my trigger price for the AMD.

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: F1shF4t

Originally posted by: Bateluer
Have you tested it with any Linux distros yet?

I've never ran linux. But i can load up ubuntu on it to give it a try.

At the moment I have Vista basic on it, and its quite snappy. Ofcourse vista did trash the HDD first day after install, and its not an ideal os for battery life.

I've been using the Ubuntu 9.10 Beta on my Studio 14z and its been really good. There were some early issues with the wireless since I got it with the standard Dell Wireless 1397 which uses a Broadcom chip, but it seems to have been resolved now.

I put hands on the Gateway at Best Buy a while back and it definitely seemed very snappy for a 'netbok'. Loaded up several Office applications, WMP, Solitaire, other applications, etc, things that individually would have made my old Atom eeePC choke.

 

[F1shF4t]

Originally posted by: jaydee
I guess for now I'm going to keep an eye for holiday deals on these two:

Gateway LT3103u AMD Athlon 64 (L110) 1.2Ghz for $399

Gateway EC1803u Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500(1.40GHz) for $449

Right now I'm leaning towards the Intel (I'm an AMD fan btw). The Core 2 Solo seams like such as better processor with a little higher clock speed (1.4 Ghz vs 1.2 Ghz) and lot more cache (3MB of L2 vs 512Kb of L2). Plus that specific unit comes faster DDR2 RAM (667 Mhz vs 533), HDMI and 30% longer spec battery life (7 hours vs 5 hours). The AMD system probably has a better video card. They appear to have the same exact screen and hard drive. I assume they'll both come with Win7 installed starting next week.

If I can catch the Intel for less than $400 this holiday season, I'll probably jump on it. Probably around $325 is my trigger price for the AMD.

The Core 2 solo will be a much faster cpu. On top of its faster clock you can add the 20 - 30% per clock advantage that intel Core 2's have over Athlon 64. Graphics wise you won't miss much since both are well and trully horribly slow. (2 * very slow is still slow 😛) I just prefer to have an ATI card and drivers than an intel one.

BTW comparing cache between amd and intel cpus doesn't mean much and the diffrence in mem speed clocks will also make no diff.

Onto battery life and heat, i'll soon post some results from tweaking with RMclock.

 

[migo]

I would think the CPU isn't as important as the graphics chip. The Mini 311 with Ion is looking good, particularly since it seems it'll have full Aero support with Peek. That's what I'd be primarily concerned about. If it can't handle Aero, or at least can't handle Aero well, it doesn't matter much how fast the CPU is and there isn't a huge advantage in running Windows 7 over Windows XP SP2.

 

[hans007]

there are a few netbook sized machines now with 1.3 ghz pentium dual core, or 1.3 ghz core 2 duos. there is an acer as1810 now (its the 1410 but with a 1.3 core 2 duo)

 

[jaydee]

Originally posted by: hans007
there are a few netbook sized machines now with 1.3 ghz pentium dual core, or 1.3 ghz core 2 duos. there is an acer as1810 now (its the 1410 but with a 1.3 core 2 duo)

Ya, I noticed that the other day... hence this thread

Now I'm really confused what to get

 

[F1shF4t]

Originally posted by: migo
I would think the CPU isn't as important as the graphics chip. The Mini 311 with Ion is looking good, particularly since it seems it'll have full Aero support with Peek. That's what I'd be primarily concerned about. If it can't handle Aero, or at least can't handle Aero well, it doesn't matter much how fast the CPU is and there isn't a huge advantage in running Windows 7 over Windows XP SP2.

The x1270 chip in the gateway can handle aero in Vista, so should do for Win7. On the other hand I doubt it will be good for battery life. Thats the reason i keep Vista Basic instead of spare licence of Home Premium I have.

 

[Mattdoommaster]

For what you're considering, a Core 2 CULV sounds good. However, I am concerned because most of the Atom netbooks in the price range are honestly more mature as products. Remember, the processor is only part of the equation. Other things like the keyboard, trackpad, screen quality, and general build quality are also important, so don't neglect those considerations. If you do, you'll end up with a netbook that technically performs well but you never want to use because you hate where the shift key is located.