i5 and 2gbGPU vs. i7 and 1gbGPU?

[simplejim]

Hi,

What will give me better performance in a laptop/ desktop replacement:

sandybridge i5 and 2gb Geforce graphics?
or
sandybridge i7 and 1gb discrete graphics?

(i ask because i haven't found an i7 laptop with more than 1gb GPU for a good price)

Thanks!

 

[allenthad70]

i dont think i5 is going to make a huge difference from an i7 for gaming. i dont think you need the i7, especially on a laptop, to be playing games at top notch graphics. laptops should never become a desktop replacement, imo.

the i5 is already powerful enough to support nice quality graphics, and with 2gb g-card, i think that will be more than enough for a laptop. thats actually a pretty nice laptop, i'd say.

i think a lot of the i7 laptops are over priced, anyways. i5 quad will definitely do its job.

 

[simplejim]

thanks for your help.

i'd like to build a new desktop - but its not practical for me at the moment. It will have to be the laptop for now.

sorry, whats i5 quad?

 

[upsdriver]

Without knowing more details, i5 + better graphics card would likely be better suited for gaming. You also need to consider the resolution you'll be playing at and 2gb would likely be a waste. There's also going to be heat issues utilizing both the cpu and gpu at load for extended periods of time.

 

[Harvey]

sorry, whats i5 quad?

It refers a quad core CPU, as opposed to a processor with one, two or any other number of cores other than four.

 

[mfenn]

Depends entirely on the specific model numbers and your intended usage. Can you help us out in those areas by posting more details?

 

[simplejim]

Depends entirely on the specific model numbers and your intended usage. Can you help us out in those areas by posting more details?

Thanks for all the replies.

I cant post links to the laptops as I can't find them online. I'm in china, but the shop selling them is japanese. these things usually have similar models overseas, but they are invariably slightly different specs and almost always differently badged.
I tried googling them a bit, but gave up. that's why I kept my question to general information, but I can appreciate the specifics are important too! Those 'sandybridge core i' processors have so many speed variants, are there any particularly 'good' variants?

just in case anyone can find them, the model numbers are

toshiba L750-C185
lenovo Ideapad Y471A

Thanks!

 

[mfenn]

Do you have any more detailed specs on the machines from the ads? I tried to Google the numbers and had about as much luck as you did. What I'm looking for is something along the lines of:

i5 2410
4GB of DDR3 1333 MHz
AMD Radeon 6410 1GB
750GB 7200 RPM HDD

There are a lot of different GPUs and CPUs, but just knowing the model numbers means that I can dig into them in detail.

 

[paperwastage]

intel mixes up the branding

i5 doesn't always mean quad cores(for desktop), dual cores w/ HT(for laptops)

i7 doesn't always mean quad cores either

check with http://ark.intel.com/

below, comparison of i5 and i7 mobile chips
http://ark.intel.com/compare/52237,...450,56858,53456,52229,54619,50072,54620,60636

 

[simplejim]

- don't have the specs to hand.
but if I have a guideline I can look next time i'm in the city centre.
do you know of any rating/ test scores which show certain i5's perform relatively better than others.

-i'm also interested in previous comment that i5 for laptop may not be quad core. i will check those links.

- so, overall is 2 gb GPU overkill on a small screen? if using a larger monitor would 1gb still be fine for watching HD video etc.?

thanks!

 

[ElFenix]

- don't have the specs to hand.
but if I have a guideline I can look next time i'm in the city centre.
do you know of any rating/ test scores which show certain i5's perform relatively better than others.

-i'm also interested in previous comment that i5 for laptop may not be quad core. i will check those links.

- so, overall is 2 gb GPU overkill on a small screen? if using a larger monitor would 1gb still be fine for watching HD video etc.?

thanks!

if you're not playing games then discrete video doesn't matter. if all you're doing is watching HD movies then just the stuff built into the processor works fine.

 

[paperwastage]

-i'm also interested in previous comment that i5 for laptop may not be quad core. i will check those links.

- so, overall is 2 gb GPU overkill on a small screen? if using a larger monitor would 1gb still be fine for watching HD video etc.?

thanks!

actually, for intel mobile cpus, they are all 2core + HT

http://ark.intel.com/compare/52224,53450,56858,53456,52229,54619,50072,54620,60636

 

[ther00kie16]

From what I've found:

lenovo: i5 2410m + radeon 6730m

Can't find exact model of toshiba but I'm guessing it's a dual core and gpu appears to be 525m

2620m + gt525m

Assuming no games, go with toshiba because of the i7 and better switchable graphics technology with nVidia.

If you are looking to play games, get something better than either of these because the 6730m isn't much better and the Lenovo Ideapads with AMD graphics tend to have minor issues with switching graphics.

In short, the 1gb vs 2gb memory for the gpu is pointless.

 

[KingGheedora]

Look into Sager or Clevo laptops, they are pretty cheap.

Your answer depends on what you want to use the laptop for. If you are playing games go for i5 + GPU. The integrated gpu on the i5/i7 is good for video decoding/watching and desktop apps, but not really enough for playing games. Any games and you are going to want a GPU. Probably a Geforce 555m or Radeon 5770m, or something along those lines. You can get a system like this for around $800.

Look at forums at notebookreview dot com, they have tons of people who will be able to help you figure this out.

 

[ther00kie16]

Look into Sager or Clevo laptops, they are pretty cheap.

Your answer depends on what you want to use the laptop for. If you are playing games go for i5 + GPU. The integrated gpu on the i5/i7 is good for video decoding/watching and desktop apps, but not really enough for playing games. Any games and you are going to want a GPU. Probably a Geforce 555m or Radeon 5770m, or something along those lines. You can get a system like this for around $800.

Look at forums at notebookreview dot com, they have tons of people who will be able to help you figure this out.

He's in China looking at Japanese shop so I doubt he has access to deals in the States. Even in the States, Sager/Clevo is still pretty scarce other than a few online shops.

 

[mfenn]

From what I've found:

lenovo: i5 2410m + radeon 6730m

Can't find exact model of toshiba but I'm guessing it's a dual core and gpu appears to be 525m

2620m + gt525m

Assuming no games, go with toshiba because of the i7 and better switchable graphics technology with nVidia.

If you are looking to play games, get something better than either of these because the 6730m isn't much better and the Lenovo Ideapads with AMD graphics tend to have minor issues with switching graphics.

In short, the 1gb vs 2gb memory for the gpu is pointless.

Good Google-fu!

The i7 2620M is a 2.7 GHz dual-core with HT and turbo up to 3.4 GHz. The i5 2410M is a 2.3 GHz dual-core with HT and turbo up to 2.9 GHz. So they are pretty close, but the i7 is faster.

The Radeon 6730M is a 480 shader part (midrange for AMD) and the GT 525M is a 96 shader part (lower-midrange for Nvidia). The 6730M is probably slightly faster, but as you said, it doesn't matter if you're not going to be gaming.

 

[simplejim]

Thanks for all these replies.

My laptop will be used as my main home pc:
A bit of office work, internet, dvds, sometimes encoding movies - and i'd like the ability to play games if possible.

So the best all round machine looks like it could be an i5 with more graphics power.

I'm a newbie in the world of pc gaming, so my question really comes down to:

if 2gb is going to be overkill on laptop graphics, maybe I am better off with a lower powered GPU that will run cooler and use less power. is this approximately right? or is it more complicated?
why do they stick a 2GB GPU in the thing if its overkill? just to bump up the specs?

thanks!

 

[ther00kie16]

Thanks for all these replies.

My laptop will be used as my main home pc:
A bit of office work, internet, dvds, sometimes encoding movies - and i'd like the ability to play games if possible.

So the best all round machine looks like it could be an i5 with more graphics power.

I'm a newbie in the world of pc gaming, so my question really comes down to:

if 2gb is going to be overkill on laptop graphics, maybe I am better off with a lower powered GPU that will run cooler and use less power. is this approximately right? or is it more complicated?
why do they stick a 2GB GPU in the thing if its overkill? just to bump up the specs?

thanks!

Size is irrelevant as 1GB is enough. They put 2GB in there so you will buy a cheaper part because it's probably DDR3 and not the more expensive GDDR5. According to notebookcheck, 525m comes in both flavors while 6730m only comes in slower DDR3. A 525m can easily be overclocked as that's how they get a 540m, which has almost exact performance as 6730m. The 6730m, on the other hand, appears to be highly clocked for its architecture already as it's the highest clocked part of its family. So definitely go with that. And if you can confirm the 525m to use GDDR5, get it over the 6730m no question.