Intel Core i5 at 2.4GHz vs. i7 at 1.6GHz (gaming laptop)

[minusjason]

Hi folks,
I'm probably more tech-savvy than the average consumer, but I haven't bought a computer in 5 years. I'm going to buy a laptop soon, would like something pretty good for gaming (yeah yeah I know but I need portability) and I've got a question for you. Assuming everything else about the two computers is the same, which of these processors would be better for gaming? I am confused with the whole multi-core thing and wondering how the i7 can supposedly be higher-end with a lower clock speed.

Intel® Core™ i5-520M Processor 2.40 GHz (2.93 GHz with Turbo Boost Technology), 3MB L3 Cache, 1066MHz DDR3

vs.

Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor 1.6 GHz (2.8 GHz with Turbo Boost Technology), 6MB L3 Cache, 1333MHz DDR3


I mean like... will a quad-core processor with each core at 1.6GHz be able to do well with a game for which is recommended a dual-core at 2.5GHz, for example? Any help is much appreciated.

 

[BD231]

i7 if gaming is your aim, the cache and added cores are a big help these days. With turbo you're not loosing any clock speed being that the quad runs at 1.6ghz when it's idle, but scales to 2.8 when put under load (gaming or otherwise).

Short of battery life i7 would be ideal.

 

[minusjason]

Thank you for the response. I am not worried about battery life, but I also don't run a ton of different programs at once so I wasn't sure about the quad-core.

Another thing I was wondering about... what about a game that requires, for example, a 3.0 GHz dual-core processor? I'm not very knowledgeable about multi-core processors. It seems to me that if I've got 4 cores running at 2.8GHz, I should be able to tackle something made for 2 cores at 3.0GHz. But I'm starting to think this isn't the case...?

 

[LoneNinja]

I haven't seen anything that recommends a 3.0Ghz dual core, but clock speed isn't all that important. Newer architectures are faster at the same clock speed than older ones, so at 2.8Ghz that I7 is faster than a 3.0Ghz Core2.

 

[minusjason]

Well, I bought it. Here are my full specs:

Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor 1.6 GHz (2.8 GHz with Turbo Boost Technology), 6MB L3 Cache, 1333MHz DDR3

Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit

6GB DDR3 1066MHz SDRAM (4096MB+2048MB)

500GB HDD (7200rpm, Serial-ATA)

NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 330M with 1GB GDDR3 discrete graphics

DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive


And some frills like a backlit keyboard and edge-to-edge glass on the display.

Thanks for the advice, fellas.

 

[hans007]

Thank you for the response. I am not worried about battery life, but I also don't run a ton of different programs at once so I wasn't sure about the quad-core.

Another thing I was wondering about... what about a game that requires, for example, a 3.0 GHz dual-core processor? I'm not very knowledgeable about multi-core processors. It seems to me that if I've got 4 cores running at 2.8GHz, I should be able to tackle something made for 2 cores at 3.0GHz. But I'm starting to think this isn't the case...?

well a lot of games will say things like "3.0 ghz processor" because most people are not very good with computers.

so they will also say things like 450 watt PSU required on video card boxes, because the box can't list like say 350 watt high quality PSU or 500 watt crappy psu required.


when they say 3.0 dual core, or something like that a 3.0 dual core could be a dual core p4 which is much slower than say 3.0 core i5. So I would not really take those very seriously anyway, they are just tryign to simplify the game requirements for less tech savvy people.

 

[minusjason]

well a lot of games will say things like "3.0 ghz processor" because most people are not very good with computers.

so they will also say things like 450 watt PSU required on video card boxes, because the box can't list like say 350 watt high quality PSU or 500 watt crappy psu required.


when they say 3.0 dual core, or something like that a 3.0 dual core could be a dual core p4 which is much slower than say 3.0 core i5. So I would not really take those very seriously anyway, they are just tryign to simplify the game requirements for less tech savvy people.

I see. And in the end, they have made it more confusing for me. Hah.

 

[A_Dying_Wren]

Well, I bought it. Here are my full specs:

Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor 1.6 GHz (2.8 GHz with Turbo Boost Technology), 6MB L3 Cache, 1333MHz DDR3

Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit

6GB DDR3 1066MHz SDRAM (4096MB+2048MB)

500GB HDD (7200rpm, Serial-ATA)

NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 330M with 1GB GDDR3 discrete graphics

DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive


And some frills like a backlit keyboard and edge-to-edge glass on the display.

Thanks for the advice, fellas.

Eh with that GPU it probably didn't matter anyway which CPU you chose.

Congrats on your new laptop anyway

 

[yh125d]

It will only turbo up to 2.8gHz with one core... def not 4x2.8gHz


1.6GHz base/1.73GHz 4 cores/2.4GHz 2 cores/2.8GHz 1 core

 

[RaistlinZ]

Why do they use 1066MHz RAM when the chip supports 1333MHz?

 

[Jovec]

Why do they use 1066MHz RAM when the chip supports 1333MHz?

Cost, power, and the fact that you can't tell the difference unless you are benchmarking.