Intel ULV vs Intel Core i3/i5 vs AMD Trinity. Buy Which?

[geokilla]

So I'm in need of a new laptop and while battery life of at least 4.5 to 5h is required, I'm wondering about the CPU performance. I went from buying a Samsung NP535U3C with a AMD A6-4455M to buying an ASUS UX32A with Intel Core i3-2367M. The reason I'm hesitant on keeping both laptops is because of the CPU performance and overall speed of the laptop. Searching for laptops with a full power Core i3/i5 such as the Toshiba R835 which has a Intel Core i5-2435M is fairly hard to do, given that I have a somewhat low budget and tons of requirements.

The laptop is only used for Word processing by a University student and other things such as taking notes, listening to music, watching MKV videos, etc. Nothing intensive is planned for the laptop. So, what kind of mobile CPU should I look into given these requirements?

Having used both the Samsung and ASUS for a short amount of time, the ASUS booted up fairly quickly thanks to the 24GB SSD cache drive or whatever it's used for. The Samsung on the other hand, was fairly slow, but gets the job done in the battery department category. Plus it actually does very well in games, not that it's important.

 

[Yuriman]

I believe AMD's APUs have very low idle power requirements so they're not significantly different from Intel chips in the battery life department under light use. The GPU will be faster on the AMD chip, for what it's worth, but not at the level of a discreet GPU so you'll probably still be left wanting. An Intel i3/i5 will be a faster CPU, and it will be more power efficient, so if you need to compile or crunch numbers, or even game on battery, definitely consider an Intel chip over AMD. In typical usage patterns, having more RAM and a fast SSD is more important to overall system "feel" than which CPU you pick.

To me the screen is more of a deciding factor tbh.

 

[pelov]

That Toshiba will get you quite a bit more battery life than either of those Ultrabooks and has more processing power to boot.

You can get a Toshiba 935 with an i3 for $650. The i3 Sandy is roughly equivalent to an i5 ULV, if not slightly ahead. You can easily squeeze out over 7 hours of battery and the components are upgradeable. It's also very light at only 3.2lbs with a swappable 6-cell battery.

Considering you're not doing any gaming or any CPU intensive tasks it really won't make a difference which CPU you pick as any modern CPU, whether ULV or not, has enough processing power for your needs. The determining factor should be the size, battery life, looks, and screen quality.

 

[geokilla]

Guess I was basing my purchase on the wrong criteria...

In super simple terms, I guess an AMD Trinity APU + SSD would be better than Intel Core i3 + HDD? Because it's more responsive in terms of boot up times and everything? If it was CPU intensive, then obviously the Core i3 would be better, but since it's just note taking and what not...

 

[Yuriman]

Basically yeah. If the AMD chip saves you enough money that you can budget in an SSD or get it in a laptop with a better screen or something else that improves your user experience, I'd do that.

 

[Hmoobphajej]

So is the form factor you're sticking with only 13.3" or are the 15.6" fine? When it comes to which is the best buy you have to take in a lot of factors other then just responsiveness.

My recommendation I made to a friend:
ASUS K55A-BI5093B

Pros:
- It's a IB Core I5
- Boasts up to 6hr 30min Battery Life ( I would expect a little less for my uses )
- Newer so will last a little longer then SB
- Price makes it quite competitive
- Abillity to throw in a SSD if you ever plan to

Cons:
- Bigger Form Factor
- No 32GB Nand SSD
- Only IGP ( Intel HD 4000 though )
- 5400 RPM HD

Notes:
ARK side by side intel comparision
The core i5s will perform similar but the newer IB should have a 5 - 10% CPU lead and a much better IGP then what comes with SB.
There is probably a lot more I missed too but for $400 - $450 dollars I think this buy is worth looking at.

For a smaller form factor you can also look at the Toshiba Satellite R945. Until the 15th of September it has a $100 rebate past then I would go with my previous recommendation because of the ability to buy a SSD which will make it exceptionally faster.

 

[geokilla]

I'm limited to 13.3", which is why I'm having superb difficulty finding the right laptop up here in Canada. If I get one thing, I can't get another. I was concerned that AMD APUs and Intel ULV processors would be too slow for my University tasks, hence I was limiting my search to the full power Intel Core i3/i5. However after my brief experience with the UX32A which has a Intel ULV CPU and hybrid HDD/SSD, I'm starting to think that maybe I should change my priority to a AMD APU + SSD instead, as system boot up and responsiveness seems to be more important than CPU processing power.

 

[ctsoth]

I'm limited to 13.3", which is why I'm having superb difficulty finding the right laptop up here in Canada. If I get one thing, I can't get another. I was concerned that AMD APUs and Intel ULV processors would be too slow for my University tasks, hence I was limiting my search to the full power Intel Core i3/i5. However after my brief experience with the UX32A which has a Intel ULV CPU and hybrid HDD/SSD, I'm starting to think that maybe I should change my priority to a AMD APU + SSD instead, as system boot up and responsiveness seems to be more important than CPU processing power.

Really, if your doing basic word processing, research over the internets, maybe some light gaming, video streaming, you have a lot of options. I'd recommend trinity because of the onboard GPU and excellent battery life.

 

[Hmoobphajej]

I'm limited to 13.3", which is why I'm having superb difficulty finding the right laptop up here in Canada. If I get one thing, I can't get another. I was concerned that AMD APUs and Intel ULV processors would be too slow for my University tasks, hence I was limiting my search to the full power Intel Core i3/i5. However after my brief experience with the UX32A which has a Intel ULV CPU and hybrid HDD/SSD, I'm starting to think that maybe I should change my priority to a AMD APU + SSD instead, as system boot up and responsiveness seems to be more important than CPU processing power.

That sounds like a solid idea to me. I believe a SSD makes a huge difference for every day usage compared to some processer upgrades. Especially if the most demanding thing you will do is some HD video streaming. Even some light gaming would be immensely preferable on the APU. It's good all around so Trinity would also be my recommendation.

 

[happysmiles]

Trinity.

You could use a E-450 for what you're describing imo.

 

[NTMBK]

Definitely focus more on getting something with an SSD in it- and build quality. I'm a recent graduate, and I saw so many laptops (belonging to me and my friends) bite it over the course of 3 years. Lugging laptops around to and from lectures every day, using them in your spare time to watch TV/play games, and of course the usual drunken student accidents take their toll. Don't just go off spec sheets- try to find laptops with reviews by reputable sites (e.g. The Verge, Engadget, Anandtech) which recommend their build quality. If you buy a cheap clunker, I guarantee that you will just need to replace it in 2 years' time.

 

[sm625]

Yeah you definitely want something that is responsive when you open it. You dont want the user to be grinding their teeth thinking "a smartphone is faster at this"... Thus an SSD is most important thing. The A6-4455M is faster than i3-ULV, but not by much.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

for what youre doing, i would get a cheapo $400 non ultrabook intel laptop and save my money

 

[inf64]

I'm limited to 13.3", which is why I'm having superb difficulty finding the right laptop up here in Canada. If I get one thing, I can't get another. I was concerned that AMD APUs and Intel ULV processors would be too slow for my University tasks, hence I was limiting my search to the full power Intel Core i3/i5. However after my brief experience with the UX32A which has a Intel ULV CPU and hybrid HDD/SSD, I'm starting to think that maybe I should change my priority to a AMD APU + SSD instead, as system boot up and responsiveness seems to be more important than CPU processing power.

AMD's APUs don't lack processing power. If nothing they have a good reserve in the form of iGPU in them.

For university tasks any Trinity based laptop will be more than enough.And you can do some solid gaming on it (think BF3 playable @ native res. of the screen).