What kind of CPU do you look for in a laptop?

[Zodiark1593]

This.

Although I wouldn't bother looking for any more than 4GB of RAM unless you have a very specific task in mind that you know will use it. You see laptops with frankly underpowered CPUs being offered by vendors with 8GB of RAM that is never going to get used and will just sit there using power.

In a scenarion where laptop A has a slower CPU and 6gb or ram and Laptop B has a faster CPU and 4gb of RAM I would always go for laptop B.

In my personal experience I sometimes regret stumping up the extra money for the "proper quad with HT" in my XPS17 although the next step down was a dual core with HT which I felt could have been underpowered. This 740QM can kick out some serious heat while gaming though which isn't ideal.

I believe the mobile quad cores were 45nm Lynnfield chips, which is probably why they're pumping out so much heat.

 

[cbn]

Even in 2002 the majority of engineers were still taking data down by hand, writing it into a fab notebook. Then later they'd get back to their cubicle and have to type all the data into their desktop computers. How ridiculously 20th century D:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrsPzbUJwl8&feature=player_detailpage#t=116s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=lrsPzbUJwl8#t=228s

Intel is still doing that in the 22nm 32nm fabs

 

[Puppies04]

I believe the mobile quad cores were 45nm Lynnfield chips, which is probably why they're pumping out so much heat.

Yeah they are, it isn't the hottest laptop I have ever owned by a long shot however I'm hearing that a thermal paste/pad change can give up to a 10 degree drop in loaded temps so I might have a look at that.

 

[Zodiark1593]

Yeah they are, it isn't the hottest laptop I have ever owned by a long shot however I'm hearing that a thermal paste/pad change can give up to a 10 degree drop in loaded temps so I might have a look at that.

Ehh, depends, I swapped the thermal paste on my own CPU (i5-460M) and got zip in temp gains. HP actually did a decent job with my laptop as temps never got beyond 80C even with Prime95 + Furmark before, nor after the paste swap.