F3KA or F3SA ???? Need to decide

I am in the market for one of these laptops. Looking to run Virtual DJ which is a very graphics intense DJ application. The ATI 2600 should be sufficient for this.

I am just trying to decide if I should go for the F3SA or the F3KA. I would normally go with the Intel... but there is about a $500 difference in price ($799 compared to $1200-1300). The AMD 1.8ghz version @ NewEgg is significantly cheaper than the Core2Duo and I am really on a tight budget.

Is the Intel worth the extra $500?

Also... if I decide to go with the AMD... I heard that the FX-58 version has the 65mn GPU which is more overclockable and runs cooler than the actual faster FX-60 version that I believe is 90mn.

Wouldn't the cooler CPU thus be more overclockable if I wanted to go that route?


Thanks in advance.

 

I'm not sure if the Intel is worth quite 500 USD extra, but it just might. Here are the advantages in a nutshell:

Less power drawn (=> incidentally in better battery life), which leads to:
less heat output which leads to:
lower fan speeds required to cool the thing, which also leads to:
less operation noise

Also you are probably looking at a clock-per-clock processing speed increase with the Intel.

If you have the entry-level AMD, it might not even speedstep which means it always runs at its highest speeds, and the disadvantages are compounded by this. But you need to find this out yourself. The Semprons, as far as I know, do not speedstep. The Athlons do. But this knowledge is from the desktop world.

 

The TL-58 is indeed a 65nm chip. It runs at 1.9GHz and you can probably overclock it with Clockgen. I have an Asus A7K-X1 with a 65nm TL-56 CPU running at 1.8GHz, and I can overclock it all the way to 2.4GHz. I have to use an external cooler when I overclock that high, however.

 

I will be running on AC Power 99.99999% of the time. I am using this laptop for DJing so I will always have power when I am working on it.

With that said... aren't the speedstep features related to running on battery? Meaning... if I have the AC plugged in it should always be running at optimal speeds because there is no battery power to conserve?

 

And regarding cooling... what are the best ways to cool these laptops? Again... I will be stationary when using this.

 

Hi, an experienced laptop user will keep Speedstep on AC power as well. This means the computer will run at its lowest speed when idle, but when the CPU power is necessary, it'll kick in with nearly zero delay. This allows for lower temperatures and less operating noise, as I described above, which also leads to a longer life of the electronics.

So running on AC is not an argument against SpeedStep processors.

I'm not trying to push you into buying the Intel, but you should be clearly aware of the differences.

 

Ok thanks for the info. I am going to try to get some money from my boss for a new laptop. If I can get some cash i'll get the Intel. However if I have to pay out of pocket... the AMD will likely be the only choice.

 

The AMD Turion CPU supports throttling. AMD calls it "Cool and Quiet" technology. It works the same as Intel's Speedstep.

 

Yep, just be aware of the Semprons.