Question about the ASUS g51j

I am looking into getting a new asus gaming laptop very soon and I have thought about possibly pruchasing the asus g51j. However I was wondering if anyone can tell me exactly what an i7 processore is for this computer and what it does. Also I notice that the processore goes from 1.8ghz to 2.8ghz, does that mean that 2.8 is how fast it goes if it is overclocked? Between this and the X2A would the x2a be better because it is already at 2.8ghz? Which one of these laptops would be better for high-end gaming? Any responses and comparisons between them both would be nice.

 

i7 processors are going to replace the Core 2 processors. It is a quad core processor with hyperthreading, essentially 8 cores (4 physical cores + 4 virtual cores). It uses turbo boost, which shuts down a core(s) and increases the frequency of the active core(s). When all 8 cores are stressed, it runs at 1.6GHZ and when one core is stress, it runs at 2.8GHz. For high end gaming, go with the i7, It will benefit the games that are more CPU dependent.

 

So is the turbo boost automatic, if not when would you go dual core, for what game for example?

 

it does it automatically based on which cores are being used. if a game isn't using a core it will automatically shut down the other cores and overclock the ones in use.

 

Yes, it's automatic only. The only feature that the end-user has control of on the CPU is enabling and disabling HT.

 

So does that mean the laptop will automatically switch how many cores it uses when you play games and when you are not to adjust its speed? Also does that mean it can't be overclocked manually?

 

From what I understand, when you overclock an i7, you'll overclock every single speed it can run at. When it's only using one core, that core will be faster than its label speed and when all four cores are in use, each one will be faster than its label speed.

The processor will switch how many cores its using depending on what your programs call for. If you're only running a game than only uses on core, then the other three will shut down and that single core will overclock to speed up the game. If the game's optimized to use four cores, the processor will use all four simultaneously at the lower clock.

 

Yes, the CPU will self manage the number of cores the application at hand needs. If the application is dual threaded, the CPU will shut down the two idle cores and increase the frequency to the two active cores.

The only processor capable of manual multiplier overclock is the 920XM. However, the notebook BIOS also needs to support multiplier overclocking. For example, the Clevo W870CU can unlock up to 4x multipliers bringing it's maximum speed on four cores from 2GHz to 2.53GHz and maximum speed on one core from 3.2GHz to 3.73GHz. Nobody knows if Turbo Boost will still take it higher as 2.53GHz uses a lot of power and outputs a whole lot of heat already.