AMD A4 vs. A6 for low-end gaming

Laptops with the AMD A4-3305m (1.9 GHz) processor and 6480g graphics is similarly priced to ones with the A6-3400m (1.4 GHz) and 6520g graphics. If I don't plan to overclock, which would overall be superior for games between these two? The 500 MHz difference makes me think the A4 might actually be better, despite the lower-end graphics.

 

The A6 is better but only slightly. If you want to game on these two, you are going to have to go for low settings, no matter which APU you choose. It is the CPU performance and the like (performance of everything BUT the iGPU) that you would want to compare. And that is where the A6 would win. First and foremost, the big difference - core count. The 3400m has a higher core count - 4. The 3305m has 2 cores. Programs optimized for multiple cores will run much faster on the A6. Also, usually, a CPU with a lower core count usually has a faster clock than a comparable (entry level 2 core to entry level 4 core). This doesn't mean the processor itself is faster.

Secondly, the turbo clocks of the two are not that different. The A4 has a max clock speed of 2.5GHz while the A6 has a max clock speed of 2.3GHz. As such, even if you weren't running programs optimized for four cores or (worst case when comparing these two) running programs that were optimized only for two cores, you would STILL see very little difference between the A6 and the A4. As such, the A6 is what you would want to purchase.

Just out of curiosity, what are you getting these laptops for? These are last gen processors. You should be looking at a very low price to consider these over those with Trinity APUs in them.

 

Thanks a ton, maverick! This laptop is going to be for just some very cheap mobile gaming, max of $400 (so no Trinity for me).

Hmm, so you say that I should only look at the processor and ignore the iGPU? In that case, I've been eyeing the Core i3-2330m or Pentium B960 + Intel HD Graphics. I thought that I should go with the A4 or A6 for gaming due to the better iGPU, but since the Pentium and i3 both seem to be processors that outperform the A4/A6, should I go with one of those instead, despite the terrible integrated graphics that come with these Intel processors?

 

No. nononononononononononono. Sorry if I confused you. In the two that you have stated in the TOPIC OF THIS THREAD, ignore the GPU. The performance will be similar. The moment you compare across architectures, everything changes. I'd suggest you post in the what notebook should I purchase subforum if you are confused on which laptop to purchase.