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    gaming notebook. is it better to get a good cpu or a good gpu ? (bioshock, crysis,...)

    Discussion in 'Gaming (Software and Graphics Cards)' started by notebookmario, Sep 17, 2007.

  1. notebookmario

    notebookmario Notebook Enthusiast

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    my problem is, that my budget isn't high, so i have to make a decision between this laptop with only a 1,5 GHZ Core 2 Duo, but a geforce 8700 512mb gddr3 :)

    "Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 (1.5 GHz, 2 MB Cache, 667 MHz FSB)
    160 GB S-ATA Festplatte
    2048 MB DDR2 RAM
    17 Zoll WUXGA TFT LCD Display, 1920 x 1200
    nVidia GeForce 8700M-GT 512 MB
    DVD Writer Double Layer Laufwerk
    HD 7.1 Audio
    56k Modem
    Wireless LAN 802.11a/g/n
    Bluetooth
    WebCam
    Lithium Ionen Akku"

    or something else (asus, hp ...) with a faster processor (core 2 duo 2,0 - 2,2 ghz) but only a 8600m gt, hd2600....

    want to play crysis, bioshock, upcoming mmorpgs and maybe command & conquer 3....

    any advise is welcome.
     
    notebookmario, Sep 17, 2007
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  2. Mimino

    Mimino Notebook Communist

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    not sure about other games, but bioshock seems to run pretty good on my 8600. if i were in ur shoes, i'd go for a better/faster gpu. and don't get such a big screen imho
     
    Mimino, Sep 17, 2007
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  3. Leon

    Leon Notebook Deity

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    Definitely the GPU one... The CPUs these days are way too strong for their own good. As long as you have a dual core, you're good to go...

    Leon
     
    Leon, Sep 17, 2007
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  4. Undsputed

    Undsputed Notebook Evangelist

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    Don't most games recommend over 2ghz CPU?


    Still I think as long as it has 2 cores it will be okay. That's a tough decision though.
     
    Undsputed, Sep 17, 2007
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  5. odin243

    odin243 Notebook Prophet

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    They recommend a 2GHZ single core Pentium 4 style CPU. Even my old 1.7GHz Pentium M is rated at 2.4GHZ for those purposes. Any modern dual core processor will be plenty for gaming, so if that's your only concer, I'd go with the 8700M-GT.
     
    odin243, Sep 17, 2007
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  6. Mimino

    Mimino Notebook Communist

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    even the 1.5 ghz should be enough, since the bottleneck, as of right now, is the gpu
     
    Mimino, Sep 17, 2007
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  7. ZipZugger

    ZipZugger Notebook Enthusiast

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    If gaming is your concern I'd go with the 8700M GT DDR3 for sure. The main advantage of the 8700M GT is that it comes with GDDR3 memory which will make it much faster than a GDDR2 8600M GT. It also has avout 25% faster core and shader clock. There are some laptops that have 8600M GT and GDDR3 but to find one will probably make your computer more expensive thus taking away the benifit of getting the 8600M GT in the first place.

    The 17" is huge though, so if size and weight is an issue the 8600M GT can be found in smaller sized notebooks.
     
    ZipZugger, Sep 17, 2007
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  8. notebookmario

    notebookmario Notebook Enthusiast

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    thanks all,

    the same dealer has also the asus g1s with the the 8600m gt gddr3, but the price of the asus is over 270 dollars higher (~200 euros) :) :D
     
    notebookmario, Sep 17, 2007
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  9. Mimino

    Mimino Notebook Communist

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    how much is the 8700 one?
     
    Mimino, Sep 17, 2007
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  10. RogueThunder

    RogueThunder Notebook Consultant

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    Huzza to that. Mah ol 1.4 binias pulls 2.0-2.2 equiv on a happy day-sheesh, 2.4 equiv off a 1.7 seems even a little low. Specialy what? Dothan? *chuckles*

    That said, i know of ONE game thats cpu heavy more than video from what ive seen... Supreame Commander. Thats it, yup... sheeeesh.

    That said, if the system could take a T7200 rather than T5250-i would upgrade that for a lil in heartbeat. Dunno if it could. But it shouldnt cost much more if so-and its actualy a nice difference from a few sys ive seen. Blast, wish i could remember... Ah well, poke them about it prehaps ^.^
     
    RogueThunder, Sep 17, 2007
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  11. odin243

    odin243 Notebook Prophet

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    Mine's a first generation Banias core. And yes, the 2.4GHz number is based on the minimum equivalent (meaning my processor is always at least as fast as a 2.4GHz P4, it averages around 2.5-2.6GHz).
     
    odin243, Sep 17, 2007
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  12. kodo

    kodo Notebook Consultant

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    i don't know whats your budget but the laptop in my sig is pretty cheap and it will handle your games pretty well cost me 1437 shipped. there a 2-4 weeks backorder tho
     
    kodo, Sep 17, 2007
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  13. planet

    planet Notebook Evangelist

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    Hmm my experience with playing World-In-Conflict demo, and Broken-Sword demo is that my CPU (both cores) often max to 99-100% during gameplay....and then framerate suffers...
    And mine's a 2.0GHz C2D! - according to most forumers should be more than enough for ALL games?
    I am not too sure if maxing out a CPU is the norm though, in that games will always try to use as much resources available?? or some other factors...??
     
    planet, Sep 17, 2007
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  14. notebookmario

    notebookmario Notebook Enthusiast

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    1360 euros ~1880 us dollar i think.

    thats the price for the 8700er notebook.
     
    notebookmario, Sep 17, 2007
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  15. notebookmario

    notebookmario Notebook Enthusiast

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    so my budget is max 1300 euros (1800 us dollar) for that i want to have a good gaming laptop.
     
    notebookmario, Sep 17, 2007
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  16. Mimino

    Mimino Notebook Communist

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    yup, that's quite a fortune for me... :)
     
    Mimino, Sep 17, 2007
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  17. Undsputed

    Undsputed Notebook Evangelist

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    Any thought on making a gaming desktop instead? :) More power for less money.

    The higher those laptop cards go, the prices are really bad. I'm not sure it's worth it unless mobility is an absolute must for you.

    A $280 8800GTS would probably smash the 8800m when it arrives. Just worth considering :) And that card isn't even out yet, if ever.
     
    Undsputed, Sep 17, 2007
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  18. StormEffect

    StormEffect Lazer. *pew pew*

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    Down that crazy screen resolution, ya nut! Unless you plan on playing at a non-native resolution, you are going to start chugging along pretty soon, even with an 8700m GT, especially because you wont have a top-of-the-line CPU to back it up.

    If you could just lower the screen resolution to something reasonable, things would perform much better...and then I'd recommend a better CPU. If this notebook is for gaming only, then I'd go for the GPU. The 8700m GT is a solid performer.

    It's a shame you can't dump the screen for a better processor AND better GPU.
     
    StormEffect, Sep 17, 2007
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  19. vengance_01

    vengance_01 Notebook Deity

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    Just make sure its a Santa Rosa platform. Much easier to upgrade a cpu then you video card ;)
     
    vengance_01, Sep 17, 2007
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  20. lunateck

    lunateck Bananaed

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    Actually, it doesn't matter whether you got a santa rosa or not. A strong gpu (the 8700M GT) paired with even a core duo will beat most(not all) machines on 8600m gt. And not all cpu's are upgradeable, like wise the Apple MBP, the cpu is soldered onto the board, most notebooks are like tat anyway. And yeah, like stormeffect said, lower down the screen's resolution to a WSXGA+ (1680x something..) running native or not really does effect how the game looks like.
     
    lunateck, Sep 18, 2007
    #20