Comparing an AMD and Intel Processor

AMD Quad-Core A6-3400M Accelerated Processor (2.3GHz/1.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache)

vs

2nd generation Intel(R) Dual Core(TM) i5-2410M (2.3 GHz, 3MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 2.9GHz

Laptop going to be used for some gaming (with a Radeon 6770) and I will be a electrical/computer engineering major with software concentration so some matlab/programming too.

Suggestions? I would just get the i7 quad but I don't feel like breaking my budget for the extra 100.

 

You don't have to get the i7 quad, just get the i5, it's still much faster than the A6.

 

What soguxu said. In terms of processing power, which you will need for your field, even an i5-2410m destroys AMD's mobile processing power. Even given best-case scenario, the most powerful AMD processor, the A8-3530MX, will barely beat the i5-2410 in processing power

 

Edit: Nvm. Thanks

 

Who is this? Who have hacked abaddon`s account?

 

I will just say that matlab will love more cores from the i7 2630qm

 

Can the i5 not handle matlab? Plus, I'm going to a pretty computer oriented college so their computer clusters will be able to handle all my needs perfectly assuming I'm not too lazy to go to them.

 

It might be funny if I had ever said that AMD processors were good when doing CPU intensive tasks

 

it actually can, I ran matlab on a t2500 core duo, however it will be faster on a new cpu, as all things usually are.

I would get the upgrade mainly because it will provide you benefits when there is snow out there and you dont want to walk that much

 

Lucky me getting assigned a dorm building with a computer cluster inside. Thanks for the help.

 

lucky you indeed!

 

pfft, when I used matlab, it was on P4's or Athlon XP's at best. All single core of course.

 

yeah I used in a atlhon xp 2000 too

it was on my first graduation though, now I use it in P7250

 

Depends on what tasks. Having 4 cores instead of 2 will help any multi-threaded loads. The 2410m isn't twice as fast per core as the AMD chip. It is faster per core, though. The quad-core might be helpful in games like BFBC2 and other games that are starting to need 3+ cores due to their being designed primarily for the XBox/PS3 and then ported to the PC, and I'm reasonably sure that Matlab is multi-core aware. That said, you won't start running into projects in your classes that will benefit from quad cores until later on in your schooling, if ever.

The main reason I'd say go with the Intel is because of power savings.

 

Even in heavily threaded tasks, the highest Llano mobile APU might barely beat the i5-2410m, according to benchmarks. Power saving isn't an issue anymore, though. Llano matches or beats SB in battery life.

 

The prices match if I get the 3530.

AMD Quad-Core A8-3530MX Accelerated Processor (2.6GHz/1.9GHz, 4MB L2 Cache)

Still the i5 though? I only know the basics when it comes to processors, so forgive me for these questions.

 

The formula is: price/performance.

Whoever has a the bigger ratio wins.

 

In most cases the i5 will be about twice as fast but in applications that load all 4 cores, the A8-3530MX should be close or maybe slightly better. Gaming-wise, the i5+6770m will be better right now but as AMD improves the drivers for the 6755G2 it could take the lead by 10-30%

 

I would assume that the A8-3530MX is better than the i5-2410m in heavily multi-threaded applications, but worse in single-threaded and dual-threaded ones. It's difficult to say because AMD's Turbo Core works differently (and much worse) than I expected. It's a pretty tough call. Llano is nowhere close to the quad-core Sandy Bridge, but a quad-core vs. a dual-core is a decision that depends on what applications you will be using.

By the way, what games do you intend to play? Llano has this hybrid CrossFire thing which will eventually (once AMD gets its act together and releases some decent drivers) give you better GPU performance when the integrated and discreet graphics work together. Relative to the 6770M, the improvement should be 10-15%.

 

As of right now, I plan on playing SC2, Bioshock 2, some newer MMO's, and maybe Skyrim wen it is released. I might just play some random game that I couldn't play because of my current computer lacking the power to play it. Plus whatever applications I'll be needing through college as an electrical/computer engineering major (concentration in software/programming).

 

I wouldn't buy a 3530 before seeing how well Turbo Core works on it. If it's anything like its 35W brothers, it will still be well behind the i5 on even 100% multithreaded tasks like cinebench. In the real world and games though, nothing is perfectly multithreaded.

 

I'm feeling a general consensus for the i5-2410. It will be able to run most games right? (coupled with a HD 6770m)

 

With the exception of the most demanding FPS and RTS games out on the market, there shouldn't be a problem gaming with the configuration stated.

 

Don't want to waste a thread. How much of a difference is 7200rpm vs 5400rpm? It's the only problem I have with this quick-ship model I'm thinking of buying.

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s....0+-+16.9&product_code=LW223UA#ABA&catLevel=3

And the other one I was going to buy and wait a month or so for to get to me had a different wireless card I think.

It had Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN with Wireless Display Support and the quick ship has Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector) /Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN & Bluetooth.

I'm so lost.

 

It'll make more of a difference in day to day windows use than the difference between Intel and AMD. HDD is usually the bottleneck in a system, and the pecking order is SSD>>>>Hybrid>7200rpm>5400rpm. Get the best HDD you can.

As far as wireless, Atheros is junk and Intel is very stable.

 

I never found Atheros to be junk. Now, Broadcom and Ralink you want to avoid in my experience. Intel is the best but Atheros isn't bad.

 

My previous wifi was Atheros and it'd sometimes have problems waking up from sleep etc. Maybe junk is too strong a word, it's just not as stable as I'd like.