How does an average user benefit from i7?

the thing is damn fast and has quad core.


i was wondering on consumer laptops..what apps will really benefit from such a powerful processor?


i make amateur music, watch movies, surf a lot, play games, do multi-tasking and my processor is easily handling all this stuff.


now what kind of apps need i7?

coz i saved around $600 by not goin for i7 based laptops

 

Just picture your pc.. with all its speed. And now picture an i7, which does all those things.. even faster!!

No I dont know really, the only thing I can compare it with is my old desktop AMD 3500+ single core...

People talk a lot about multi-threaded applications/games.. they say i7 CPU's can handle those like no other. But I dont really know how i can lookup how many threads a game is using? Otherwise it wouldve become clearer for me.

 

Its kinda obvious

 

nah, for that you need them on an ssd..


one thing the i7 does, is very fast reacting on workload. f.e. if you scroll in an app and it wasn't perfectly smooth, chance is high, it's smooth on an i7, as it will overclock that thread just while you scroll (as they demonstrated it).

so it should add quite a bit to the snappiness factor.

other than that, yes, it's just very fast, so everything you do should be fast

 

The best advantage for an average user is that the i7 will make the prices of old processors such as the core 2 duo's decline, which should still be more than good enough for your average needs.

 

When it's cold, you can count on the CPU to keep you warm.

 

You don't need core i7 for that, my old acer with c2duo from 2007 already did that, with far more succes.

 

So did my 2007 Dell Vostro if stressed...

i7 Arrandale is a far better solution as it has switchable graphics and 32nm, so it means faster processing, better battery life, GPU and IGP available, smaller design, better cooling, TB and HT enabled...not too shabby!

 

no wonder i could get my laptop for such a lower price.

 

For your average user who doesn't push the laptop to the edge, there's no need for an i7, other than to have it last longer when more demanding software comes out. Sounds like you made the right call for your needs.

In general, photo editing, A/V editing and transcoding, and anything "math" related will benefit from more cores/processing power. Watching movies, surfing, etc.. you're probably not going to notice much of a difference.

 

You get bragging rights.

 

A Pentium 4 Prescott core running at a "cool" 3.4GHz would do the trick just as well. And yes to answer your implicit question, manufacturers were stupid enough to put that CPU into their laptops.

BrandonSi is more or less correct. Most average users don't make even make full use of their Core 2 Duo processors. There are much more beneficial upgrades to be had for the average user. Ex, an SSD.

 

My i7 @ 4.0 Ghz isn't even that great. I am not sure why people are hyping over it. Intel going to release 6 and 8 core CPU's soon and I am sure AMD is developing new CPU's to be more competitive with Intel.

 

It's not great? What are you using it for?

 

Its not that great, I use it for VMs and gaming and playing with Linux Distros.
I just think greatness of this CPU is way over hyped.

 

On a desktop, I agree. Your i7 @ 4.0GHz is pretty meh, you can certainly do better if you want to spend the money.

However, for notebooks, there are limits. An i7 @ 4GHz in a notebook is a pretty big deal, definitely worthy of the hype.

Intel already has 6 core cpu's, and has for a while now.

 

There really isn't much better for desktops at this point that is until AMD can get its in gear. As for notebooks I doubt Id get an i7 set up. I want at least cooler chips and better battery life from Intel before I jump on the fan boat. And the 6 core still hasn't been made public for purchase yet. In fact if you really want to do your home work, 80 core processors have been around for a while as well.

 

I assume you're referring to Gulftown, and yes, you are right, it has yet to be released. But as I said, Intel has had a 6 core for a while now.

http://www.google.com/search?q=E7450

 

http://techresearch.intel.com/articles/Tera-Scale/1449.htm
Yes and so have 80 core processors.

In fact even 48 Core Processors may hit the average consumer in the next several years.

http://www.techpowerup.com/109688/Futuristic_Intel_Chip_Could_Reshape_How_Computers_are_Built.html

 

Well, I was referring to the 6 core currently on the market and available for purchase, and that runs Windows. But thanks for the links!

 

The 6 core should hit Q1 2010, but I doubt its going to be a vast improvement over the current i7 line up.

 

I agree, multi-core performance benefits decline with the addition of more cores.

 

Depending on the application, but I don't think 6 cores is going to make a huge increase in fps for gaming. I mean if your running 2 vms at once it may help but when you get to that point you might as well have a another machine solely dedicated to what ever OS your running or experimenting with.

 

I agree. There are plenty of uses for a 6-core cpu, but gaming isn't really one of them. My i7 handles two VM's at the same time nicely as well, so I certainly wouldn't upgrade just for that.

 

gaming will benefit of anything that has a certain market share. it's unimportant if it's high clockrate, multiple cores, special cpu math units, gpu's, physics units, etc.. they will use ANYTHING they can. but after 1-5 years earliest. when it gets mainstream in the highend

 

None.... Face book minimum requirements are a intel i468

 

PC gaming needs are slowing down... In the old days, people would need to upgrade their CPU and GPU every 12-18 months just to get the game to not crash on start up, but these days, a 2 or 3 year old computer is still perfectly viable for playing new games on medium settings.

The fact that 2-year-old Crysis is still considered a fairly demanding game today doesn't help either.

 

I agree an i7 is not going to benefit an average user. An average user wont need so much processing power for web browsing and downloading music.

That is until webpages/web apps and p2p programs start requiring a quad core cpu and an Nvidia 260 GTX or similar specs.

what are the requirements for farm town?

 

um you dont need a GTX 260m to play fish world


GMA chip and a Pentium 4 thats all you need

 

I guess you haven't heard of sarcasm, or read my post.

 

....................................

 

You didn't even read my post now did you? Let me make it clear:

"I agree an i7 is not going to benefit an average user. An average user wont need so much processing power for web browsing and downloading music.

That is until webpages/web apps and p2p programs start requiring a quad core cpus and an Nvidia 260 GTX or similar specs.

what are the requirements for farm town?"

"I never said facebook requires a quad core and an Nvidia 260 GTX"

 

look you want to insult me ? We had a mis understanding and i thought you were serious and i understand what your saying ... i don't need bold print as i am not stupid


With that i think i will leave

 

I thought you had selective reading as you seem to take note of all the buzz words instead of what I was actually saying.

 

Well basically it can do stuff way faster... also might help a little in CPU intensive games like GTA 4... also gives u bragging rights