The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Intel Core i5--4th Gen Vs 6th Gen

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by OKComputer, Dec 4, 2015.

  1. OKComputer

    OKComputer Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    6
    Messages:
    50
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Is there a big difference for "average user" tasks like web browsing, email, watching videos? Or is it only noticeable if you're building web pages, gaming, doing CGI, etc?

    Is one more durable, faster, etc?

    Thanks.
     
  2. djembe

    djembe drum while you work

    Reputations:
    1,064
    Messages:
    1,455
    Likes Received:
    203
    Trophy Points:
    81
    Skylake (6th gen) is a bit more energy efficient, has better integrated graphics and between 5-10% better performance on average. But for standard web browsing, video watching, and productivity tasks, either Haswell (4th gen) or Skylake (6th gen) will work fine.

    If you're currently using a Haswell system, and you want improved performance with the usage you described, you'd see more of an improvement from getting more memory and swapping your hard drive for an SSD than you would from getting a new system with a Skylake processor. And it would cost less, too.
     
    Last edited: Dec 4, 2015
  3. OKComputer

    OKComputer Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    6
    Messages:
    50
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Thanks, Djembe! Useful info.

    The background is that last weekend, I got Dell to do a price match on a laptop with the same specs as one offered for less on Amazon--but when the laptop arrived, I realized this one spec (processor gen) is different. Now I'm going back and forth with these CS people in India who refuse to acknowledge that they moved the goal posts with the price match and didn't tell me. They probably didn't mean to at the time, but out of decency they should do something for me other than offer to let me return it.

    Wish I could find some elevated CS number for Dell. I'm going to Austin soon, though, so maybe I'll stop in Round Rock and see if I can get someone to talk to me.
     
  4. Galm

    Galm "Stand By, We're Analyzing The Situation!"

    Reputations:
    1,228
    Messages:
    5,696
    Likes Received:
    2,949
    Trophy Points:
    331
    There are 4 core and 2 core processors for 4th 5th and 6th gen.
     
  5. Galm

    Galm "Stand By, We're Analyzing The Situation!"

    Reputations:
    1,228
    Messages:
    5,696
    Likes Received:
    2,949
    Trophy Points:
    331
  6. Charles P. Jefferies

    Charles P. Jefferies Lead Moderator Super Moderator

    Reputations:
    22,339
    Messages:
    36,639
    Likes Received:
    5,075
    Trophy Points:
    931
    If you paid for a notebook with a sixth-gen processor and received one with a fourth-gen, that's a BIG problem. I would return it right then and there. If you get resistance, you'll have to demonstrate that the notebook you paid for was supposed to come with the sixth gen CPU. You do have an order sheet and so on, showing the specs, right?

    Charles
     
  7. Dufus

    Dufus .

    Reputations:
    1,194
    Messages:
    1,336
    Likes Received:
    548
    Trophy Points:
    131
    Right, especially if it was a quad core 6th gen replaced with a dual core 4th gen.

    More details needed.
     
    alexhawker likes this.