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    What's more important, CPU or GPU?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by fragments, Dec 11, 2009.

  1. fragments

    fragments Notebook Enthusiast

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    Purpose:
    Movie playback
    Online video Streaming(ie youtube HD)
    Internet surfing
    Word processing

    compare:
    T6600+Intel GMA 4500 vs. SU7300+Intel GMA 4500+G210M switchable

    Under what condition(application/multitasking) would the su7300 shown as inferior to the T6600? I'm getting a laptop for my parents, they don't do any gaming/video editing/graphic design stuff. And they want something that would last at least a couple of years without getting the idea "is it time to get a new laptop?" with the things they would do listed above.

    Thank you very much!
     
    fragments, Dec 11, 2009
    #1
  2. Peon

    Peon Notebook Virtuoso

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    CPU, none of those tasks except the first involves the GPU at all, and even the first is easily handled by today's mainstream CPUs without any GPU help. Basically, if you don't game, you don't need a discrete graphics card.
     
    Peon, Dec 11, 2009
    #2
  3. Trottel

    Trottel Notebook Virtuoso

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    The intel integrated graphics has all the video acceleration you need, so the extra discrete graphics doesn't do anything in that system.
     
    Trottel, Dec 11, 2009
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  4. fragments

    fragments Notebook Enthusiast

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    so no need for the discrete graphics and t6600 is much better than su7300 right?
     
    fragments, Dec 11, 2009
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  5. fragments

    fragments Notebook Enthusiast

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    how about just su7300+gma 4500, is that good enough?
     
    fragments, Dec 11, 2009
    #5
  6. Trottel

    Trottel Notebook Virtuoso

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    Probably, but I thought you wanted something that would last a while. If the price difference is large, don't sweat it.
     
    Trottel, Dec 11, 2009
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  7. fragments

    fragments Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ok, thank you guys~
     
    fragments, Dec 11, 2009
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  8. mesarmath

    mesarmath Notebook Geek

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    isn't the brand of the notebook important?

    what if they drop it?
    i think it should be also durable and, in my opinion, one of the most durable notebooks is thinkpad.
     
    mesarmath, Dec 11, 2009
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  9. Amnesiac

    Amnesiac 404

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    I think you're talking overkill here. If everyone needed the durability of a Thinkpad, then obviously everybody would have one? Not so, is it?
     
    Amnesiac, Dec 11, 2009
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  10. mesarmath

    mesarmath Notebook Geek

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    i did not say that thinkpad is the only durable one. so your reply does not make sense.
     
    mesarmath, Dec 12, 2009
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  11. thinkpad knows best

    thinkpad knows best Notebook Deity

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    He just was using the ThinkPad as a representation of durability, although ThinkPad quality has been lacking for about a year or two with the flexy keyboards and flimsy thinner plastics used. Although, there were many improvements in durability as well, and Lenovo claims that the durability is more so in the magnesium roll cage, where you cannot notice durability until you see how much pure metal is protecting your hard drive, disk drive, and how much magnesium is reinforcing your screen so that you can literally stand on your ThinkPad without worrying about a cracked LCD, i did on my T61p...
     
    thinkpad knows best, Dec 12, 2009
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  12. Amnesiac

    Amnesiac 404

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    And I know someone who accidentally sat on his Acer Extensa, yet it didn't crack the screen.
     
    Amnesiac, Dec 13, 2009
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  13. HPpavilion

    HPpavilion Notebook Consultant

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    With something like YouTube, it's definitely CPU. Unless you have a GPU that specifically supports Flash 10.1, things like YouTube and FarmVille will operate entirely on CPU.
     
    HPpavilion, Dec 13, 2009
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  14. fragments

    fragments Notebook Enthusiast

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    Thank you.

    Just a side question, which GPUs have flash 10.1 support? Is there a list?
     
    fragments, Dec 13, 2009
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  15. HPpavilion

    HPpavilion Notebook Consultant

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    Yes. Search the web.
     
    HPpavilion, Dec 13, 2009
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  16. Jayayess1190

    Jayayess1190 Waiting on Intel Cannonlake

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    Read this pdf.
     
    Jayayess1190, Dec 13, 2009
    #16