how long till the i3 becomes today's 'Centrino'?

im buying a new laptop, but unfortunately i will only be able to get an i3 processor in it
im usually working with the full Adobe Suite and im not worried about performance atm, but how long do you guys think it will take till it becomes incapable of handling today's, as as time passes, more demanding softwares?

 

first off centrino isn't a processor, its a brand name that only applies to a laptop if it uses an intel chipset, an intel wireless network card, and an intel cpu.

secondly, I used to run photoshop cs2 off a 1.3Ghz pentium 3, 512mb ram, and integrated ATI graphics.

was it fast? hell no. was it incredibly slow? no I could use it fine just nowhere near as fast as I can now on my core 2 duo.

now my core 2 duo is nothing comapared to the new icores but I'll still run programs fine off it for a couple years.

 

sorry, my bad, but you understood me

i mean its not slow but it is noticeably slow and not fast enough to do seamless work without have your thought process interrupted

atm im running a 2003 Dell Dimension 2400 2.8GHz p4 desktop w/ 1GB DDR 333MHz RAM (256mb original) with integrated graphics

im able to run Photoshop CS4 extended, , Illustrator CS4, Flash CS4 Pro, AfterEffects CS4 on my PC, but to render 1 thing i probably have to wait 5 mins, for example if i want to render clouds on Photoshop
and by the time its done rendering, my thought process just gets screwed and the excitement and enthusiasm of making anything is lost. but if it really important i am eventually able to do it
but i enjoy being able to give the command and having it done within 4 seconds

of course we can only guess right now
how long will the i3 be sufficient for running demanding programs, for the next 2 years, maybe 3 years? i've only gotten familiar with PC hardware in the last 2 years or so, so im not too knowledgeable, still learning

so...?

 

Ok.. Why don't you tell us what kind of laptop you want so we can help you choose the best deal for your budget? If you fill out the FAQ in the "What Notebook Should I Buy" section then we would be glad to help.

I'm saying this because probably for your budget you could get a Core i5 instead of a Core i3.

 

I'm guessing it will be about 2 years until programs will start to run noticeably slow on the i3. And for the slightly higher price that the i5 is, you get a much better processor. The i3 is pretty much like a new age Pentium, or even Celeron. The low end tier.

 

Very mislead consumer, first off you cannot by any standards pass off that just because a laptop uses a Centrino certified chipset, connectivity and processor, does not by any means qualify that it's low perforance, the whole idea of Centrino qualification is to distinguish the laptops that offer a better perforance per watt of power used rating than laptops without the qualification. Centrino is not a processor, NOT A PROCESSOR, also.. you are moving too fast, even for technology, the i3 will be able to handle most every general photo editing application for years to come, hell my "lowly" T7700 can handle most of those applications.

 

You're right, for the price i can get a i5 and i had actually decided to get one with i5 but im buying from the States and bringing it to the UK, atm my uncle is in the States so he can bring it back with him, but delivery on the i5 one is gonna take too long and it would arrive after he had come back, so i have to get it from a retailer which has i3 as the highest processor available

and i've already done a "What Notebook Should I Buy" post

Thanks though

 

My laptop has a Centrino 2 sticker, and I don't think that my notebook is all that old...

 

My old Core 2 Duo T7600 can run Photoshop CS3, run video encoding and audio mixing without much hindrance. The T7600 is an ancient Merom processor - many many generations old from the latest and greatest.

So unless you have some very specific requirements, most common applications will run for at least 3 or 4 years.

 

You must be thinking of the old pentium stickers because centrino is only for laptops, first came out in 2003, and isn't super popular.

Here are my pair of original pentium stickers for reference:

 

Ok.. There is a Lenovo Y550P discount coupon going on right now.
The Y550P has a Core i7 + GT240M graphics. Check it out at the Notebook and Tech Bargain section. All that for only $759!!! Excluding tax to the US. Should come to only ~$830.

Problem is TIME. Depending on how long Lenovo takes to ship this laptop, sometimes they ship it out in 2-3 days if they have stock. Takes only 2-3 business days to arrive to the US. Total 5-7 Business days. IF they have them already in stock!

 

umm, just to give you a reference to how old i am, this is the first time i have ever seen those stickers, i do mean centrino, and sorry for any confusion but i use the word pc for laptops and desktops, its just short and easy

theses are the stickers in talking about



in 2003 i was a bit over a decade old

 

I don't think it should matter.
The rules of thumb is sufficiently powerful for YOUR USAGE.
You buy a comp to use it not to compare it with the latest killer rigs out there.

 

The rules of thumb?
sorry, i didn't understand

 

how about just list out the specs and GPU and price range of the laptop you had in mind. Im running a T5600 1.83Ghz, and im able to process photoshop quite smoothly, i cant say 4secs render time but around so, for bigger renders it takes less than 30-40secs which should be enough and my sticker says Centrino Duo not at old as what you meant but still around 3-4 years old. Sorry for the noob question....but are the new Core i processors upgradeable/interchangable like all other previous CPU's, it might be a dumb question to ask but im asking due the integreated GPU that comes with the Core i series.

 

Well again, those aren't actual processors, derp. And believe it or not, machines that came with that platform were pretty mid - high end back in the day...

But to answer your question, I think it will be about 2 - 3 years before we see the i3 as "old".

 

hmm, Thanks

 

I have a feeling that the many technology chasers on this site who think a P8x00 is old today will see the i3 as old much, much sooner. Q1 2011, to be precise.

Core i3 just doesn't get as much time to shine as C2D did.

 

Well, I don't see the P8x00 series as old just yet...

And OP, I see you are buying a Sony Vaio. You do realise that you could most likely get a higher performing machine for the same price if you go with a different brand, right?

 

Not really, I believe with Sandy Bridge Intel will continue with the Core i3/i5/i7 branding.

 

The new Core i processors are upgradeable and interchangeable with other Core i chips (well, subject to BIOS and thermal limitations, as always), but they are _not_ interchangeable with the previous Core 2 series, as they use a completely different socket. Additionally, some notebooks that use a quad-core i7 (most notably those with the PM55 chipset) can take a newer Arrandale i3/i5/i7 (might require a BIOS update), but will not be able to access the IGP of the Arrandale chip.

Basically, just like the Core 2, all of the Core i series (mobile, mind, desktop Core i actually has 2 different sockets) share the same socket, but individual upgrade scenarios depend on the specific hardware and BIOS implemented by the manufacturer.

 

The Core 2 series are still very capable processors in fact higer end dual and quad core ones still quite easily outperform the i3 and perform as well as some of the i5 processors. i would still invest in one of the new processors just so i have the newer tech cos thatswhat i like.

im probaly gonna keep my core 2 Duo for another 2 years or so because it by no means struggles with anything for me and better core i series processors will come out with lower power consumptions later on which i would prefer.