should I buy now?

I have Dell Vostro 1510
C2D 2.5Ghz/6MB
Integrated Intel X3100 GPU
4GB DDR2
HDD with 5400RPM

I want to get a laptop with dedicated GPU (not really for games, just so that it's not a bottleneck, although I don't really know how much will this help.)

I need more RAM, so I'll get like 6-8GB DDR3.

Also I want to buy an SSD, I will look the forums for recommendations and maybe I'll ask later.

But the important thing is: should I go on and get core i7 mobile CPU? or is it a mistake when Sandy Bridge is already coming?
Maybe I should get core i7 and wait for something Fusion?

Actually my CPU itself is fine for me (the C2D) so I think core i7 will be more than fine, but since Sandy Bridge is more than a CPU, maybe there is something in it to wait for?

 

Sandy Bridge is coming next week, so I would wait about 2 weeks to see what comes up. The Sandy Bridge CPU's will have integrated graphics so powerful that it will make low-end dedicated graphic cards obsolete. The integrated graphics in the Sandy Bridges will be as good as or better than the Nvdia G300 series (as far as I know). So if you don't play games, you really won't need a graphics card if you get a Sandy Bridge. Another thing is that once Sandy Bridge comes out, current notebooks will have price drops so it will be a time so save some money if you don't care about the Sandy Bridge. If you think C2D is fine, then I wouldn't get anything more than an i5, no point in spending money on a quad core if you don't need it, the i5 is already MUCH better than your C2D.

As for SSD, I know there are new technologies coming out in 2011 but im not sure when, so its up to you if you want to wait.

 

Will, I don't know if my C2D is really enough. I mean I don't see it exceeding maybe 70% most of the time at Task Manger > Performance. But I use two virtual machinces and this win 7 OS. it hangs a lot that even using only one VM is pain, but what I notice is that the RAM is almost full, so I don't know if it's the CPU also or only the RAM.

As for the dedicated GPU, I notice a lot of RAM being used when I plug in the monitor, so I was like maybe what is going on this part of RAM should be on the RAM of a dedicated GPU.
So, I don't know which would be better? An dedicated GPU (with it's own fast GDDR5 RAM) or letting SandyBridge's GPU do its work...

By the way, I didn't expect SandyBridge to be at this price, at this CPU performance, come at this time, nor to be at this GPU performance. It's just like a really good thing to wait for now. Thanks for your reply.

 

What do you mean by hang ?

More RAM and faster storage system would definitely help more than faster CPU unless you have lots of task switching between them.

I am running 2 XP under W7 with similar configuration as yours but don't see any 'hang', though without knowing the task you are doing, it can mean nothing.

I am using x25m 80G BTW.

 

Do you use an external monitor?

The XP in VMware is really slow, I have to wait a lot for it to respond, if I assign more RAM for it, it will even make 7 slower.

Now 2 XPs in VMware is even more pain, and many times makes the whole VMware program hang/blur/stop working for small period of time.


I think I don't need that much faster CPU, but since I'm getting a new notebook it won't hurt to just get the better one (with the most recent platform.) But the Question is about the GPU now. I'll quote myself:-

 

Yes, I use a 23" external monitor.

I am not running VMWare though but Virtual PC.

 

Well if you really want an i7 I suggest you only get the Sandy Bridge i7, the current i7 doesn't have any integrated graphics and battery life will be half of what you would get with an i5. And you should be fine with integrated graphics, maybe just upgrade to 6gb RAM, that should be plenty for your VM's. It wouldn't be worth it to sacrifice the extra money/heat/power consumption of a dedicated GPU only to be used to support an external monitor. If you value battery life/heat like me, stick with the integrated graphics. If you don't care about those, then it might be better to go with the dedicated because you never know when you might need it in the future. Many notebooks nowadays offer switchable graphics anyways, so you can switch between the integrated and dedicated to save power etc.

 

Thank you for your reply

Concerning switching:-
SemiAccurate :: LucidLogix brings dynamic graphics switching to Sandy Bridge