T420 vs W520 for a java programmer

I'm a student and I'm trying to be a java programmer. I can't stil decide between T420 and W520.

T420 (ci5-2520m)
W520 (ci7-2720qm)

you suppose that all these programs such as a DB server, WEB server, IDE, IE, Firefox, Opera, Anti-Virus and so forth are running concurrently on my system.

How much ram and cpu do I need to run 1000 test classes 1000 times smoothly in a day?

I think I go for W520? and what about you?

Thank you very much for your attention.

 

It really depends on your budget. Got money beyond logic? Go for the W520, 2720QM, FHD screen, 16 GB RAM. For compiling, I'd recommend an i7 and minimum FHD screen. Programmers benefit from more vertical real estate, opting for the W520/T520 will get you 1920x1080. You could also consider the T520 as a lower cost option to the W520 while offering 80% of the same specs.

 

It's all a matter of what you want to lug around. Just about anything would do what you're asking. For dev work you'd want at least the 1600x900 screen as you get a lot more text windows on the screen. But as you go to higher resolutions the pixels start getting pretty small, maybe smaller than is comfortable to read. 1920x1080 on a 15" screen is pretty tiny, some folks like it, but I found it hard on the eyes after more than a little while.

 

Anywhere from a couple megs and a 686 to a couple dozen gigs in a 16-core SMP box.

(i.e. It depends entirely on what those classes are doing...)

 

They're determining the meaning of life

 

I'm a java programmer, and I just bought a T420. While the 520 has more real estate (and that's nice), I liked the form factor better. And at work, I'm developing on slower machines than the i3, much less the i5 or i7 upgrade. I would suggest getting the 1600x900, and at your desk at home getting an extra screen. Real estate is king when you're developing, even if you don't need it all the time.

Note: I don't have the 420 yet so I can't say for sure, but right now I'm developing Java on a 6 year old computer.

 

Screen resolution is the one most important upgrade. Even during times when you're not programming you can still reap the benefits when it comes to general multitasking.

Screen is more important than the processor, because:
- A processor upgrade will speed up the things the computer is doing automatically (e.g. compiling). Not always by much depending on the processor you get and the type of compiling being done, but this is where the benefit exists.
- A screen resolution upgrade will speed up the things YOU do (coding). It's a lot better to be able to very quickly fix an error in the code, hit the compile button, then take a break while waiting for it to finish - rather than take forever scrolling up and down your lines of code to find the error, only to shave off a small amount of time in the compiling process once you fix the error.

 

It does not depend on his budget. The space consumer by a thousand test cases is 1000 X the size of a test case + very aprroximately 2 K.

The physical space depends on his budget because that's physical memory we're talking about. When he exceeds physical memory, he will go to virtual memory and swapping once again depending on the size of a testcase in memory.

Renee

 

I program java and I don't need anything more than a Pentium 4. And I have a QXGA screen which beats any of the new wide-screen s, so there you go.

But go ahead, buy new toys. W420 and W520 are practically the same crap.

 

Uh... I don't think it's quite that simple.