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    Lightroom 3 with i5 vs i7

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by cez81, Feb 20, 2011.

  1. cez81

    cez81 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I am a heavy Lightroom users and was doing some research regarding i5 vs i7 and read that some programs utilize the multiple cores and others do not.

    1. Does anyone know for sure how Lightroom 3 utilizes the CPU. Will it use just 1 core or multiples?

    2. If it uses just 1 core, does it make more sense to have an i5 at ~2.6GHz vs the i7 quad at around 1.6-1.7GHz?

    3. Would the i7 be a better choice anyway for long term use as newer programs will use the multiple cores better.

    My main uses are photo editing and just other everyday browsing, music, video streaming....

    I just bought an ASUS with an i7 740, 4GB DDR3, and a Radeon HD 6370 with 1GB DDR3.

    Before I break the seal on the box I just want to make sure that an i5 wouldn't run better for my intended use with Lightroom.

    Thanks.
     
    cez81, Feb 20, 2011
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  2. shakennstirred

    shakennstirred Notebook Evangelist

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    shakennstirred, Feb 20, 2011
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  3. cez81

    cez81 Notebook Enthusiast

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    That is an interesting read. It was written for Lightroom 2.. I wonder what changes were made with LR3.
     
    cez81, Feb 20, 2011
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  4. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

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    1) LR3 is designed to take advantage of multiple cores by splitting tasks into multiple threads. This isn't so much a feature unique to LR3 as it is a trend in computing; more cores beats faster cores.

    2) The i7 should use TurboBoost to temporarily OC itself when CPU usage increases. It won't just run at 1.7GHz. In any case, the Core i7 will beat the i5 handily in CPU-intensive apps.

    3) Short answer: yes, it would.

    This link may help inform your decision: Hardware Review: Lightroom and yourprocessor. - My Blog - JP Lumansoc Photography
     
    Bog, Feb 20, 2011
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