Is intel i3/other better than amd?

bandalasta · Feb 6, 2014

I am looking for a laptop for msoffice, a tiny amount of basic photo editing, BBC iPlayer use, youtube, web and email work.

I have no TV so this is it. Music,TV, radio device. This is a work horse not a pretty looking thing so I am not bothered by looks or weight really.

A budget of 350 GBP or perhaps a bit more is allowed. Less preferably.

So what is the best processor? I know it is best for:
RAM: 4G min
Screen: 15.6
Keyboard: a good one
Build: robust

If someone can untangle the processor debate that woould be most welcome. i.e. Is Intel really better than AMD?

Cheers

Guest · Feb 6, 2014

AMD=PRICE
INTEL=PERFORMANCE

Wisecracker · Feb 6, 2014

For "Music,TV, radio device" there is no difference.

Your mobile should perform these functions with the CPU at idle.

ethereal essence · Feb 6, 2014

for your needs an amd A6 or A8 would be enough. An i3 would be great as well. basically don't go lower than an A6 and you'll be fine.

bandalasta · Feb 6, 2014

iknowhowtofixit :

If you want any chance of playing a 3D game on a laptop in that price range, AMD is your best bet as the graphics power is far superior. However, Intel laptops tend to be a bit more friendly on battery life. In terms of raw CPU power, Intel will remain king. However, like I said, with almost anything 3D, AMD is top dog for laptops.

This is based on the assumption you are looking at laptops without discrete graphics and only ones that have APUs (Intel HD series graphics, AMD 8XXXD series graphics).

bandalasta · Feb 6, 2014

Thank you for that information. I do not play games but it is useful to know that AMD is a good graphics processor.

bandalasta · Feb 6, 2014

ethereal essence :

jaguarskx · Feb 6, 2014

AMD APUs have more cores than Intel (4 vs 2), but the processing power of each core of an AMD APU is much less than that of an Intel CPU. For most people 2 cores is fine especially in your case since the programs you seem to be using will not take advantage of more than 2 cores with the possible exception of "basic photo editing".

Since you are basically using only 2 cores for the majority of the time buying a laptop with an Intel CPU will likely last you longer before you feel the need buy a new laptop. Intel's Core i3 is roughly 30% more powerful than AMD's APU. If you are comparing a laptop with a dual core Core i3 at 2.0GHz vs. a quad core AMD APU at 2.6GHz then the laptop with the APU would be better since each AMD core will be equivalent to each Intel core due to the higher clockspeed, plus you also get 2 additional cores.

bandalasta · Feb 6, 2014

Thank you. I have seen details of some laptops but they have been AMD.

Working with a budget, something sometimes has to give.

Much appreciated.

jaguarskx · Feb 6, 2014

bandalasta :

Intel's integrated graphics are no longer as bad as the used to be (i.e. prior to 2011).

In general, AMD's APUs have the most powerful integrated graphics (iGPU) compared to Intel... However, that depends on which iGPU are being compared. Intel's most powerful mainstream iGPU is the Intel HD 4600. There are only two AMD iGPUs more powerful than it which are the integrated Radeon HD 8610g and HD 8650g. Those are only in the Richland generation A10 APU series.

jaguarskx · Feb 6, 2014

I did not say all Haswell generation Core i3 comes with the Intel HD 4600 graphics core.

I simply stated Intel's most powerful mainstream iGPU is the Intel HD 4600.

jacobian · Feb 6, 2014

In notebook space, AMD APUs don't compete either in price or performance with Intel. For any application that doesn't use GPU, AMD A10 is about as fast as Core i3, specially if you look at the 35watt parts. For games, the APU is something like 20-30% faster than HD graphics, not a big deal. Now, I am often seeing "Best Buy special" sales and such on budget Core i3 notebooks with a 15 inch screen, for $400 or less. Normally, you don't even get an AMD A10 for this price. In 2012, I got a Samsung Series 3 laptop around the holidays from Best Buy with 15 inch screen matte screen and Sandy Bridge Core i3 for under $400, and I still marvel at how fast and solid the machine is for the money I spent. My brother took it to work for a year, and it still looks and works like new after the abuse. Windows 8 was the only disappointment.

I can see the utility of AMD A8-A10 APUs in $400-700 notebooks if you still need to play games because they will have slightly faster frame rates than Intel Core iX, but at $750 you can already have a laptop with a dedicated graphics that can beat the APUs (e.g. HP Envy configured with Core i5 and Geforce graphics on HP's web site). AMD APUs are a nice concept, but their performance is killed by slow memory. My understanding is that laptop manufacturers do not install faster DDR memory, and this is why you normally get only 20-30% more FPS than HD Graphics 4600. Either way, it's very little for most modern games.

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Is intel i3/other better than amd?

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