Is it worth going from single core to dual core?

[impreza]

is upgrading from a petium m 1.73ghz to a 1.66ghz core duo or 2gzh core 2 duo worth it? I would be using design programs such as illustrator, photoshop, freehand, pro desktop etc.

which of these tow are better value?
http://www.pbwellington.co.nz/p.aspx?4855
http://www.pbwellington.co.nz/p.aspx?4586

also how does a x600 compare to a x1400 or x1600?

 

[apt403]

You'll see a HUGE improvment on everything you do if you upgrade from that Pentium M to any Core 2 Duo. Not because its a dual core, because its incredibly faster. 2 cores will improve windows performance a little because it can offload some tasks onto the second core.

 

[impreza]

the core duo is only 32 bit isn't it while the core 2 duo is 64 bit?

 

[ZozZoz]

wow, that'a a stab at Pentia M )). You DO know that they're not of the NetBurst family but rather the clock efficient Pentium III family, don't you?

which brings up a question. Has anyone benchmarked Pentium M vs. Conroe?
I think I'll do it myself. I have a 1.73 ghz in my laptop, and I'll downclock the C2D to match it, then we'll see. No chipset dependent benchmarks, but rather floating point and multimedia.

Anyways, I'll post the results tomorrow.

 

[djplanet]

the core duo is only 32 bit isn't it while the core 2 duo is 64 bit?

Yes, just make sure your mobo is compatible, especially if you're using a laptop (mine isn't ).

 

[sarsoft]

Yes you are going to see improvements in performance. It will benefit in the programs that you mentioned. The 2 cores will improve your response time and load time big time vs. 1 core. If i was you i would be looking for Core 2 Duo laptops they offer even better performance. The price range is bit higher but you can still get a nice one under $1000.

Here is one that would buy.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16834114288

 

[djplanet]

wow, that'a a stab at Pentia M )). You DO know that they're not of the NetBurst family but rather the clock efficient Pentium III family, don't you?

which brings up a question. Has anyone benchmarked Pentium M vs. Conroe?
I think I'll do it myself. I have a 1.73 ghz in my laptop, and I'll downclock the C2D to match it, then we'll see. No chipset dependent benchmarks, but rather floating point and multimedia.

Anyways, I'll post the results tomorrow.

I like to think of the Pentium M as a P4, sans the ridiculous heat dissipation and power consumption. Yes, it is the forerunner of Core architecture, but actual Core processors will still outpace it, even clock for clock IMO.

 

[ZozZoz]

64 bits are there to handle computations that involve huuuuuuge numbers. Which in real life happens in high-end cluster/server tasks/apps.

However, the marketing has suckered the average consumer into the 64-bit craze, which brought along the Athlon 64-s, windows xp 64, and stuff like that.

final point being - If you run Win32 applications on both it doesn't matter if they support 64 or 32 bits.

BTW. If you guys want to see certain benchmarks - let me know. As for now, I can only think of SuperPI, and SiSoftware Sandra CPU benches.

 

[impreza]

64 bits are there to handle computations that involve huuuuuuge numbers. Which in real life happens in high-end cluster/server tasks/apps.

However, the marketing has suckered the average consumer into the 64-bit craze, which brought along the Athlon 64-s, windows xp 64, and stuff like that.

final point being - If you run Win32 applications on both it doesn't matter if they support 64 or 32 bits.

BTW. If you guys want to see certain benchmarks - let me know. As for now, I can only think of SuperPI, and SiSoftware Sandra CPU benches.

so would you say a 2ghz core 2 duo with 1gb ram 100gb hdd and x1400 4 $2600nzd or a core duo 1.66 512mb ram, 60gb hdd and x1600 4 $2300nzd is better value? and is the 1.66 ghz core duo faster than a 1.73ghz pm?

 

[cookin]

Impreza, I don't know if you realize that both laptops you linked to were Core Duo. Neither is a Core 2 duo, although at first glance it may appear that the 2 gig unit is.

 

[impreza]

Impreza, I don't know if you realize that both laptops you linked to were Core Duo. Neither is a Core 2 duo, although at first glance it may appear that the 2 gig unit is.

yeah I realized later than they were both core 1s are the turion x2s any good?

 

[endyen]

The turion line is made by AMD. They are great chips, but are not as good IPC as the core2s. You would need a chip that runs 20% faster to get the same ballpark production. I should also point out that they lack the battery life of the intel chips.

 

[gOJDO]

Core Duo or Core2 Duo, you will notice performance improvement either way. But with Core2 Duo, you will notice much more difference.
C2D is the way to go.