Is this a good idea? (question about intel cores)

[hardhitter]

Hi there!

I'm planning on replacing my 3 year old PC.. However, I want to make sure that my PC is "future proof" to a certain extent...

I'm thinking of buying a conroe core now. .then after a year or so... switch to the penryn core... Do you think this is a good idea? or should I just wait for the penryn core next year? (my PC is still doing OK but i fear it might get too outdated or it might even crash after a few months)

also, what chipset should I use? P35? X38? (X48 if i should wait for the penryn core next year)

FYI, I'm not that much of a gamer so I guess the graphics card isn't that important..

your thoughts please! thanks a lot!

 

[Maziar]

Hi mate

Yes get a core2duo know and upgrade to penryn later
get a P35 board it supports Penryn CPUs , the main difference between X38 and P35 is that X38 supports PCI-E 2.0 @ full bandwidth but P35 supports PCI-E 2.0 but not @ full bandwidth(which wont make alot of difference)

X48 review:
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3150

get a P35 board , best bang for buck
ASUS P5K-E WIFI

GIGABYTE P35 DS3R
ABIT IP35 PRO

are good choices

 

[hardhitter]

thanks! i'll look into that!

 

[prodystopian]

This is actually exactly what I plan to do. I am planing to buy an e2160 (or e2200 depending on the reviews) and overclocking it. I have never overclocked before and I don't plan to go too far with it, but I want to give it a try. If you don't want to overclock, you may want to consider the e4xxx series. IMO the e6xxx series is a little too expensive for what we are talking about here. They are great chips, but if you are going to replace it quickly, I would save the ~$50 and put it toward the Penryn.

 

[gwolfman]

yeah, I'm in the same boat as you guys

 

[nhobo]

Bad time to buy, right before the holidays. Wait until the new year after more new hardware is rolled out, supply lines free up and prices drop. On top of that, the US econony has s#!t the bed, and *everything* will be on sale after what is going to amount to one of the most economically dismal holiday seasons ever.

 

[hardhitter]

prodystopi, yup i'm also thinking about that as well haha! i want to use it as a base platform to: replace my old computer and help me out in jumpstarting my "overclocking career"

nhobo, good point.. i didn't really think about that... but yeah, that's probably a great idea..

thanks!