Need help selecting processor - on budget!

[stormus2008]

So I am looking to upgrade my computer for Battlefield 3, and was looking for some "expert" opinions. I currently have a Intel Quad Core Q8300 @ 2.5gigs and I am looking to upgrade for under $200. This does not mean I want the best card for 200 dollars, but the best card for the value! I was looking at a few cards such as:

AMD Phenom II x6 1100T Black edition: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103913

Intel Core i5-2400 @ 3.10GHz

and lastly (and most surprisingly)

A newer (cheap) Processor: AMD A8-3850 APU with Radeon HD Graphics (only 140$ and benchmarks similar to the above 2). Comes with a heat-sink, which I have no idea what that really is. But I know very little about this processor so, yeah.

Please help guys! It would be much appreciated.

 

[stormus2008]

Help please, someone?

 

[BohleyK]

Forget AMD! Grab an i5K and a decent GPU. Or an i3 and a really nice GPU. I'm running an i3 and honestly I have no complaints. Everyone buys the i5K for the OCing potential which isn't a bad thing at all. The i3 has no OC at all. However the jump to 3.1GHz and the 4 logical cores make it a great competitor for the money. At half the price of the i5, you have a synthetic quad core that keeps up with the i5 as long as it hasn't been OC to 4GHz and beyond.

 

[stormus2008]

Forget AMD! Grab an i5K and a decent GPU. Or an i3 and a really nice GPU. I'm running an i3 and honestly I have no complaints. Everyone buys the i5K for the OCing potential which isn't a bad thing at all. The i3 has no OC at all. However the jump to 3.1GHz and the 4 logical cores make it a great competitor for the money. At half the price of the i5, you have a synthetic quad core that keeps up with the i5 as long as it hasn't been OC to 4GHz and beyond.

I'm considering getting a Radeon HD 6870 card, and I don't really know much about OCing, and I know it's not something you should really do if you don't understand how tdo it. So you recommend the i3 given that I won't be OCing, and would that GPU work? And can you supply a link to the CPU?

 

[BohleyK]

Overclocking is simple. Now more than ever. I guess back in the day it took some know-how but motherboards nowadays make it very simple to do. Just watch a few YouTube videos and you should be alright.

The 6870 is a great mainstream card. You should have no problem running games on higher settings. You might not be able to max some games but you will be doing pretty well.

The Core i3 2100 is a great dual core processor. Maxes out at 3.1GHz and has 4 synthetic cores. Technically, it is a quad core processor but at half the price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078&Tpk=i3%202100

 

[stormus2008]

Best answer selected by stormus2008.

 

[stormus2008]

Overclocking is simple. Now more than ever. I guess back in the day it took some know-how but motherboards nowadays make it very simple to do. Just watch a few YouTube videos and you should be alright.

The 6870 is a great mainstream card. You should have no problem running games on higher settings. You might not be able to max some games but you will be doing pretty well.

The Core i3 2100 is a great dual core processor. Maxes out at 3.1GHz and has 4 synthetic cores. Technically, it is a quad core processor but at half the price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078&Tpk=i3%202100

Thanks a lot for the help man. I'm probably going to pick up those two products in the future, when it gets closer to release time for Diablo 3 and battlefield 3