Multitasking (i vs Core 2) & Moderate Gaming

[BakedBean]

Hi everyone,

I've been doing lots of work on my laptop (Asus M50VM-A1 - stats) which involves a boatload of windows/processes (I have firefox,chrome w/ 20+ tabs, photoshop, trillian, winamp, ftp, folders, and backend processes that keep my cpu busy).

The laptop tends to heat up real hard (100C+ GPU) and the performance just isn't where I want it to be.

I've decided to get a desktop - cheaper - that can handle everything with much more ease and speed.

I've been looking online for deals and there are a boat load of, what seem to me, like amazing deals. Problem is, I'm not very good at comparing computer parts and knowing what exactly I need.

There are a lot of great deals for Core 2 (duo/quad) processor desktops. How much worse is it than the i3/i5/i7 for multitasking?

My current laptop has Vista with Core 2 Duo P8400 processor. It's not running terrible on Vista... how much smoother would it be on Windows 7?

What kind of video card should I get if I only game moderately (i.e run GTA IV smoothly) but mostly will be using it for videos? Is there a site you guys use to compare benchmark video cards? I am so lost when I try to compare them.

I guess my last question is... should I buy a prebuilt computer on sale (http://pastebin.ca/1908126 - $500 shipped) and buy additional parts to upgrade or build a computer from scratch? My budget is around $500-$600 for the computer and some additional funds for a nice monitor.

Thanks!
Oleg

 

[enzo matrix]

Build from scratch.
-unlocked bios
-reduced overall cost
-the PSU will not be crap

I recommend a 5670 for you if gaming isn't too important but... My recommendation could change after you tell us your monitor resolution.
The 5670 performs better than the 4670 and 3870 but worse than the 4850. It uses very little power though.

I agree with the Athlon IIx3 idea above.

My current laptop has Vista with Core 2 Duo P8400 processor. It's not running terrible on Vista... how much smoother would it be on Windows 7?
If all service packs and updates are installed, then not really.

There are a lot of great deals for Core 2 (duo/quad) processor desktops. How much worse is it than the i3/i5/i7 for multitasking?
Depends on the specific models you are comparing. Check here:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/CPU/2

So my recommendations:
-Athlon IIx3 CPU
-Radeon 5670 (preferably by XFX for their warranty)
-Case you think looks pretty. A top fan is always nice. I have an Antec 300
-Quality PSU from Antec, OCZ, corsair. 500W of any of them should be more than enough. You could get a 400W corsair.
-Motherboard: spend under $100 on one from Asus/Gigabyte or MSI. I like my 785G chipset, get an AM3 socketed one though with support for DDR3 memory
-RAM, you want 4GB. Get the cheapest from kingston, Gskill, corsair, patriot. or mushkin. Mushkin is my favourite. Faster more expensive ram makes little to no difference.

 

[narwen]

I would recommend 5770 has it will play any game on medium or higher settings upto 1080x1920