Intel core2quad or amd phenom?

[nigelnigel]

Hello,
my office will do some inventory refresh, and for that all 3-4 years old computers will be sold.

meanwhile im also looking to replace my 7 years old 3,06 ghz pentium4 HT build-urself computer. im a casual gamer (u know, not that kind of hardcore dual video card freak ) and currently there are 2 computers being sold that interesting me.
the first one is a dell PC, i dont know the type, but system properties says it have a 2.4 ghz intel core2quad processor, 2gb ram, and intel graphic.
the second one is (maybe) a barebone pc, because theres no brand at all, but from system properties it have amd 3ghz amd pehnom2 x4, 2gb ram, and radeon 3300 onboard graphic.
as far as i know, both are the most high-end pc that is being sold, and both are tagged with $250 price (sold without harddrive and display)

and the question, which one is a better choice for me as a gaming computer?? is it too expensive?? i also prepared another 250 bucks for the harddrive, video card and memory. because im sure it kinda waste if those pc were equipped with my aging gefore 6800 video card.

i know the amd have a higher clock speed, but the feedback from the guy who worked with it before says the intel one is slightly faster... is it true?

thx for ur replies

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

Actually the phenom II X4 and Intel Core2Quad are almost on par.
Considering that it is an OEM and that you might not be able to Overclock that means you might be better of considering the Phenom.

However i must remind you that you would be way better in the long run if you were to buy a SB build.

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/80?vs=89
Even though clocked slower you can see that the Intel has got some great performance when compared to Phenom II X4

 

[nigelnigel]

wow didn't expect such a quick reply thx
SB build? what is it?
great link from u mate, i didn't know such a detailed comparison exists lol, i googled before and notice that amd phenom 2 can uses DDR3 memory and core2 quad can only use ddr2. will the difference in memory performance noticable?

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

Sandy Bridge Cpus are the best bang of the buck at the moment.
Nothing compares to i5 2500k,
You would really feel speeds that you have never felt before and with a possible upgrade path to Ivy Bridge you wont have much to lose.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/288?vs=102
Intel i5 2500k vs AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

Below is a comment i would comment on the speeds myself but i really cant unless you feel the speed of the i5 2500k then you wont be the same again.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/307826-28-went-sb2500k

 

[nigelnigel]

for now im a bit tight on budget, so i think i'll follow ur advice to buy a core i5 next month (when i'll have more money than now)

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

Alright hope you enjoy your new Sandy Bridge computer.

 

[karthikalexpandian]

unless when used benchmarks are just dreams ?

 

[amdfangirl]

unless when used benchmarks are just dreams ?

Whatever do you mean?

 

[truegenius]

minor gaming + small budget = amd apu

you should consider a apu

otherwise i3-2100 (125) with gtx 550ti (145) is a more better choice

 

[esrever]

The AMD computer should be faster. Phenom IIs are about as fast as C2Qs per clock so the higher clock on the phenoms will be better. You should also consider getting at least 4gb of ram and definitely a new graphics card.