What CPU should I choose?

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs What CPU should I choose?

Hello, I'm buying a Laptop and for the money I have I understood that there are only 2 CPUs. I want to know which one is better for gaming: i7-2630QM or i5-2410M. I chose them because they are the second generation pretty much and because the best video card I can buy for those money in my country is the NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M. So pretty much there goes the question: the Quad-Core with lower clock speed or the Dual-Core with higher speed for gaming? Thanks.

Reply to Gingerbread

I'd go with the quad core i7.

Even though it is slightly slower (300MHz) any game that takes advantage of four cores would be much better off. Not only that, but both CPUs have turbo boost that reaches 2.9GHz, so when running on a single core they should be essentially equal.

Reply to nordlead

i think the i7 would be better cause it have six cores"i5 is not a bad chioce but i5 is generally fit for desktop series"

but the drawback of laptops is they are not upgradable as comparing to desktop
that why i suggest you i7

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to pro-gamer

The i7-2630qm is better. Most games run in single thread. True that the i5 run higher clock but max at 2.9Ghz. The i7 also max at 2.9Ghz but the i7 has more cache.

Reply to jivdis1x

pro-gamer wrote :

4 physical cores with hyperthreading therefore 8 threads

Reply to jivdis1x

Thanks a lot for the quick response guys. Guess im sticking with the i7 then hehe .

Reply to Gingerbread

With the Intel® Core™ i7-2630QM you are going find that you are getting more out of your Turbo Boost and at a higher rate since you will not be using the extra cores and threads as much. In the end the Intel Core i7-2630QM is the better performaning processor. http://ark.intel.com/compare/52224,52219 Also here is a little tool to help you see when you are taking advantage of Turbo Boost and for how much http://downloadcenter.intel.com/De [...] ldID=19105 .

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to IntelEnthusiast

IntelEnthusiast wrote :

Thanks a lot. Since I see you are pretty deep into this I would like to ask for your opinion: Old generation CPU+a bit better GPU or a New generation CPU+a bit worse GPU?

Reply to Gingerbread

The 2nd generation Intel® Core™ processors have a 10% to 15% performance boost over the older 1st generation Intel Core processors. Also in a mobile environment the 2nd generation Intel Core processors are giving better life then the older generation processors.

For me the battery life and better CPU performance is more important than small down grade on the GPU. Also understand that I don't do much gaming from my laptop so the graphics aren't as important as the overall system performance.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

Reply to IntelEnthusiast

I found one with this CPU and a 555m. Cant afford more though. Thanks.

Reply to Gingerbread

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