Please help me choose a CPU/GPU combo

[level99]

Hello,
I am looking for a good combination of CPU and graphics card within my budget. My options are:

Core i3-2100 with HD 6770
Pentium G850 with HD 6850
Pentium G620 with HD 6870

I plan to upgrade in a year or so to i5-2500K or Ivy Bridge and a better graphics card. I suppose a fourth option would be to just get 2500K now and just use the onboard graphics HD graphics 3000 for now.

I appreciate any help I can get!

 

[tlmck]

It depends on what you are going to use the computer for.

If you are a gamer and you can wait and save a bit, the i3-2100 and the 6870 would last you a good while. The integrated graphics in the 2500k are not going to help in gaming.

If it is just a general computing type machine, the G620 would be enough alone.

 

[level99]

It depends on what you are going to use the computer for.

If you are a gamer and you can wait and save a bit, the i3-2100 and the 6870 would last you a good while. The integrated graphics in the 2500k are not going to help in gaming.

If it is just a general computing type machine, the G620 would be enough alone.

I am a gamer but mostly play on consoles, but thats mostly due to this ancient computer I am currently using. That said, I would like to be able to play some games, namely Batman Arkham city which came free with my Samsung SSD. Would like to be able to play at 1920x1080 with good settings and frame rate.

 

[level99]

Would none of the other combos work for now considering I plan to upgrade a year from now?

 

[tlmck]

That's sort of my point. If you save a little more, and get the combo I suggested now, you will not need to upgrade in a year.

Anything lower than the 6870 is going to struggle a bit with 19x10 in most games at the settings you desire. You could certainly try the G620 and worst case is you waste the cost of the CPU. You'll still have a decent video card. Also, many games are totally GPU dependent so the CPU is much less important. I am pretty sure Batman AC is one of those. http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/10/21/batman-arkham-city-system-requirements-revealed-new-pc-screenshots-out/

 

[level99]

That's sort of my point. If you save a little more, and get the combo I suggested now, you will not need to upgrade in a year.

Anything lower than the 6870 is going to struggle a bit with 19x10 in most games at the settings you desire. You could certainly try the G620 and worst case is you waste the cost of the CPU. You'll still have a decent video card. Also, many games are totally GPU dependent so the CPU is much less important. I am pretty sure Batman AC is one of those. http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/10/21/batman-arkham-city-system-requirements-revealed-new-pc-screenshots-out/

I see your point about not having to upgrade in a year. I just like the idea of getting a 2500K or ivy bridge eventually. But I suppose if the i3 is good enough to run even games that require quad core with just 2 cores plus hyperthreading, that I could keep it a while and skip over sandy/ivy bridge and get whatever is out when I build my next machine in a few years.

Yeah I figure most games are more GPU dependent than CPU.

 

[level99]

Best answer selected by level99.

 

[Mousemonkey]

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