I3-3220 vs i5-3570

[thdarkshadow]

I am going from a a6 triple core APU with 7770 GPU to an Intel with said GPU. I want the processor to last several years and through several GPUs. I am really stingy with my money so I don't want to spend money I dont need to. there is an $80 difference so my question is: is it worth the extra to buy the i5? I play crysis 2 and games like that

 

[clutchc]

The "is it worth it" question is always hard to answer objectively. The i3-3220 is an amazing dual core for the money. It is an amazing gamer too. With a mid range card like the HD 7770 you won't see any major improvement by simply going to a quad core. Games seem to make good use of the hyper threaded cores of the i3. Here is Tom's gfx card hierarchy chart to get a perspective of where the processors compare with each other in gaming.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html

There's only one tier separating them.

 

[timarp000]

in gaming, you wont see a big difference between the two because the i3 is hyperthreaded which makes it like a quad core CPU... but for other demanding tasks like editing video, the i5 will be much better...

 

[lostgamer_03]

The i5-3570 will be sufficient for longer. Future proofing doesn't exist, but as applications begin to use more and more cores, then the i3-3220 would much likely fall short at some point.

As in your current situation the i3-3220 would be a good match, if moving up towards more powerful GPUs it won't in some situations. As I just told more and more applications gets support for more cores that include games.

 

[thdarkshadow]

Best answer selected by thdarkshadow.

 

[thdarkshadow]

wow all of you had great answers! I got an email from newegg with a sale on the 3470 so it makes the i5 cost about $50 more so I will probably go with that so I can upgrade GPU without doing CPU. thanks SO much