Which is better gain?

[dredsilver]

So, I'm pretty much in a tossup between these two units:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834246322
&
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834246219

Both units have the style keyboard I'm heavily interested in ("accutype" style). The U400 has a really attractive aluminum casing that I like.
The AMD unit has a cheaper body but seems like a serious value. I'm relatively unfamiliar with the hierarchical placement of the A-series vs i3s and i5s.

My previous laptop— http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834114533 —with a P7350@2.0GHz and no discreet GPU, was never able to play games at a playable framerate. I'm mainly looking to be able to play League of Legends and smaller indie titles on Steam when I'm not at my desktop. Gaming is not necessarily a must-have, however.

(I'm also aware of the 2gb memory difference between processors; not much of a worry as I'll probably upgrade to 8gb eventually.)

Essentially, I'm curious which system will meet my needs for a zippy processor but also have the potential to game: the A8-3520M with 6620G or the i3-2350M with discreet 6470M.

(Additional question: I'm assuming the i5 with 6gb memory version of the U400 would be the best option if I saved another $70?)

 

[dredsilver]

The AMD laptop will actually be able to play games. Don't expect much out of an i3 with HD3000 graphics....

The i3 has discreet 6470M. I'm pretty unfamiliar with the AMD A-series. I know the 6470M is quite out of date, so the AMD still beats it?

 

[jerm1027]

The i3 has discreet 6470M. I'm pretty unfamiliar with the AMD A-series. I know the 6470M is quite out of date, so the AMD still beats it?

Yes, but quite a margin too. The 6470M is very entry level, with only 160 unified shaders (cores), 4 TMU's (Texture Mapping Units), and 2 ROPs. In comparison to the A8's 6620G has 400 unified shaders, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs.

I think the A8 is a better all around deal. More memory, cheaper price, better graphics, and lower power consumption (advantage of having the GPU on the same die as the CPU).

 

[jaguarskx]

Click the following link for a review of the Radeon HD 6470m. Towards the middle are game benchmarks, expand the "low" settings to see how it compares to other graphic cards / core. The A8-3520m has a HD 6620G integrated, but it is not in all the benchmarks, a few times you will see the faster HD 6630G.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-HD-6470M.43075.0.html

I would say the results are mixed sometimes the Radeon HD 6470 beats the Radeon HD 6630G, sometimes it looses. Therefore, I would say it is a draw. At this point in time, if you want to save money, then go with AMD. I would prefer to go with Intel because of the more powerful CPU since I tend to do CPU intensive tasks. Also games that are CPU bound will perform better since both graphic card / core are more or less equal.

 

[dredsilver]

Best answer selected by dredsilver.