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    Should I upgrade to an R5 from an R4?

    Discussion in '2015+ Alienware 13 / 15 / 17' started by Jbrewton45, Dec 24, 2018.

  1. Jbrewton45

    Jbrewton45 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have the option of a friend buying my current setup at about $1200 (the original purchase total was $ 1,763.11).
    I currently have a 17 r4 with:
    • Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-7700HQ
    • 1070 GTX 1070 with 8GB GDDR5
    • 180GB M.2 SATA 6Gb/s SSD (Boot) + 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s (Storage)
    • 16GB, DDR4, 2400MHz
    • 17.3 inch FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS Anti-Glare 300-nits
    What Im looking at buying:

    • Intel® Core™ i7-8750H (6-Core, 9MB Cache, up to 4.1GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
    • NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1080 OC with 8GB GDDR5X
    • 17.3" UHD 3840x2160 60Hz AG NVIDIA G-SYNC 300-nits IPS w/ Tobii IR Eye-tracking
    • 16GB, DDR4, 2400MHz; up to 32GB (additional memory sold separately)
    • 512GB M.2 PCIe Class 50 SSD + 1TB 7200RPM SATA HDD
    • 1550 2x2 AC and Bluetooth 5.0
    • Per key, multi-color RGB, keyboard with AlienFX lighting control
    Total:
    $3,021 ($1,821 cost to upgrade with the i7)
    $3,609 ($2,409 cost to upgrade with the i9)


    If it is, is the i9 worth the extra money? Should I be looking at another brand?

    I use my computer for grad school, 4k video editing, and the occasional game. The software I use (ArcGIS and Pix4dMapper) needs something quite robust, so I'm looking to upgrade if its worth it.

    Thanks for any help you can provide!
     
    Jbrewton45, Dec 24, 2018
    #1
  2. zdevilinside

    zdevilinside Notebook Enthusiast

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    No, I wouldn't upgrade it to the R5. The cost/benefit is just not there unless you NEED the i9. I would keep the current system and save for after you finish school. If it was me, I would start saving for the new Clevo/Sager laptops that use desktop processors if you want something that would be a significant upgrade.

    I just finished my graduate degree in IT. I needed something robust. I used a Clevo P770ZM-G with 32GB RAM, 1x 512GB 970 Pro, 2x 2TB Firecudas, 980M video and Killer AC wireless card. The only reason I bought an 17 R5 was because the Clevo was stolen and I needed a replacement fast.
     
    zdevilinside, Dec 26, 2018
    #2
    M18x-oldie likes this.
  3. Reciever

    Reciever D! For Dragon!

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    Finished my it degree on an m4600, shouldn't need a massive pc for most of the specializations out there.

    8th Gen has the advantage of higher turbo speeds and additional cores so the difference can be vast if you tune the machine. Most people could be satisfied with the 8750h/8850h since you can hit 3.9/4.0ghs across all cores.
     
    Reciever, Dec 28, 2018
    #3
  4. zdevilinside

    zdevilinside Notebook Enthusiast

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    I agree with you. I used a 4790k CPU to complete my IT degree a few months ago from a Top 50 university.
     
    zdevilinside, Dec 28, 2018
    #4