i5 or i7

Hi there, in the next couple of weeks my gf and I see looking to buy the m11x, I've been reading as much as I can about it, and can't wait to have one.

I still haven't decided what processor to get though, can anyone point me to any information comparing the i5 to the i7? Is it really worth the extra £190 for the i7? Obviously a saving of £380 would be great over the two laptops! But can anyone convince me to spend that extra?

Thankyou.

 

The extra £250 for the R2 over the R1 isn't worth it let alone the ridiculous £190 dell are charging for the "i7" over and above the i5.

Spec for spec this would make the i7 model ~ £400 more than the R1 (Core 2).

In your case that would be a saving of £800 overall (or nearly enough to buy a separate GX660R gaming laptop......)

EDIT: Sorry my post is a bit abrupt. I have nothing against the R2 it's just the price (UK) is just stupid for the relative performance increase.

 

Dell does have a bad habit for overcharging on memory and processor upgrades on their alien-ware brands.

The machine just looks too sexy and most people would just buy it for the looks. lol. I9 might release with the R3 during the first quarter of 2011 so to be honest, depending on your budget, i'd go for the cheapest configuration and then sell it off when the r3 releases.

 

Actually,the Core i series CPU (520UM and 640UM)both shows great performance increases over the old C2D,especially when being overclocked and has Throttlestop turned on(and of course with the right settings),and they seem to be a little bit snappier than C2D.

However,when we compare the i5 and i7,the i5 actually shows similar performance to the i7.

And now you know which one is the best and really is worth the money

 

and the 2011 version of M11x will surely be much more sexier than the predecessor

 

Whilst this is true (R2 is faster than the R1 - assuming you are of course not GPU limited) it is simply not worth the extra outlay. An HP envy 14 would be a much better buy currently than the R2 with the i7 "upgrade".

 

Thanks all for your views, I've thought the i5 would be the better option.
Keep discussing though, haven't totally made my mind up!

 

Then,we will have to ask OP:What are you going to use the M11x for?

Just like what this guy said,you can probably get better performance as long as the applications/games are CPU-Bound

So,if you are planning on doing heavy-multitasking,or you are going to use it for playing games that can really make good use of a better CPU,get the Core i.Otherwise,C2D will suit you needs.

 

WOW is it really 400+ euros in the UK to go from c2d to i7? i have a desktop so the price increase sooo wouldn't be worth it to me... i have the i5 because it's almost the same as the i7 and i couldn't find the i7 on the dell refurbs (and once again, it's almost the same lols)

 

This is my opinion if your looking to buy the laptop as a main laptop/gaming rig the id say go i5 since throttlestop makes the r2 cpu much faster than the r1, only go i7 if money is not that big on an issue because as stated before i5 and i7 is not that big of a difference.

If you buying as a secondary machine, your best off with the r1 c2d as it does the job just as good in most aspects and if some apps/games are slow u got a main desktop/laptop so i5/i7 not worth it whereas if used as a main the faster the better obviously since its your one and only.

edit: forgot to mention ive used both i5 and i7 oced with throttlestop of course and didnt notice any major difference in apps or games. hope that helps

 

@Wabbit - Loads of threads on this subject. Basically for games that are cpu limited then yes, you will see performance increases in these games. For games that are gpu limited then no, the differences will be minimal.

CPU Bound games are: BFBC2, Metro2033, Most RTS games (sc2, civ5), cod bops.

Good Luck,

StevneX

Fricka-a-Firecrackuh-shish-boom-bah...bugs-bunny-bugs-bunny-rah-rah-rah

SUPER WABBIT!

 

Between the Core i5 / i7, absolutely definitely get the Core i5.

The difference between the two CPU's is so small that I wouldn't even pay £20 for the upgrade, let alone £190 x 2 across two laptops.

 

Metro 2033 is not a cpu bound game. It runs identically on my server (with GTX460 and E2160 @ 2.8ghz) as it does on my i7 (running at 3.8ghz) with GTX460.

Metro 2033 - Performance Guide - CPU Scaling Performance

I don't know if the Op has noticed but Dell have "updated" the specs of the R2. The price has been "dropped" albeit with a Pentium U5400 slotted in place of the i5 as the base processor. Unfortunately the i7 model with only 2GB of memory is now £1,069.

That makes it £469 MORE than the R1 spec for spec.

Ironically this makes the base £749 R2 slower than the base £599 R1 (U5400 only runs at 1.2Ghz with no turbo)

At that price it is more expensive than the Envy 14 (by nearly £100) and also £10 more than the M15x with a HD5850 upgrade.....

What on earth are they playing at?

 

Are you on the Alienware UK website for that?

The base config for the Alienware M11x R2 in the U.S. is still Core i5.



Edit: I just went on Alienware's UK website.

The "Pentium" version of the Alienware M11x is the M11x R1 that was always offered as the base config of the M11x R1. Your options are:
- Intel® Pentium® Dual Core Processor ULV SU4100 (1.30GHz, 2MB, 800MHz) [Included in Price] (of £599)
- Intel® Core™ 2 Duo SU7300(1.3GHz,800MHz,3MB) [add £85.00 or £5/month1]

The base version of the Alienware M11x R2 comes with a Core i5 for £749

 

Yes sorry UK site.

With 4GB memory the i7 model is over £1,150.

 

From a bang-for-your-buck perspective, the Core i7 version was never really worth the upgrade. It was only worth it if you could get the Core i7 upgrade for next to nothing, or if you were a person that absolutely had to have "the best" and were willing to pay for it.

 

Well I ordered a i5 a few days ago and can't wait for it to arrive. Just checked the UK site again due to xaser's comments and I am seeing the new options for the R2.

It's now showing a base price of £749 (I think that's £50 cheaper than old base price) but the following options of processor:

Intel® Pentium® U5400 (3M Cache, 1.2 GHz) [Included in Price]
Intel® Core™ i3 330UM (3M Cache, 1.2 GHz) [add £110.00]
Intel® Core™ i5 520UM (3M Cache, 1.06 GHz) [add £130.00]
Intel® Core™ i7 640UM (4M Cache, 1.20 GHz) [add £320.00]

I went for the i5 as i7 costs way too much more imo for the small performance increase. Was tempted by the C2D option but I think throttlestop comments on this forum sold the i5 for me!

 

The new base price of £749 is taking the mick as it includes the anaemic U5400 (1.2ghz, no turbo). Out of the box it is slower than the R1 yet costs more.....

The i5 is also £30 more than it used to be as well.

To put it in perspective at the current exchange rate (~1.56) the i5 model works out at $1371 whilst the i7 (with 4GB memory and a 500GB HD) works out at roughly $1925....

 

The new Pentium U5400 is built using the same Core i 32nm technology and is identical to a Core i3-330UM but with hyper threading disabled. I think this new Pentium would have a hard time keeping up with the old SU4100 let alone the SU7300.

http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=49156

http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=49021

 

i7 with 500gb and 4gb ram at 1925? That's a lie, i ordered a brand new alienware from dell m11x with i7, 500gb, 4 gigs ram for 1399 shipped.

 

There's a reason we refer to the UK as rip-off britain when it comes to tech goods.

 

That sux, do you have friends in North America that can purchase it for you? Would save you alotta bills xD

 

I live in the UK and hence I will always quote UK pricing. In my example above I merely converted into USD at the current exchange rate (rounded) to give a comparison to US prices.

The current UK price of a R2 specc'd up is a joke. That sort of money buys you alot more laptop and you don't have to give up protability to get it...

EDIT: In theory we could get someone in the US to buy the R2 for us but we *might* get hammered at customs thus negating the saving.

 

I got mine for £1050... in August. Using my super secret way of getting the Dell site to show a discount, here's your config for £999. Enjoy. =)

 

Great find.

Can you do the same for the i5 model?

 

I don't have one specifically for an i5 w/4GB RAM and 500GB HD. But I do for this:

i5, 2GB RAM, 320GB: £829

Then if you add the extra 2GB ram and upgrade the HD to 500, it becomes £949.

 

@Xaser04 - "Metro 2033 is not a cpu bound game. It runs identically on my server (with GTX460 and E2160 @ 2.8ghz) as it does on my i7 (running at 3.8ghz) with GTX460.

Metro 2033 - Performance Guide - CPU Scaling Performance"

We will agree to disagree on that link/opinion. I am certain the game is cpu bound for R1 players. R2 players can and do score higher fps numbers and can play smoothly at medium levels in Metro2033. I was able to get it to run pretty smooth at native rez on the R1 at low levels (with the graphics card oc'd 575/880) If you search the forums you will see what I am talking about between the R1 and the R2 in reference to Metro.

StevenX