Which to keep?

Hello all! Thanks for being here. I bought the 14 first to be able to do video editing with the Panasonic TM700. I've read that it needs a good processor to be able to see the editing on the computer because of recording in 1080p/60fps. I got scared that it would not handle it so I ordered the 15. Would anyone here be able to help with this decision?

With the cost of the 15 being $500 more than the 14, I could add a 256gb SSD to the 14. I will do that to either that I keep.


L501X-i7-840QM/8GB/GT 435M-640GB 7200/ 15.6HDF TLF LCD/ Blu-ray/Advanced-N + WiMAX 6250/9-cell Lithium/Bluetooth/ Backlit Keyboard

or

L401X i5-560M/ 8GB/ GT 420M 1GB graphics with Optimus and TV Tuner /640GB 7200 / (720p) LED Display/ Advanced-N / 6-cell Lithium/ Bluetooth/ Backlit Keyboard

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

For video editing, the 15 is definately the better option. Maybe think about replacing the main hdd drive with the ssd, and moving the 640GB to an optical bay caddie

 

Thanks for your answer and time.

Another question. If I could get the same config in a 14" would there be any advantages to the 15" besides the screen resolution and USB 3? I have an opportunity to get it with the SSD already installed.

 

Th 14 only comes with the GT425M when configured with the i7 quads, wheres as the 15 comes with the GT 435M. So there is that advantage of a better GPU, however the GT 425M and the GT435M are the same card, and you should be able to clock the 425M up to or near 435M specs.

Also the 15 comes with 2.1 Audio (eg built in sub) whereas the 14 only comes with stereo

 

Thank you.

 

The 425m in the 14 will clock well beyond the 435m speeds, the stock speeds for the 435m stock speeds are 650/1300/800. I have been able to game 100% stable at 715/1425/925 with temps no higher than low 70's even in games that put high stress on the card. I've been able to run those clocks with spikes no higher than mid 70's in furmark so it could probably overclock even higher than that especially when the new Nvidia drivers come out or with a modded set of 265.90 drivers. Now I'm sure the 435m should theoretically overclock higher than the 425m but it's an amazing card with better battery life. Really the choice for me would come down to 1080p -vs- more portability, USB 3.0 -vs- better battery life.

 

I really appreciate y'alls help on this, but a lot of what you said is beyond me at this point. I'm really new at this. The main reason I'm trying to decide which processor boils down to if the i5 will smoothly handle the software editing for a Panasonic TM700 video camera. If I can stay with the i5 I can use the Windows Display enabled wireless card to transmit to the TV with the Netgear Push2TV making viewing the content easy for the family. The i7 is not supported by the Windows Display.

A note. Both of the orders above have been canceled so I have the opportunity to build it right this time. Thanks for your help.

I like your build in your sig.
XPS 14 | i7-740 | 8gb 1333 | 2gb GT425m | 256Gb SSD | 9 Cell | BT | Intel Wifi | DVD+/-RW | Win 7 Pro | G700

 

Honestly the i5 should work for your editing software but it's most likely going to be slower. A lot of the video/photo editing software anymore has the ability to use a quad core so the i7 is naturally going to be faster in those scenarios. The best thing you could do is find out if the specific software you use is going to be able to use a quad core or not and decide then. The build in my sig is amazing so thank you, the two things I would say though looking back at it is this:

-Had I not come across such a good deal on it I probably would have looked elsewhere, the build in my sig is going to cost most people $1500-$2000 where I snagged it for about half that locally.

-The i7 does suck down a good amount more battery life so if you need more than 2-4 hours(depending on what you're doing) then go with the i5.

 

@DaneGRClose: If you don't mind, may I ask how much you got it for?...just out of curiosity

 

LOL, I'm probably gonna kill my resell value here but sure..... $750..... That was everything but the G700 mouse

 

Hi there!

I'm looking to (safely) OC my 425m (Asus n53JQ: I7-740; 8g DDR3/1333). I know, as you said too, that we can clock it to the 435m values and even to the 430 desktop version values (730/1460/900) but with some heat issues... the question is, did you get (visible) improvements on gaming that are worth the risk?

thk you!

 

I did in most games, there were a few games that are more CPU bound like SC2 that didn't show a huge increase though. The temperature increase(once I applied aftermarket paste/pads) from stock to that OC was actually only like 2-3 degrees, the one thing I love about the 4XXm series is they run very cool. Keep in mind though you are comparing apples to oranges, the name of the card may be the same but the differences between an Asus and Dell GPU can be larger than you think, especially because Dell modify's most of their gpu's and Asus uses reverse MXM standard cards that have to be physically modified as well. If you are going to do it go in very slow increments and test on each increase for stability

 

I went with:

XPS 15 | i7-840QM | Win 7 Ult. | 8gb | 2gb GT435m w/TV tuner | 650Gb @7200| 9 Cell | Advanced-N + WiMAX 6250 802.11 a/g/n | BT | Reads Blu-ray, Writes CD/DVD+/-RW | Backlit Keyboard | Adobe® Photoshop® Elements + Adobe® Premiere® Elements | Sony Vegas 10

Sony Vegas 10 minimum requirements:
2 GHz processor (multicore or multiprocessor CPU recommended for HD or stereoscopic 3D)
400 MB hard-disk space for program installation
1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended)

I'll get the SSD later and cheaper to use the HDD for an external. Which SSD do you have?

This should do all I need. Thanks very much for the help!

 

Wow you literally got everything possible other than the SSD, nice rig, do you mind me asking what screen you got? I'm guessing the 720p one unless your magically found some way to find a 1080p screen for you lol

 

Thanks! I hope not to have to do this again for a while. I tried my best to get the 1080, but to no avail. I even asked if other countries had them to offer why didn't we have them. The answer was,"I don't know!".

So which SSD are you using? I'm leaning toward the Samsung.

BTW your price was GREAT! Even with my employee purchase plan it wasn't Anywhere near your sweet deal!

 

I'm using the Samsung 256gb that comes with it when ordered from Dell. I wasn't the person who ordered my computer, I purchased it when it was a few weeks old from a local online classified site which is why I got the screaming deal. The guy I got it from paid about $2300 for it but was desperate for cash fast so I snagged it at $750 If I was the one to do the first purchase I would gotten the smallest standard HDD I could then purchased a big OCZ Vertex/Agility 2 or maybe even waited for the new Intels. I don't know what the blu-ray upgrade cost you but I hope it was no where near what they charge for it in the 14. There have been a few people who have put after market screens in all of the XPS series computers so I would just slap one in after if you really want the higher res screen. You're gonna love that rig, congrats!

 

Thanks, I hope to. I'll have to look up the screen upgrades for fun. Are the OCZ Vertex/Agility 2's or Intels better?

 

Opinions are mixed, for 4k random r/w speeds and reliability the intels are usually better but they are pricey for size with the currently available drives. OCZ's are a lot faster and better priced for $ per Gb, they are reliable but not quite as good as the Intel's. Personally if I were to buy an SSD right now I'd try to find a used OCZ Vertex or Vertex 2 and wait out until the next generation of ssd's where they will be a lot faster, larger, and a lot more affordable, just my 2 cents.

 

I think you're right. Crucial announced the C400's coming out Q1, so maybe the C300's will be coming down in price. I can wait a month or two, so that when I do get one I'll appreciate the difference.

 

Six days after my order the FHD screen comes back. They told me to cancel and re-order! I did! Yahooooooooo! 1080p baby! Come to papa!