I get confused about processors...

baby and crumble

Ok, so I'm looking to get a new laptop. The main things I'll be using it for is web stuff, working on documents for college, photo editing (not hardcore or anything, but running something like elements or lightroom would be nice) and the usual music/ some movies. Not into PC gaming, although being able to run the sims would be great too. It needs to be really portable, and I don't want to go much higher than 14" screen, and not as low as a netbook...

SO would something like this be appropriate:

MSI 13.3"

Features:-
- Intel SU4100 1.30GHz Processor
- 2GB of Memory
- 320GB HDD
- 13.3” 16:9 Wide Screen Display (1366*768)
- Intel GMA 4500MHD Graphics
- HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) Output
- 802.11b / g / n Wireless Lan with Bluetooth (optional)
- 4 Cell Battery (upto 8hr battery life)
- 2 years Warranty

That processor seems kinda slow to me, and the 2G of ram worries be a tad. I'm sure that's upgradable, and I've upgraded laptop ram before so I have no problems doing it.

what do people think? I was looking at a few others with the last gen of i3/i5 and they're that tiny bit more expensive than I'd like (my max budget is about €700, so this one comes in well under that...)

Cheers!

Trevor451

Processor is a bit slow and intel integrated graphics are crap however it is more powerful than a netbook.

baby and crumble

Thanks, that's what I though alright. I just spotted it and thought "hmmm..."

Jonny7

zoegh wrote: »

Ok, so I'm looking to get a new laptop. The main things I'll be using it for is web stuff, working on documents for college, photo editing (not hardcore or anything, but running something like elements or lightroom would be nice) and the usual music/ some movies. Not into PC gaming, although being able to run the sims would be great too. It needs to be really portable, and I don't want to go much higher than 14" screen, and not as low as a netbook...

SO would something like this be appropriate:

MSI 13.3"

Features:-
- Intel SU4100 1.30GHz Processor
- 2GB of Memory
- 320GB HDD
- 13.3” 16:9 Wide Screen Display (1366*768)
- Intel GMA 4500MHD Graphics
- HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) Output
- 802.11b / g / n Wireless Lan with Bluetooth (optional)
- 4 Cell Battery (upto 8hr battery life)
- 2 years Warranty

That processor seems kinda slow to me, and the 2G of ram worries be a tad. I'm sure that's upgradable, and I've upgraded laptop ram before so I have no problems doing it.

what do people think? I was looking at a few others with the last gen of i3/i5 and they're that tiny bit more expensive than I'd like (my max budget is about €700, so this one comes in well under that...)

Cheers!

Its fine, 99% of people here couldn't tell the everyday diff between a 1.3 ULV dual core and an i5

2 gigs is fine actually, ram is dirt cheap at the mo and can be upgraded if you really feel the need

For the tasks you have specified, it looks like the perfect spec - 8 hours batt and portability is a lifechanger too

Please search online for actual reviews of the model you want to get, to check if it has crap trackpad, bad sound, or the million of other things that turn out to be more important than proc speed

Also, go to saveonlaptops.co.uk
I've checked reviews and this is very good
http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/ASUS_UL30A-QX328V_1068303.html

if you have more cash and want more umph, ram and space (you might only notice it in photoediting perhaps, not browsing, docs, video, etc) then consider the below
http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Samsung_Q330_1048113.html

both are good

ps I've been through a total of about 15 laptops, desktops, netbooks, pieces of crap in the last decade - dont obsess with proc speed, read reviews and you can't go wrong!

baby and crumble

Thanks for that, that's great advice!

I'm not too bothered I just want to know what I'm buying tbh. last laptop I bought was a macbook and that was pretty easy, but I need the pc now for certain programs.

Thanks for this!

Voodu Child

CULV processors are specifically designed to be low performance and hence very light on battery consumption.

The SU4100 is a CULV from the Pentium Dual Core range. So not only is it clocked very low, it is also a couple of generations old in terms of architecture.

I got something with the SU4100 or similar for the parents and they're perfectly happy with it for web browsing, email and the like. But I wouldn't use it myself, its awful slow for anything intensive and if you are used to a fast system you'll find it very sluggish.

baby and crumble

Thanks for all the replies, guys. I've narrowed it down (pretty much) to 2 machines:

Samsung Q330

Asus Bamboo

Obviously the Asus is much pricier but oooooooooh it's pretty! And it has the i-5 rather than i-3 and dedicated graphics. Neither of which I'm 100% sure I'll need, but hmmm...

Thanks for the help, and if there any other suggestions of laptops that might fit the bill I don't know about, I'd appreciate it!