Processor Clock Speed

irishguy1983

Does this affect your streaming,how many websites applications you can have open at once?

I am looking to buy a new laptop and I notice most at 1.8 or 2.4. I presume getting a laptop with 2.4 makes everything a bit quicker??

Overheal

irishguy1983 wrote: »

Does this affect your streaming,how many websites applications you can have open at once?

I am looking to buy a new laptop and I notice most at 1.8 or 2.4. I presume getting a laptop with 2.4 makes everything a bit quicker??

Thanks for asking the question. Unfortunately its not the same easy answer it was 10 years ago.

The short answer is it can have an effect on your streaming, and while there is no set limit to how many tabs or apps you can open at once, you will notice performance degradation sooner on a slower machine. Do not rely on clock speed as the deciding piece of evidence in your CPU shopping!

When multicore processors came out, there was a lot of confusion: A single core P4 processor could churn out 4Ghz, and was top notch. Next generation after, Dual Core CPUs came along but on average only ran about 2Ghz, this is because on the same space you can't run twice as much at that rate without twice as much heat - and well, computer/material science and thermodynamics intervene. But on average the dual core became a superior option because it was far less likely to choke/freeze: if a process becomes non-responsive it doesn't hold up the entire processor, just one of the cores/threads, and everything else routes around it.

And now it's even less simple! Intel processors on average can handle twice as many threads as they have cores (in the i3/i5/i7 processors) meaning an i3 is a dual core CPU but the computer can respect it like a Quad Core. This feature is called Hyperthreading. This has its own tradeoffs, but in general its a good option for multitasking if the machine is not under heavy load (when all 4 threads get under load, the 2 cores can become choked, rarely). AMD chipsets don't do this and you'll notice on desktops AMDs regularly now have 6 and 8 core CPUs, each running a thread each.

Then you have all the other pieces of tech on a CPU now. Like Hyperthreading, technologies like AMD Quickstream technology actually do things like QoS packet scheduling at the CPU level - that is, if you're streaming a youtube video, and downloading a file at the same time, the CPU will schedule priority bandwidth to the video. Both Intel and AMD also have their own integrated GPU options now, with Intel running intel HD and AMD running Radeon chipsets right on the GPU. Currently however AMD is much farther afield with this concept, dubbing their CPUs "APU" (Accelerated Proccessor Units) instead: reason being the GPU can actually handle certain CPU tasks as well as GPU tasks, and Im not sure if Intel has this capability yet. Depending on the program and the function being performed (eg. many post-effect processes in Adobe Photoshop) take advantage of the tech built into an AMD APU - the current list of supported Apps approaches a thousand at this point, up from 100 just 2 years ago.

In general though an AMD APU will have a lower clock speed than an Intel, which can throw many people off. However, because theres so much more going on (particularly the fact that they have a not-insignificant iGPU embedded in them), it's really difficult to take the clock speed and use it as the Master Spec for picking out a CPU anymore. Even comparing a 10 year old CPU to a new CPU: the average i5 sits somewhere in the 2Ghz range, where a much older single core typically ran around 4Ghz. But aside from all the new technology in the i5, the i5 also has many (MANY) more transistors, meaning in every 'cycle' (Hz being Cycles per Second after all) the i5 is capable of crunching out 10x more math than a P4. The Prescott P4 had 125 million transistors that were 90nm wide on a 2D space. The Ivy Bridge i5 has 1.4 Billion 3D transistors that are 22nm wide.

As you can tell, I really hate getting asked this at work, because I know too much.

irishguy1983

WOW!

Basically I am looking at the two below - I presume the Sony is faster as tis more expensive and has a 2.4 processor clock. However do I really need that?? I basically use my computer for streaming,itune,flicking about on the internet and have the odd word doc open - that is about it! The Sony doesn't have a DVD player which i don't like though! Samsung processor is only 1.8 yet it seems pricey.

Thoughts???

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Toshiba_Satellite_P845t-108_Core_i3_14_inch_Touchscreen_Windows_8_Ultrabook_PSPJ5E-00Y00NEN/version.asp#top

http://www.pcworld.ie/Product/SAMSUNG-Series-5-NP530U3C-133andquot-Ultrabookandtrade-Silver/312379/104.1


http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Sony_VAIO_T13_Core_i3_Touch_Windows_8_Laptop__SVT1313L1ES/version.asp

Overheal

the sony product page is reporting something wrong. the i3-2367 is a 1.4Ghz processor not a 2.4ghz. Must be a typo on their part, and no they aren't trying to call it a 2.8Ghz because it's dualcore (though some sheisty sites will do, especially ebay vendors. When multicore processors are concerned, 2+2 != 4. Another long story.)

that i3 is also a 2nd generation Sandy Bridge. The other two are a newer Ivy Bridge CPU. It has 33% more transistors. Not bad for a chip only 9 months newer than the other.

Between the Toshiba and the Samsung its all a matter of preferences. I'd personally the Samsung, the little guy just feels a lot more solid than the Toshiba, which while not "cheap" feeling, is just too much plastic for my liking, and is borderline flim flam.

You can always get an external drive, but unless you have a giant DVD collection you plan to play on it or burn a lot of discs its better to chuck the technology, its dated. Viva la Netflix. Even the OS can be loaded from a USB these days.

irishguy1983

Overheal wrote: »

the sony product page is reporting something wrong. the i3-2367 is a 1.4Ghz processor not a 2.4ghz. Must be a typo on their part, and no they aren't trying to call it a 2.8Ghz because it's dualcore (though some sheisty sites will do, especially ebay vendors. When multicore processors are concerned, 2+2 != 4. Another long story.)

that i3 is also a 2nd generation Sandy Bridge. The other two are a newer Ivy Bridge CPU. It has 33% more transistors.

Between the Toshiba and the Samsung its all a matter of preferences. I'd personally the Samsung, the little guy just feels a lot more solid than the Toshiba, which while not "cheap" feeling, is just too much plastic for my liking, and is borderline flim flam.

You can always get an external drive, but unless you have a giant DVD collection you plan to play on it or burn a lot of discs its better to chuck the technology, its dated. Viva la Netflix. Even the OS can be loaded from a USB these days.

Why is the Samsung 200 more though considering ti doesn't have DVD drive? Will these products be as quick as an IPAD? Used my sister's IPAD the other day and the streaming was class.

I currently use an NC10 Samsung netbook and tis terrible for streaming.

Overheal

christ, even a relatively new netbook was never designed for streaming. Let alone older ones. My mother was using one up to a year ago that came out before Youtube did....you can guess correctly that streaming video was never a design consideration at the time.

now that you make me double back, thats not the touch model im thinking of in the samsung line. At least it doesn't advertise touch. the 540 on the other hand is a touch chassis.

NP540 (i5) http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Samsung_540U3C_Core_i5_Windows_8_13.3_inch_Touchscreen_Laptop_NP540U3C-A01UK/version.asp
NP 535 (AMD A6, non touch but cheaper) http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Samsung_AMD_A6_4455M_-_6GB_500GB_13.3_Win_8__NP535U3C-A02UK/version.asp

Could simply be that they've marked down the P845t more for some reason. Could be multiple reasons for that which aren't related to the laptop inherently of itself, but in this case they marked the Toshiba down 44%, possibly due to a vendor kickback/rebate, the model was discontinued in preparation for a new model release, or discontinued for other reasons. Pay attention to the original retail prices though, where they were originally positioned in the market the two laptops were fairly comparable. My bet is on a model refresh though, the P845t was a Windows 8 launch model, and at this point is about 9 months old. In practice, that makes buying one a good bargain, because for the huge chunk of cash that you save, you're getting better value in the purchase than you are losing out in the performance of the latest thing. Grab it, IMO.

Reading their extra warranty terms, its a coin flip: on one hand it's only 10% of the cost of the laptop, but it only covers warranty terms, meaning whats actually covered is not a hell of a lot, so you're still screwed for screen cracks and wear and tear, or power surges etc. On the other hand, if its the motherboard or something else that goes out on you, its money well spent.