Not being a CPU guru, what's the difference?

[ZMan2k2]

Hey guys.

Laptop is dying a slow and painful death. It's 8 years old, and has a 3 core AMD 1.2GHz processor in it. What I've noticed in searching for laptops to replace it, is that the majority have dual-core processors. They are obviously faster, but with one less core, will it be the same?

Needs are a laptop for family use, surfing, gaming, etc., and the wife is interested in using PhotoShop maybe, as she picked up a mirrorless camera, and might want to play with the photos. 1TB HDD probably is best, and most have around 8Gig of RAM, at least the one's I'm looking at.

So, as mentioned in the title, not being a CPU guru, and now knowing the needs, would a dual core work? And should I be looking at i5 or i7 CPU's, as the needs are.

We would like to get another Asus laptop, as this one has been bullet proof for so long, it just seems like a sound investment.

[schocker]

i5 dual core would be fine for the most part. For a power user a quad core i7 would be nice but then you have to think about the lessened battery life and increased heat. I have a i5 dual core in my macbook pro and it has been more than sufficient for my needs. 8gb minimum of ram is a must but an SSD is also nice to have for the fast boot times and faster load times overall. Some come with a small ssd and large normal hard drive for example. Asus is still a good choice also.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Programs like Photoshop can use the additional cores, and it can make a significant difference in speed depending on the process. Not every program is written for multi core, but lots are. The i7's also have something called hyperthreading, which allows each core to behave like 2 cores if needed. Get at least an i5 in my opinion, you can get them fairly cheap. The other thing you get with the i5's and i7's is way better integrated graphics, assuming you aren't looking for something with a discrete graphics card.

Also get something with an SSD - don't even consider anything else. Even for basic tasks the difference is very noticeable. You will notice that way more than anything else, and the difference is enormous. Standard HDD's have been the weakest link in computers for a very long time. It's also one less big fragile moving part to have in the computer if you avoid a standard HDD. If you need extra storage, you can get a larger laptop with a second drive or just use any number of backup solutions (cloud, external drive, etc.)

8GB of ram is pretty much the minimum these days, so make sure you stick to at least that, especially if you're going to be using things like Photoshop. I have 16GB of ram, and am probably a much heavier user, but I regularly see 14GB used in big Photoshop sessions, and my next computer will have 32GB at least.

[Xtrema]

i5 is fine for Photoshop but not Premiere.

8GB is also fine but see if you can upgrade to 16GB down the road.

Key is SSD, don't bother with spinning drives any more. They are slow and drains battery. Try to find one that can accommodate 2 drives so you can start with 256GB and when SSD get cheaper, you can add a 1TB on top.

[ZMan2k2]

Well, it will be plugged in 90% of the time. Is a SSD necessary in that case? Or just a "nice thing to have"?

[Boat]

a new i5 will blow any 3 core processor out of the water and you wont even notice having 2.

Spec wise, what Xtrema said I would agree with. You also mentioned gaming, It might be best to let us know what your budget is and maybe we could suggest some laptops.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Well, it will be plugged in 90% of the time. Is a SSD necessary in that case? Or just a "nice thing to have"?

I'm not sure I understand the relevance of it being plugged in from a speed perspective, but the SSD will be the single most noticeable thing you can do for day-to-day speed increases, regardless of power source. The whole machine will just be so much snappier and pleasant to use. SSD's are also easier on the battery though if that's what you mean.

To summarize what I said earlier:
- SSD
- i5 or higher
- 8GB RAM or higher

You should be pretty happy with those basic requirements as a starting point, and they are fairly standard these days so it won't be hard to find.

If you can find something with an IPS, matte, screen that is another *huge* bonus, and is especially important if you're going to be doing Photoshop work not to have a garbage screen. My Asus Zenbook has one, so I imagine they still offer them on other models too. Most laptops do not have these, so it might be a bit harder to find.

[RealJimmyJames]

One tip is that you can add your own RAM pretty easily to most laptops, and its often cheaper than spec'ing out a higher end system.

[ZMan2k2]

Thanks. As for gaming, it's just some gaming that my daughter does on coolmathgames.com. Nothing intense. As for plugging in, that was more for battery life considerations.

Budget would be around $1k, and I already have an external optical read drive. Suggest away.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Well, it will be plugged in 90% of the time. Is a SSD necessary in that case? Or just a "nice thing to have"?

All computers should have SSD now. I retrofit a lot of old 5+ year old laptops with SSDs and they all came alive and actually usable.

The extra battery life is just a bonus.

[revelations]

Originally posted by Xtrema


All computers should have SSD now. I retrofit a lot of old 5+ year old laptops with SSDs and they all came alive and actually usable.

The extra battery life is just a bonus.

I do the same, its amazing how cheap it is.

[jacky4566]

SSD makes a HUGE difference in usability. The significant difference in access times is the big thing you notice.

People always say my computer is slow i need a new CPU, or i need a whole new computer. Use an SSD and you will notice significant speed up in the whole system. Processing items still takes time (like encoding an MP3) but when a program can open in 0.2s instead of 3s its a big thing.

One option you could consider is to buy any laptop with the stats you want then buy a separate SSD. Its all plug and play. THEN stick the replaced HDD in an enclosure for extra backup.

[BigDL]

You will need a laptop with a second drive slot or use external storage if you are going to be shooting in RAW and editing in photoshop/lightroom. I know I can fill up my storage pretty fast with all my photos.

SSD for main drive the just too good.

[ZMan2k2]

Okay, so let me describe a little what's happening with my laptop, and you tell me, HDD or laptop in general.

It gets pretty warm after my wife gets at it, with multiple apps open. Email, 4 or 5 tabs in Chrome, and a couple other apps.

It locks up, screen flashes the open window, nothing works. Only way to stop it is open Task Manager. Don't have to close anything, just open Task Manager and it is useable again.

Those are the main problems, and I've been backing it up more frequently because of that. Would you call it HDD, or just an old laptop. Because if its just HDD, I'll buy an SSD drive for it. Because it does all we need right now.

[revelations]

^ could be just in need of a basic hardware checkup (bad ram, bad fan, too dusty inside).

If all passes - in addition to the SSD, I would also recommend a laptop stand with a BIG, slow fan underneath (not 2-3 noisy fans). That will help get more life of it.

[revelations]

Also, the obvious questions about bugs and items running in the background that dont need to be ..... assumed checked out ok ?

[ZMan2k2]

Yeah, everything running in the background is fine. I ran AVG, Avast, Telus` free virus checker. Seems clean, and nothing is eating huge amounts of RAM.

[revelations]

Run Malwarebytes comprehensive and an ESET full online scan separately.

Those are the best two in the business right now. Will take about 3-4 hours for all.

Adware cleaner is a quick check too ... takes 5 minutes and looks for the most obvious things.

Also, if those AVs you mentioned are active/running on the system - dont. They are huge resource hogs.

Just run a manual scan on an older system when time permits. Too much overhead otherwise.

[ZMan2k2]

Running Malwarebytes right now. I'll leave it till tomorrow morning. I wake up at 5 for work, so I'll start the second program you mentioned then. When I get home, I'll open it up, and see if it's really dusty, and blow it out, see if that helps, because I can still hear the fan running, so the fan works. It just may be covered in dust, along with the heatsink.

Question, if it is the HDD, what's the best SSD HDD either 500Gb or 1TB to run with?

[firebane]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Yeah, everything running in the background is fine. I ran AVG, Avast, Telus` free virus checker. Seems clean, and nothing is eating huge amounts of RAM.

Wait... Are you running 3 antivirus programs at the same? If so just get rid of all 3 and install MSE.

MSE on its own is lighter and faster than those other 3 put together.

[ZMan2k2]

No, I'm not running 3 AV programs. Installed them, ran them, then deleted them. All I'm using for protection is MSE.

[jwslam]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Question, if it is the HDD, what's the best SSD HDD either 500Gb or 1TB to run with?
None. That would run you around $300+. Plus IIRC failure rates on SSD are still higher than spinning.

You're better off going with something around 128ish gb then going with an external / cloud / NAS. Much more bang for buck in terms of $/gb

[ZMan2k2]

Bah. Wife would hate that. She's the one who uses the laptop the most. I'm just the repair guy. I don't want something that will fail on her 6 months from now, again. Maybe have to go for a 7200rpm spinner.

On another note, ran Malwarebytes and ESET, found a few files, cleaned them up, and restarted. So far, haven't had the freezing issue. But it still runs warm. I'll open it up and blow it out, clean the fan, etc. Maybe I can get some life out of this yet.

[ZenOps]

SSDs tend to fail at around 800TB writes.

http://techreport.com/review/27909/the-ssd-endurance-experiment-theyre-all-dead

In normal usage, a computer would never hit that, as the vast majority of typical accesses are read sequential, which don't really impact SSD life as much as writes do.

[ZMan2k2]

Not feeling good today, so not going to work. Opened up the back with a cup of coffee and a screwdriver, dusty, dusty, dusty. Compressed air helped with that. Put it back together, and it runs quieter too.

What about a hybrid drive? MemEx has a 2.5" WD Blue drive for $120. I assume OS on the SSD, files on the disc.

This is an old laptop. I assume SATA II. Would a SATA III drive work in it? It's hard to find a SATA II drive anymore.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Good SSD's do not have high failure rates at all. There are also no moving parts , much greater impact resistance, and way less can go wrong in general.

You probably don't want a hybrid drive, most of them aren't big enough to hold windows plus all your applications with room to spare. Most SSD's run a bit faster too if they aren't close to full.

Just drawing from my own personal experience, every HDD I've ever bought except one has failed, and I have never had an SSD fail on me yet in 6 years.

[revelations]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Not feeling good today, so not going to work. Opened up the back with a cup of coffee and a screwdriver, dusty, dusty, dusty. Compressed air helped with that. Put it back together, and it runs quieter too.

What about a hybrid drive? MemEx has a 2.5" WD Blue drive for $120. I assume OS on the SSD, files on the disc.

This is an old laptop. I assume SATA II. Would a SATA III drive work in it? It's hard to find a SATA II drive anymore.

3s are backwards compatible. Dont get a hybrid drive - I've seen too many hardware issues with them personally to be able to recommend.

A 500gb SSD can be had for 200$ - is this still not enough space?

[revelations]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
On another note, ran Malwarebytes and ESET, found a few files, cleaned them up, and restarted. So far, haven't had the freezing issue.

This has been my experience as well. The "big 3" (norton AVG Mcafee) are essentially useless in anything else - except slowing down your PC. The others are nearly equally as useless. Once I run the above combination(Mbam, eset) , I ALWAYS find bugs the others missed out on.

To be 100% certain - I would also recommend running these scans in SAFE mode, down the road when you have a moment.

[ZMan2k2]

Originally posted by revelations


3s are backwards compatible. Dont get a hybrid drive - I've seen too many hardware issues with them personally to be able to recommend.

A 500gb SSD can be had for 200$ - is this still not enough space?

No, 500 should be enough. You recommend the Samsung on sale at MemEx right now?

[revelations]

Yea thats what I use as well...

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2


No, 500 should be enough. You recommend the Samsung on sale at MemEx right now?

The Samsung EVO's are excellent drives, some of the best. 250 GB for $114 or $500 GB for $199. Sometimes the 500GB goes for $179 so that deal is only OK.

[ZMan2k2]

Okay, so the SSD is the possible upgrade.

Right now, after running MWB and ESET, it's a new machine, no issues. Hasn't done the freeze up thing since then says the wife. Taking it apart, and blowing the dust out of it has cooled down how it runs with multiple apps, so she's happy for now. I'll look into an SSD upgrade.

[ZMan2k2]

Problem.

Had a glitch out yesterday. My wife was sitting cross-legged on the couch, had a couple Word docs open, Chrome with multiple tabs, and email open. Processor was running hot, vent was kind of covered by her knee, and glitch party happened.

What happens is the programs freeze, and the screen flashes until you activate Task Manager. Just have to activate it. Then the glitch stops.

This leads me to the processor as the culprit. It's wearing out, it's been through a lot. It's old, and it's not up to the task any more. So it's looking for a new laptop that's in my future. Not sure if I'm going to get a decent laptop, and buy the parts to spec it out like I want it, or buy one all set up.

[captain134]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Problem.

Had a glitch out yesterday. My wife was sitting cross-legged on the couch, had a couple Word docs open, Chrome with multiple tabs, and email open. Processor was running hot, vent was kind of covered by her knee, and glitch party happened.

What happens is the programs freeze, and the screen flashes until you activate Task Manager. Just have to activate it. Then the glitch stops.

This leads me to the processor as the culprit. It's wearing out, it's been through a lot. It's old, and it's not up to the task any more. So it's looking for a new laptop that's in my future. Not sure if I'm going to get a decent laptop, and buy the parts to spec it out like I want it, or buy one all set up.

I believe what might be happening is that the thermal paste between CPU and its heat spreader is dry and cracked and needs to be replaced. I do this repair all the time with laptops. It isn't an easy repair as the board probably has to come out of laptop case but to test the theory you can install a program like HWMonitor and just watch your cpu temps. If they are getting in the 90C or higher range then the cpu is most likely throttling itself.

[revelations]

Get a laptop stand with a big, silent fan.

[ZMan2k2]

HWMonitor pegs the CPU at 95* before it glitches. So, I'm assuming I need new thermal paste put on the processor and heatsink. I'm not good at doing more than I did, taking it apart and blowing dust out.

Anyone recommend somewhere to put new thermal paste in?

[Vagabond142]

For SSD at 500GB, the Samsung 850 EVO, hands down. Fastest and most reliable SSD you can buy. I have an 850 Pro 128GB and 850 EVO 500GB in my main computer, and a 850 EVO 250GB in my ASUS X55 notebook. The ASUS with the factory drive would take 2 mins to fully load. With the EVO, I am typing my password in within 20 seconds.

As to SSHD's: Avoid like the fucking plague. They are a good idea on paper, but their failure rates are extremely high (>20% last year) and the bugger is, it's usually the SSD part that fails. Without the SSD part, the spinning platters could be full of data, but you can't get through to them as the SSD is between the SATA connector and the platters.

Also, an i5 dual core mobile CPU these days will easily munch away at most programs. Only true multithreaded programs like Photoshop, Premiere, etc, will take advantage of an i7.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
Problem.

Had a glitch out yesterday. My wife was sitting cross-legged on the couch, had a couple Word docs open, Chrome with multiple tabs, and email open. Processor was running hot, vent was kind of covered by her knee, and glitch party happened.

What happens is the programs freeze, and the screen flashes until you activate Task Manager. Just have to activate it. Then the glitch stops.

This leads me to the processor as the culprit. It's wearing out, it's been through a lot. It's old, and it's not up to the task any more. So it's looking for a new laptop that's in my future. Not sure if I'm going to get a decent laptop, and buy the parts to spec it out like I want it, or buy one all set up.

No hardware is going to survive if you don't have enough cooling.

If you think heatsink is the issue, you will see failure before your fan is covered.

Get your wife a laptop fan tray.

But I do think it's time for a new laptop. I can understand fixing it up if you have random spare parts laying around. There is no point shoving new parts into a 8 year old laptop.

Don't bother with hybrid drives, they made sense when SSD was expensive but now SSD is kinda cheap. $200 usually get you 500GB. Hybrid drives also mean it introduced 2 failure points instead one for SSD and HDD.

As for SSD write wear, it's an issue but not for consumer applications. Unless you delete and create and delete 100s of GB per month, it won't see any wear. Typical SSD should last 3-4 year easy before wear is an issue. Just make sure you get the latest firmware and latest OS.