Originally Posted by
MapleLeaf
Ok I am in the serious pursuit of a new notebook computer. Having used AMD processors for my last 4 computers, I would prefer to stick with that processor...
I will stay away from Sempron and have narrowed it down (I think) to Turion or Turion x2. Someone told me to stay away from Turion as they get too hot and shut down on their own... but that is only 1 man's story.
My main applications are Office, Internet, email, watching/burning movies etc.
The RAM, screen size etc., I have narrowed down onto my short list, all that is really left is the processor speed.
Will I notice any appreciable differences between these 2 processors? Right now I am using an AMD Sempron 3000+ in a ~ 2 - 3 yr old laptop so anything will be an improvement.
Thoughts? Does it make a difference between manufacturers of the rest of the hardware? The shortlist is Acer, HP and possibly Gateway.
Merci.
The Turion/Turion X2 will be noticeably faster than your old Sempron.
The X2 is dual core and 64-bit compliant. Given that it is now "old" technology I would stay away from the non-X2 Turion unless, all things being equal, you find a great bargain.
It doesn't sound like you
need either dual core or 64-bit but the dual core feature
can facilitate having many apps running at once and programs like CS2 do see a slight performance improvement with a dual core chip.
Any modern leading-edge chip running at or near full throttle is going to run warm. The Turion might run a bit warmer than its CoreDuo counterpart but not by much.
I love AMD products and have used them as my desktop chip for years but as hard as it is for me to say, the Intel CoreDuo/Core2Duo is generally a better laptop processor right now in terms of speed, heat dissipation, and battery life.