AMD Phenom vs Intel i3 - how to choose

martindow

I am considering two Toshiba laptops and would appreciate some advice on how to choose between them.

Toshiba Satellite L650D-123

http://www.johnlewis.com/231098314/Product.aspx

has a AMD Phenom™ II Triple-Core N850 2.2 GHz with a 500Mb HD and costs 70 pounds more than

Toshiba Satellite L650-1GC

http://www.johnlewis.com/231094963/Product.aspx?

which has an Intel core i3 370M 2.4 GHz with a 320MB HD

Both have 4GB memory and Windows 7 home premium 64 bit.

Is a 64 bit set up likely to cause problems with old programs such as Dreamweaver 3 and Actinic 7?

exup

not so much 64x but windows 7 itself may cause incompatobily problems - maybe need to check on the software manufacturers website support section as it may have patches or advice on whether older software will still work.
As for AMD vs Intel - Intel processors traditionally worked closer to their stated speed, whereas the AMD ones use their speed rating as more of a guide to help compare with Intels, although they tend to be slower than this optimum rating.
AMDs are usually cheaper generally when buying for a build, so if the prices are similar and specs are similar maybe the Intel would seem the better choice, I have heard that AMD cpus are easier to overclock though. - but on a laptop this may cause heating issues

marms

The AMD system will be the most powerful system because of its triple core processor and superior graphics although there won't be much difference unless you want to play games. The intel has slightly better battery life though if you're going to be using it away from the mains a lot.

Hammyman

exup wrote: »

not so much 64x but windows 7 itself may cause incompatobily problems - maybe need to check on the software manufacturers website support section as it may have patches or advice on whether older software will still work.

No issues to date other than that which was badly written in the first place and required to be run with admin privilidges on XP.

spakkker

The n850 is a slower cpu . How/why/what justifies £70 extra cost ?
Have a read - http://www.thinkdigit.com/forum/hardware-q/134250-core-i3-370-vs-amd-phenom-ii-n850-triple-core-one-better.html

martindow

Hammyman wrote: »

No issues to date other than that which was badly written in the first place and required to be run with admin privilidges on XP.

Thank you. Both of these programs are fine on my current XP computer.