What’s with this i Mess?

Have you ever heard or seen the words Intel, AMD, Quad Core, Core Duo, i5, i7? Well, those are all signs of the type of processor one has. In today’s post, I would like to approach one of the biggest questions today in the computer world-should I get an i5 or an i7? To the average person, it would sound logical to say i7, but that is not 100% true. It actually depends on so much, which we will go over in this post.

First off, what exactly is a processor? Contrary to what many people think, the CPU (central processing unit) is not the whole desktop computer. The CPU is actually a small 2 by 2 chip in the middle of the inside of the motherboard. The CPU is exactly what the name says-it deals with the processes that the computer does. In other words, it’s the brain of the machine. Therefore, the type of processor you choose is actually quite important. Now a days, there are 3 main levels of CPU’s-Core Duo, Core 2 Duo, and Quad Core. The names themselves give more information to the advanced users. The names can describe how many cores and how many processors are included. For example, Core Duo means that there is one CPU with 2 cores in it. What exactly is a core? A core is essentially the space where it is able to do a task. The more cores you have, the more you can do with ease. Most processors are able to do multiple things at once, but the older processors can only do so much at one time and the more you do, the less ease it will do it with. In other words, it will take up more resources, slowing the computer, and eventually crashing the machine. Just to clarify, in this case when I say “crash” I am referring to the need to reboot the machine. It is still functional, but since it used up all of it’s temporary resources, it needs to rest (reboot). Then you are given another information-the raw speed of the computer or cycles. This is usually measured in megahertz or some might even be measured in gigahertz. Since this is the raw speed, this can not be used to give an exact amount of speed of each process, but what you can do with this information is to pick the one with more potential speed. When choosing from two processors with the same amount of cores, you might want to consider the greater speed, depending on your need and budget. To help older computers run faster, you can always first try tweaking the machine with the settings and also the anti-virus programs running. Stay away from Norton only due to the way it scans the computer, it drastically slows down the processor. I’ve personally seen Norton CRASH machines, in this case where the computer was using up all of it’s resources by the time it completed booting up. It is a very messy program, but it is mandatory now a days to have some sort of protection. I highly recommend AVG because it is free, efficient, and it helps protect you a lot better than Norton. McAfee is also acceptable, but I would still recommend AVG. Even though there are more things involved with the CPU, what I’ve mentioned are the most important and efficient enough for you to pick a new computer.

Now that we have some of the basics down, I want to focus on the difference between i5′s and i7′s. Based on what we’ve learned earlier, i7′s would be the best, correct? But this is not always true. First off, since i processors are very messy to deal with, you need to understand the whole model number of the CPU. The basic difference is that in this case, the speed and quantity of processes that can be done vary GREATLY. So it’s very important to understand what you want-more speed or do more things at once. For example, an i5-650 is much faster than an i7-950/740QM, but with the i7′s, you are able to do a lot more at once. Therefore, when talking about i processors, the name is no longer enough to describe how good/bad it is. An understanding of the model number is greatly needed. So how to I pick the correct i processor? For the average person, it shouldn’t really matter because there are only certain things that the average person does with a computer. When it comes to gamers, you want to find an i7 with plenty of cycles. In other words, you want to be able to do as many processes at once, but also as quick as possible. When it comes to editing, I would assume that you would want a computer that is able to do more things at once since you would be working with many different tools. I’m not an editor, so I’m not sure what you would need, but from my understanding you would want to be able to do more things rather than quickly. When it comes to developers, well, I honestly believe that for developers a Core 2 Duo should be more than enough.

So, that all being said, which computer should you get? Well, the answer to that depends on other factors not mentioned in this post, but what we can answer is what “processor” should you look for. As mentioned earlier, there are two BRANDS of processors-AMD and Intel. The main difference is that AMD is cheaper, but has the same quality as Intel, which is why it’s a preferred part when it comes to building a computer. I personally prefer Intel mostly because it’s been around longer, which tells me that they have more expertise on the topic.

The next thing is how many cores. As mentioned before, there are three main quantities of cores-Core Duo, Core 2 Duo, and Quad Core. If you do not have one of these, you should strongly consider upgrading your computer. Core Duo’s are the minimum you should have, but I recommend at least a Core 2 Duo. Many technicians will be completely against the idea of Core 2 Duo’s, but that’s because they assume that Intel was trying to make a quad core computer, which is false. Core 2 Duo’s are specially Core Duo’s where instead of just one duo processor, there are two. Quad Core computers are a different story. This is where you can get into questions about i5′s and i7′s, which from the previously mentioned, you can now distinguish which one to choose. Quad Core computers should only be chosen by those doing powerful processes for example editing music/video/photos or gamers. Let’s just say that I have 3 Core 2 Duo computers and as a developer, I am very happy with them.

In conclusion, I sure hope that this brought some insight into computers, especially with sales around this time. My last advice for the season is to try and avoid Dell machines because even though they do use the same parts as the rest of them, it’s the way that they put it together that makes it inefficient and annoying to work with. Also, be careful when someone is selling you one processor over the other for much more money.

Thanks for reading.