Want a new laptop but do I want Windows 8?

[Bird]

Ron, I don't know about that "turbo boost" but my HP Pavilion 17z-e000 supposedly, at least, has an AMD Quad-Core Processor A4-5000 (1.5 GHz, 2MB 1.2 Cache) + AMD Radeon HD 8330G Graphics. It's 4GB DDR3 System Memory, 500GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive.

I don't know if it would be considered slow, but I do know it's slower than the old desktop.

 

[Midniteoyl]

A4 is slower than a i3 or even a Dual-Core Dual for most tasks.. The graphics are better than even a i5 though..

 

[pacerron]

Ron, I don't know about that "turbo boost" but my HP Pavilion 17z-e000 supposedly, at least, has an AMD Quad-Core Processor A4-5000 (1.5 GHz, 2MB 1.2 Cache) + AMD Radeon HD 8330G Graphics. It's 4GB DDR3 System Memory, 500GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive.

I don't know if it would be considered slow, but I do know it's slower than the old desktop.

When you say slower are you referring to when you are browsing on the internet?
If so, plug your laptop directly into your internet modem and see if it is faster.
Might be a problem with your wireless or the lead lined walls in your laptop room

 

[Lou66]

Guys the computer I have is so fast that I read what I wrote two days ago about what I wrote tonight.. My only regrets is that I didn’t write the lotto numbers down.:duh::laughing:. Lou

 

[Bird]

When you say slower are you referring to when you are browsing on the internet?
If so, plug your laptop directly into your internet modem and see if it is faster.
Might be a problem with your wireless or the lead lined walls in your laptop room

Well, my son-in-law pretty well explained why my laptop is slower than my desktop; just one of those things to be expected, I reckon.

 

[Midniteoyl]

What was the explanation?

 

[Bird]

What was the explanation?

Well, it's a pretty long explanation:

It’s difficult to say if the 2.0GHz would show a significant improvement in speed. Those numbers can be a little confusing, if not misleading, when doing comparisons. Desktops will always be faster than laptops, unless you have a desktop from 1995. Mainly because desktops have a high resource of wattage to spare. Most desktops come with a 400W+ power supply. Higher-end desktops have an 800W-1200W power supply. Laptops are anywhere from 65W to 95W. These numbers are overall consumption. Laptops, by design, are constantly giving up power to optimize battery life, even if it’s plugged in all the time. You’d really have to dig deep in the manual to find how much (min/max) voltage the cpu will take. Also, a higher frequency (1.5GHz -> 2.0GHz) is going to generate a lot more heat, which is not a good thing if it is on your lap.

Holly’s laptop should (by using advertised numbers) be equal to my desktop. Same AMD quad-core processor and 4gb ram, but my desktop can reboot twice in the time it takes her laptop to reboot once. And hers is newer.

If you want to download a free handy little tool that will show you all the crunch-numbers about your cpu, go to CPU-Z CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting.

My processor has a max of 125W, but cpu-z reveals it’s sitting idle at 96W. So you can see a desktop’s processor alone is eating as much as an entire laptop.

Another thing to consider is cache. It’s memory built inside the processor, and it’s really a tiny amount. There’s L1, L2, and L3. This is rarely advertised, but is a primary factor in overall speed. All you ever hear about is frequency and number of cores. A dual-core processor (if it’s cache is high and balanced out), will perform as well as a quad-core processor (with ineffective cache). Balanced out means L1 total should equal L2, and L2 total should equal L3.

Mine has:

L1 data - 64KB (4x)

L1 instruction - 64KB (4x)

L2 - 512KB (4x)

L3 - 2048KB (or 2MB)

What’s funny is my first desktop didn’t even have 2MB of system ram.

Almost too many factors to consider when buying a custom PC. Goes much deeper than just saying you prefer Intel or AMD.

 

[Soundguy]

the envy i'm looking at has the turbo option.. etc..

Bird,
Doesn't HP have a "turbo-boost" gimmick that will clock to 2.4 Ghz when needed, supposedly?
How much RAM do you have in the new laptop?
That HP laptop I had with the "black screen of death problem" was slow too. When I got it going again ( temporarily )
my wife wanted to use it. I took a little cover off the bottom and all the RAM slots were full so I went to Best Buy
and got 2 more at double the size each and took it up to maximum. Didn't cost much and it really improved the speed
since so much temporary stuff didn't have to go to the HD.
You might check that out on yours. If you send it back to HP for an upgrade you might not get the same unit back.
RAM is probably cheaper at a local store than sending the laptop back anyway, and they will probably stick it in for you if you take the laptop with you.
Just a suggestion, since I really am not familiar with what you have, just guessing:laughing:
Ron

 

[Midniteoyl]

Its not really a 'gimmick' per say as much as a heat thing. While the chip can go higher in clock speed, this generates a lot of heat and therefore can only do it for brief periods. Look at the i5 specs I linked in the other thread and you'll see the 'turbo' speed listed.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Well, it's a pretty long explanation:

And, he's mostly right..