Best GPU and CPU for new laptop

Discussion in 'hardware' started by Rasheed187, Sep 3, 2020.

  1. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    I just wondered, if you guys had to buy a new laptop, would you choose for a GPU like NVIDIA GeForce MX330 or is a Intel UHD Graphics or AMD Radeon Vega good enough? Will you be able to play video games with the last two? Of course when you choose for the AMD Vega, you will also have to choose for the AMD Ryzen processor, would you guys prefer it over the Intel Core i5?
     
  2. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    I just bought a new laptop. Intel/NVIDIA for me. AMD is a better deal and is probably more than good enough. For now. Over the long haul I prefer NVIDIA's driver support and nobody ever got fired for buying Intel as the saying goes. I've had way too many driver issues with AMD graphics and I used them for more than a decade so though it cost me more I bought what I bought.
     
  3. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    I would not buy a laptop to play video games.
    What do you mean by "of course" you have to use the AMD processor with the AMD Vega? That's definitely not true - unless that's all the notebook maker offers.

    Intel Processors with Radeon Vega Graphics.
     
  4. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    OK thanks, but is the integrated GPU good enough, which one did you buy? Also, I have to say that the big PC companies (Asus, Dell, Acer, HP and Lenovo) have got horrible sites, I'm getting a headache from all of the choices. Just give me 4 laptops to choose from and be done with it, know what I mean.

    I think I will probably go for a Lenovo laptop, but they come with both Intel and AMD CPU's and with GPU's from Intel, AMD and Nvidia. I believe the one from Nvidia is a dedicated GPU. I'm not a hardcore gamer, so I don't need a gaming laptop, those are way too expensive anyway. I'm not willling to pay more than 700 to 800 euro. And BTW, I did use an AMD CPU for 8 years on my old HP desktop without any problems, but still I somehow have more trust in Intel.
     
  5. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    In many cases with a laptop the graphics are integrated. I assume that was the reason for his statement. If not it is the last combination I would choose. If I were going Intel CPU I would pick either Intel graphics or NVIDIA. If I were going AMD, I would go all AMD.
     
  6. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    No, it's not really to play video games, but it's always nice to have this option. I thought about buying a Apple MacBook, but you can't play popular videogames on it, and I still prefer Windows. But anyway, I dind't know that Intel CPU's also came with integrated AMD GPU's. I thought they were only available with the AMD Ryzen CPU, thanks for clearing this up.
     
    Last edited: Sep 3, 2020
  7. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    I won't bother to post what I bought, it was about 4 times more expensive than your price range. Nothing wrong with a Lenovo. Given your price range you may actually want to go AMD. I hear their integrated graphics at this point are faster than Intel's. No hands on experience though. Depends on the games you want to run. Obviously not the latest high end ones on integrated graphics. You may find some ASUS models in your price range that aren't bad.
     
  8. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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  9. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    OK I see, thanks for the feedback. I'm thinking about buying this laptop from Lenovo, but with the Nvidia dedicated GPU. I'm not sure how good those integrated GPU's are, but I did watch a couple of videos on YouTube and it didn't look too bad. Perhaps I got the wrong idea about integrated GPU's, I always assumed they were very slow. And BTW, I will mostly use the laptop for web browsing.

    https://www.coolblue.nl/en/product/860836/lenovo-ideapad-5-14iil05-81yh00g6mh.html
     
  10. Surt

    Surt Registered Member

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    Last edited: Sep 3, 2020
  11. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    Wait a minute, so you're saying you bought a 3000 dollar laptop? I assume this must be a gaming laptop? But what about heat and the noise the fan makes, I assume that with integrated GPU's this will be less of an issue? I have also read that Lenovo laptops use less fast SSD's, but I don't know if this is a big deal when it's mostly used for web browsing. Playing video games is just a bonus for me.

    OK thanks, so you won't find this on new laptops and desktops. I was also planning to buy an "all in one" desktop but I was always turned off by the slow GPU's.
     
  12. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    Ok, I bought this:
    https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/del...laptop/spd/alienware-m17-r3-laptop/wnm17r340s
    I did not pay current price for it. But not too far from it. Heat hasn't been a problem and the fans on my last laptop were more annoying. The integrated Intel graphics run most of the time. For general usage it is silent. I don't do a lot of gaming but can. I justify spending that kind of money with the fact that my last one was used for 11 years and still runs. As far as browsing and even gaming goes, a "slow" SSD won't leave you feeling like you are missing anything. The drive is probably faster than your internet connection and for games the drive is mostly accessed for loading the levels. After that the framerate is not much affected. If you want to go Lenovo they should be fine. Lust look for reviews on the particular model you are interested in and make sure there are no issues.
     
  13. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    Thanks for the feedback and holy crap that is one powerful laptop LOL. :p

    I will probably go for the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 14 inch with: Intel Core i5, NVIDIA GeForce MX330, 512GB SSD and 16GB DDR4 RAM. I often open about 50 tabs in Vivaldi and 8GB RAM is barely enough, especially if you also open other apps.
     
  14. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    Sounds like a good choice. :thumb:
     
  15. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    Yes, I''m actually surprised that you get so much for only about 800 euro, so seems like prices have dropped. If I'm correct, a few years ago you would have to shell out around 1200 euro. BTW, I still may choose for the AMD Ryzen + AMD Radeon Vega variant, I think it's even a bit cheaper, but I'm not sure yet. I also like the fact that Lenovo offers a webcam privacy-shutter. :p
     
  16. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    BTW, it's still not clear to me, which CPU is better, the Intel Core i5 or the AMD Ryzen 5? I have been reading conflicting stuff, that's why I ask. :doubt:
     
  17. Surt

    Surt Registered Member

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  18. Marcelo

    Marcelo Registered Member

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    Gaming laptops are interesting. They are the best for heavy work as well... If you are an Engineer, architect, etc. and need something that will deal with the likes of Autocad or other heay processor intensive software, a gaming laptop is your best option. Most business laptop don't even come close. The problem is finding one that does not look like a light show and can be taken to a reunion without people staring at it :)
     
  19. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

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    I don't really game a lot, and I don't need to play them at best settings, so a standard laptop is good enough for me. It should at least be able to play older games like Unreal Tournament, FIFA 06 and Need for Speed. But of course I would also like to play newer games.

    What I've read is that Ryzen has a lower clock speed but it has more threads, so what is more important and will you notice this during web browsing and playing video games?
     
  20. Surt

    Surt Registered Member

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    @ Rasheed187

    I was being facetious at your finding conflict on the internet...

    I don't game but I know the integrated graphics of the current crop of Intel's UHD and AMD's Radeon procs have more than enough power for anything any browser will need.

    I've had a subscription to Maximum PC since it was called Boot (1995 or so) and I've seen references to whether or not a particular game uses but one core (which seems to be most of' em) or can leverage multiple cores. Elsewhere I've seen CPU reviews where the single core benchmarking report is separate from the multi-core. They must do that for a reason. Maybe some one more savvy can expound on that.

    Anyhow, I think it's CPU and RAM clock speeds that ultimately rule peak gaming performance once a discreet GPU is decided upon.

    IMHO, you don't need a discreet GPU. The integrated UHD Graphics 630 in an affordable 9th or 10th Gen i5 or i9 with would serve you well. Or you could hold out for the 11th Gen with Intel Iris Xe Graphics.
     
    Last edited: Oct 8, 2020
  21. reasonablePrivacy

    reasonablePrivacy Registered Member

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    I don't think so. Even lower midrange desktop GPUs may be a bottleneck for games and they are more performant than lower end laptop discrete GPUs.
     
  22. Cutting_Edgetech

    Cutting_Edgetech Registered Member

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    Lord, I hope I don't run into video driver issues. I just purchased an AMD Ryzen 9.
     
  23. xxJackxx

    xxJackxx Registered Member

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    It'll probably be fine. I have my preferences based on my experience, and not everyone has the same experience.
     
  24. Surt

    Surt Registered Member

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    Don't quite understand your meaning, not that I'm seeking any clarification.

    What I meant is, once one has determined on the, say, NvidiAMD GTRFX RadeoCUDA ProForce Super Ultra, one's gaming performance is better if it's stuffed into a board running a 4.60 GHz i5-9600K versus a 3.40 GHz i5-9400. Ditto DDR-3600 vs DDR-3000.

    I don't see how it could be any other way. Especially considering the literally millions of discussions on just that in the gaming hardware forums over the decades. And the obsession with overclocking and celebrations when an additional stable 0.2 GHz is squeezed out of a CPU.

    As I said, I don't game. But in preparation to buying hardware for a new system I'm building, it's impossible to avoid the gaming discussion when researching the latest and greatest stuff. And having to wade through Ghost Recon, Tomb Raider, etc. etc. benchmarks to find the ones for, among others, Cinebench...

    Cheers.
     
  25. Cutting_Edgetech

    Cutting_Edgetech Registered Member

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    I love watching high definition movies on my PC, but one of the main things it will be used for is VMs. That's why I got a processor with so many cores.
     
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