give your opinion please..

jaypels · 11 Jun 2010

guys! good day.. my question is not OS related but only a hardware one but since this is the hardware section, i might as well post it here.. my question is which is faster? a core 2 duo t6500 or an i3 330M processor? im betting the core 2 duo is faster but im just guessing.. i want your opinion on this.. and also, for those who have tried that DDR3 ram already, is the difference really that significant from a DDR2? assuming all factors are constant.. thanks guys!

kurahk7 · 11 Jun 2010

The Core i3 330m should be faster because it is a newer processor and also has hyperthreading; there is minimal difference in DDR2 and DDR3 RAM imo.

Fumz · 11 Jun 2010

This really depends on what you're doing because they're almost the same chip: 2.1GHz dual cores. The difference being the newer i3 has hyper-threading and 1 more MB of cache.

IntelÂ® Coreâ„¢2 Duo Processor T6500 (2M Cache, 2.10 GHz, 800 MHz FSB) with SPEC Code(s)

IntelÂ® Coreâ„¢ i3-330M Processor (3M Cache, 2.13 GHz) with SPEC Code(s) SLBMD, SLBNF

If you're gaming, then the i3 is going to be faster, but probably not noticeably so, even with the increased cache size (it's not that much larger), because games don't use hyper-threading. However, in an application that does take advantage of hyper threading, the i3 will be faster, this time noticeably so.

"All things being equal", if by that you mean frequency of the RAM, then DDR2 and DDR3 are identical. 1066MHz DDR2 goes just as fast as 1066MHz DDR3: they both operate at 1066MHz. Likewise, 1333MHz DDR3 isn't any faster than DDR2 running at 1333MHz. Where you find benefits is at higher operating frequencies; frequencies DDR2 can't attain... like 1600MHz -2000MHz.

kurahk7 · 11 Jun 2010

Fumz said:

This really depends on what you're doing because they're almost the same chip: 2.1GHz dual cores. The difference being the newer i3 has hyper-threading and 1 more MB of cache.

IntelÂ® Coreâ„¢2 Duo Processor T6500 (2M Cache, 2.10 GHz, 800 MHz FSB) with SPEC Code(s)

IntelÂ® Coreâ„¢ i3-330M Processor (3M Cache, 2.13 GHz) with SPEC Code(s) SLBMD, SLBNF

If you're gaming, then the i3 is going to be faster, but probably not noticeably so, even with the increased cache size (it's not that much larger), because games don't use hyper-threading. However, in an application that does take advantage of hyper threading, the i3 will be faster, this time noticeably so.

"All things being equal", if by that you mean frequency of the RAM, then DDR2 and DDR3 are identical. 1066MHz DDR2 goes just as fast as 1066MHz DDR3: they both operate at 1066MHz. Likewise, 1333MHz DDR3 isn't any faster than DDR2 running at 1333MHz. Where you find benefits is at higher operating frequencies; frequencies DDR2 can't attain... like 1600MHz -2000MHz.

DDR3 runs at ridiculously high latencies though lol, I tried running my DDR3@ 1066 with 5-5-5-15, and it would never be stable while my friend could run his DDR2@ 1066 with 5-5-5-15 stable; DDR3 uses less voltages though.

Krispy1 · 11 Jun 2010

i would of said the core 2 duo if the clock speed was higher but since the i3 is the same clock speed its gonna be faster cuz its newer, hyperthreading, larger cache

Fumz · 11 Jun 2010

kurahk7 said:

DDR3 runs at ridiculously high latencies though lol, I tried running my DDR3@ 1066 with 5-5-5-15, and it would never be stable while my friend could run his DDR2@ 1066 with 5-5-5-15 stable; DDR3 uses less voltages though.

Latencies for 1066MHz DDR3 are higher than DDR2, but I would not characterize them as, "ridiculously high". Typically (not always), they able to maintain those latencies at higher clocks. However, I think the more important point is, if you're getting DDR3, is the best choice 1066MHz? To that I would say no, for reasons you just pointed out. At a minimum, get yourself good 1333MHz DDR3.

As for voltage, yes, DDR3 uses fewer volts, but the difference is so insignificant that, to me, it's not even a point worth mentioning. 1.8-2.1 volts DDR2, 1.5-1.7 volts DDR3. At best, it's only 0.3 volts difference; at worst 0.6 volts.

jaypels · 11 Jun 2010

i see.. thank you everyone for the input.. even if some parts are still blurry to me, i have digested most of them.. :) plus 1 rep to fumz

Fumz · 11 Jun 2010

Thank you, and you're welcome. The only real question you have to answer is, "what do you want this machine to do?"

If you intend on doing any gaming at all, then I would select something a little better than an i3. What do you have now?

jaypels · 12 Jun 2010

it will be my work pc.. my previous one was this NEO Manufacturing and Services, Inc. - Laptop, Notebook, Netbook but since it was stolen, i am considering this ASUSTeK Computer Inc.. there is a 15.6" version for this one so i am looking for it. the 14" looks small for me.. btw, the two programs i will be using the most are CorelDraw and Photoshop. No, i will not be editing HD photos and stuff. Just some minor designs since we run a shop that manufactures plaques, trophies, etc. (we make custom plaques btw). my previous laptop can work just fine but with some lag at times (though very rare). my main pc is a core 2 duo with 2gb of ram and 512mb of video so im betting the asus one will run just fine. any opinion?