Trying to justify $$ for new i7-720QM CPU on Laptop.

[newpgm]

Greetings,
recently purchased a Dell Inspiron N7010 that I am really quite pleased with. It has a build date of Dec 2010 but was never turned on until it came into my possession.

A little research & I found that this machine will support i3, i5 & i7 processors. Currently installed a Core i3-370m which only supports Memory type DDR3 800/1066 MHz. I had some extra RAM & installed 8GB of 1333 MHz.

Alibaba.com (?? anyone ever heard of Alibaba ??) has Core i7-720QM's for $111. I believe the 720QM is the least expensive of the first gen quadcore's & it will support RAM @ 1333MHZ. Was considering a SSD anyway. The SSD & new CPU will cost as much as the laptop. Would the increase in performance be worth cost?

Better suggestions appreciated.

Or - I should probably just be happy with a good deal & enjoy.

thanks

 

[newpgm]

Just noticed that the i3-370M has "Integrated Graphics" which the i7-720QM does not. This machine also has "Intel HD Graphics". i3-370m came out a year later that the i7-720QM & so you would expect some improvements.

I wonder if this graphics display is related to the Core i3 supported "Integrated Graphics"? Possible multiple monitor too.

 

[kegobeer]

Not all Core processors have onboard GPUs. You have to research and make sure the processor you want to buy has at least the same core "options" as the one you want to replace.

 

[newpgm]

Yes, thanks. More research is needed for sure.