A6-4400M vs i3-2350M

BSAZL

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Aug 4, 2012
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Hi,

I am looking at laptops (low end budget $350-$450) and I am seeing mostly AMD A4-3305 vs Intel i3-2350M processors. I have come across an AMD A6-3420M and mostly recently an AMS A6-4400M (with AMD Radeon HD 7520G Graphics). All the laptops are around the same price range so which is the best processor for the money? My gut leads me to the AMD A6-4400M. This laptop is for our main "house" PC ... kids games, bills, Internet (when not on the iPad), and Microsoft Office applications.

I appreciate all the input.

Thx,
Billy
 

esrever

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Dec 27, 2011
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Get the A6 3420m instead of the 4400m. The 4400m is a dual core and is slower than the 3420m. The i3 is good for general use but has very limited graphics performance in games and doesn't always play back high quality HD content the best.

All the cpu are sufficient for a household PC use.
 
"Kid games" is a rather ambiguous term. The i3 CPU definitely offers better processing performance while the A6 APU has a integrated graphics core. It's nothing to write home about, but it is a little faster than the Intel HD 3000.

Based on the intent of the laptop an AMD A6 APU will be more than enough for your simple needs. I will say however that the Intel HD 3000 is actually not bad for some games. I decided to actually play Mass Effect on my Lenovo Y470 using the integrated Intel HD 3000 graphic core instead of the nVidia GT 550m graphic card. I was able to complete the entire game in Hardcore mode and I have to admit I found the performance to be pretty good given the fact that it is an integrated solution.
 

chad2625

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Jul 28, 2012
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I beg to Differ according to Notebookcheck.net the Radeon HD 7520G out performs the Intel 3000M, by about 30%. But on the processor side the I3 out performs the A6 by about 46%. If your doing a little gaming it might be more important to go with the A6, it will give you more flexibility in the gaming department. But it sounds to me that you wont need the extra CPU processing power that the I3 has to offer. I would say that if your doing alot of Video Editing or converting, I would say go for the I3. But since your going for the general use, the A6 offers more flexibility, especially with video cards being more and more mainstream. For example photo shop 6 can use the video card for processing instead of the CPU. When you use the video card for these applications instead of the CPU they are much faster. It's a toss up really, With children if it were me I would go with the A6 as it will perform better in games.