Centrino vs. P4

G

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Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

Hi,

I'm looking at two laptops of around equal price. One is a Dell Centrino
1.86 ghz and the other a Compaq p4 3.2 HTT. I will mainly use it as a
desktop replacement as well as for games and photo editing. Will the P4
overheat easily, thus limiting its clockspeed? What are the pros and cons of
each?

Thanks,

JC
 

Andrew

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Mar 31, 2004
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Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

Jiyang Chen <no@no.no> wrote:
: Hi,

: I'm looking at two laptops of around equal price. One is a Dell Centrino
: 1.86 ghz and the other a Compaq p4 3.2 HTT. I will mainly use it as a
: desktop replacement as well as for games and photo editing. Will the P4
: overheat easily, thus limiting its clockspeed? What are the pros and cons of
: each?

Will the P4 overheat easily? Depends on the cooling design of the
Compaq laptop. I am personally not thrilled at the prospect of a fast
P4 in a laptop anymore, but if it is cooled properly it shouldn't be a
big deal for a desktop replacement system.

The main advantages of Pentium M CPU (the part of Centrino you care
about) are lower power consumption hence less heat and longer battery
life. Assuming the P4 is cooled properly, these two advantages of
Pentium M aren't big when you need a desktop replacement.

Pentium M doesn't have hyperthreading, which in a few cases could be a
drawback compared to the P4. The Pentium M 1.86GHZ is probably a tad
faster than the 3.2GHZ P4 otherwise.

A Centrino system probably has shared video RAM and for extreme games
that might be a limitation, though shared video is fine for most
people. If the P4 system has dedicated video RAM, that's an
advantage.

Andrew
--
----> Portland, Oregon, USA <----
*******************************************************************
----> http://www.bizave.com <---- Photo Albums and Portland Info
----> To Email me remove "MYSHOES" from email address
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G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

How do i make sure it has adequate cooling properties? The Compaq is
cheaper and has a 256mb x600 card, so I'm sort of leaning towards that one.

"Andrew" <usenetMYSHOES@bizaveMYSHOES.com> wrote in message
news:zcasdclahjc31003640611@bizaveMYSHOES.com...
> Jiyang Chen <no@no.no> wrote:
> : Hi,
>
> : I'm looking at two laptops of around equal price. One is a Dell
Centrino
> : 1.86 ghz and the other a Compaq p4 3.2 HTT. I will mainly use it as a
> : desktop replacement as well as for games and photo editing. Will the P4
> : overheat easily, thus limiting its clockspeed? What are the pros and
cons of
> : each?
>
> Will the P4 overheat easily? Depends on the cooling design of the
> Compaq laptop. I am personally not thrilled at the prospect of a fast
> P4 in a laptop anymore, but if it is cooled properly it shouldn't be a
> big deal for a desktop replacement system.
>
> The main advantages of Pentium M CPU (the part of Centrino you care
> about) are lower power consumption hence less heat and longer battery
> life. Assuming the P4 is cooled properly, these two advantages of
> Pentium M aren't big when you need a desktop replacement.
>
> Pentium M doesn't have hyperthreading, which in a few cases could be a
> drawback compared to the P4. The Pentium M 1.86GHZ is probably a tad
> faster than the 3.2GHZ P4 otherwise.
>
> A Centrino system probably has shared video RAM and for extreme games
> that might be a limitation, though shared video is fine for most
> people. If the P4 system has dedicated video RAM, that's an
> advantage.
>
> Andrew
> --
> ----> Portland, Oregon, USA <----
> *******************************************************************
> ----> http://www.bizave.com <---- Photo Albums and Portland Info
> ----> To Email me remove "MYSHOES" from email address
> *******************************************************************
>
 

Andrew

Distinguished
Mar 31, 2004
487
0
18,930
Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

Jiyang Chen <no@no.no> wrote:
: How do i make sure it has adequate cooling properties? The Compaq is
: cheaper and has a 256mb x600 card, so I'm sort of leaning towards that one.

Might be hard to find out such info without detailed research -
finding out what kind of cooler it has, etc. This kind of info is not
necessarily easy to find unlike desktop computer info. A service
manual would tell you.

Could be easier to try to find other people who have this machine and
find out if they've had any problems with overheating. Another
strategy is to try to buy it from a place with a liberal return policy
- then buy it and do a "burn in" during the trial period and see how
the CPU performs under heavy load. How hot does it get?

You could also try feeling the bottom of the laptop in a retail
store. Some stores lock out any Windows interaction (like Best Buy)
but other stores (like Costco) often let you play yourself if you find
the right person. I've installed image conversion software (very CPU
intensive) on laptops at Costco before to see how they performed. If
you do something like that - let the machine run under load for five
minutes - then see how hot it gets and how loud the fan is, etc.

Andrew

: "Andrew" <usenetMYSHOES@bizaveMYSHOES.com> wrote in message
: news:zcasdclahjc31003640611@bizaveMYSHOES.com...
: > Jiyang Chen <no@no.no> wrote:
: > : Hi,
: >
: > : I'm looking at two laptops of around equal price. One is a Dell
: Centrino
: > : 1.86 ghz and the other a Compaq p4 3.2 HTT. I will mainly use it as a
: > : desktop replacement as well as for games and photo editing. Will the P4
: > : overheat easily, thus limiting its clockspeed? What are the pros and
: cons of
: > : each?
: >
: > Will the P4 overheat easily? Depends on the cooling design of the
: > Compaq laptop. I am personally not thrilled at the prospect of a fast
: > P4 in a laptop anymore, but if it is cooled properly it shouldn't be a
: > big deal for a desktop replacement system.
: >
: > The main advantages of Pentium M CPU (the part of Centrino you care
: > about) are lower power consumption hence less heat and longer battery
: > life. Assuming the P4 is cooled properly, these two advantages of
: > Pentium M aren't big when you need a desktop replacement.
: >
: > Pentium M doesn't have hyperthreading, which in a few cases could be a
: > drawback compared to the P4. The Pentium M 1.86GHZ is probably a tad
: > faster than the 3.2GHZ P4 otherwise.
: >
: > A Centrino system probably has shared video RAM and for extreme games
: > that might be a limitation, though shared video is fine for most
: > people. If the P4 system has dedicated video RAM, that's an
: > advantage.
: >
: > Andrew
: > --
: > ----> Portland, Oregon, USA <----
: > *******************************************************************
: > ----> http://www.bizave.com <---- Photo Albums and Portland Info
: > ----> To Email me remove "MYSHOES" from email address
: > *******************************************************************
: >



--

Andrew
--
----> Portland, Oregon, USA <----
*******************************************************************
----> http://www.bizave.com <---- Photo Albums and Portland Info
----> To Email me remove "MYSHOES" from email address
*******************************************************************
 
G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

"Andrew" <usenetMYSHOES@bizaveMYSHOES.com> wrote in message
news:zcasdhjfyacla36784240611@bizaveMYSHOES.com...

> Might be hard to find out such info without detailed research -
> finding out what kind of cooler it has, etc. This kind of info is not
> necessarily easy to find unlike desktop computer info. A service

Thanks for all the info. I went for the 9300 because there was a coupon
code for 40% off.

J