Dell XPS 15 i5 or i7

[crazy12steve]

Hello,
I'm looking at the Dell xps 15. In stuck on whether I should get an i5 or i7 and what graphics card. I know games and are tending to depend on a graphics card more so I'm not sure. Im also not sure if there are any games that require or will eventually require quad cores because the i5 is only dual i think.

So

An xps 15 with core i5 2410M 2.3 ghz up to 2.9 with a 2gb GT540M nvidia graphics card and 6gb sd ram.

Or

An xps 15 with core i7 2630QM 2.0 ghz up to 2.9 ghz with 1 gb GT525M nvidia and 6gb sdram.

I do a lot of 3D graphics and photoshop. I also want to be able to play games like crysis and bfbc2.
Thanks!

 

[crazy12steve]

Preferably on high settings. I also like to play games like the new Total War and Battlefield 3. Also how long do these batteries last?
6-cell LI (2.6Ah) standard
9-cell LI (2.8Ah)

 

[AntiZig]

well the 540 is a better Video card.

So far there haven't been any games that required or benefitted most if you had a quad core, so I think a dual core such a second generation i5 will serve you well. (I bet that option is also cheaper)

 

[crazy12steve]

What specs do you think I'll be able to play crysis or bfbc2/bf3 on with a secod gen i5 as stated above and a gt540m?

 

[AntiZig]

see here:
http/www.notebookcheck.net/Computer-Games-on-Laptop-Graphic-Cards.13849.0.html

typically for games like that GPU will be doing most of the work so CPU is not so significant when comparing different graphics settings in game.

I'm fairly certain you'll be able to run BF3 on low settings, and perhaps even of medium if you're reasonable about the resolution.

 

[crazy12steve]

What do you think of this? This is a 2nd gen i7 in my price range. http/www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0355914

 

[AntiZig]

yeah that's even better, if you can afford it, go for it.

 

[donkeymailer]

i suggest you choose i7.

 

[crazy12steve]

Best answer selected by CrAzY12StEvE.