HP 15-G092SA or Lenovo ThinkPad X230?

[hangyasz]

I am currently looking for a new laptop and can't decide which one to pick. I have narrowed it down to those two in the title. Both have 8 gig RAMs and 2-point-something processors, both are roughly the same price.
HP pros:
- quad core (AMD A8-6410)
- dedicated graphics card (AMD Radeon R5)
HP cons:
- never owned a HP before, don't know what to expect

Thinkpad pros:
- had a Thinkpad years ago and absolutely loved it
- 240GB SSD
- Intel Core i5 3rd Gen
Thinkpad cons:
- onboard graphics (Intel HD 4000)

I intend to use it as an everyday laptop, writing essays and stuff, but also plan on some light (okay, medium) gaming. I always wanted to dabble in 3d modeling too (think Blender, not Maya); I wonder if I'll have a chance with any of these.
I know I could get better performance for the same price if I bought a desktop PC but it is out of the question at the moment. Would appreciate any useful input, thanks!

 

[jaguarskx]

The Radeon R5 (Beema) is not a dedicated graphic chip, it is the name of the integrated graphics core. It's performance is about equal to the Intel HD 4000 according to Notebookcheck.com The A8-6410 itself is also roughly equivalent to an Intel Core i3 CPU. I cannot say how well those integrated graphic cores will handle Blender.

If you do not mind using a 12.5" laptop, then the ThinkPad X230 is the one to buy. The SSD will make the laptop feel very responsive since it has much higher read / write speeds compared to hard drives and Thinkpads are known for their outstanding keyboards and mousepads. The exception would be Thinkpads with 4th generation Haswell CPUs (like the ThinkPad X240) since they switched to a mousepad with no physically buttons. Due to a landslide of negative complaints, Lenovo brought back the physical buttons with laptops using the current 5th generation Broadwell CPUs.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-R5-Beema.122502.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Computer-Games-on-Laptop-Graphics-Cards.13849.0.html?type=&sort=&deskornote=0&or=0&search=&month=&benchmark_values=&gpubenchmarks=0&professional=0&archive=1&dx=0&multiplegpus=0&showClassDescription=0&itemselect_2822=2822&itemselect_5750=5750&itemselect_4576=4576&condensed=0&showCount=0&showBars=0&showPercent=0&gameselect%5B%5D=336&gameselect%5B%5D=332&gameselect%5B%5D=334&gameselect%5B%5D=329&gameselect%5B%5D=324&gameselect%5B%5D=322&gameselect%5B%5D=316&gameselect%5B%5D=314&gameselect%5B%5D=312&gameselect%5B%5D=310&gameselect%5B%5D=308&gameselect%5B%5D=299&gameselect%5B%5D=297&gameselect%5B%5D=295&gameselect%5B%5D=293&gameselect%5B%5D=279&gameselect%5B%5D=277&gameselect%5B%5D=263&gameselect%5B%5D=249&gameselect%5B%5D=225&gameselect%5B%5D=217&gameselect%5B%5D=214&gameselect%5B%5D=208&gameselect%5B%5D=204&gpu_fullname=1&codename=0&architecture=0&pixelshaders=0&vertexshaders=0&corespeed=0&shaderspeed=0&boostspeed=0&memoryspeed=0&memorybus=0&memorytype=0&directx=0&technology=0&daysold=0

 

[hangyasz]

The Radeon R5 (Beema) is not a dedicated graphic chip, it is the name of the integrated graphics core. It's performance is about equal to the Intel HD 4000 according to Notebookcheck.com The A8-6410 itself is also roughly equivalent to an Intel Core i3 CPU. I cannot say how well those integrated graphic cores will handle Blender.

If you do not mind using a 12.5" laptop, then the ThinkPad X230 is the one to buy. The SSD will make the laptop feel very responsive since it has much higher read / write speeds compared to hard drives and Thinkpads are known for their outstanding keyboards and mousepads. The exception would be Thinkpads with 4th generation Haswell CPUs (like the ThinkPad X240) since they switched to a mousepad with no physically buttons. Due to a landslide of negative complaints, Lenovo brought back the physical buttons with laptops using the current 5th generation Broadwell CPUs.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-R5-Beema.122502.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Computer-Games-on-Laptop-Graphics-Cards.13849.0.html?type=&sort=&deskornote=0&or=0&search=&month=&benchmark_values=&gpubenchmarks=0&professional=0&archive=1&dx=0&multiplegpus=0&showClassDescription=0&itemselect_2822=2822&itemselect_5750=5750&itemselect_4576=4576&condensed=0&showCount=0&showBars=0&showPercent=0&gameselect%5B%5D=336&gameselect%5B%5D=332&gameselect%5B%5D=334&gameselect%5B%5D=329&gameselect%5B%5D=324&gameselect%5B%5D=322&gameselect%5B%5D=316&gameselect%5B%5D=314&gameselect%5B%5D=312&gameselect%5B%5D=310&gameselect%5B%5D=308&gameselect%5B%5D=299&gameselect%5B%5D=297&gameselect%5B%5D=295&gameselect%5B%5D=293&gameselect%5B%5D=279&gameselect%5B%5D=277&gameselect%5B%5D=263&gameselect%5B%5D=249&gameselect%5B%5D=225&gameselect%5B%5D=217&gameselect%5B%5D=214&gameselect%5B%5D=208&gameselect%5B%5D=204&gpu_fullname=1&codename=0&architecture=0&pixelshaders=0&vertexshaders=0&corespeed=0&shaderspeed=0&boostspeed=0&memoryspeed=0&memorybus=0&memorytype=0&directx=0&technology=0&daysold=0

Thanks for taking the time to answer. I was mostly interested in which one's the better performance-wise since I rarely take it anywhere and usually use my own mouse, not the touchpad. I think I'll go with the Thinkpad then.