HP Pavilion 15-E043SS vs Toshiba Satellite L850-1MP

[baquintraz]

I'm about to get a new laptop, and I saw these two options at a local store.

HP Pavilion 15-E043SS
Intel Core i5-3230M (2.6 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache)
4 GB DDR3
AMD Radeon HD 8670M (2 GB DDR3 dedicated)
500 GB 5400 rpm SATA
(15.6") HD BrightView LED-backlit (1366 x 768)

Toshiba Satellite L850-1MP
Intel Core i5-3210M 2.5/3.1 Ghz
4 GB DDR 3
AMD Radeon HD 7670M (1 GB DDR3 dedicated)
500 GB HD
15.6" 1366 x 768

The main difference appear to be in the GPU. I intend to use the laptop mainly for work (programming, scilab, opengl and opencv stuff). I'd also like to do some gaming, but nothing fancy. If it runs indies properly I'll be satisfied.

Both are priced at 600€. My questions are:

• 
  ■ Is the 8670M actually better? I'd think so, but I'd like to be sure.
  ■ Is there a big difference in quality between the two manufacturers? Is one more reliable than the other?
  ■ Is there a big difference between the two microprocessors?

Thanks in advance.

 

[baquintraz]

As far as manufacturers, Toshiba is much better than HP. The specs on the HP are better but I'm still leaning toward Toshiba because of their quality.

Well, I already went for the HP, so in the future I might post about the result. Thanks anyway!