Laptop dilemma: 7th gen i5 vs 6th gen i5. Intergrated vs Dedicated gpu.

[LightningSeed]

I am currently looking for a new laptop around £400. I have found 2 on offer at pcworld but im stuck between the two.

One has a brand new 7th gen i5 7200u with intergrated gpu while the other has i5 6200u with a nvidia GeForce 940MX. Other specs are pretty similar. It would be used for some gaming but also general browsing and office work. So is the older i5 with a dedicated gpu going to be better than the new i5 with intergrated? Links:

http/www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/lenovo-ideapad-510-15-6-laptop-black-10146352-pdt.html
http/www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-15-ay167sa-15-6-laptop-with-latest-7th-gen-intel-core-i5-processor-silver-10151312-pdt.html

Thanks

 

[Herc08]

If you are thinking about gaming, grab the 6th gen. You will not really notice a difference.

 

[LightningSeed]

If you are thinking about gaming, grab the 6th gen. You will not really notice a difference.

Is this purely down to having a dedicated GPU and negating the increase in CPU ghz?

 

[Herc08]

Yes, the discrete GPU will help you in gaming. That speed increase between the 6th and 7th gen is so minute that you will not notice it as a daily driver. Again, if you want to game AND do basic computing, then the 6th gen will do you just fine. For future reference a next generation chip only has a 5-10% increase in performance. So even if you got the 7th gen, you can do more things a little (and i do mean little), but you will not be able to game. At least with the 6th gen, you can game, and will still lat 3-4 years.

I have a i5-5200 and 940m, and I used to render videos on it until I built my PC, and it took a while, nothing I would complain about.

 

[jaguarskx]

Go with the i5-6200u and the 940mx.

The i5-7200u is a little more powerful than the i5-6200u. But the nVidia 940mx is a lot more powerful than the Intel HD 620 which is about as powerful as a nVidia 920m. Most games are limited by the GPU rather than the CPU.

For games that are definitely CPU bound like Civilization VI, the i5-7200u could potentially offer better performance. However, the Intel HD 620 will slow down the game so in the end the laptop with the i5-6200u and 940mx will still provide better performance.