I was wondering: why not i7?

FanEAW · 10-29-2009, 10:38 PM

alot of my friends are saying "i7 does cost alot of money, yes, and it does bring overkill, yes, but its going to be longer before your next upgrade"

can you prove em wrong WHY not to use the Intel core i7 for purely gaming?

Phædrus2401 · 10-29-2009, 11:51 PM

1. Core i7 is not more upgradeable than Core i5, nor will it take longer until your next upgrade. If you go with the Core i7 920 series you're locked into socket LGA1366, unless you want a new motherboard. What's going to be available for LGA1366? $300+ i7 CPUs, and $600+ i9 CPUs. And the i9s are going to be worthless for gaming because they're going to be six cores at a lower clock speed. Games can barely use four cores as it is; they work better with fewer cores and a higher clock speed. LGA1156 (Core i5) is going to be the best platform for gaming.

2. i7 offers essentially no gaming performance increase over Core i5.

That image speaks for itself. Paying $100-900 more for 2-4fps? When that $100 could be spent on a better graphics card for a 20fps increase?

But hey, if you're really determined to spend as much money as you possibly can, Core i7 is the best money waster there is. I mean, who doesn't want to use a workstation CPU to play games? (Answer: me and the rest of the staff)

**greenbrucelee** · 10-30-2009, 01:39 AM

totally agree.

If you want an i cpu to play games on get the i5. Essentially the i5 is the core 2 duo and the i7 is new core 2 quad

Basically meaning the core 2 duo is better for gaming than the quad and the i5 is better for gaming than the i7.

**Tyree** · 10-30-2009, 07:27 AM

Another Nay for i7. 775 and i5 are your best bret.

FanEAW · 10-30-2009, 02:31 PM

THANK YOU, lol, thank you very much for once im RIGHT over my friends ill redirect them to this very topic.

if you have any more proofs why not to take the i7 please post it here! ^^

the more proofs i have from you guys the more im right ^^

again, thank you.

EDIT: what was the i7 designed for? (appart from being a money waster)

Phædrus2401 · 10-30-2009, 02:47 PM

It's a money maker. For Intel, at least.

It's primarily a workstation/server CPU. The four cores and multithreading and a few other features make it ideal for dealing with greatly multi-threaded applications like AutoCAD, video processing, virtualization, and server applications. However, it is a fast CPU and so it will work for gaming.

What Intel did was they released their high-end workstation/server/enterprise CPU before their mainstream one. So everyone who wanted the latest and greatest pounced on i7. The Intel announced i5... and then it came out that i5 used a different socket than i7. So all the people with i7 are stuck the next time they upgrade. They either have to shovel out tons of money for a better i7 CPU (in which case Intel makes a lot of money) or they have to buy an LGA1156 motherboard and a more reasonably priced i5 CPU (in which case Intel still makes a lot of money). It's a win-win situation for Intel. And in the meantime, i7 still has the reputation of being "TEH BEST THING EVAR" among people who don't understand computers.

**Tyree** · 10-30-2009, 04:40 PM

The "latest and greatest" is what PC hardware manufacturer's release for the "I've got to have it now" folks to offset the costs of R&D.
I like to call them the Beta testers.

**linderman** · 10-31-2009, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyree

The "latest and greatest" is what PC hardware manufacturer's release for the "I've got to have it now" folks to offset the costs of R&D.
I like to call them the Beta testers.

EXACTLY right! the kids that got dad's credit card to shut them up; they are the ones who buy the latest and greatest and the $500.00 video cards

10-29-2009, 10:38 PM	#1 (permalink)
FanEAW Registered User Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 108 OS: Vista Home Basic SP1 Build 6001	I was wondering: why not i7? alot of my friends are saying "i7 does cost alot of money, yes, and it does bring overkill, yes, but its going to be longer before your next upgrade" can you prove em wrong WHY not to use the Intel core i7 for purely gaming?

10-29-2009, 11:51 PM	#2 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,725 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? 1. Core i7 is not more upgradeable than Core i5, nor will it take longer until your next upgrade. If you go with the Core i7 920 series you're locked into socket LGA1366, unless you want a new motherboard. What's going to be available for LGA1366? $300+ i7 CPUs, and $600+ i9 CPUs. And the i9s are going to be worthless for gaming because they're going to be six cores at a lower clock speed. Games can barely use four cores as it is; they work better with fewer cores and a higher clock speed. LGA1156 (Core i5) is going to be the best platform for gaming. 2. i7 offers essentially no gaming performance increase over Core i5. That image speaks for itself. Paying $100-900 more for 2-4fps? When that $100 could be spent on a better graphics card for a 20fps increase? But hey, if you're really determined to spend as much money as you possibly can, Core i7 is the best money waster there is. I mean, who doesn't want to use a workstation CPU to play games? (Answer: me and the rest of the staff) __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for. Last edited by Phædrus2401; 10-29-2009 at 11:52 PM.

10-30-2009, 01:39 AM	#3 (permalink)
greenbrucelee Mentor Hardware team Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 1,778 OS: XP SP3 My System	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? totally agree. If you want an i cpu to play games on get the i5. Essentially the i5 is the core 2 duo and the i7 is new core 2 quad Basically meaning the core 2 duo is better for gaming than the quad and the i5 is better for gaming than the i7. __________________ Microsoft certified professional, Network +, A+ certified Last edited by greenbrucelee; 10-30-2009 at 01:49 AM.

10-30-2009, 07:27 AM	#4 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,410 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? Another Nay for i7. 775 and i5 are your best bret. __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.

10-30-2009, 02:31 PM	#5 (permalink)
FanEAW Registered User Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 108 OS: Vista Home Basic SP1 Build 6001	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? THANK YOU, lol, thank you very much for once im RIGHT over my friends ill redirect them to this very topic. if you have any more proofs why not to take the i7 please post it here! ^^ the more proofs i have from you guys the more im right ^^ again, thank you. EDIT: what was the i7 designed for? (appart from being a money waster) Last edited by FanEAW; 10-30-2009 at 02:34 PM.

10-30-2009, 02:47 PM	#6 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,725 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? It's a money maker. For Intel, at least. It's primarily a workstation/server CPU. The four cores and multithreading and a few other features make it ideal for dealing with greatly multi-threaded applications like AutoCAD, video processing, virtualization, and server applications. However, it is a fast CPU and so it will work for gaming. What Intel did was they released their high-end workstation/server/enterprise CPU before their mainstream one. So everyone who wanted the latest and greatest pounced on i7. The Intel announced i5... and then it came out that i5 used a different socket than i7. So all the people with i7 are stuck the next time they upgrade. They either have to shovel out tons of money for a better i7 CPU (in which case Intel makes a lot of money) or they have to buy an LGA1156 motherboard and a more reasonably priced i5 CPU (in which case Intel still makes a lot of money). It's a win-win situation for Intel. And in the meantime, i7 still has the reputation of being "TEH BEST THING EVAR" among people who don't understand computers. __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for.

10-30-2009, 04:40 PM	#7 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,410 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: I was wondering: why not i7? The "latest and greatest" is what PC hardware manufacturer's release for the "I've got to have it now" folks to offset the costs of R&D. I like to call them the Beta testers. __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.