Core i5-3350 or AMD FX-Series

gary1580

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Mar 8, 2013
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I'm considering purchasing a new computer for my work. I use it all day for emails, web and Photoshop. Photoshop takes up a lot of resources when I do automated tasks so I need it to be fast but it will NOT be used for gaming.

Which of these specs are better? What's the difference between the i5 & the AMD?

1) Fry's $799
Hp Envy H8-1430 Desktop PC with Intel Core i5-3350 Processor,10GB DDR3 Memory,2TB SATA Hard Drive
3.10GHz
$799

or

2) Best Buy $699
HP - ENVY Desktop - 10GB Memory - 1.5TB Hard Drive
AMD FX-Series
3.8GHz
 
It depends on exactly which model of a FX 3.8 cpu is specified.

In general, the i5-3350 will be more efficient per clock than the amd offerings.
If you are looking at quad core cpu's, the Intel cpu will be better.

For example, the i5-3350 quad core has a passmark cpu capability rating of 6202.

If the amd offering was a FX-4100 quad core @3.8, the passmark rating would be 4023.
If the amd offering was a FX-6100 six core @3.8, the passmark rating would be 5399.
If the amd offering was a FX-8100 eight core @3.8, the passmark rating would be 6319.

Many cores are useful for photoshop.
In all other work, faster/more efficient cores are more useful.

My take is that even with the $100 difference, the i5-3350 option which includes more hard drive space is the better option.
 

Asif47

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Dec 10, 2012
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If you want a cheap solution, Go for no 2. But please do not compare GHz of intel and AMD Processors and their number of cores.

Intel is best for everything. I mean Gaming, Computing, 3D Designing and your work also. Their Processors are best but not cheap, and ther cores are powerful. You might have seen that Highest end Core i5 model (i5 3570K) is almost same powerful as OctaCore FX8350, the highest end FX Processor. But you did not mention model of FX processor. An if you choose the expensive one, the no 1. You could get an extra storage of 500 GB, which makes a great difference. Finally, I take your FX processor is FX 8150. But I can find your Intel core i5 3350, Instead I found 3350P. That processor beats FX 8150 in many ways, greatest of it is i5 use 110 Watt less power. Go here to see yourself or google it. : http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Processors/Intel-Core-i5-3350P-Ivy-Bridge-Processor-Review-No-Integrated-Graphics/Conclusion


I recommend you to but OPTION 1 , It will last longer tough it is 100$ more expensive.......

Thank You
 

FYI. 3350P is not a good option. The P suffix does not support integrated graphics which the OP should use. The "P" is intended for gamers who will use a strong dedicated graphics card.
 

gary1580

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Mar 8, 2013
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Sorry, i forgot to include this info. The AMD is "AMD 6-Core FX-6200 Processor with AMD Radeon HD 7570 dedicated graphics"
 


OK. The fx-6200 six core has a passmark rating of 6211, which is comparable to the i3-3550. But that is when using all 6 cores. In normal operations(not photoshop), the i5-3350 will be faster.

As to graphics, that is irrelevant for non gaming usage. The graphics with either option is entirely suitable.

If I might add a suggestion, consider a SSD for the os and a few apps. It makes everything you do so much quicker.

If you are at all computer literate, I might suggest you assemble a pc yourself.
You will then get exactly what you want, and the price might be a bit less.
 

gary1580

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Mar 8, 2013
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thanks everyone for the info.... I just realized that Fry's does not accept returns for HP computers even if they are defective so I will not be purchasing that one. So I will either consider the AMD computer or continue to look for a comparable Intel computer. Anyone have recommendations on where to purchase? I was going to take a look at Newegg.com
 
As a rough budget for a build it yourself pc:
3570 cpu $215 passmark 7147
B75 motherboard $60
16gb ram $90
Case & psu $100
DVD burner $20
OS, either windows 8 or 7 $100
120gb ssd $100
2tb hard drive $100.

Total about $785 for a much more capable pc.
If you don't want to assemble one yourself, give a local high school kid $50 to do it for you.

All parts come with individual warranties, and Newegg is very good on returns if need be.
 


A SSD is a Solid State Drive. It is 50x faster than a hard drive in random I/O which is what the OS mostly does.
It is 2x-3x faster in sequential. The main drawback is that one costs about $1 per gb of capacity. A hard drive will be about 10 cents per gb.

It takes a few days to have the parts delivered to you. It takes perhaps a morning to assemble the parts, and to install the os.
One big advantage is that you will have NO Bloatware which pre-built vendors pack onto their machines to generate advertising revenue.
You will also get quality parts; pre built pc's come with minimally serviceable parts that are not usually of great quality.

If you are interested at all, go to newegg and click on the youtube video on how to build your own computer.
http://www.newegg.com/Computer-Hardware/Store

There are companies that will build one for you using your list of parts.
These forums are probably better at helping with any problems than the usual pre-built support lines.

It seems that there is never enough time to do it right, but there is always enough time to fix it :)