Intel i5 or i7 processor on Dell Studio XPS 8100/9000?

[ran13]

Hello, first-time poster here. I'm looking to get a new desktop, and I've narrowed the models to Dell's Studio XPS 8100 or the Studio XPS 9000. I have a question about the processor I should get.

The XPS 9000 has the following processor options:

Intel® Core™ i7-920 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-960 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 3.2GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-975 processor Extreme Edition(8MB L3 Cache, 3.33GHz)

and the 8100 has these options:

Intel® Core™ i5-650 processor(4MB Cache, 3.20GHz)
Intel® Core™ i5-750 processor(8MB Cache, 2.66GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-860 processor(8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-870 processor(8MB Cache, 2.93GHz)

The processor is one of the major decision factors between the two models (one starts at $649, the other at $899) and the other factors are the video card and memory. I plan to use the computer for general work, but I also use Photoshop, ImageReady, Painter, etc. and would prefer if the system were 3d-gaming ready. I'd prefer to keep a budget under $1000, but I welcome any honest opinions about my options I'd appreciate any feedback or comments!

 

[buwish]

For those uses and to have to game ready just in case, I'd spent the extra cash and go with an i7. Thr 960 and 975 are obviously a bit expensive, but the 920 should do you plenty of justice.

 

[Anonymousca4]

Hello, first-time poster here. I'm looking to get a new desktop, and I've narrowed the models to Dell's Studio XPS 8100 or the Studio XPS 9000. I have a question about the processor I should get.

The XPS 9000 has the following processor options:

Intel® Core™ i7-920 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-960 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 3.2GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-975 processor Extreme Edition(8MB L3 Cache, 3.33GHz)

and the 8100 has these options:

Intel® Core™ i5-650 processor(4MB Cache, 3.20GHz)
Intel® Core™ i5-750 processor(8MB Cache, 2.66GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-860 processor(8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
Intel® Core™ i7-870 processor(8MB Cache, 2.93GHz)

The processor is one of the major decision factors between the two models (one starts at $649, the other at $899) and the other factors are the video card and memory. I plan to use the computer for general work, but I also use Photoshop, ImageReady, Painter, etc. and would prefer if the system were 3d-gaming ready. I'd prefer to keep a budget under $1000, but I welcome any honest opinions about my options I'd appreciate any feedback or comments!

Nice! I might be getting a high end XPS 9000 with the 960 chip. I would spec the 9000 in your budget with the 920 and the nvidia 240 chip set ($100 option)

 

[ran13]

Hey guys, thanks a lot for the replies. Is there any huge disadvantage to going with any of the i5s? I have a nvidia geforce 7300 GT in my current desktop, but I'm not sure if that can be put into an XPS.

 

[cjl]

The i5-750 is an excellent CPU. I probably wouldn't go with the 650, as it's the only dual core in that list of options (all the others are quads). For gaming, the graphics card is the most important, and you'll definitely want something faster than that 7300 for any modern game.

 

[r_manic]

Best answer selected by r_manic.