Surface Pro 4 I5 or I7

[HenryP2589]

Hi guys, I don't know what version to get the I5 or the I7. I know the I5 has higher clock speed but low turbo boost, and the I7 has a lower clock speed but a higher turbo boost.
The I7 has the latest intel graphics which is a 2nd generation graphics card as the I5 has the 3rd generation graphics card.

All I want to do on my surface pro 4 is to watch movies, do college homework, sketch and draw, or make some 3D sketches like anime sketches you know like cyanide and happiness but not a whole lot since college is a killer also play games non demanding ones as I have a pc, but if I want to, it is only if I am no where near my desktop. Thank you.

Also what types of keyboard/ best keyboard should I buy for the surface pro 4 and what types of cover is the best. Also bags to carry it around with me. I don;'t want to put it in my backpack and scratch it so, I'm going to be really protective on this surface pro 4 as it will be my life for about 4 years.

 

[DeadlyDays]

get the i5 and save yourself the money if you are not going to play PC games on it, if you are then is it worth the extra performance for the money(for me I wanted the extra performance for other reasons). Playing the windows store games that are like phone games, you certainly don't need the better integrated graphics. For PC games like LOL(which is about as ambitious as you are going to get) get the i7. I can just manage to play civ5 on my surface, but really it is not something you want to play and 3d games on tbh

 

[joex444]

Realistically because of the size of the device, after a few minutes they'll both experience thermal throttling. They're certainly not meant for consistent heavy CPU loads, they're designed for "bursty" loads like opening a large program and then being idle. Essentially I'd say go with the cheaper one, provided the rest of the hardware isn't lacking (eg, 8GB RAM vs 16GB or a 120GB SSD vs 240GB).

 

[HenryP2589]

What ram should I get then? Since if what you said is true the CPU will throttle then I assume if you get the I7 version and game on it the FPS will drop eventually. Also I going for the 256gb SSD but don't know how much RAM. Sounds to me like I just need the I5 since I already have a gaming PC what is the point of another gaming machine. So now that I know I'm going for the I5 how about the RAM?

 

[DeadlyDays]

actually, the sp4 is wattage limited. The heatsink in the sp4 is legit, hybrid copper cooling system, and works excellent. However, the chips on them are throttled by watts, so it will only pump so much power into the chip, which splits between the integrated graphics and the cpu.

I have one, and I can watch the intel program the shows you throttling, and the reason I got the sp4 was because I confirmed they handle the heat and don't throttle thermally. the sp3's did a lot, and previous models, but not the sp4's.

The i7 will slow down if you push the cpu AND the integrated graphics at the same time, as it will split that like 15 or 17w between both.

Lookitup

8GB unless you do something really RAM hungry, then get the 16GB(which I got)
there is a microSD slot behind the stand thingy, and microSD space is cheaper than the 512, also usb3.0 for external usb storage.