2 questions about laptop specs...

Student Lounge College Life
1

<p>For reference, I'm talking about: AS5830T-6862</a> | Product Model</p>

<p>"2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i3-2310M Processor (2.1GHz, 3MB L3 cache)" </p>

<p>I've been told to get at least 2.0GHz and 2.1 seems so close to the "minimum, is it fine to have 2.1, or should I shoot a bit higher?</p>

<p>"Intel® HD Graphics 3000 "</p>

<p>I know nothing about Graphics card, so can someone tell me if this graphics card can run StarCraft 2 smoothly and similar? I'm not a hardcore gamer but Sc2 is kind of a must. It seems to be an integrated graphics card and I've heard they suck. Clarify please =(</p>

<p>EDIT: Might as well ask if you guys think the laptop is worth buying if you're at it.</p>

2

<p>I’d go for an I5 instead of the I3, especially if you want to play Starcraft 2. The Intel HD Graphics 3000 is integrated with the chipset, so a faster processor would be helpful with that. I don’t know any more about the IHDG3K, though.</p>

3

<p>From what I’ve read the new integrated Intel graphics are a huge improvement over the old ones, but whether it will play SC2 I don’t know.</p>

<p>The i3-2310M should be good for most purposes. It’ll perform better than a lot of older processors with higher clock speeds.</p>

4

<p>Ok. I’ve found another laptop, with a dedicated video card. [New</a>! Inspiron 15R Laptop Details | Dell](<a href=“Inspiron 15R Laptop Details | Dell USA”>Inspiron 15R Laptop Details | Dell USA)</p>

<p>Any thoughts?</p>

<p>And about the i5, I’m trying to keep it under 700, (under 600 ideally) so the i5 seems out of my reach unless I want to sacrifice another part of the laptop for it.</p>

5

<p>Your first option will not be a good computer for any games.
You can configure the dell inspiron with a low end graphics card, but even then, you will only be able to play starcraft 2 on low settings.
ill help you find one, but $700 will not get you a gaming computer</p>

6

<p>Below 600, would be nice. Low 600s ehhh</p>

<p>I’m just looking for something to run it. I’m not looking for high quality or anything. It’s to my understanding that Sc2 could be run on medium with the inspiron’s currently equipped card.</p>

7

<p>That intel HD graphics can do smooth gameplay at low-medium settings and standard 1366x768 resolution. It is sooo much stronger than the previous generations of integrated graphics! But still, any dedicated graphics card will do better.</p>

<p>With the Inspiron’s AMD 6470 you can probably do all medium settings in SC2.</p>

<p>GHz is relative to the generation of processor. A 2011 2.1 ghz is A LOT faster than a 2009 2.1 ghz processor. For daily things, the i3 will do fine. But SC2 relies a lot on the processor so a faster CPU will give noticeable improvements.</p>

8

<p>Do you have anything to suggest with an i5 within my price range?</p>

9

<p>I think you would be better off waiting until one or two weeks before school, since prices will go down from here to then</p>