The next big processor

[bmoc]

Since you are thinking about ditching laptops, I would recommend looking to Intel's enthusiast line of processors. Currently that is the Sandy Bridge-E line. Ivy Bridge-E is rumored to be coming out 3rd quarter 2013. Also given that Haswell is the successor to Ivy Bridge, it stands to reason that there will eventually be a Haswell-E line of processors down the road (pure speculation).

At home I am using a Sandy Bridge-E i7-3820 and it is fantastic. I can't say enough good things about it. The only downside it is only has 4 cores instead of 6 like its big brother the i7-3930K.

[RCBH928]

I thought the i7 and i5 are called sandy/ivy bridges,
why so many code names?

I meant what is AFTER i7? or is this here to stay for the next 10 years?

[bmoc]

I don't think the i3/i5/i7 classifications are going away any time soon. The difference between the three varies over time but the constant is that within the same processor family (Sandy Bridge/Ivy Bridge/etc.) i3 < i5 < i7 I doubt that there will be an i9 or anything like that in the near future.

The reason they have so many code names is because each code name represents a significant jump in architecture and performance.

[MrPopo]

Windows laptops also can have coolers built in to them, whereas Mac laptops do not (because it'd spoil the form factor).

[fastbilly1]

I doubt that there will be an i9 or anything like that in the near future.

Shows what you know, i9s are needed to get a job if you are not a citizen...

Sorry I couldnt resist

[ZenErik]

Windows laptops also can have coolers built in to them, whereas Mac laptops do not (because it'd spoil the form factor).

I guess if you want to get a 12 pound laptop.. But who wants that? Uber "gaming" laptops never made much sense to me. Might as well get a desktop at that point seeing as most of those gaming laptops are hardly portable.

[MrPopo]

Windows laptops also can have coolers built in to them, whereas Mac laptops do not (because it'd spoil the form factor).

I guess if you want to get a 12 pound laptop.. But who wants that? Uber "gaming" laptops never made much sense to me. Might as well get a desktop at that point seeing as most of those gaming laptops are hardly portable.

I've got a gaming laptop I purchased off a coworker on the cheap for LAN parties, which it's excellent for. Also, since when is 12 pounds an unbearable burden?

[ZenErik]

I carry my laptop to work every single day. I'd say 12 pounds is unbearable.

Pretty sure I'd rather carry a Mac Mini to work each day than a 17"+ gaming laptop.

[arnold_the_bartender]

At home I am using a Sandy Bridge-E i7-3820 and it is fantastic. I can't say enough good things about it. The only downside it is only has 4 cores instead of 6 like its big brother the i7-3930K.

That's my plan. I'm going to get the 3820 within the next week and stick with it for now. Then I'm going to replace it with one of the higher end Ivy Bridge-E's rather than the entry level ones when they come out next year. I was going to save up and plunk down on a 3930K for that 6-core goodness (3960x is way overpriced in comparison) but decided to wait because Ivy Bridge supports PCI-E 3.0 and Sandy Bridge doesn't.

[MrPopo]

Sandy Bridge-E DOES support PCI-Express 3.0, it's just a certification thing. Read halfway down this page:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/di ... 30k_4.html

You'll see X79 Motherboards explicitly state their lanes are PCI-Express 3.0.