New laptop specs, again

Steve Maling

Would you choose an I-5 or an I-7 chip? (I'm not a gamer: Logos and PowerPoint are my major needs.)

Would you go for 12 GB of RAM, or 16 GB?

Would you want a Video Card?

(I already know I want an SSD.)

Thanks in advance for your considered opinions:-).

Lee

i7 chip

16GB Ram

Any current video card for new computers should be fine. unless you need a special card to run extra monitors.

Steve Maling

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/783241#Comment_783241

Thank you, Lee.

I am running an external (21.5 in. Dell) monitor. What does this mean vis-a-vis a video card?

Mark Barnes

Steve Maling said:

Would you choose an I-5 or an I-7 chip? (I'm not a gamer: Logos and PowerPoint are my major needs.)

Recommendations for laptops are very subjective. There are usually three things I want to know:

1. What's your budget?
2. What will you use it for?
3. How long do you expect it to last before you replace it?

We know (2), but not (1) and (3).

(By the way, my immediate reaction is that if all you're doing is Logos and PowerPoint, then you're overspeccing.) 

Francis

Steve Maling said:

Would you want a Video Card?

A video card is always necessary to display graphics on your computer and every computer has one. They are often embedded in the motherboard, although it is possible to have separate ones. The right question then is not whether you want a video card but what kind. However, the question is largely irrelevant for Logos and Powerpoint: whatever graphic card your computer comes with should be just fine. 

For Logos, a couple things must be kept in mind: (1) the size of your library and (2) the kind of operations you do with it. People who essentially just read, take notes, and conduct simple searches don't that need much power (i5 and 12 gb would be plenty). Those who regularly conduct complex searches on extensive parts of a large library or even on the whole make greater demands of their system. A system that is too low in power may whine in such circumstances. 

Finally, I should bring to your attention that while the architecture of i7 chips is improved over against that of i5 chips, there are lower and higher ends in each class. Some high end i3 processors are better than lower end i5 and some high end i5 better than lower end i7s. Cpu benchmark websites provide an index of the processing power of individual processors. 

Mark Barnes

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/783281#Comment_783281

Francis said:

A video card is always necessary to display graphics on your computer and every computer has one. They are often embedded in the motherboard, although it is possible to have separate ones.

This is no longer the case. Nowadays low- and mid-range computers have the graphics embedded into the CPU. No card is required.

Francis said:

Finally, I should bring to your attention that while the architecture of i7 chips is improved over against that of i5 chips, there are lower and higher ends in each class.

Not only so, but there are now five generations of CPUs. Regardless of clock speed, a fifth generation i5 may well be faster than a fourth generation i7.

Chris Spenner, M.Min.

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/783289#Comment_783289

I have searched on here in various forums, and have yet to find the basic answer to this.  I am looking at a Surface Pro 3, and my budget allows for an i3 version.  I'd rather opt for the new Surface 3 due to the costs being much lower, but I have heard that the Atom processor is not great with Logos.

So, at a minimum, should I be OK, that is, expect decent functionality from logos 6. with the i3 chip in the Surface Pro 3?  Or would even an entry level SP4 be equivalent (not sure what the "m3" processor is)?

I am new to Logos, I have a few commentary sets beyond the base package from 6.  I know the library can grow, but for now it is pretty much remaining as is.  I would also use Office applications for seminary papers and sermon-writing. 

Mark Barnes

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/783298#Comment_783298

The x7-78700 Atom processor in the Surface 3 is OK. It will be a bit slower than the cheapest 4th generation i3 in most applications. A much bigger issue with the Surface 3 is that it doesn't have an SSD (I know most people think it does, but it doesn't). It uses a technology called MMC instead, which is significantly slower than SSD. The 4GB model will be workable, but it won't be comfortable IMO. I wouldn't touch the 2GB model.

The Core m3 is fanless. It's supposed to be similar performance to the i3 in bursts, but can't sustain that performance (because it overheats). It would probably be fine in Logos, except during indexing when I'd expect it to be slower. But I doubt anyone's sure at the moment, because it's too new.

Paul Yeager

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/783305#Comment_783305

Would these specs run Logos 6 well for the next two or three years?:

4th gen Intel® Core™ i5-4310U Processor (2.0GHz, 3M cache)

8GB, 256 SSD

Mark Barnes

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/785538#Comment_785538

Paul Yeager said:

4th gen Intel® Core™ i5-4310U Processor (2.0GHz, 3M cache)

8GB, 256 SSD

Yes, in my opinion.

Steve Maling

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/785540#Comment_785540

You all have been your usual cheerfully helpful selves. This, plus Paul Yeager's question and my being the one  to kick off this thread, reminds me to report on my selection: Dell; Inspiron 17 5000 series; laptop; 6th generation i-5 (3 MB Cache, up to 2.80 GHz); 17.3 in. display (1920x1080); 12 GB Dual Channel RAM; 256 GB SSD.

And a blessed Advent to each and all of you.

Mike Childs

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/785538#Comment_785538

Paul Yeager said:

Would these specs run Logos 6 well for the next two or three years?:

4th gen Intel® Core™ i5-4310U Processor (2.0GHz, 3M cache)

8GB, 256 SSD

Yes, I definitely believe those specs would run Logos 6 very well. 

You just don't want to overcrowd that 256 SSD.  It is plenty of room for Logos and a number of other programs.  But if you add lots of multimedia and games, you can quickly fill up the drive, and the result is the fast SSD becomes not so fast. 

BillS

Steve Maling said:

Would you choose an I-5 or an I-7 chip? (I'm not a gamer: Logos and PowerPoint are my major needs.)

Would you go for 12 GB of RAM, or 16 GB?

Would you want a Video Card?

(I already know I want an SSD.)

Thanks in advance for your considered opinions:-).

 With others, I'd recommend I-7, 16Gb, & video card for L6. Specs I'm running are at the bottom of the page. I'm also very budget minded about performance for the $.

If I had it to do over again, I'd probably buy a 3.4GHz  I-7 vs. my 2.4 "ho-hum" speed one. I'd also buy the laptop with a hybrid drive vs. an SSD drive, as my experience is only a 15-20% performance gain with a $300 512Gb SSD (Samsung was top rated & claimed fastest speed over the others) vs. the $50 32Gb/750Gb hybrid I replaced. The $250 I saved would've funded both the faster I7 but also the 8Gb to 16 Gb jump in memory, with change left over. Only if the new config STILL proved too slow would I consider upgrading to an SSD.

Lee

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/785552#Comment_785552

Steve Maling said:

You all have been your usual cheerfully helpful selves. This, plus Paul Yeager's question and my being the one  to kick off this thread, reminds me to report on my selection: Dell; Inspiron 17 5000 series; laptop; 6th generation i-5 (3 MB Cache, up to 2.80 GHz); 17.3 in. display (1920x1080); 12 GB Dual Channel RAM; 256 GB SSD.

And a blessed Advent to each and all of you.

Excellent choice, especially with regard to the large screen with full HD. Great for Logos work!