Level 2 or 3 cashe

[DREDIOCK]

Looking at a couple of laptops for my daughter.

with the processor. which is better to have 2MB of level 2 cache or 2MB of level 3 cache?

Actually, these are the ones we're considering

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=cat13504&type=page&pageIdentity=searchDriven&useProductString=true&productString=1218242899061*1218243230371*1218270199430&unProductString=1218244146938*1218268438309*1218245812097*1218231017163*1218245811462*1218274970383*1218273846897*1218270208589*1218242900141*1218243226535*1218231020444*1218273045570*1218255559557*1218245812861&catId=

[Tigger29]

First off you need to fix your link.

Secondly you need to do more research than what the website and 'sales people' at Best Buy are telling you.  I guess that's why you're here asking though, huh?

Personally, for the most part when it comes to advertising level 2 or level 3 cache amounts... I feel it's more marketing hype than anything.  While a higher amount of cache may be better, there are so many other factors to consider that the amount of cache would be almost at the bottom of the list.  For example, a 3Ghz processor with less cache is most likely going to perform better than a 1.5Ghz processor with more cache.  Of course there are many other factors involved, but that's just an example.

It also depends on what you daughter plans on using it for, and how much you want to pay for the laptop.  Chances are that if you were to purchase the least expensive laptop they have to offer, it would be plenty good enough for her needs.

[DREDIOCK]

 
Actually I havent been to bestbuy yet to talk to anyone. Im just looking at the specs and comparing the differences. I know better then to ask store staff for advise. most of the time I tell them more about their own stuff then they know. but I normally deal with desktops. Not laptops

Looking to spend around $500

These are the three Im looking at (online)

Link works fine for me but here
Side to side comparison
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=cat13504&type=page&pageIdentity=searchDriven&useProductString=true&productString=1218242899061

Individual
Gateway - Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 15.6" Display / 4GB Memory / 500GB Hard Drive - Espresso $550

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Gateway+-+Laptop+/+Intel%26%23174%3B+Core%26%23153%3B+i3+Processor+/+15.6%22+Display+/+4GB+Memory+/+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Espresso/1250773.p?skuId=1250773&id=1218242899061

Asus - Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 15.6" Display / 4GB Memory / 500GB Hard Drive - Brown $500

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+Laptop+/+Intel%26%23174%3B+Core%26%23153%3B+i3+Processor+/+15.6%22+Display+/+4GB+Memory+/+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Brown/1257181.p?skuId=1257181&id=1218243230371


Asus - Laptop / AMD Turion™ II Processor / 15.6" Display / 6GB Memory / 500GB Hard Drive - Dark Gray $550

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+Laptop+/+AMD+Turion%26%23153%3B+II+Processor+/+15.6%22+Display+/+6GB+Memory+/+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Dark+Gray/1572108.p?skuId=1572108&id=1218270199430

[Tigger29]

From what I can tell the biggest difference between the Gateway i3 and the Asus i3 is that the Gateway comes with a BlueRay drive (vs. a DVD for the Asus) and the Gateway has video with dedicated ram.  If she does any gaming that right there makes it worth the extra $50, however this is at the expense of battery life.

As for the Asus Turion, I can't really see anything that makes it worth the extra $50 other than the fact that it is an AMD.  Nothing against AMD specifically, but I just can't see anything 'special' about it, especially to make up for the higher price tag.

[Dragon]

but I just can't see anything 'special' about it, especially to make up for the higher price tag.

7200 rpm hard drive.  Only difference I see other than the 2 GB more RAM. 

I like the Gateway.

Not that it means much, but the Asus I3 has 5 1 star reviews.  The others have 1 and none.

[DREDIOCK]

Picked up the Gateway. To my surprise there wasnt alot of bloatware at all Nortons being the only main one. And that went by the wayside in less time then its taking me to write this post. Swapped it out for NOD32. Installed Firefox and setup noscript,Addblock and a couple of other addons.

Not a bad little machine. Monitor when playing full screen vieos you pretty much have to be loooking at it dead on or it has wierd effects and the speakers arent the greatest in stereo sound but each are adequate for her purposes particularly since she usually wears a headphones anyway.

The largest problem I had was getting the wireless to worek with Verizons router. But.. Getting just about anything wireless working right with  verizons equipment has always been a pain here.

Setup was pretty straightforward. and im sure there s some tweaking to do as I become more familiar with windows 7.
But Im downloading and installing windows updates now and so far its been pretty painless.

Ohh forgot to mention. this was for my 14 year old daughter. I made her save the money up herself.
To my surprise...she did.

[skribetm]

i play with a turion II 2.2GHz, slightly slower than the processor in that ASUS;
but with the same exact GPU(HD4200) at 1280x800.
when all objects have been loaded up after startup, it never dips below 30fps during
heavy/congested furballs/missions. most of the time on sorties, it is at high 40's~low 50's
at the indicated settings. screenies: SS1, SS2.

[SKColt]

Ohh forgot to mention. this was for my 14 year old daughter. I made her save the money up herself.
To my surprise...she did.

Good for her     And good job dad!!