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I'm in a dilemma to choose between Intel Core i3 and Core i5 CPUs. I'll be using Microsoft Office along with some browsing and some other general purpose activities.

Will I be seeing a big difference if I choose i5 instead i3?

The reason I am asking this because there is a great difference in costs of both and also I have used one laptop with Core i3(1st gen) 4GB RAM for same puposes but it hangs alot.

Asking this question again as none of the previous questions seems to be satisfactory. Please help!

PS: Planning to buy a new machine and will be running Windows 7 on it. Cost not a big issue but still why I should spend more if the need of hour doesn't demands that.

Also the new machine I am planning to buy will either sport a 4th Gen Core i3 (4010U) or 4th GenCore i5 (4210U).

Cant see much difference amongst i5 and i3 (Link). Only difference I could locate is i5 have functionality of turbo boost but that comes in picture only when I am supposedly doing any multi-tasking with some heavy operations like gaming or other graphics related.

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  • There are some i5 that are true Quad and that generally will perform better than Duo.
    – Darius
    Jun 9, 2015 at 7:34
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    Current Core i3 is probably more powerful than 1st gen Core i5 and maybe even i7. If your machine hangs, that's most likely because of your OS, problems there. Otherwise it could be a problem with a connection on your motherboard or something else failing - difficult to tell.
    – SPRBRN
    Jun 9, 2015 at 7:47
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    Single-software freezes are not CPU-related. Whole system freezes may be CPU related, but CPU or CPU cooling problems are more likely to lead to erratic behavior or complete shutdown (for thermal protection). Even when the system is "completely frozen", things like moving the mouse cursor still tends to work, showing that software is still running and the CPU, graphics, etc. are working normally.
    – user
    Jun 9, 2015 at 7:47
  • Look For Benchmark Tests on them and what Ghz they are you could potentially have a Core i3 that has better performance than a Core i5 depending on the benchmarks.
    – ThunderToes
    Jun 9, 2015 at 9:53
  • Not much difference other than max ghz
    – Moab
    Jun 9, 2015 at 12:43

3 Answers 3

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Your question is going to solicit opinions

For me, I would check the CPU score, with websites similar to

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php

You can see what the score is. Personally, if the score is 2k or above, IMO it will be fine for MS office use, regardless of whether it's an i3 or i5

You have mentioned 2 CPUs, the benchmark score is

i3 4010U - 2440 benchmark score

i5 4210U - 3398 benchmark score

Either will suffice.

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In general, Core i3 is good for general-use type of computing. Core i5 is obviously a step above that, and will be better in more heavier, demanding workloads.

Keep in mind that a bigger number doesn't necessarily mean it's better. Each Core brand may be branded differently, but depending on what the system is going to be used, differences may only be minor.

Case in point - Intel® Core™ i5-5200U v Intel® Core™ i3-5020U (full comparison here). Apart from lack of Turbo Boost in Core i3 processors and a few virtualization features, they're pretty much the same.

The reason I am asking this because there is a great difference in costs of both and also I have used one laptop with Core i3(1st gen) 4GB RAM for same puposes but it hangs alot.

Laptops that come equip with Core i3 CPUs tend to have lower performing components to hit a certain price point. They often come with: 4 GB of RAM (while perfectly reasonable, nowadays, there's not a lot of headroom here), and HDD (here you'll notice a huge difference when you opt for an SSD). That's not to say that they're bad, it's just that manufacturers have certain expectations that these machines would only be used for general-use type of computing.

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  • Thanks! for you answer! Added some more info, please can you give me a detailed suggestion. Anyways not planning for SSD as of now, would stick to HDD. Just want to go for i5 vs i3 comparison for 4th gen.
    – Aditya
    Jun 9, 2015 at 9:34
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    For your types of applications an i3 combined with a SSD for the OS and programs would make a lot more sense than an i5 with a HDD. The performance gain from a SSD versus a HDD will be much larger than the difference between an i3 and an i5. None of your applications are really CPU intensive so the bottleneck will be the disk.
    – whs
    Jun 9, 2015 at 10:13
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If you're thinking about upgrading processor in a machine you currently own then this is very cost-ineffective way of improving speed. Also, there may be limitations on the system you may not be able to put in really good CPU. You would be much better off swapping your HDD for SSD and I wholeheartedly recommend that instead. In fact, im not sure I can do that strongly enough.

If you're thinking on buying new machine then i5 is the way to go almost always. First: better computing power in office use, better power management and more RAM support. Also, be sure you go for the latest generation of i5, and if you think battery time is important then go for ones with letter U at the end. If more power, then letter M is way to go. Depending on your available funds you may decide on more powerful one (true quad core, not dual core with multi-threading.

4th gen Core i3 and i5 processors are somewhat similar (well, every generation they always are...), but at this point it all depends on your budget. i3 is low-end solution - yes, if you're on a budget. it's still pretty good CPU, but compared to i5 it simply lacks some features. What features? It all depends on version of the processor. At this point there are 37 models of Core i3:

http://ark.intel.com/pl/products/family/75025/4th-Generation-Intel-Core-i3-Processors#@All

and 55 models of i5:

http://ark.intel.com/pl/products/family/75024/4th-Generation-Intel-Core-i5-Processors#@All

So I hope you see the futility of any closer comparison...

Difference between the two processors you're looking at are negligible. i5 will be more powerful, but this will mostly be in the overall performance (that is including graphics). Also, it is capable of using 1600 MHz LPDDR3 RAM, while i3 only 1066 MHz DDR3L. This, incidentally, is the main reason i5 will be faster.

But in your case - intended use - i3 is perfectly acceptable. You would see improvement, but not that dramatic. Again, instead of i5 I'd suggest forking on SSD.

Hanging a lot in your current system is probably due to some mechanical failure (and most obvious one would be overheating).

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  • Thanks! for you answer! Added some more info, please can you give me a detailed suggestion. Anyways not planning for SSD as of now, would stick to HDD. Just want to for i5 vs i3 comparison for 4th gen.
    – Aditya
    Jun 9, 2015 at 9:10
  • Well, if you look at $40 added to the price of laptop with SSD, then I assure you it will be felt and very reasonably priced. Subjectively - it will be at least thrice as fast. With i5 CPU - you may notice it. Generally any improvement under 10% usually is not noticeable. All depends on CPU model
    – AcePL
    Jun 9, 2015 at 9:37
  • But the laptop I am planning to buy doesnt sport a SSD. Can I ask to replace HDD with SSD? As I have no idea about this.
    – Aditya
    Jun 9, 2015 at 9:43
  • Generally you can upgrade laptop with SSD directly via the seller or by yourself. By seller is way better if you are average user (and don't be ashamed if you are one). By yourself is better if you are more knowledgeable or have access to someone with knowledge and skills or upgrading currently owned system. You haven't answered that one - are you upgrading machine you have or looking at buying new?
    – AcePL
    Jun 9, 2015 at 10:30
  • I answered, see in the question, well qouting down here: "PS: Planning to buy a new machine and will be running Windows 7 on it. Cost not a big issue but still why I should spend more if the need of hour doesn't demands that."
    – Aditya
    Jun 9, 2015 at 10:39

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