Performance wise, the latest i7 is still no match for a 5 yr-old machine!

[ssal]

I bought a refurbished HP 8470p that came with an Intel Core i7-3720QM 2.6 ghz processor.

When I compared the performance in CPU performance in PassMark, I was surprised to find that this 5 year old beast still out performs some latest entry like the i7-8550U 1.8 ghz, which is found on the newest machines that cost around $1,000.

I am talking about the average day to day business/home laptops. I know the gaming laptops which runs between $1200 to $8000 would out perform mine (not by much). I also understand that the graphics adapter also plays a big part. It seems that Intel has been putting their focus in saving battery life rather than speed. Actually, there are still a bunch of "top-of-the-line" machines using something like a i7-7500U, which resulted in a 65% that of mine.

I spent $252 on the HP that comes with 8gb DRAM, 120gb SSD and a DVD.

 

[Calin]

Passmark isn't very reliable, it's just a synthetic benchmark, and on top of that I'd still wholeheartedly take a custom built desktop over a laptop any day of the week

 

[Darren]

You're comparing the wrong things. Any of the processors with a U on them indicate they're the ultra low power consumption for the sake of heat and battery life. You're comparing that to the high performance QM chip. Go compare it to a 7700HQ and it's easily beat.

8139 - https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-3720QM+@+2.60GHz
vs
8916 https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-7700HQ+@+2.80GHz

Besides on a laptop people are usually more concerned with battery life and heat than raw performance so it makes sense more machines are making use of these chips, and they're still plenty powerful for most workloads. If you want to talk about performance then laptop isn't even the right platform.

 

[ssal]

Passmark isn't very reliable, it's just a synthetic benchmark, and on top of that I'd still wholeheartedly take a custom built desktop over a laptop any day of the week

I don't see a desktop in my near future, let alone building one. Different stroke.

 

[ssal]

You're comparing the wrong things. Any of the processors with a U on them indicate they're the ultra low power consumption for the sake of heat and battery life. You're comparing that to the high performance QM chip. Go compare it to a 7700HQ and it's easily beat.

8139 - https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-3720QM+@+2.60GHz
vs
8916 https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-7700HQ+@+2.80GHz

Besides on a laptop people are usually more concerned with battery life and heat than raw performance so it makes sense more machines are making use of these chips, and they're still plenty powerful for most workloads. If you want to talk about performance then laptop isn't even the right platform.

All I am saying is, I am quite pleasantly surprised by my $252 purchase.

 

[beers]

Actually, there are still a bunch of "top-of-the-line" machines using something like a i7-7500U, which resulted in a 65% that of mine.

The 7500u is a hyperthreaded dual core, meaning there's half of the hardware resources for arguments sake. The HQ line is more comparable to the one you have, where newer generations are both faster and more efficient.

As per Darren you are comparing to U variants which are low power oriented. The 8550u has a base tdp of 15w which is literally one third of the 3720qm's 45w tdp.

 

[Darren]

All I am saying is, I am quite pleasantly surprised by my $252 purchase.

Definitely got a good deal on it.

 

[Jiniix]

"Performance wise, the latest i7 is still just a tad better than a 5 yr-old machine, not including overclocking!"
Fixed it for you
Sounds like a good deal on the laptop though, even if a few years old. Should be pretty good build quality, if I remember them correctly.

 

[Darren]

"Performance wise, the latest i7 is still just a tad better than a 5 yr-old machine, not including overclocking!"
Fixed it for you
Sounds like a good deal on the laptop though, even if a few years old. Should be pretty good build quality, if I remember them correctly.

EliteBooks, the only HP product I don't feel the compulsion to launch off a 7 story building.

Repaired several of those, they're tanks. Do see cooling issues on a lot of them though so keep it clean!

 

[Calin]

EliteBooks, the only HP product I don't feel the compulsion to launch off a 7 story building.

Repaired several of those, they're tanks. Do see cooling issues on a lot of them though so keep it clean!

I despise HP. This is why. I know it's a long video but it's worth a watch

 

[ssal]

I despise HP. This is why. I know it's a long video but it's worth a watch

How many people would stay and watch the entire 46 minute video, other than you?
If they really have enough to say, they should at least cut it into 10 5-minute clips. Sorry.

 

[Calin]

How many people would stay and watch the entire 46 minute video, other than you?
If they really have enough to say, they should at least cut it into 10 5-minute clips. Sorry.

Okay, he basically opens up the computer, finds out that one of the SATA cables isn't plugged in properly, that it has a laptop power supply, says that they could have used a much smaller case but they didn't so that they can make a model with a smaller case and charge more for it because it's "portable", talks about all the junk they have installed on it and how it's probably not gonna last long.

 

[Darren]

Okay, he basically opens up the computer, finds out that one of the SATA cables isn't plugged in properly, that it has a laptop power supply, says that they could have used a much smaller case but they didn't so that they can make a model with a smaller case and charge more for it because it's "portable", talks about all the junk they have installed on it and how it's probably not gonna last long.

The "laptop" power supply thing is totally fine. In fact in a lot of machines that's actually more practical as it's much easier to change that than a whole PSU should it go bad. Makes the machines a lot lighter too and eliminates fan noise from a conventional PSU. Size complaint seems pointless, who's touting the "portability" of any kind of machine that isn't a laptop? Smaller machines are usually just appealing for fitting in smaller spaces, not being moved around regularly. A lot of consumers actually see smaller computers and think they're slower since they're smaller. Doesn't make them right but it's the truth and affects buying decisions. I see this regularly at work. Not to mention airflow and ease of manufacturing/assembly (to keep the price down).

Your final point is all that needs to be said really. HP's build quality and reliability is absolute garbage on the low-mid range across nearly all their product lines. Only some of their higher end business models like Elitebooks are worthwhile.

 

[Intel_man]

HP's build quality and reliability is absolute garbage on the low-mid range across nearly all their product lines.

This pretty much applies to most OEM companies though, not just HP. The saying "you get what you pay for" really matters in low end computer systems regardless of who you buy from.

 

[Darren]

This pretty much applies to most OEM companies though, not just HP. The saying "you get what you pay for" really matters in low end computer systems regardless of who you buy from.

This is of course true but HP has much more quality issues in my experience. Don't forget I fix computers for a living, I see all brands and almost everything I work on is considered low-mid range. HP is the last brand I would buy a laptop from in the low-mid range except maybe Toshiba but they ded now.

 

[Calin]

The "laptop" power supply thing is totally fine. In fact in a lot of machines that's actually more practical as it's much easier to change that than a whole PSU should it go bad. Makes the machines a lot lighter too and eliminates fan noise from a conventional PSU. Size complaint seems pointless, who's touting the "portability" of any kind of machine that isn't a laptop? Smaller machines are usually just appealing for fitting in smaller spaces, not being moved around regularly. A lot of consumers actually see smaller computers and think they're slower since they're smaller. Doesn't make them right but it's the truth and affects buying decisions. I see this regularly at work. Not to mention airflow and ease of manufacturing/assembly (to keep the price down).

Your final point is all that needs to be said really. HP's build quality and reliability is absolute garbage on the low-mid range across nearly all their product lines. Only some of their higher end business models like Elitebooks are worthwhile.

Oh and I forgot. It only has 2 SATA ports which are used by the 500GB HDD and the Optical drive. You can in theory get rid of the optical drive and put an SSD or another HDD in there but still. And no PCI or PCIe slots at all.
I really suggest you watch the whole video when you have time, it's one of the best computer related videos out there in my opinion, there's also a follow up video where he basically builds a PC with the same specs but more upgradeability.

 

[Darren]

Oh and I forgot. It only has 2 SATA ports which are used by the 500GB HDD and the Optical drive. You can in theory get rid of the optical drive and put an SSD or another HDD in there but still. And no PCI or PCIe slots at all.
I really suggest you watch the whole video when you have time, it's one of the best computer related videos out there in my opinion, there's also a follow up video where he basically builds a PC with the same specs but more upgradeability.

Would rather not spend an hour of my freetime watching somebody do what I do everyday at work. Thread sufficienty derailed.