Alternative to Lafite III 13.3" but with i5 or i7?

M

mcnach

Member
I'm looking to get a new laptop and I find the specs I want in various 15.6" platforms. However, I also find that the Lafite III meets all my requirements with minimal compromises... except the processor.

I like it's size, weight and battery life being much higher than the alternatives I've been looking at... but the i3 puts me off in case I find it limiting.

What do I want the laptop for?
A bit of everything, really, but the only really 'demanding' task would be some audio multitrack recording, however nothing crazy, I don't expect to run projects with 50 tracks or anything, just simple demos to assist in writing with my band.

The things I'm looking at are:
- i5 or i7 preferred
- 16 Gb RAM in one slot, to allow expansion at a later date
- 500Gb SSD plus 1Tb 7200rpm standard spinning hard drive
- backlit keyboard
- supports at least 2 external monitors
- at least 2x USB 3.0/3.1

The Lafite III meets all that, except it has an i3 dual core processor and I just do not know enough to be sure I will not find that limiting.

Any light/small suitable alternatives?
A 13.3" screen is actually ideal as it's not too small, and it'll always be hooked up to a couple of large monitors when at the desk.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
Note that the difference between an i7 8550U and i5 8250U can be very small. They have the same cores and threads, with the i7 having slightly higher frequencies and 2Mb more L3 cache.

So the i7 in this case is just a marketing term to mean "bit faster". That might well be worth the ~£75 more, but just be aware of what the extra money is buying you. See: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?60083-Linux-Mint-19-Ultranote-and-M-2SSD

If CPU performance is important, you may be better off considering a Cosmos with an i7 8750H if you can get away with the size, as these have much higher frequencies, core counts, and TDPs (i.e. less power throttling).
 
M

mcnach

Member
Oussebon said:
Note that the difference between an i7 8550U and i5 8250U can be very small. They have the same cores and threads, with the i7 having slightly higher frequencies and 2Mb more L3 cache.

So the i7 in this case is just a marketing term to mean "bit faster". That might well be worth the ~£75 more, but just be aware of what the extra money is buying you. See: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?60083-Linux-Mint-19-Ultranote-and-M-2SSD

If CPU performance is important, you may be better off considering a Cosmos with an i7 8750H if you can get away with the size, as these have much higher frequencies, core counts, and TDPs (i.e. less power throttling).
Click to expand...

A Cosmos model was my second option indeed. In fact, it was my first option until I realised I could get a smaller/lighter Lafite. My knowledge about tech specs is very limited, so I'm totally following the marketing's dept expectation that I'll assume i7 > i5 in all cases ;)
I don't have very demanding requirements, but I don't want to compromise too much for the sake of an extra £100 or something, when I am hoping to have a laptop that will keep me happy for the next 3-5 years. The 14" Lafite with the i7 out-specs both my current laptop (by a lot) and my 4 year old work desktop... and my work desktop still does its job very well... so I'm going in with the thought that if I get something better spec'd than what I currently use, I'll probably be ok.

It's a jungle out there for people like me, so I really appreciate your taking the time to highlight these differences between different i5 and i7 processors. It's given me something else to read a little about! :)
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
The difference is that there's almost no difference. But if what you're doing is so demanding that you may end up wanting 32gb RAM, you'll probably want the Cosmos with the i7 (the i7s of the Cosmos variety being quite different to the i5s of the Cosmos variety..)

If you're not really sure you'll need 32gb RAM, you may be better off sticking to 2x8gb so that the RAM runs in dual channel
 
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