How long is Core 2 Duo going to be relevant?

[frozentundra123456]

I recently switched over to an i5 from a core 2 duo E4500, and everyday tasks are noticeably faster. Of course I just got a whole new off the shelf computer so it has a lot of other improvements in addition to the CPU, such as win7 vs Vista, more and faster ram, and I think a faster hard drive.

 

[Arkaign]

The only reason I can think of to upgrade would be newer chipset would take better advantage of your SSD, better battery life, and ergonomics/weight.

It's pretty much a case that the C2D is still outstanding for generic desktop/internet use, particularly with an SSD. So you really have to work to convince yourself to spend that $$, haha.

 

[poohbear]

lol OP u want to upgrade & all u use it for is websurfing & officework?! Where do u get off feeling like upgrading then? I dont get it?

 

[zCypher]

C2D is still awesome for that usage, not much use in upgrading the CPU specifically. SSD would be the biggest upgrade for that kind of usage. Then again, if you're doing a full upgrade of all components, that's a different story. Just CPU alone? Meh.

 

[Vesku]

In terms of 2D productivity use, RAM size and SSDs become a more noticeable change than CPUs with any x86 laptop within the last 2 years that isn't using Atom, Bobcat, or Via.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

lol OP u want to upgrade & all u use it for is websurfing & officework?! Where do u get off feeling like upgrading then? I dont get it?

if he can deduct it he might as well

 

[Smartazz]

lol OP u want to upgrade & all u use it for is websurfing & officework?! Where do u get off feeling like upgrading then? I dont get it?

A new Ultrabook would be lighter and have better battery life as well.

 

[996GT2]

I have a Thinkpad X200 Tablet with a low-voltage Core 2 Duo SL9400, and it is still perfectly fine for everyday tasks such as internet browsing, Youtube, note-taking, and office apps. Even a bit of Photoshop is totally fine on this old system. Granted, I did upgrade the memory to 4GB and installed an Intel SSD, which helped the performance a lot.

Besides the excellent IPS screen, the best part about this tablet PC is that despite the 4 year old CPU, it still can manage 6-8 hours of battery life with the extended battery.

If your laptop doesn't already have an SSD, I'd suggest installing one. An SSD will make an old computer "feel" much more snappy.

I recently switched over to an i5 from a core 2 duo E4500, and everyday tasks are noticeably faster. Of course I just got a whole new off the shelf computer so it has a lot of other improvements in addition to the CPU, such as win7 vs Vista, more and faster ram, and I think a faster hard drive.

I agree with this statement, but only partially. I have a desktop with a Core i7 and a fast Plextor M3 SSD, and to be honest it doesn't really feel much faster than my old X200T for everyday tasks. It's only with more CPU-intensive tasks (like Photoshop/Lightroom batch processing) that the Core i7 pulls ahead. Give the Core 2 system a decent SSD and it will feel just about as fast as a new system in many cases.

 

[CryHavoc]

C2D E8500 stock speeds, 4gb Corsair Dom ram, Asus Maximus II Formula, 4870 gpu, a couple Seagate 500gb HD's in a raid1 config with an 80gb SSD boot drive**

Works perfectly fine for COD series, Crysis and Crysis 2 plus everyday work**
Slow for video conversion work, but given that it still holds its own, it took me 4 years of satisfactory daily use to finally decide to upgrade to a Z77 board with an i5-3570k**

Over those 4 years, all I did was upgrade to a 6870 Twin Frozr II board**

Crysis3 beta demo got me to pull the trigger on a new upgrade kit**

 

[hhhd1]

A ram upgrade is not something I would recommend if you already have an SSD, the page file will be fast enough that you will not notice the difference if you got better ram.

sandybridge/ivybridge based laptops can usually last for 4~5 hours with a 6 cells battery, and they produce very little heat.

 

[rsutoratosu]

im still using like c2d 2.2 / 2.4 laptops, works well with SSD but sluggish on flash contents..

anyway to boost flash content speeds ? any external graphics processor through the express slot ?

 

[Vesku]

A ram upgrade is not something I would recommend if you already have an SSD, the page file will be fast enough that you will not notice the difference if you got better ram.

sandybridge/ivybridge based laptops can usually last for 4~5 hours with a 6 cells battery, and they produce very little heat.

One of us doesn't often have 100ish browser tabs open for days at a time...

 

[mikegg]

I use C2D on my main laptop. It shows its age in a few applications but generally, it works fine for me. I see no reason to upgrade at all.

 

[nenforcer]

What do you mean, I just upgraded to a Xeon X3360 (Core 2 Quad Q9550) from a Xeon 3110 (Core 2 Duo E8400).

It's my first quad core.

 

[ElFenix]

Core 2 era laptops are already dead as for current gaming is concerned while the desktop platform is really long in the tooth. Core 2 is painful even as a quad but for general and basic use it will hold on for another few years. As for keeping ancient stuff going I got an old DX33 486 dos rig next to me, imagine only 8mb of 70ns ram.

ftfy

 

[VirtualLarry]

With modern features like PCI-E 1.1/2.0, and SATA2, Core2Quad systems still have a long lifetime, for everything but high-end gaming. They are even still overkill for desktop productivity and web-surfing. They chew through 1080P video, with or without HW acceleration.

Edit: If only there were a revision to the C2Q/D, that was 32nm and supported power-gating. It would still be just as viable today as Sandy Bridge, IMHO.

 

[phenomkid7]

I have an SSD in the laptop and it's still pretty fast for what I need it for which is basically just web surfing and office work.

Sounds like everything is working. Many many people in small businesses still use Athlon 3200+..."relevancy" is not really an issue for basic compute needs...

If you really want a new shiny laptop go buy one...

 

[Barfo]

With modern features like PCI-E 1.1/2.0, and SATA2, Core2Quad systems still have a long lifetime, for everything but high-end gaming. They are even still overkill for desktop productivity and web-surfing. They chew through 1080P video, with or without HW acceleration.

Word. My E8400, along with an SSD is more than enough for all my needs except gaming.

 

[jmarti445]

I would say it depends on which Core 2 Duo you are using and what is the form factor you are using it in.. I have a core 2 duo laptop(Gateway FX P-7805u) and it still does things pretty snappy. That being said, I did upgrade from a P8400 to a P9550 and the additional cache and extra speed makes a bit of difference. All said though, it pales in comparison to my desktop which has an OC'd Phenom X6 CPU @ 3.8Ghz and is making me hold out till the next generation of processors, be it Haswell or Steamroller.

 

[2is]

3 hours? That's um...awesome? New ones could get a little more, but...

If it's a Studio 1500 or similar, you'll probably be able to make use of it for another few years. Those things were made very much like their business notebooks.

3 hours is at the low end of mediocre. 6+ hours isn't uncommon on a lot of laptops today.

 

[Cerb]

3 hours is at the low end of mediocre. 6+ hours isn't uncommon on a lot of laptops today.

How many laptops today have Core 2 Duos in them?

 

[2is]

How many laptops today have Core 2 Duos in them?

None, what's your point? The OP is comparing his battery life to a new computer, not one with a C2D in it, and getting twice as much run time is hardly a "little" more.

FYI, my 2010 MacBook Air gets 6 hours with a C2D also

 

[Cerb]

None, what's your point?

That's it's pretty good battery life for what it is, and it would take a moderately expensive laptop today to beat it by more than 1-1.5 hours, without sacrificing quality. A new <$=700 one is probably not worth it (using everyday prices--the next week or so is very special, and I'm sure mid-January will be, too).

P.S. With a 1.4GHz low-voltage C2D--I didn't even know they made those--I would hope the Air got decent battery life. My laptop is 4 years older, and is faster (but, gets ~2.5 hours light use, ~1 with the GPU loaded down).

 

[2is]

Mine is actually a 2.13GHz low voltage C2D, and for what I use it for, I assure you that 2.13GHz + 6 hours of battery live + SSD is going to make me far more productive that I could ever hope to be by using your "faster" 4 year older computer with 2.5 hours of battery life when you're not doing anything with it besides scrolling through text.

Again, I have to ask, whats your point? He's complaining about battery life, he clearly won't be buying a C2D if he buys a new one, and he can easily get a machine with double the run time. Bottom line, 3 hours of battery life is not awesome.

 

[Smartazz]

Is it worth waiting for Haswell Ultrabooks as opposed to Ivy Bridge now?