Cores VS. GHZ

[kyle_aupton]

I am trying to decide between a intel pentium anniversary edition, witch is unlocked so I could overclock, but does not have hyper-threding. Linus got the thing up to 4.7ghz. Oh and its only $70. And a i3 which isn't unlocked but has hyper-threding, so 4 threads. I would be using it for gaming. So ghz or cores??

[79wjd]

I am trying to decide between a intel pentium anniversary edition, witch is unlocked so I could overclock, but does not have hyper-threding. Linus got the thing up to 4.7ghz. Oh and its only $70. And a i3 which isn't unlocked but has hyper-threding, so 4 threads. I would be using it for gaming. So ghz or cores??

Go with the cheaper G3258 and then upgrade to a broadwell i5/i7 when you can afford it. 

[Lotus]

For gaming only and not productivity, the G3258 would be the more cost effective approach. How long it'll be able to run the most current games is up in the air as many games these days are better able to take advantage of more cores/hyper threading, which the G3258 lacks. That being said, the i3 wont be much better with these potential future games anyway. So the G3258 is definitely better now, and probably equal to in the future.

 

Also keep in mind that you can overclock the G3258 with cheap h81 chipset boards so long as the manufacturer provided a bios update to make it work, so check to make sure that's the case and then update the bios. You don't need a Z97 board. h81 + G3258 is an amazing price for performance combo right now.

[kyle_aupton]

Thanks for the input!

[79wjd]

You don't need a Z97 board. h81 + G3258 is an amazing price for performance combo right now.

The only downside with going h81 is that you can't upgrade to a 4690k/4790k/5670k/5770k. 

[Fulgrim]

If you just game, or do regular stuff like watch videos, web browse etc then the G3258 is a better option, if you get an aftermarket cooler and overclock it. Also, if you pair it with a Z97 board you can later upgrade to an i5/i7 when you can afford it.

[Lotus]

The only downside with going h81 is that you can't upgrade to a 4690k/4790k/5670k/5770k. 

 

 

If you just game, or do regular stuff like watch videos, web browse etc then the G3258 is a better option, if you get an aftermarket cooler and overclock it. Also, if you pair it with a Z97 board you can later upgrade to an i5/i7 when you can afford it.

 

In this price bracket, I really doubt he's going to dump another $230+ into the processor within the next few months. If he were going to do that, it'd be better to just wait and get that in the first place. I can't speak for everyone, but I would never spend 10% of my budget on making sure I can upgrade to a different CPU when the better board you get may be EOL by the time you want to make that CPU upgrade anyway. I mean, z97 vs h81 is like a $110 minimum vs $60 price difference, and I'm guessing this build is only $500-$600 max, otherwise he'd be better served with better parts to begin with. I always advocate building the best computer you can at the time because that's the only real certainty you have, and if you do it right you wont need to upgrade soon.

[othertomperson]

If Cores or GHz were  a good measure of performance AMD would dominate the benchmarks...

[79wjd]

In this price bracket, I really doubt he's going to dump another $230+ into the processor within the next few months. If he were going to do that, it'd be better to just wait and get that in the first place. I can't speak for everyone, but I would never spend 10% of my budget on making sure I can upgrade to a different CPU when the better board you get may be EOL by the time you want to make that CPU upgrade anyway. I mean, z97 vs h81 is like a $110 minimum vs $60 price difference, and I'm guessing this build is only $500-$600 max, otherwise he'd be better served with better parts to begin with. I always advocate building the best computer you can at the time because that's the only real certainty you have, and if you do it right you wont need to upgrade soon.

Well, a z97 board will support broadwell, and a broadwell (or haswell) i5/i7 will last years longer than a g3258. 

[s3ns3]

lol not the pentium. i3 4150 for sure with a cheap h97 board.you will be set for a good time. h97 is compatible with broadwell so its an easy upgrade to a locked i5 in like 2 years

[simtransporter]

I am trying to decide between a intel pentium anniversary edition, witch is unlocked so I could overclock, but does not have hyper-threding. Linus got the thing up to 4.7ghz. Oh and its only $70. And a i3 which isn't unlocked but has hyper-threding, so 4 threads. I would be using it for gaming. So ghz or cores??

Go with the unlocked pentium, single threaded performance is more important than core count for most games out there.   Oh and like others have been saying get a z97 board, that way you will get more features as well as broadwell support in the future.

[luke_2bossly]

g3258 hyperthreading is for the weak of spirit 

[i_build_nanosuits]

i'd go with the i3 UNLESS you plan on upgrading the pentium to an unlocked i5 or i7 within the next year or so.

[LemonSpice]

I am trying to decide between a intel pentium anniversary edition, witch is unlocked so I could overclock, but does not have hyper-threding. Linus got the thing up to 4.7ghz. Oh and its only $70. And a i3 which isn't unlocked but has hyper-threding, so 4 threads. I would be using it for gaming. So ghz or cores??

for gaming only more ghzon the same intel platform is almost always better

[Jumper118]

I am trying to decide between a intel pentium anniversary edition, witch is unlocked so I could overclock, but does not have hyper-threding. Linus got the thing up to 4.7ghz. Oh and its only $70. And a i3 which isn't unlocked but has hyper-threding, so 4 threads. I would be using it for gaming. So ghz or cores??

go with the Pentium. an i3 is just more expense for no increase in performance at all