Can my computer run game X?

[Ziggy]

i3 will be in laptops, i5 is mid range, i7 is their top of the line models, clock speeds aren't everything (as explained above).

[isiolia]

I am not too clear about the i3, i5, and i7 even though I do understand the higher the number the better but it was a weird case of what if i5 had higher clock speed over the i7 .

For the desktop lines, almost always:

Pentium: Two physical cores
i3: Two physical cores w/ Hyperthreading (and better IGP/etc)
i5: Four physical cores without Hyperthreading
i7: Four (or six) physical cores, with Hyperthreading and more cache per core

(occasionally strays from that for low power models, there are a couple dual core i5s)

Offhand, laptop models are different, mostly in that you don't get four physical cores until i7s.

Things aren't purely a matter of Mhz. A given CPU core can be more efficient than another one. In the same general series, the new version is often a little more efficient at the same clock speed. If comparing very different products, like AMD to Intel x86 CPUs, performance at the same clock speed may vary a lot more.

[EvilRyu2099]

It's about the speed of each core your processor runs.. And OCing prettyy much eliminates most bottlenecks.. Which is why you have different levels of i7s.. The new i7 4960x is only at base 3.6 Ghz but can be OC'd more than any CPU on the market not a database Xeon.. It's 6 cores and 12 hyperthreaded as well iirc..

[emwearz]

Another reason why clock speed doesn't matter so much is overclocking. Back in the P4 days, there wasn't a lot of overclocking options. These days, basically any motherboard has OC options, and the i7 CPUs can overclock a LOT.

This is actually the reverse. C2D and before you could overclock any intel CPU (they would be multiplier locked unless you had the extreme version, so you OC'ed the FSB) on pretty much any but the cheapest chip sets.

Today to overclock the i-range you need a K series of your CPU, which are the most expensive in the range as well as a motherboard with the correct chipset, again the most expensive in the range.

Intel turned overclocking into a business for themselves, the days of buying a low end CPU and overclocking it to the moon and back are over.

You can "overclock" 4 steps (which is what turboboost does) if you have the right motherboard chipset without a K series, but at that point, why spend the money on higher chipsets.

[ATARI800XLfan]

well looks like I will need a computer rebuild to play Star citizen, since I doubt my dual core and AMD 7770 will be able to do high settings. Am planning on getting a AMD quad core, since AMD cpu's are so easy to OC compared to Intel, and a R9 280X from XFX, and 1866 ram at 12GB, should be a nice upgrade. Hope it can run said game well.

[RCBH928]

well looks like I will need a computer rebuild to play Star citizen, since I doubt my dual core and AMD 7770 will be able to do high settings. Am planning on getting a AMD quad core, since AMD cpu's are so easy to OC compared to Intel, and a R9 280X from XFX, and 1866 ram at 12GB, should be a nice upgrade. Hope it can run said game well.

I thought the release of that game is still far away...?

[isiolia]

Full release is not expected until 2015, but various alpha/beta tests are supposed to start happening across the next year or so.

[RCBH928]

I must say that I am very surprised that people are willing to follow and financially backup projects that will take 1-3 years to complete , thats a lot of waiting time.

[ATARI800XLfan]

I must say that I am very surprised that people are willing to follow and financially backup projects that will take 1-3 years to complete , thats a lot of waiting time.

the hanger module is already out and they have said what hardware they expect will be required to run it a full or near full settings. Part of it is because it is being made the by legendary Christ Roberts who made one of the best game series ever, Wing Commander.

[Rothgor]

I must say that I am very surprised that people are willing to follow and financially backup projects that will take 1-3 years to complete , thats a lot of waiting time.

If it's worth it to wait, why not. Indeed there are many projects that fail or end up poor, but some were definitely worth it (both the time and money).