Which is best i3, i5, i7

I want to upgrade my pc. to new Intel processor currently I'm using 2.66 c2d processor can i go for i5 or i7

As I understand it, the i3 is a mobile processor. i5 is a mid-range CPU. i7 is a high-end CPU.
In order words, buy what you can afford [and will fit your motherboard]. Personally, I would go AMD, but that is just me.

yes,AMD is the cheap way.
i7 is very good,but so expensive,and you need check your mainboard.

I suggest you ask on a different forum where the posters have more experience...

The i3 is not solely a mobile processor, there are several versions, the most common of which being desktop chips, often used in cheaper gaming rigs where CPU power is becoming less of an issue. It's a dual core with hyperthreading, so two physical cores, 4 logical cores, and they overclock very well, routinely going to 4.2ghz on air cooling.

The i5 is a quad core without hyperthreading, so 4 physical, 4 logical cores. Again very good overclocker.

The i7 is a quad (or hex if you go for the 980X) core CPU with hyperthreading, so 4 physical, 8 logical cores, (or for the 980X 6 physical, 12 logical), very good overclockers again, the i7 920/930 D0 chips routinely go over 4.2ghz.


AMD is the other option, and while I think they give better power for your buck at the lower to mid range, at the high end they lack a bit. I went for an AMD 965 Black Edition, 9 months ago when I bough it it was the fastest AMD processor ever, and if I'm honest it's nothing on an i7. The new hex core AMDs are pretty much balanced with an i7 930 DO though if the benchmarks are to be believed.

Also you have to considor ram, the i7s use triple channel ram, so you use three/six modules instead of two/four. I have ended up in situations where 4gb isn't enough, so it's worth considoring.


Last thing, you're on a C2D which means LGA775 socket, so you will need a new motherboard. You may have DDR3 ram, but if you go for an i7 on the 1366 socket then you will need another identical module to run triple channel.

As phrased, this is impossible to say.

Most i7 are faster than most i5, usually. But what do you mean by "best"?

Even if you mean "fastest" (which is not at all clear from your question), before we can give you a meaningful answer, we have to know how you define fastest. For gamers, many games do not use more than one or two cores, so the fastest gaming system will have fewer faster cores. For folks doing video editing, rendering, etc. they want as many cores as possible.

In modern gaming rigs, the GPU is much more important than the CPU.

Another metric is bang for the buck. Here, the AMD four and 6 core processors are very, very competitive. They don't keep up with a $1000 i7 Extreme, but for $200, they are amazing.

Plus, I believe that AMD should get consideration just because their efforts keep Intel honest. We would not have $200 quad core CPUs without AMD nipping at Intel's heels.

If you are a business user, I would like to suggest you to go for the core i5 line, that can handle multitasking even better than the i3 line.

Also if you're interested, it's a good idea to have some intake case fans, not only to feed the CPU cooler (and any other coolers) cool air, but also to help create positive pressure inside the case. If more air is being sucked out of the case than pushed in, you will have negative pressure, which means your CPU cooler has less air to cool it, and also means that dust settles more readily inside the case.

i7 is very nice CPU but you need to check watts. There are different watts on i7 model.

i7 is sure to be the best

i7 is really the best.

i7 is better than all others. so you should go for i7.
but its a little expensive so you can also go for amd phenoim.

To be insightful AMD would be best for a small income, but if you're willing to pay for it, than go with the i7, or if you can find one an i9.

The i9 isn't very popular as it's a wide-server processor so try for AMD, or if you have the money i7.

i3 isn't worth it.
i5 is ok, but still just over not being worth it.
i7 is perfect for the price.

Core i7 is very fast, but is also expensive.
Depends on what your are using your computer for (gaming or just basic things).
I use the i5 ($250) and am satisfied with it.

On another computer, I have also tried the AMD Phenom II X6 w/ 6 core 3G processor and for about $169 (online order) it is fast.

So AMD does have good processors and something to consider.

Well of course i7 is the best among these three its based on the latest technology.

the best is the most expensive I would go for AMD, but then you change the motherboard. It is my opinion AMD