Does CPU clock speed(ghz) affect gaming quality?

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Level 1

8 points

Does CPU clock speed(ghz) affect gaming quality?

Hey guys,

i was just wondering if CPU speed really matter when you play games. I am only going to play fifa, which isn't as graphic intense as other PC games.

Anyways, last year's MacBook Air had 1.7ghz as its processor, and i heard that it ran fifa 13 just fine.

However, this year's processor is only 1.3ghz, which is a lot lower than what i expected....however, according to real tests, the actual laptop speed increased about 5%. It was very surprising to me, but i guess it was cuz of the new gpu.

So, my question is, does CPU clock speed really affect gaming quality? Or if the actual speed increased 5%, does it not matter?

Thanks in advance!

MacBook Air

Posted on Jul 26, 2013 2:45 AM

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Answer 1

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nbar

Level 5

7,019 points

Jul 26, 2013 3:15 AM in response to andy1cool

You need to take into account the # cores when considering processing power. Computers run many processes at once. A duel core processor clocked at 1.7 GHz is not necessarily better than a quad core processor clocked at 1.3 GHz. The best analogy is driving. A two lane road with a the speed limit of 170 MPH. A four lane road with a speed limit of 130 MPH. When there is no traffic, you will arrive at your destination faster taking the first route. But when there is a bunch of traffic, you will be stuck in a bumper to bumper jam. Even though the speed limit is higher on the two lane road, you will arrive at your destination faster taking the four lane road. There are more lanes available to maintain the flow of traffic.

There is always traffic. Your computer runs many processes in the background, and individual games run multiple processes at once. Processing power is a combination of both the speed limit and the number of lanes.

And yes, the GPU should always be taken into account. It is a Graphics Processing Unit. Rendering graphics on your screen correctly is very important in regards to gaming. A discrete GPU is preferable to an a single integrated one, always, for gaming.

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Answer 2

andy1cool Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 26, 2013 4:05 AM in response to nbar

i think last year and this year's cpu are both dual-core...

but based on the advanced GPU, i think this year's model will be fine with i5 when light-gaming.

correct me if i'm wrong 🙂

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Answer 3

nbar

Level 5

7,019 points

Jul 26, 2013 4:37 AM in response to andy1cool

No, you are right. I was referring to the general question in the header, however, since it seems to come up a lot and people often put too much stock in GHz clock rate and not enough in #cores.

That being said, the answer to your specific question may have to do with, ironically, improvements to the turboboost technology, which clocks the processor speeds equally.

Mid 2012 model: 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 (Turbo Boost up to 2.6GHz)

2013 model: 1.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 (Turbo Boost up to 2.6GHz)

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