iMac 27' 3.1GHz i5 vs 3.4GHz i7

[Wreckie]

Greetings,
I am in front of dilemma. Planning to buy 27 inch iMac. I am already pretty sure I will purchase the iMac with 2GB of 6970M as I mainly look it for gaming, but surfing in the Internet I found that the optional i7 has much better results. Will I notice these benefits of i7 in games for example? I am sure the 6970m 2GB should not stop anything, but would the i5 2400 do so? If its like 3-5 frame rates difference then I would think. I have chosen this setup, because its +100€ for 2GB 6970m, but +200€ for i7 upgrade, which I consider quite expensive if I wont see any difference in gaming.
Also, would the 6970m 2GB overheat any way more than 1GB version, because I wouldn't like more noise of fans.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Lord Appleseed]

The i7 has little to no influence on Gaming.
However it greatly influences Video encoding and editing.

If you really are only after gaming then the i5 is more than enough.


Also why would the 2GB VRAM produce overheat?

 

[leman]

If you really are only after gaming then the i5 is more than enough.

So is 2GB VRAM

Overall, neither 2GB VRAM nor the i7 CPU will have any substantial impact on your gaming. You may see some 5% performance increase, which is, honestly, not worth the money. I am rather sure though that the faster CPU will have a bigger impact than more VRAM.

 

[Lord Appleseed]

So is 2GB VRAM

Overall, neither 2GB VRAM nor the i7 CPU will have any substantial impact on your gaming. You may see some 5% performance increase, which is, honestly, not worth the money. I am rather sure though that the faster CPU will have a bigger impact than more VRAM.

May be. But the OP asked explicitly about i7 so i delivered an answer to said question. As for 2GB VRAM...I ordered it too and I dont regret it.

 

[Wreckie]

So is 2GB VRAM

Overall, neither 2GB VRAM nor the i7 CPU will have any substantial impact on your gaming. You may see some 5% performance increase, which is, honestly, not worth the money. I am rather sure though that the faster CPU will have a bigger impact than more VRAM.

Reason, why I prefer 2GB card is because some games, for instance GTA IV uses more than 1GB VRAM in high settings.
I don't want to be in situation, where I find i5 getting in the way of High detailed games. 6970M 2GB surely won't.

 

[Lord Appleseed]

Reason, why I prefer 2GB card is because some games, for instance GTA IV uses more than 1GB VRAM in high settings.
I don't want to be in situation, where I find i5 getting in the way of High detailed games. 6970M 2GB surely won't.

The i5 will certainly not be in the way, no worries.

 

[Wreckie]

The i5 will certainly not be in the way, no worries.

Yes, then that is the way I am going. I am sure games will use more GPU than CPU, thats why I spend extra 100€ on GPU. If the i7 would be +100€ I would even consider that, but +200€... Nty.