You should probably upgrade the CPU to an i5.

Well, you can upgrade you graphics card, and maybe get a better CPU. However it all depends on your budget and currency?

Hoop wrote Well, you can upgrade you graphics card, and maybe get a better CPU. However it all depends on your budget and currency?

I live in the UK and get my parts mainly from [ Register or Signin to view external links. ] I was thinking about getting an i5 but I don't know much about all the different variations of it :/

Well it depends. If you want the new Haswell i5, then you're going to have to change the motherboard as its not the right socket. Name me the budget you have for the upgrades.

Hoop wrote Well it depends. If you want the new Haswell i5, then you're going to have to change the motherboard as its not the right socket. Name me the budget you have for the upgrades.

Well I'm not looking to change my motherboard, as I don't want to spend loads of money. What's the difference between the ivy bridge, and haswell i5's other than the socket?

Well, the Haswell chips tend to run hotter, and the invy bridge tends to overlock better. Also, the new CPU's have intel HD graphics, which could come in handy for some people. They're also 5-10% faster than previous gen. Anyway, i wouldn't really see the point in getting a new motherboard anyway.

Most Intel processors have integrated graphics, the exceptions being models with a P after the model number like the 3550P where it is cheaper due to the graphics being soldered off. Also some other high end/server processors won't have a integrated graphics core either.

If you experience long load times in games it's probably not a graphics or processor problem, its likely to be storage. You could choose to buy an SSD and load the operating system from that along with a couple of your most played games, or you could buy a cache SSD where you wouldn't have to reinstall Windows and it would detect what you use most often and cache it on the SSD automatically for better performance.