Eh, mobile cpus aren't really meant for editing (which can be somewhat demanding of the cpu). When it comes to cpus, it's not all about speed. A Sempron running at 3.1 GHz, for example, will work better than a Sempron running at 2.1 GHz...but pit it against a dual-core Athlon II at 2.1 GHz and the dual core should win.
With a budget of $500, you might want to look more into a desktop rather than another laptop (upgrade paths for laptops are usually very limited, so chances are you won't be able to pick a new cpu and stick it in your current laptop)
If you want/need another laptop, I'd look into something like
this.
If a desktop is alright, look for something like
this or
this
If you're comfortable with building your own computer, $500 should build a capable enough rig.
Things you should be looking for:
-Dual core cpu (that alone may make the difference). Shy away from Intel Celeron, Atom & Pentium, and AMD Sempron. Look for Intel Core 2 or Core ix (i5 or i3, core i7 is a bit out of your budget), or AMD Athlon II, Phenom II X2 or X3
-DDR2 800 or higher (or DDR3 1333 or higher if it's in your range). 2+ GB if you're using a 32-bit OS or 3+ GB for a 64-bit OS
-Hard drive that spins at 7200 rpm. 5400 may be fine, but don't go any lower. There are some drives that spin at 10k rpm and 15k rpm...but those will probably put you out of your range. SSDs are fast, but relatively low capacity (and still kinda spendy)
. I understand about the build dynamic ram preview option and the selectivly prerender video option but it is very annoying having to wait for 5 min for a 5 second clip to play that I barley modified. So my question is what is the fastest processor that I can buy that can fix this problem in sony vegas and will be able to handle after effects in the future? All under 500$ if that is possible.
