Will this laptop run Sims 4?

[Eris]

Hi everyone! I desperately need a new laptop since my current one is about to die... so I'm considering  a few options that will be able to run TS4 smoothly on decent settings (not necessarily maximum settings).  I really want to be able to play and not worry about the laptop getting fried and/or frequent game crashes.

The laptop I have in mind is a 64 bit Lenovo running Windows 8.1, with 8 GB RAM (maximum 16 GB), a 2,40 GHz i3 processor and an Nvidia Geforce GT 720 M (2 GB) graphics card. Is this decent enough for TS4 without any trouble? I know it's above the minimum requirements, but I want to know how well it would run the game and EP's.

Thanks in advance

[MrsFlynn]

Hi Eris,

Without knowing more about it, we aren't able to say for sure how well this laptop will play Sims 4. Could you tell us what the model number is?

Also, we can't say for sure any laptop you may buy now will be able to play the game at high settings after a few expansions, as Maxis and EA release expansions over time. And we don't know what they have in mind for Sims 4.

If you are looking for recommendations, are you in the USA, if not what country are you in? What's the budget you have in mind?

MrsFlynn

[Eris]

Hi MrsFlynn! Thanks for the answer I'm actually in Chile. Most brands are available here but some models are not. I'm considering mostly Dells and Lenovos since I know from experience that they are good, but I'm open to other brands as well. I have a budget of about US$ 900.

The laptops I have in mind are the following:

-Lenovo G400S (US$ 670)
Processor: Intel Core i3 2,4 GHz
RAM: 4 GB (max. 16 GB) DDR3 1600 MHz
Graphics Card: Geforce GT 720 M DDR3 2GB
Hard Drive: 500 GB

-Lenovo IdeaPad Z410 (US$ 800)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4200M  2.5 GHz (3MB Cache, Turbo Max. 3.1 GHz)
RAM: 8 GB DDR3 1600 MHz (max. 8 GB)
Graphics Card: Geforce GT 740 M 1 GB
Hard Drive: 1TB

-Toshiba Satellite L45-B4218SL (US$ 850)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4210U, 1.7 GHz (3M Cache, Turbo Máx. 2.70 GHz)
RAM: 8GB DDR3L 1600 MHz (max. 16 GB)
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon ™ R7 M260 2 GB DDR3
Hard Drive: 1 TB

-Dell Vostro 5470 (US$850)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4210U (3MB Caché, max. 2.70 GHz)
RAM: 4GB DDR3 SDRAM 1600MHz (need to check max.)
Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 740M 2GB DDR3
Hard Drive: 500 GB

-MSI CX61 (US$ 930)
Processor: Intel Core i5-4210M, 2.6 GHz (3M Cache, Turbo Max. 3.20 GHz)
RAM: 8 GB DDR3, 1600MHz (max. 16 GB)
Graphics Card: nVIDIA Geforce 820M 2 GB DDR3
Hard Drive: 750 GB


I'm not sure about the Toshiba and the MSI though, because the graphics cards are not listed in the compatibility list. I also have doubts about the IdeaPad because of the 1GB graphics card. I think my favorites are the Dell and the MSI but none of them is perfect  :-/... although there's a video on YouTube of the game running with the Geforce 820 M and it looks good enough.
I don't need to play the game on maximum settings, but I'm worried about installing several expansions in the future... the laptop I have now used to run TS3 base game and first EP's perfectly but after I installed all the EP's it would crash no matter what I did and I eventually got so frustrated that I stopped playing completely. I know there's no way to predict how a computer will handle the EP's, but any advice is welcome

Thanks again!

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Hi, Eris.

I would look at the MSI. It's got a good processor and a graphics card that should be capable of playing at medium/high to high settings. The Dell and the Toshiba both have Ultra Low Voltage processors (the processor model ends with a U) and may not play the game all that well. Also, they are just a touch below the minimum clock speed required for the game.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[Eris]

So you think the EP's would probably run well in the future?

Here's the link to the MSI laptop with the full specs. It's in spanish but I think you get the idea
https://www.pcfactory.cl/producto/16652-Notebook.CX61.Intel.Core.i5-4210M.8GB.750GB.15.6.NVIDIA.820M.2GB.Windows.8.1

Thanks for the help Flynn!

EDIT: Just found this one:

-Asus X450LN (US$ 900)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-4500U 1.8 GHz (hasta 3.0 GHz Turbo - Caché 4 MB)
RAM: 8GB (4 + 4 GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (max. 12 GB)
Graphics Card: nVidia® GeForce® 840M 2GB DDR3
Hard Drive: 1TB 5400 RPM SATA
OS: Free Dos (honestly, no idea what that is)

The processor is Ultra Low Voltage I think :/ but it's an i7... and I think the graphics card is a bit better. So... what's more important, graphics card or processor? Also, which brand is better? I have no experience with none of them.
Here's the link (also in spanish) https://www.pcfactory.cl/producto/17117-Notebook.X450LN.Core.i7-4500U.8GB.1TB.14.NVIDIA.840M.2GB.Free.DOS

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

So you think the EP's would probably run well in the future?

Here's the link to the MSI laptop with the full specs. It's in spanish but I think you get the idea
https://www.pcfactory.cl/producto/16652-Notebook.CX61.Intel.Core.i5-4210M.8GB.750GB.15.6.NVIDIA.820M.2GB.Windows.8.1

Thanks for the help Flynn!

EDIT: Just found this one:

-Asus X450LN (US$ 900)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-4500U 1.8 GHz (hasta 3.0 GHz Turbo - Caché 4 MB)
RAM: 8GB (4 + 4 GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (max. 12 GB)
Graphics Card: nVidia® GeForce® 840M 2GB DDR3
Hard Drive: 1TB 5400 RPM SATA
OS: Free Dos (honestly, no idea what that is)

The processor is Ultra Low Voltage I think :/ but it's an i7... and I think the graphics card is a bit better. So... what's more important, graphics card or processor? Also, which brand is better? I have no experience with none of them.
Here's the link (also in spanish) https://www.pcfactory.cl/producto/17117-Notebook.X450LN.Core.i7-4500U.8GB.1TB.14.NVIDIA.840M.2GB.Free.DOS

Hi, Eris.

Brand isn't as important as there's not much difference between the actual hardware in the machines. MrsFlynn and I have typically purchased Acer laptops and my work has purchased Dell, Gateway and Lenovo in the past. All have performed well over the years.

When looking for a laptop to play games, I look for the processor first, then at the video. Looking at the Asus model, I see two main problems with it. The first is the processor's base clock speed is the minimum required for the game. This can impact the game's performance. The second is that it doesn't come with a copy of Windows. Instead, it includes an open source DOS clone. This is a system designed to install your own operating system on, whether it is Windows or Linux. If you don't already own a copy of Windows, you will need to buy a copy along with the machine. While it can be educational to learn how to install Windows from scratch, if you're not a patient person it can be a frustrating experience.

As for running EPs in the future, it should do okay. However, there are no guarantees that any system purchased now will run the game well once there's been several EPs or patches released, as it just depends on a couple of things: how the game handles a large catalog of objects and if there are major game engine overhauls.

Using The Sims 3 as an example there was a major engine update released around the time of the Pets expansion. While it made the game look prettier (lighting and textures received a major overhaul) it put more stress on a system's resources - to the point that the original minimum and recommended specifications no longer applied. Added to the mix is the system used to catalog items in the game was inefficient as once everything is installed (expansions, stuff packs, store items) even relatively powerful systems like our desktops would slow down considerably while the game loaded in items in Build/Buy mode or Create a Sim. This is not meant to bash the developers as I really doubt they realized while creating the game just how expansive it would become.

So there's really no way to accurately predict how well any system will run the game over the course of its lifetime. Having said that, the MSI is a good starting system and should work well for the game. Two or three years down the line, it's hard to say. But, given the average replacement cycle for laptops is about three years, it should work pretty well. Just make sure you get a good cooling pad for any laptop you buy to play games on. Gaming on a laptop can generate quite a bit of heat that can be hard on the internal components.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[Eris]

Thanks for the help! Apparently the sim-gods love me, because the MSI went on sale yesterday for $US 730 instead of $930  Needless to say I literally ran to the store to get it haha. I'll get the game next week when I have more free time, but so far I'm loving it!

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Great to hear! The MSI looked like a pretty good computer by the specifications sheet. Let us know how the game plays on it.

Flynn

[Eris]

Will do! Can't wait for next week!

[Eris]

The graphics are really cool! I'm playing with High settings and it works great except for some minor but annoying mouse glitches.

Thanks again for the help!