Buying a Desktop or Laptop for The Sims 3

[KhaineGB]

That laptop is terrible and you should send it to me... >_>

In all seriousness, you will run Sims 3 fine on that. You'd probably be able to run other games as well if you really want to!

[SimRoy]

Hey im looking for a laptop to playe sims 3 with all expansions and stuff packs and sims 4 with future expansions
I am currently looking at the lenovo y510p with the following specs:

15.6" HD
Core i7 2.4GHZ
16GB Ram
1 TB HDD
8 SSHD
Dedicated GPU 2GB,
NVidia Geforce GT755M
Back-Lit KB,JBL Speaker,
Windows 8.1
 
hope you guys can reply

[MrsFlynn]

Hi SimRoy,

This laptop should run Sims 3 on high settings. It should also run Sims 4 fine at high-ultra settings for the foreseeable future. But may need to be dropped to medium settings depending on what they do with the series.

MrsFlynn

[SimRoy]

thanks alot
i should also mention that i have some worlds from the store
i really hope that it wouldn't lag
but i really don't want the laptop itself to get slower
and i would like to know if it would run minecraft well on high
thanks

[MrsFlynn]

Hi SimRoy,

Yes it should still run on high settings with store content installed. However, maybe a little slower loading, depending on how much store content you have.

As for Minecraft, it should run that on high settings as well. But may not run the HD mods that well.

MrsFlynn

[SimRoy]

thanks alot for answering MrsFlynn
i dont have many store content just the worlds
and i dont plan on downloading mods for either games, but i just have 2 questions:

will the laptop itself get slower?
and
will both games lag?

[MrsFlynn]

I can't promise Sims 3 will run smooth all the time. As you're bound to run into hiccups in the game. It's just the nature of the game engine Sims 3 was built with. But you should see less problems and less slow downs. Cleaning up the game from time to time will help in keeping it from slowing down.

Read my post on crashing tips. It has tips on cleanup, preventing crashing and other useful tips.

Tips to help with Sims 3 Crashing
http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/forum/index.php/topic,20732.0.html

For Minecraft, you still may see a little jerkiness at the start of any game, due to the way the game engine is and it creating the huge world maps. But after a bit, probably a minute or two. You should have smoother game.

MrsFlynn

[amberj365]

My laptop croaked... and I'm in search of another.

Would anyone be willing to look at these and tell me what they think? Will any of these run my Sims 3 games + expansion packs (I have most expansions)?

A best buy employee suggested Asus over Dell for gaming. Not sure what other brands to look at. I do not want another HP.

Your help will be GREATLY Appreciated!

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i7-8gb-memory-1tb-hard-drive-aluminum-black/3703007.p?id=1219093053506&skuId=3703007&productCategoryId=pcmcat247400050000  - Love this one, but don't like the price!

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-laptop-intel-core-i5-4gb-memory-500gb-hard-drive-black/9298108.p?id=1219405806801&skuId=9298108

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-vivobook-15-6-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-750gb-hard-drive-silver-aluminum/1993101.p?id=1219068210943&skuId=1993101

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

My laptop croaked... and I'm in search of another.

Would anyone be willing to look at these and tell me what they think? Will any of these run my Sims 3 games + expansion packs (I have most expansions)?

A best buy employee suggested Asus over Dell for gaming. Not sure what other brands to look at. I do not want another HP.

Your help will be GREATLY Appreciated!

Hi, Amber. I will do what I can to help. ASUS is a good brand, as is Acer and MSI. Depending on your budget, you may have to play on medium settings in order to keep within a certain price range. Sims 3 is a very resource hungry game, so it requires a bit more than Sims 4 to play.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i7-8gb-memory-1tb-hard-drive-aluminum-black/3703007.p?id=1219093053506&skuId=3703007&productCategoryId=pcmcat247400050000  - Love this one, but don't like the price!

This one just barely meets the qualifications to play the game. The issue here is the processor and it's clock speed. While it doesn't mention the exact processor model, it does mention on the Overview page that it is an ULV or ultra low voltage processor. That's good for keeping energy costs low, but it doesn't make for a good computer to play games on.

More troubling, though, it the clock speed of the processor just meets the bare minimum required for The Sims 3. Unfortunately once you patch and add in the expansions, it will force the computer to run in Turbo mode to make up for it. This puts some strain on the processor and generates more heat.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-laptop-intel-core-i5-4gb-memory-500gb-hard-drive-black/9298108.p?id=1219405806801&skuId=9298108

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-vivobook-15-6-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-750gb-hard-drive-silver-aluminum/1993101.p?id=1219068210943&skuId=1993101

Both of these fail to meet the minimum required specifications for the game. Not only are the processors below speed, but both are limited to the Intel HD graphics set which causes the game to either not play well or just crash.

Unfortunately, I can't recommend any of the three options listed here. I can try to make some suggestions, but I'd need to know what kind of budget you have to work with.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[amberj365]

Wow.. Didn't realize none of these would meet the requirements! This is harder than I thought.

Budget is between $600 and $1000...prefer $750-$800 range.  As long as it is not an HP brand does not matter. It must be something Best Buy sells, as I'm using their credit card and 18 month no financing option.

And it has to have a DVD drive as all my sims games are on disc.

[falloutboi]

Sorry to sound really dumb, but is this the specs for the sims 3 and all expansions combined? I'm just a bit nervous about that because i have a few eps already and i was going to buy the rest if these are the specs for all the ep's & sp's combined?

[amberj365]

I just saw this one... what about it?  I was looking more towards 1T on the hard drive... but maybe I really don't need that much. (Any other reccomendations would be GREATLY appreciated. I did notice the reviews are not quite as good on this one.)

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/msi-15-6-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-750gb-hard-drive-gray/5661041.p?id=1219146761966&skuId=5661041

4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4200M processor
Features a 3MB L2 cache and 2.5GHz processor speed with Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz.
Intel® Core™ i5 processor
Features smart 4-way processing performance with a speed boost.
Intel® Turbo Boost Technology
Delivers extra performance when you need it and increased energy efficiency when you don't.
8GB DDR3L SDRAM
For multitasking power.
Multiformat DVD±RW/CD-RW drive
Create custom DVDs and CDs.
15.6" LED-backlit high-definition display
With 1366 x 768 resolution showcases movies and games in stunning clarity.
750GB Serial ATA hard drive (5400 rpm)
Offers spacious storage and fast read/write times.
NVIDIA GeForce GT 820M graphics
Feature 2GB dedicated DDR3 video memory for lush images with rich, lifelike detail. HDMI output enables simple connection to an HDTV or other high-definition display.
Built-in high-definition webcam
Makes it easy to video chat with family and friends in 720p resolution.
2 USB 3.0 ports and 1 USB 2.0 port
For fast digital video, audio and data transfer.
Built-in AW-NB114H high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g/n)
Connect to the Internet without wires.
Bluetooth 4.0 interface
Easily link with other Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as a cell phone or MP3 player.
Built-in 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN
Enables quick and easy wired Web connection.
Weighs 5.3 lbs. and measures just 1.5" thin
For easy portability.
Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-bit operating system preinstalled
Provides a stable platform for word processing, Web navigation, gaming, media storage and more.

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Hi, Amber.

Based on the list you posted, it should play fine on medium settings. Make sure you look at Crinrict's blog for information on making sure Sims 3 uses the nVidia graphics rather than the Intel and you should be fine.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Sorry to sound really dumb, but is this the specs for the sims 3 and all expansions combined? I'm just a bit nervous about that because i have a few eps already and i was going to buy the rest if these are the specs for all the ep's & sp's combined?

Hi, falloutboi.

When recommending a system that will play Sims 3 and all the trimmings and on high settings, I tend to aim for higher than what's listed on the box. The Sims 3 is a very resource hungry game and the more you add to the game through expansion and stuff packs, store content and other things raises the amount of memory, processor power and such. If I were to boil it down to specific recommended settings it would probably look something like:

• Intel or AMD 2.5 GHz dual-core processor
• nVidia or AMD Radeon gaming graphics card with 1 GB GDDR5 memory
• 8 GB memory as most every system has 64-bit Windows now

The rest of the system doesn't matter as much as most have decent sized hard drives and most desktops include a DVD drive.

Laptops are a little different as they tend to fall into about four different categories:

• Gaming
• Entertainment
• Professional/Business
• Ultrabook (light and thin laptops)

Each have different types of hardware, but for the most part we can rule out most entertainment, professional and Ultrabooks from being able to run the game well. High-end entertainment and mid-range gaming laptops are best for playing on a budget, but you may end up spending around $1000 - $1500 USD in order to get something that will play the game well on high settings.

The Sims 4 is less resource hungry and can play well at high settings on laptops running in the $600 - $1000 USD range, but there are some things to look out for.

If you have questions about a specific laptop, post a link and we'll take a look.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[amberj365]

Flynn,

Thanks so much for your help. I really do want to get the most for my money and a laptop that will run Sims 3 well, as I don't plan buy Sims 4 for a while. I'm a little worried about making sure it uses the Nvidia graphics card. I'm not really good with the technical stuff!

I found this  one and it's $850.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/msi-gp60-leopard-010-15-6-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-750gb-hard-drive-black/5185157.p?id=1219113400428&skuId=5185157

Is it better? Is it worth the extra $150 or not?

Thanks in advance, and here's the details:

4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4200M processor
Features a 3MB cache and 2.5GHz processor speed with Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz.
Intel® Core™ i5 processor
Features smart 4-way processing performance with a speed boost.
Intel® Turbo Boost Technology
Delivers extra performance when you need it and increased energy efficiency when you don't.
8GB DDR3L memory
For multitasking power.
Multiformat DVD±RW/CD-RW drive
Lets you create custom DVDs and CDs.
15.6" LCD display
Presents your favorite media in stunning clarity.
750GB Serial ATA hard drive
Offers ample room to store pictures, videos, music and other important files.
NVIDIA GeForce GT 840M graphics
Feature 2GB of dedicated DDR3 video memory for lush images.
Built-in high-definition webcam
Makes it easy to video chat with family and friends in 720p resolution.
2 USB 3.0 and 2 USB 2.0 ports
For fast digital video, audio and data transfer.
Built-in high-speed wireless LAN (802.11ac)
Allows you to connect to the Internet without wires.
Bluetooth interface
Lets you link with other Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as a cell phone or MP3 player.
Built-in Killer Qualcomm E2200 10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN
With RJ-45 connector for quick and simple wired Web access.
Weighs 6 lbs. and measures just 1.3" thin
For portable power.
Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-bit operating system preinstalled
Provides a stable platform for word processing, Web navigation, gaming, media storage and more.