Which laptop should I get?

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

Hi simmers!

Which laptop could handle sims 4 on high settings without any lag?
I'm planing to buy this:

Hp pavilion 15
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4210U Dual-Core with Intel HD Graphics 4400, 1,7 GHz
NVIDIA® GeForce® 840M 2GB
Hard drive : 500GB 5400rpm SATA
Memory: 8 GB DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8 GB)

Or this:
Acer V5

Processor: AMD Elite Quad-Core A10-5757M APU with AMD Radeon HD8650G graphics.
AMD Radeon™ HD 8570M 2GB
Harddrive : 500GB 5400rpm
Memory: 4 Gb

I've read the list on Modthesims - supported graphic card for sims 4,
And found that the hp graphics card works on high.
But I have not seen anything about the Acer graphic card.
Which one is better?

Thank you for your help!

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

I'm living in Sweden, if there's any help for you ...
Here's the site where I found this laptops:
Www.siba.se

And
http://www.siba.se/product/17671002/hp-pavilion15-p045no?ref=focus#prod-custReview

[MrsFlynn]

Hi. HiMyNameIsMaria,

Have you read our stickied post on buying a laptop/desktop for the Sims?

Topic: Buying a Desktop Or Laptop For The Sims 4
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php/topic,21609.0.html

It gives some good advice for buying a pc that will run the Sims and goes over running Sims on a pc with an AMD graphics card.

I hope this helps, and welcome to the forum.

MrsFlynn

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Hi simmers!

Which laptop could handle sims 4 on high settings without any lag?
I'm planing to buy this:

Hp pavilion 15
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4210U Dual-Core with Intel HD Graphics 4400, 1,7 GHz
NVIDIA® GeForce® 840M 2GB
Hard drive : 500GB 5400rpm SATA
Memory: 8 GB DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8 GB)

Or this:
Acer V5

Processor: AMD Elite Quad-Core A10-5757M APU with AMD Radeon HD8650G graphics.
AMD Radeon™ HD 8570M 2GB
Harddrive : 500GB 5400rpm
Memory: 4 Gb

I've read the list on Modthesims - supported graphic card for sims 4,
And found that the hp graphics card works on high.
But I have not seen anything about the Acer graphic card.
Which one is better?

Thank you for your help!

Hi, Maria.

The second laptop should work just fine. It is essentially the same as the laptops MrsFlynn and I have, and I currently play the game at 1280 x 720 on high/ultra settings with minimal lag (usually a little lag at the beginning when it loads in the neighborhood). You will want to increase the memory to a minimum of 8 GB - if it's the same model we have it will take up to 12 GB.

The HP has an Ultrabook (or Ultra Low Voltage) processor, which doesn't usually run games in general very well. This is designated by the letter U in the processor model (Intel® Core™ i5-4210U). Plus, the clock speed is just below the minimum required by the game.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

Thnx for the advise!
Just a stupid question ... How do I upgrade the memory to 8 GB?
That's if I'm planing to buy the Acer laptop ...

Thnx again

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Not a stupid question. And Acer could have made the process easier. It's not difficult to replace, just a little tedious.

the easy part is getting the memory chip. If you have a techie friend at hand, they can help you look up the memory needed. We bought an 8 GB module from Corsair's ValueSelect line on Amazon to update the memory to the maximum 12 GB. Here is a link to the 4 GB chip from the same line. I don't know the exchange rate between the US and Sweden so the important numbers to look for are DDR3 1333 MHz (PC3 10666) Laptop Memory when searching locally.

To install the memory chip, power off the system and disconnect the power lead. You need to detach the bottom cover of the laptop, which is held in place by about 15 screws and some plastic latches. Once the bottom cover is off, the memory is inserted into the available slot on the board. It can only go in one direction and two clips will latch onto the sides of the chip to hold it in place. Then just re-attach the bottom cover and put the screws back in place. Once you power the system back on, you will see the new memory available in Windows.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

Oh, thank you for the info on how to add extra Memeory! It will be useful when I need it.

Whoever, im rather afraid about the graphics card for Acer.
Over at thesims-forums one said that: HP's GT 840M graphics card is able to run at high-ultra settings, whereas the Acer's HD 8570M can only handle medium settings.

And: Focus needs to be on the processor, and the graphics chip.

So, maybe I will go with the HP and upgrade to more memory on it...

What's your suggestion?

Thanx again

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Okay, I'm a little embarrassed. I mis-read the graphics card as a Radeon HD 8750M and not the 8570M. I apologize for that. The 8750M is what we have and that does play the game on High settings. The 8570M is definitely weaker. However, the A10-5757 processor is better than the Core-i5 4210U for playing games.

So, let me do a little looking and I'll see if we can't find a happy medium. We want the processor of the Acer and either the graphics card of my Acer or the graphics card of the HP. It may take some time as I'm at work at the moment. Can you give me a budget estimate and a sample of sites in your area you feel comfortable ordering from, and I'll see what I can find. Thanks.

Flynn

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

No problem!
I'm glad you can help

Some sites:

http://www.elgiganten.se/catalog/datorer-tillbehor/se_barbar_dator/barbar-dator

http://www.siba.se/category/10682866/dator?section=10682866

http://cdon.se/hemelektronik/bärbara_datorer/

http://m.mediamarkt.se/shop/sv/SE/catalog/Barbara-datorer-510351/

http://m.netonnet.se/art/dator/laptop/anvandningsomrade/underhllning

http://m.netonnet.se/art/dator/laptop/anvandningsomrade/spel

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

http://cdon.se/hemelektronik/barbara_datorer/

I don't really have a certain budget, so I guess that I can spend some money on a good laptop who will perform well. :-)

Thank you for your time!

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

But to make it easier, overall I have a budget of 8000 SEK which is like
1118,15 USD.
I'm able to spend more than that, if I find a good laptop who will perform
Well and last some years :-)

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

But to make it easier, overall I have a budget of 8000 SEK which is like
1118,15 USD.
I'm able to spend more than that, if I find a good laptop who will perform
Well and last some years :-)

Thanks, Maria. I'm taking a look at the links. I already found a promising HP Envy for 6 995 on the first site. I'm looking at the other sites as I have time, and I'll post what I find a little later on.

Flynn

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Okay, so I've only had time so far to look at the first link, but I did find two promising systems on the first site.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.elgiganten.se/product/datorer-tillbehor/barbar-dator/HP15J119SO/hp-envy-15-j119so-15-6-barbar-dator

HP Envy 15-j119so
* 6 995 SEK
* AMD A-10 5750M 2.5 GHz (quad-core)
* Radeon HD 8650G / Radeon HD 8750M dual graphics (2 GB dedicated)
* 1 TB hard drive
* 8 GB memory/8 GB max

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.elgiganten.se/product/datorer-tillbehor/barbar-dator/MSIGP602PE225/msi-gp60-15-6-gaming-barbar-dator

MSI GP60
* 7 990 SEK
* Core-i7-4710HQ 2.5 GHz (quad-core)
* Intel HD 4600 / nVidia GT 840M (2 GB)
* 750 GB hard drive
* 8 GB memory/16 GB max
* DVD drive

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Either system should play The Sims 4 on full settings at 1366 x 768 resolution. I checked the processors and there are tradeoffs between the two processors, but the Core-i7 is overall a better processor at the cost of using more power. The Radeon 8750M and the nVidia GT 840M are about equivalent in performance. I'm leaning more toward the MSI system as (unless you need the portability) it has a built in DVD drive, whereas the HP does not. Of course, you want to get a decent cooling mat regardless of which system you get as gaming causes any laptop to generate heat.

I'm assuming the prices are in SEK as there's no indication of currency unit on the site that I could find. One other site I looked at briefly mentioned kr (kronar?), but I didn't see such a designation on Elgiganten. I'll keep looking on the other sites to see what I find there, but either of these two systems should work well.

Flynn

[HiMyNameIsMaria]

Thanx! I'll check those out.
On the other hand, do you really need a gaming laptop
Such an MSI to play sims 4?

I would be happy if you could check some other sites too
I think the site called: net-on-net have some good laptops for gaming ... But i dont know what too look for.

Thanx for your effort

[Flynn Arrowstarr]

Thanx! I'll check those out.
On the other hand, do you really need a gaming laptop
Such an MSI to play sims 4?

Hi, Maria.

I suggested the MSI for a couple of reasons. Compared to the processor in the HP, it is a stronger processor, even though the clock speeds are about the same. The MSI also has room to grow if you find you need more than 8 GB of memory. It also has a DVD drive so you can watch movies or you have games on disc you want to install aside from The Sims 4. And, you did say you wanted smooth gameplay on high/ultra settings.

I would be happy if you could check some other sites too
I think the site called: net-on-net have some good laptops for gaming ... But i dont know what too look for.

Thanx for your effort

I'm checking on net-on-net right now. I'll post back with what I find. It takes a bit as I don't know the language, but I can find patterns and read the specifications well enough.

Flynn