Looking for a somewhat cheap gaming laptop??

[PunkRockSims]

So I've been looking for a decent laptop to run the sims 3 for months. I've inquired about this before, and for a while I was set on an 800 dollar laptop, hoping that it would go on sale during the holidays. Even so, I'm starting to doubt that I'll get one at such a high price because we simply can't afford it. So we're looking into used options, and I'd like to know the  requirements to run sims 3 and all expansions/a few stuff packs. I figure that I need a dedicated graphics card and at least 8 GB of RAM, at least 500 GB hard drive, so whats good for a processor? What else is required?

[MrsFlynn]

Here are the recommended specs for a used laptop.

Processor : i5 or i7 HQ ~ 2.4 GHz
Video card : GDDR5 Memory
computer ram 8gb
hard drive space at least 500 gb
windows 64 bit

We caution against getting used/refurbished systems, because they can't they may not come with good warranties and don't know how much wear and tear they have on them.

Be careful of the lower end thin notebook type of laptops. They lack adequate cooling the laptop needs to play games efficiently.

Laptops with U processors aren't designed to play games. They're designed for  office/homework, watching videos, listening to music, and other light tasks. Not so much for gaming.

Without getting too technical, they make the U (Ultra-low-voltage or UVL) processors to save energy/electricity to help save battery life. But they do this at the expense of the processing power games need. So it makes for a not so good gaming experience.

[angelD]

New Egg sells cheaper laptops that are Microsoft Certified refurbished. I have purchased the refurbished before for my two daughters who play Sims 4 also and they lasted about 2 years and cost then around $150 each. I bought one recently for my oldest's son's girlfriend and it is a grade B Microsoft Certified refurbished that was about $200. I stick with Microsoft Certified and Dell as they are usually lightly used old work computers, look for Grade B or higher, never buy grade C.

Yes these are old work computers so do not expect to play The Witcher 3 or even modded Skyrim on them. Sims is not system intensive, and does not need gaming power type hardware. You should be able to run it and run it well on most systems.

[PunkRockSims]

 AngelD -I  speak from personal experience when I say that sims 3 is actually very intense on laptops. I've played it on two "normal" laptops at different times, and if I wasn't dealing with lag that makes the game unplayable, it would just crash the computer altogether. Keep in mind I am also talking about most of the expansions and stuff packs too, which require more than the bare minimum specs. I've played the sims 4 base game, which ran significantly better on my normal laptop, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. Thanks for the suggestion, though. 

[KhaineGB]

If you can find one, I can recommend the Acer Aspire 7750G. It was a 2012 mid-range gaming laptop and you can pick them up refurbed for reasonable prices these days.

I have one, and it runs Sims 3 fairly well. SSD really, really helps though!

[PunkRockSims]

So my family got me this laptop for Christmas...

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-15-6-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-920mx-1tb-hard-drive-black/5712028.p?skuId=5712028&ref=212&loc=1&ksid=b2431f18-c581-42dd-8af1-708e83365ef3&ksprof_id=8&ksaffcode=pg198996&ksdevice=m&lsft=ref:212,loc:2

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it, that they wanted to get the right thing for me and such, but... Right off the bat I get a message saying the graphics card isn't compatible. I've only had the computer for three hours, only spent about a half hour on the game, but I want to make it work...  I don't know if there's more ways to approach this issue than buying another laptop all together. 

[MrsFlynn]

Looking at the specs it has a U processor, which aren't made for gaming. They are deliberately underclocked to use less power at the expense of performance.

It also lacks adequate cooling which laptops need to play games, so not to burn the internal parts like the graphics card or processor. A cooling mat won't solve the issue, but will help a little.

However, we do have a graphics file that will work with your graphics card.

Sims 3 doesn't recognize my new graphics card Nvidia GeForce 920MX
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php?topic=28557.msg466654#msg466654

Follow the instructions on the post linked above to get the game to recognize the graphics card.

[KhaineGB]

You can also ignore the message about an unrecognised card.

All 3 machines I play Sims 3 on get that message. I just hit ok and set my graphics settings manually. Never had a problem.

[PunkRockSims]

Looking at the specs it has a U processor, which aren't made for gaming. They are deliberately underclocked to use less power at the expense of performance.

It also lacks adequate cooling which laptops need to play games, so not to burn the internal parts like the graphics card or processor. A cooling mat won't solve the issue, but will help a little.

However, we do have a graphics file that will work with your graphics card.

Sims 3 doesn't recognize my new graphics card Nvidia GeForce 920MX
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php?topic=28557.msg466654#msg466654

Follow the instructions on the post linked above to get the game to recognize the graphics card.

So.. I found the DeviceConfig document and it says the same thing as the post in the link, but I'm not quite clear where to go from there? Clarification would be appreciated. Also, what would you recommend for a cooling mat that would improve game performance? Is there anything I can do to help the processor and avoid lag?

[MrsFlynn]

1. Take the zipped file from this post and copy to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 3\Base Game\Game\Bin

-- Or look in the Base Game\Game\Bin of where you installed the game.

2. Unzip it and overwrite what's there, it's fine this is to help get the game to recognize the graphics card.

3. You may need to load the game to main menu and exit to make the Config.log file be aware of the change.

4. The Config.log file should be able to say "Found: 1, Matched: 1" After this, the game should recognize the game.

As far as cooling mats/pads it's more of a personal choice, but here's one for example:

Laptop Cooling Pad
https://www.amazon.com/Laptop-Cooling-Pad-Suncer-Adjustable/dp/B074LW5LPM
Price:    $17.99

You can find some locally at Bestbuy for around the same price or more.

-- To unzip (extract) files or folders from a zipped folder, locate the zipped folder that you want to unzip (extract) files or folders from. To unzip all the contents of the zipped folder, right-click the folder, select Extract All.

Cooling mats won't improve game performance, they'll only keep the laptop a little bit cooler.

I'd recommend not having all the packs installed, and don't play much more than an hour or two at most and then restart the computer to help it from getting too hot. As playing games will make the laptop really hot.

Here in the post linked below are more tips to relieve freezing and lag.
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php?topic=20732.msg422978#msg422978

[PunkRockSims]

I apologize for my total lack of technological knowledge (it's ok to face palm at this point, I wouldn't mind) but I'm totally unclear as to what a zipped file even is, much less how to find it on my laptop. What exactly is the file in the post you meant?   Dear god, I feel like my grandma just typing this. Tldr: I'm still  super confused, please elaborate further if you can? Sorry.

[MrsFlynn]

I did some searching, cause it got me curious and I found an article that can explain what a zip file is better than I can.

Everything You Need to Know About Zip Files
https://www.howtogeek.com/178146/htg-explains-everything-you-need-to-know-about-zipped-files/

If you want to know more, you may want to do some searching on it.

That might give you a better idea of what a zip file is. Hopefully then my last post will make more sense.

If it still doesn't, the game may still play on lower settings. You'll just get bugged by the card not recognized message every now and again. You can go into the game options and set them yourself.

Sims 3 Options Overview
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php?topic=27533.msg455148#msg455148

[PunkRockSims]

Thank you! I think I understand what you're saying now. I had an incident yesterday where I found a seemingly much more complicated way of doing it, tried it, deleted some files, panicked, and uninstalled the game. I don't currently have wifi to download it again, so I have to wait until tomorrow to get the wifi fixed, download it, then try to fix the graphics. Thank you so much for your help.

[PunkRockSims]

So I'm back

I'm getting a weird glitch that happens everytime I load up the game and it's annoying

Basically the interactions panel doesn't disappear after the cpversation ends and stays there despite whichever sim I switch to. It wouldn't be so bad, except I can't see what my sims are doing sometimes and that's what makes it a nuisance. Help?

[MrsFlynn]

Have you tried clearing the game cache?

Delete Game Cache Files (What & Howto)
http://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/forum/index.php/topic,20732.msg401809.html#msg401809