Possible to upgrade laptop for gaming?

General Topics
1

This topic in a nutshell: What upgrades can I do to my laptop if any AND what is my laptop lacking in comparison to the computer requirements in the quote below

Hello there. I have a question regarding upgrading laptops, since I hear that it’s pretty limited and not worth it.

I realize that laptops aren’t very “upgradable” and that they aren’t meant to be used for gaming, but I’d like to see if there’s anything I can do to improve my laptop, if possible or if it’s not worth the effort.

I attached an old DxDiag from the PC in question. Sorry that it’s old, but no updates have been made to the computer since then. If you want a new DxDiag I’d be glad to post it, I’ll just have to get a removable media to transfer it (I don’t have any available right now/their full/don’t want to risk getting them “virused” and the laptop is disconnected from the internet).

The game in question is The Sims 3, here is the computer requirements for it:

PC System Requirements OS: XP SP2 / Vista SP1 / Windows 7 CPU: For XP 2.0 GHz P4 processor or equivalent; For Windows Vista and Windows 7 2.4 GHz P4 processor or equivalent RAM: For XP 1 GB RAM / Windows Vista and Windows 7 1.5 GB RAM* DISC DRIVE: DVD drive Hard Drive: At least 3.5 GB** of hard drive space with at least 1 GB additional space for custom content and saved games. Video: 128 MB Video Card with support for Pixel Shader 2.0 * For NVIDIA ION™ computers, the game requires at least 2.0 GB RAM. ** 9.6 GB of hard drive space if installing with The Sims 3. Supported Video Cards: Nvidia GeForce 6 series or better, and all NVidia G, GT, GTS, and GTX video cards. ATI Radeon™ series card 9500 series or better, and all ATI X, X1, and HD video cards; Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA): GMA 3-Series, GMA 4-Series Please note that the GeForce 6100 and 7100 cards are not supported.

My PC lacks the GHz needed, I do believe. Probably more things than that. What else does my laptop lack? Someone said the dedicated memory was too low to play the game, but I don’t see dedicated memory within the requirements.

So is my computer upgradable or is it even worth it in my case?

EDIT:
I’m sorry, I forgot to mention that I already have the game plus several add-ons. My graphic settings in-game are medium at best, their not that outstanding.

The game begins to flicker after installing a 3rd expansion pack (A big add-on) and after installing a few more things (Add-ons called “Stuff Packs” or “Expansion Packs”), it begins to crash to desktop and freeze to the point of being unplayable. I was wondering if upgrading the computer could fix this somehow. Sorry for not being clear about this in the beginning.

Thanks for helping an amateur like me. :slight_smile:
Sorry for such a long, wordy post.

Thanks in advance! :smiley:
Best regards.
-Misuzu

2

While it appears someone else was able to download your Windows7 DxDiag.txt , I can not. I’ve tried downloading it different ways but it errors out continually each time I try.

Sorry, but it seems I will not be able to help you.

I am, though, able to play Sims 3 on my Toshiba laptop with Windows 7 SP1 64-bit system.

3

The graphics card is your biggest problem, it’s an integrated Intel solution, from what i can tell it cannot be replaced and is quite slow. However it is possible you should still be able to play Sims 3 at low settings since the game is so old and undemanding.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Graphics-Media-Accelerator-4500MHD-GMA-X4500MHD.9883.0.html

4

Hi Charley! That would be me. :smiley:

The interesting bits from the log:

------------------
System Information
------------------

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Processor: Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4400 @ 2.20GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.2GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
Card name: Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2A42&SUBSYS_02AA1028&REV_07
Display Memory: 1695 MB
Dedicated Memory: 32 MB
Shared Memory: 1663 MB
Current Mode: 1366 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
5

I too was able to download the DxDiag.txt attachment.

Like Darth.Mikey, I believe your on-board graphics chip will be your greatest issue. Though the CPU isn’t ultra fast (like most laptops), but by reducing the game quality settings you should still be OK.

6

Wow, thanks for the fast replies everyone! :smiley:

Sorry you couldn’t download the file, Charley. I attached a new DxDiag in the first post. I hope it works this time. :slight_smile:

I kind of suspected the graphics card/chip (whatever it’s called) was the problem. And it’s integrated so that’s not good. Unfortunately Sims 3 has trouble playing on my laptop after installing so many of its “add-ons” (called Expansion Packs and Stuff Packs), but works fine with about 4 or so installed. Past that and it starts to have problems (i.e. flickering screen and eventually crashing). It seems the more you add to the game, the more demanding it is on your computer. Which makes sense. My game quality settings are medium at best (worse than most others’ settings probably), nothing outstanding.

Is there anything else my computer lacks besides the graphic card problem?
My relative wondered if more RAM would make any difference? I’d assume not, but it never hurts to ask. :slight_smile:

Lastly, since my graphics card isn’t that great, for future reference, what is considered a good graphics card for laptops?

Thanks everyone! :smiley:

7

More RAM might help as more of the game could be loaded into memory, avoiding constant switching out data in RAM to the swapfile (pagefile.sys). But it is the graphics chip and the CPU that will be doing the lions share of the work.

Win7 64bit is quite resource hungry and you already have 1663MB (1.6GB) shared memory of your 4GB allocated to graphics/display use which should be more than adequate, that however only leaves 2.4 GB for the OS and other running applications/processes, not a lot for win7 and especially the 64bit version.

You would have to check your laptop spec as it may not have the ability (expansion port) to upgrade/install a discreet graphics card.

8

I’m sorry, I forgot to mention that I already have the game plus several add-ons in the first post. My graphic settings in-game are medium at best, their not that outstanding.

The game begins to flicker after installing a 3rd expansion pack (A big add-on) and after installing a few more things (Add-ons called “Stuff Packs” or “Expansion Packs”), it begins to crash to desktop, lag and freeze to the point of being nearly unplayable. I was wondering if upgrading the computer could fix this somehow. Sorry for not being clear about this in the beginning.

Would this result in the computer in general being slow? Because it’s pretty fast, albeit a bit slow at start up.

My graphics card is integrated I believe. That means I can’t install a new one or upgrade it, right?

Thanks for everything! :smiley:

9

Once you start running out of RAM, data in RAM has to be swapped out to the pagefile.sys on the hard drive; this is likely to cause a slowdown as A) you have the additional overhead of managing RAM swapping in and out and B) the hard drive is much slower than RAM (unless you have an SSD drive). The Hard Drive is a bottleneck as all of the other elements (RAM and CPU) are faster, so the more you have to use it the more you will notice it.

The fact your graphics chip is integrated (on board) doesn’t mean you can’t upgrade, that depends on what expansion ports your laptop has, which is why I said you would have to check that out (on the manufacturers site).

Some laptops are easier to upgrade, but many aren’t. Some say this is down to the manufacturer as the easier it is for you to upgrade the less likely you are to buy a new laptop. Most laptops allow for RAM upgrade and some possibly the graphics side by installing or changing any discreet graphics card.

10

A look at the service manual for Inspiron 1545 confirms you are stuck with that integrated Intel graphics solution.

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/ins1545/en/SM/index.htm

11

Thanks for the replies DavidR and Darth.Mikey! :slight_smile:
Thanks for checking that out Mikey, I can’t understand a lot of that stuff. :-\

Before considering any other “extreme” options (like buying another PC), what could I do to help the PC run the game better? More RAM and lower graphic settings (though their already kinda low)? Also, is my assumption correct that adding more to the game (e.g. expansion/stuff packs) is what is causing or is a big reason why the game is slower/starting to crash/freeze?

Lastly, what is considered a good graphics card for laptops? Or is there any laptops that are good with playing games? I hear Alienware laptops are very good, but it sounds like their really expensive.

Thanks again! :smiley:

12

You need a faster CPU and GPU that’s the bottom line. You can add more RAM but that won’t give you any more FPS, if you really want to play this game comfortably you will need a better CPU and GPU. A good graphics card for laptops ? If you decide to buy a new laptop just make sure it uses a graphics chip from Nvidia or AMD. Intel integrated solutions are slow for gaming. You can check the following site for comparisons: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Comparison-of-Laptop-Graphics-Cards.130.0.html

13

Thank you for the link! :smiley:

Sorry for being a nuisance, but what is my laptop’s CPU and GPU? I can’t seem to find out how to figure that out. Is CPU and GPU related/roughly the same as the processor or GHz? Sorry for all the questions. :-\

14

CPU: Intel Pentium Dual Core T4400
GPU: Intel GMA 4500 series

Sorry but i do not understand your question.

15

Oh my mistake. I thought that CPU and GPU were displayed in numerals, like RAM. Thanks for clearing that up.

Sounds like the Intel CPU, GPU and Graphics chip/card aren’t the best around huh? If you don’t mind me asking, what is considered a good CPU and GPU?

EDIT: Wait, is GPU and graphic chips/cards the same thing? According to the website you posted, it seems to refer to graphic chips/cards as GPU? Or am I mistaken?

16

GPU = Graphics Processing Unit (effectively the graphics chip or processor on a graphics card), it is the power of the graphics in the same way the CPU Computer Processing Unit is the power of the computer.

17

^ Thanks for the explanation. I was pretty confused there.

I may post again if I decide to get a new computer, just in case the computer I’m considering buying isn’t as good as I think it is. I always like getting Avast members’ feedback on computer stuff. :wink:

Thanks for everything guys! You’ve been a big help. :slight_smile:
Bye for now.
-Misuzu

18

Misuzu it will mostly come down to how much your willing to spend, Alienware are hugely overpriced for what they offer.

Imo the Asus range of gaming laptops ( ROG ) give more bang for your buck and the build qualities are far superiour plus you can custom order ;D the G74sx such as mine and the newest G75vw can have there CPU upgraded anytime you like but at this point in time there coming installed with the 3rd generation intel i7 3.4Gz and 16Gb ram, the latest GPU out to fit these systems is the Nvidia 680m, there still quite expensive at around $2000 but that is half the price of the Alienware’s.

Keep in mind that you could probably pick up my system in my signiture for around a $1200 now.

Happy shopping :slight_smile:

19

In most cases, the only things you can change out in a laptop are the RAM, the Hard Drive, and the optical drive. What can be put in is determined by the Motherboard and it’s BIOS. I have been using a laptop exclusively since 2006, even for gaming ,and I have done pretty well. Both of the ones I used are listed in my signature. If you are considering buying a new laptop that will be used for gaming and don’t want to pay too much, I would strongly recommend an HP like the first one in my sig. The AMD APU’s are currently the most affordable solutions and certainly the best bang for the buck in gaming performance. I also suggest HP because their laptops are very rugged, durable, and reasonably priced. I have had no problems with either one of mine and only paid $599 at Staples for the newer one a year ago. Another plus is that updated video drivers from AMD can be installed without problems unlike some other manufacturers like Toshiba, Sony, and Panasonic who have specifically requested that their laptops be excluded from AMD driver support. You can only use the drivers those makers provide which are modified to work with their hardware and BIOS setups. It is possible sometimes to find third party modded drivers but those don’t always work either. If you do choose to buy a new machine, make sure that Intel graphics are not all it has since even the latest versions are not up to par with the integrated graphics in an AMD APU. Mine plays WoW, LOTRO, Rage, Skyrim, DiRT3, Dead Island, Diablo 3, and everything else I have thrown at it with very good performance. There are now laptops with the next generation AMD trinity APU’s that perform even better.

20

Intel makes phenomenal CPU’s but when it comes to GPU’s they only make integrated solutions that aren’t really made for gaming. As for what is considered a good CPU and GPU, depends on what price range you are targeting. If i was in the market for a laptop i would probably take Dch48’s advice and go for something with an AMD APU. If i had the money though, i would for sure get something like craigb has, that is one serious piece of kit that he has there! :slight_smile: