Re: Need Lapotop to run sims smoothly
@CelluloidHen4 Your girlfriend is very lucky. And you can definitely get a laptop for £700 that will run Sims 4 quite well—an Nvidia 1650 graphics card will handle all packs together on ultra graphics settings, with some room to spare.
Since it looks like a lot of stores are out or almost out of stock in the category of entry-level gaming laptops, I'm going to spam you with links so you have options. For laptops with a 1650, this Asus and this Lenovo are the only options I saw for £700 or less. The Lenovo's processor is a bit stronger, but that won't matter to Sims 4. Otherwise, the laptops have the same hardware. Their 256 GB solid state drive is small, enough for Sims 4 plus all the user data anyone would need (saves, mods, custom content, screenshots), but maybe not another large collection of data.
https://www.box.co.uk/FX505DT-AL086T-ASUS-FX505DT-AL086T_2550154.html
https://www.box.co.uk/81LK010TUK-Lenovo-IdeaPad-Gaming-L340-15_2834990.html
Weirdly, this version of the Lenovo lists an additional 1 TB HDD, but I wonder about that. It's also not clear whether the laptop is in stock:
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7890017
If you'd like to save a bit of money, an Nvidia 1050 can run Sims 4 on either ultra settings (but just barely) or a mix of high and ultra, depending on how many expansion packs are installed, how much custom content someone uses, and what the person considers reasonable in-game framerates. This HP is £620 and has the same processor as the Lenovo, plus a 256 GB SSD:
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7631427
This one is £650 as an alternate option, with a processor that's between the Asus's and the Lenovo's in terms of strength (again, not a large difference), and a 256 GB SSD:
This is also £650 and is the only decent option I saw (unless the alternate Lenovo configuration really does exist) with more storage than 256 GB. It has a combination 128 GB SSD/1 TB HDD so Windows will run fast, but other apps will need to be installed on the mechanical drive.
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/3114285
I know these are a lot of links, but it's easier once you decide whether to get a laptop with an Nvidia 1650 (the Asus or the Lenovo) or a 1050 (the others). Then the other question is storage. If this laptop is just for Sims 4 plus a variety of small apps, a 256 GB SSD will be more than enough; if it's also for storing large amounts of data (music, movies, photos, etc.), you might want to get a model with an additional mechanical drive. Or you could worry about that later and find your girlfriend an external hard drive if she needs it.
If you have more questions, please feel free to ask.
