Re: New Laptop Recommendations/ Help choosing
@louise199360 You absolutely do not need an RTX 4060 for Sims 3 or Sims 4, no matter what you throw at either game. At a 1920x1080 resolution, an RTX 3050 would be just fine, maybe a 3060 or 4050 if the screen has a high refresh rate (e.g. 120 or 144 Hz) and you want to have some buffer against fps drops. Both games will produce fps drops on any hardware, that's just how they're programmed, but an upgrade to a 3060 helps somewhat in those moments. Anything faster won't make a difference though.
Planet Zoo is a bit more demanding than Sims 3 or 4, but it should still run well on ultra settings with a laptop 3060 or 4050. It doesn't require a lot of storage either.
For Sims 3, there's also a known issue with the higher-end 12th- and 13th-gen Intel processors. It does have workarounds:
And this doesn't affect performance once the game starts. But I'm mentioning it so you're not unpleasantly surprised if and when Sims 3 won't start on your new laptop.
Acer Nitro laptops are generally fine: not cheap trash, not especially high-quality, just a no-frills decent gaming laptop for a few years until you're ready to upgrade. There's nothing wrong with getting one, but there are better options out there, laptops that run cooler and quieter or are built to last longer. The MSI Stealth is also fine if somewhat noisy. That's not to say these are bad options; it's just something to consider if you're planning to use the laptop for a number of years.
As far as other options go, this one is good quality and cheaper than the other options you found with a 4060. In fact, from Currys at least, it's the same price as the model with a 4050:
These are also high-quality options: good build quality, should last a long time. They do only have a 4050 and 3060, respectively, but as mentioned, either one is still more than fast enough for all three games:
https://www.box.co.uk/82RD00C0UK-Lenovo-Legion-5-AMD-Ryzen-7-16GB-RAM-512_4418198.html
If you're looking for a nicer screen, something with a higher resolution and better colors than what you'd find in your standard gaming laptop, this is a good option. Its RTX 4060 can easily handle the higher resolution (and is still overkill, but then the better screens don't come in budget-tier laptops), and it also has 1 GB storage.
Sims 3 and 4 fit on a 512 GB SSD without any trouble, but if you do want the extra storage, there aren't as many options, at least in this price range. However, almost all gaming laptops have an extra slot for a second drive, and they're built to make upgrading simple. A quality SSD can cost around £100, significantly cheaper than the price difference between the cheapest good 500 GB and 1 TB laptops available right now. So if you find a laptop that you really like except for the storage, consider buying a secondary drive separately and either installing it yourself or paying someone else to do so.
I did find this one though:
https://www.box.co.uk/876Z7EAABU-HP-Victus-Gaming-16-AMD-Ryzen-5-16GB-RAM_4756571.html
If you'd like to see more specific options, let me know what details matter to you. And if you have more questions in general, please feel free to ask.
