Cheap laptops?

May I ask more precisely what your budget is and which country you are in? To some, "cheap laptop" means under $175 (there won't be any capable of running TS3 in that price range), to others it means under $1,500 (US Dollars).

Laptops capable of running the entire game, meaning all EPs and a hefty collection of store and custom content, tend to start at $900 (USD) and go up from there. There can be sales that bring things down a bit and corners that can be cut at the expense of game quality. Desktops will offer stronger components for less cost, in case that is another viable way to cut down the price, but then of course you will require a monitor. I see from your prior discussions that two of the EPs you had in play were Pets and Seasons, which are the two heaviest ones. If this is still the intent, then it does take a higher class of machine to be able to run the game properly.

Thanks for clarifying, as these things are all relative.

There would be no new laptops or desktops in that price range expected to be capable of running TS3, that's no longer a matter of cutting corners but more one of I'm afraid being a bit unrealistic. The game is almost ten years old now and does not really require a true high-end gaming computer by 2019 standards, but it does have its needs and will not function well (or at all) if these are not met. Laptops in that price range are designed for web surfing, email, playing music/videos and cloud related activity, maybe light office/school types of tasks if not too many are run at the same time, but not for playing graphics intensive games.

There are all manner of used laptops in all kinds of ranges available from sources such as eBay. A huge measure of luck in involved as to whether a used machine is really going to continue to be usable for long and one never knows how hard a used system was used (or abused) by its prior owner. I would never recommend used laptops for anything truly important or if one cannot withstand the loss if they only last for a few months. Even with all of that, though I haven't been shopping in those arenas lately, I would think a used laptop capable of running TS3 with the lighter impact EPs only would really be in the $500 range (so that's around £400 but possibly higher as tech prices are higher in the UK than here). And again, having Pets and Seasons on the list of requirements means that a higher class of machine/graphics card is needed than without those.

Sorry to sound so dire, but I would hate for anyone on a strict budget to spend even £175 on a machine that simply cannot run the game they wish to play, lands stuck on a black screen whenever starting the game up is attempted, or overheats and burns out completely if pushed too hard. If you can up the ante a little bit, there would be some laptops perhaps one class higher so in the high 200s or low 300s that should be able to run TS2 very well, if you have any affection for that version of the game and have access to it.

Ok. Thank you anyway

Hi,
Sorry if I wasn’t clear enough. I am from the Uk. $900 is quite a lot! My budget was about £175 at the very most ? Would it be possible to get a laptop on eBay second hand that would be cheap enough?