Re: Laptop Requirements for Sims 3 Expansions

@puzzlezaddict  That makes sense because I had Pets, Seasons, and Island Paradise on that laptop before and that is when the crashing started. Unfortunately I don’t have any of the Sims 3 games because I originally borrowed them from a friend so this time around I will buy them.

Do you know what the best specs would be to play with all expansions?
I also have a desktop Mac and can find the specs for it later today, but I like the portability of a laptop and being able to play where ever. 

Thanks so much! 

@jenn_sims1  The Mac version of Sims 3 doesn't run nearly as well as the Windows version, for a number of reasons.  If you were willing to Bootcamp your Mac, i.e. partition the hard drive and install Windows on one side, that might be a workable solution, depending on the specs of your Mac.  But if you'd prefer a Windows laptop, that's easy enough.

I could list all the specs you'd need, but the most important component is the graphics card.  An Nvidia 1650 is fast enough to run all packs together on uttra settings, as is the older 1050 ti.  Most processors you'd see in laptops with those GPUs are also fine, although avoid any with a U in their model name (e.g. i5-9300H is fine, Ryzen 5 2500U might not be).  In the U.S., I can usually find something suitable on sale for around $700; prices are higher in other countries.  If you have more demanding apps in mind, you might want stronger hardware, and the price will go up accordingly.

If you're interested in seeing some good options, I'd be happy to look.  Just let me know your budget and country, as well as any other details that matter to you, like the amount of storage, other apps you might want to run, that kind of thing.

@jenn_sims1  If you're willing to get a used or open-box model, something like this would do nicely:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1650-512gb-solid-state-drive-black/6356774.p?skuId=6356774

That's just one example, so you know what's out there.

Whenever you're ready to buy, feel free to ask for advice, or link a few options and get some feedback before you spend the money.

@jenn_sims1  The newer U-series processors can sometimes be managed by tweaking Windows's power settings.  (Of course this is with the laptop plugged in and able to properly cool itself.)  But the 6500U is older, dual-core, and not nearly as powerful as 8th-gen or newer Intel CPUs.  It's also dual-core, meaning those two cores will need to carry the load for Sims 3, Windows, and anything else you run while you play.

There are people who play on an Nvidia 940MX and do fine.  They certainly don't use the highest graphics settings, and most of them don't install Pets or Seasons (or they use Seasons but disable rain and snow).  I've seen other people try to play on the same card and have a lot more trouble.  So I can't really give you a good answer on that—a lot of it is your expectations for quality gameplay and the packs you want to use, and some of it is random.

I'm sorry I can't offer anything more definitive.  Sims 3 is more difficult than it should be to run on medium hardware, and it's not always clear why.  I don't want to tell you that this laptop will be fine and then have you barely be able to play at all.  On the other hand, you might be one of those who has a good experience.  In your position, I'd try to find something with at least a 1050, or a 960M or higher, just to be safe.  But it's your decision.

@jenn_sims1  I know a little about Sims 2, not much.  There will definitely be fixes you need to apply to get the game running properly no matter which computer you end up buying.  Luckily, the minimum requirements for that game are quite low, so any laptop you're considering for Sims 3 should be more than fine for TS2.

Nvidia's Quadro series is a set of graphics cards for professional work.  The cards are not built for gaming, although they can certainly run many games well enough.  The real issue is that their drivers are not optimized for gaming.  What this means for practical purposes depends on the game; I'm not sure how these cards run Sims 3, or whether there's a distinction among them that matters, aside of course from the overall capabilities of a particular card.

The M1000M in particular is a much slower card than an Nvidia 1050, but much faster than a 940MX.  The gap in benchmarks is quite large in both cases.  But again, I've never heard how Quadro cards in general handle Sims 3, much less this particular card.