@xxlMarii If you're only going to play Sims 2, you're better off asking someone who runs Sims 2 in Windows, which would not be me. Do you want to play Sims 3 or 4, or other games? If so, I can help with that; otherwise, I'll ask someone else if they can help you.
@xxlMarii My advice for Sims 3 is to get the fastest integrated graphics chip you can for your budget. A dedicated graphics card would be better, but that's not available in laptops for $400 or less. And I've heard from a few players that a fast iGPU can run Sims 3 on high-ultra graphics settings most of the time. That doesn't mean that any laptop is fine, only that you don't need a gaming system to have a good-enough experience.
This is the best new option I'm seeing for $400 or less, at least where Sims 3 is concerned. It also has 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB storage, both of which are convenient if not essential. The biggest downside is that the screen is not that great. It would probably be okay in a darkened room, but playing with the lights on might not look good.
This one's screen is better, and it's about the same speed, maybe a bit faster in Sims 3 (reports are inconclusive). It has the same 16 GB/512 GB configuration:
If you're comfortable with a refurbished model from Best Buy, this one has the same graphics chip as the Dell and a brighter, prettier screen than either of the above. While 256 GB RAM isn't a lot, it's more than enough for Sims 2 and 3 if you pay attention and offload extraneous files (extra saves, music or movies, etc.) to an external drive.
If none of these is exactly what you want, let me know how, and I'll look for other options. I do see some with only 8 GB RAM, which is enough for either game as long as you don't multitask too much, but it's better, all else being equal, to get 16 GB. Still, if these options aren't good for you, a laptop with 8 GB memory is a viable alternative.
@xxlMarii As a rule of thumb, if it can run The Sims 3, it will most likely run The Sims 2 since the game is much lighter, so Puzzlez' suggestions are pretty solid for TS2 as well.
I do have a laptop with Intel Xe Graphics which runs TS2 Ultimate Collection very well on Windows 11, and I used to own one with Intel UHD Graphics where the game would occasionally stutter, but nothing that made the game unplayable. It should run on AMD integrated graphics as well, but I have seen reports of longer loading times on AMD graphics.
Whatever you pick, you will have to apply certain fixes, such as Graphics Rules Maker, to run TS2 on modern hardware. There is no way around that since the game has not been updated since 2008.
