Is this a fine graphics card?
I was wondering if the Intel® Iris® Xe card can handle the sims 4 and all the packs at around medium to high setting?
Forum Discussion
@puzzlezaddict Thank you so much for the help! My daughter doesn't need anything super advanced as long as she can play Sims 4, Minecraft, and Planet Zoo (she plays that one on Steam). She'll be a happy camper. Personally, I'd like to make sure she gets one that is a little more durable because she's hard on her things at times. She might use the google suite for school, but otherwise, she really only plays those three games, with a majority of her gaming coming from Sims.
In terms of screen size, likely 15.6 or higher. I'm also keen to find one with a battery that will last a while without needing to replace it. Other than that, I just want something as basic as possible that will run those games for her.
If you think there's one that is better than the HP or Acer I linked, let me know. I'm not loyal to any retailer, so as long as they ship in the continental US, I'm good!
Thanks again!!!!
@JaxsonFam Honestly, I have no idea how you could find out the theoretical lifespan of a battery in a new laptop. Even older laptops can have wildly varying results, and the newer models will have improved batteries that don't necessarily correlate to what was available five years ago. What I can tell you is that battery care matters a lot, and it'll probably make more of a difference in the long run than the exact battery you've chosen.
The consensus in battery care is that it's best to keep the charge between 20-80%, or 25-75% depending on who you ask, as much as possible; and to run it from 100% to zero (or close enough) about once a month. There are plenty of free third-party apps that allow the user to set a maximum charge level if the laptop doesn't have such a tool built in, and using one is probably the single best thing you could do to make sure the battery lasts as long as possible. Your daughter will want and frankly need to play Sims 4 with the laptop plugged in for performance reasons as well as the fact that the game is a huge power draw, so having the battery sitting at 80% while playing will be a lot healthier than allowing it to charge to 100% and stay there.
If you're looking for laptops with a longer battery life, the only examples in the sub-$500 category also have lower-end hardware that would run Sims 4 poorly, if at all. Premium batteries come in premium-priced laptops: think MacBook Pro or Surface or $1,200 laptops with $500-level hardware. The best cheap examples I could find in a relatively short search are these two:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1737072-REG/lenovo_82hu0158us_ideapad_flex_5_full.html
https://www.acer.com/us-en/laptops/aspire/aspire-5-intel/pdp/NX.KHJAA.001
The last two are a bit more than you wanted to spend, and I'm not sure whether the battery life is worth the investment to you. The first one only has a 14" screen, also not what you were looking for, but I wanted to mention it because even if the manufacturer is exaggerating (very likely), it still has an excellent battery, and 16 GB RAM, and it also has a touchscreen if you're interested in that.
I will say that looking again, I'd avoid the HP laptop you linked because of its screen, which is okay but not great compared to other similar models. You can do a lot better in your price range, including the Acer you linked, or any of these with mediocre batteries:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/531869839
If you have more questions, please feel free to ask.
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