I’m looking to invest in a gaming pc / mac for playing the Sims. I’m unfamiliar with pc specks so don’t really know what to look for. I would use mods and CC plus expansion packs. I might use it to play other games too but mainly sims and I’m based in the UK. Don’t really have a budget at the moment
@BlankHotel It's difficult to give you advice without a budget or any idea of what you want out of the computer. The options available at £500 are dramatically different from those available at £700, while over £1,100 or so (depending on current sales), you wouldn't necessarily get any benefit out of further upgrades, at least where Sims 4 is concerned.
And that's just for Windows PCs. Macs are simpler to summarize, and also more expensive for the same performance. If you already know you'd prefer a Mac, that's one thing, but if you're indifferent, a Windows PC would be the better option from a performance standpoint.
I can offer two different kinds of advice here. If you're not ready to buy yet, I can list the kind of hardware you'd want to look for. If you are ready to buy, as in now, I can look for the best options currently available. In either case, I do need to know at least an approximate budget as well as whether you want a Windows PC or a Mac and a laptop or desktop.
Thank you for your reply @puzzlezaddict
I’m not planning to buy right now, I want to figure out what I want and start saving to get it in the future. Ideally nothing over £2000 as that’s roughly what a Mac would be.
I want to go for a desktop but I’m unsure whether I want to go for a Mac or windows PC. I would also use it for Uni work but that’s about it.
@BlankHotel If you decide to get a Windows PC, £1,100 or a little less would get you a machine that's overkill for Sims 4 and could run almost any game currently out there on ultra graphics settings. £800-900 would get you a system that can run Sims 4 on ultra settings as well as any other similarly-demanding game. And there are also system integrators that would build you a custom PC in case you can't find the exact configuration you want. Add in a standard monitor for £100 or so, or a higher-end one for more like £200, and you're still well under budget.
For the Mac side, the highest-end default Mac Mini is £1,400, and you could buy a monitor separately and get exactly what you want there too.
https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/buy-mac/mac-mini/apple-m2-pro-with-10-core-cpu-and-16-core-gpu-512gb
Further upgrades are expensive–this is Apple after all—but you don't need more than what's listed in that link. And in fact the mid-tier option is also good enough for ultra settings, although I'd absolutely spend the (somewhat unreasonable) £200 to get 16 GB memory instead of 8, which bumps the price to £1,050:
https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/buy-mac/mac-mini/apple-m2-chip-with-8-core-cpu-and-10-core-gpu-512gb
In either case, you don't need more than 500 GB internal storage for Sims 4 and your other games. Even quality external drives are relatively cheap, and any of them can be formatted to work with Macs.
Thank you. I think I’m gonna go with a windows pc. What ones would you recommend? I saw this one but I’m not sure. I think I would prefer something that is a bit overkill for the sims.
What if I got one with an i7 core? Would that be better?
What’s the opinion on this one?
@BlankHotel The first computer you linked is significant overkill for Sims 4. The i5 is not at all outdated; I don't know where that information is coming from. Sims 4 also doesn't require and can't use more RAM than 16 GB. This system's hardware should be able to handle anything Sims 4 can throw at it, including a significant pile of custom content, for the entire life of the game.
The second computer is even more overkill, and I don't think you could actually see any difference in how the two handled Sims 4 unless you ran some benchmarking tests. If you plan to play other more demanding games, for example Baldur's Gate 3 or Hogwarts Legacy, and want to use ultra settings and Raytracing, the RTX 4070 would help there. But it's not necessary and certainly not going to help with Sims 4.
If you'd like other suggestions as well, let me know, but only if you're ready to buy now. There's no sense in going over the currently-available options if you're going to wait even a couple of weeks, given how quickly things change.
You are a lifesaver, thank you so much.
Turns out I can actually get it much sooner than I anticipated. I’m going to go for the first one I linked, the i5. I don’t really plan on playing any more demanding games and I have an Xbox for those anyway.
If I changed my mind in the future, would it be possible to upgrade the processor and graphics card to an i7 and 4070?
Also, what should I look for in a monitor?
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