My laptop is almost three and a half years old and is on the way out (charging problems and such). I need a laptop for school, and as long as I'm getting a new one, I would like to be able to play the sims 3 on it. I am not an incredibly computer-savvy person and was wondering if the Asus G50Vt-X1 would do the trick?

the specs are:
Processor Brand: Intel®
Processor Platform: Intel® Centrino® 2
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile
Processor Speed: 2.26GHz
Display Type: WXGA widescreen display with 1366 x 768 resolution
System Bus: 1066MHz
Cache Memory: 2MB on die Level 2
System Memory (RAM): 4GB
Type of Memory (RAM): PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM
Hard Drive Type: Serial ATA (5400 rpm)
Hard Drive Size: 320GB
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GS
Video Memory: 512MB
and comes with Vista

various other details at http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...customerreviews

Would this work? Is this a good buy for $900? What are some opinions on this laptop, or perhaps this company?

Thank you for your time and help!

That's a discontinued model so that's why it's on sale. Hardware wise it looks good and $900 is a good price for it. The laptop doesn't have the best cooling system though. Some Asus laptops (don't know if that one is included) are known to have some software or settings conflicts with TS2. It's never been narrowed down to what exactly causes it but the only fixed systems I've seen are ones with fresh Windows installs.

There are lots of laptop recommendations through the stickies if you're willing to have a read.

Sounds like a silly question, but I take it the list on the sims 3 site of 'Windows accepted graphics cards' is the cards that work with the sims 3 - they haven't updated their site since then?

The question I have is this; If a ATI Radeon 9500 works with TS3, what are the reasons my ATI Radeon 9200 won't work? Is it because it this series does not have pixel shader (I'm not sure if it does or not). And are the 9500 series really as cheap as I've found on the net, some being just £25, or should I be weary?

Lou - If you are unsure you can check if your entire computer will run TS3 here - http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/referrer/srtest

LouBarratt88 - A card not being listed does not necessarily mean "absolutely will not work" but more "is not supported" - it may work. But there's no guarantee it will, and if anything goes wrong, no support can be expected for it, from anyone. Usually if your card is on the low end of the spectrum (that is, under the numbers supported, not over) it can be assumed that it's simply not powerful enough to run the game at all. Over, and it's probably just too new to have been tested with it. If you're looking for a new card, going for the absolute lowest you can get is rarely a good idea. If you look here, the 9200/9500 are both listed as nos/maybes for everything for TS2. TS3 will undoubtedly be much higher in the strain it puts on just from the base game, let alone EPs.

kustirider2 - As has been said in numerous threads, those testers are not sufficient information to see whether your computer can run a game. They don't always detect the hardware you have properly, and they don't really give a clear picture of whether you can run a game -well-. Especially considering that TS3 is not even out yet and there are no recommended requirements, it's impossible for anyone to know whether the minimum requirements they've given are realistic minimums, or, as with TS2, absolute minimums to get the game up and running but not running playably well.

Thanks for the link, actually really helped as to what graphics card to go for now. Think it will have to be a 9800, thats my best bet. I know for sure my 9200 won't work as Spore doesn't work on my computer with that one in.

Do you mean a Radeon 9800 or an nVidia 9800? I'm guessing you mean Radeon... but if you look at that chart, it has yeses and maybes for the Radeon 9800 - maybe is more of a maybe, not a probably. If you're buying a new card, it would be worth saving up a little bit longer to get an actually -good- card, not just a mediocre one. There are plenty of cards on that list that are all yes, no maybes or nos, and you can get a remarkably good card nowadays for not an insane amount more than a mediocre card. If you like Radeon, the 4600/4800 line are excellent and an -extremely- good value for the money - and will likely handle anything you want to throw at them for a good few years. When it comes to hardware, it's generally best to get the best thing you can afford so that you don't have to upgrade constantly, rather than getting something midrange that you will have to upgrade rather soon just to keep up with the advances in techology. That doesn't mean you have to get the absolute top of the line (which is generally not a huge leap from the next step down, but with a much higher price), just... don't go for the lowest that will do the job.

I'm looking on getting this computer will it run Sims 3/2?
http: //www .amazon. com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B001NXDBGI/ref=pd_luc_mri?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance
sorry about the link breakage, i can't post links just yet.
Here's The Specs:
2.4 GHz AMD Phenom X4 9750 Processor
8 GB RAM (16 GB max)
750 GB Hard Drive, LightScribe dual-layer DVD drive
Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1 (64-bit version)
Nvidia GeForce 9500 GS graphics (512 MB dedicated)

Hello, I'm interested in buying a new gaming computer for TS2/3 to work. :]
As of now, my computer crashed from BSoD, (blue screen of death) and the guy who fixed it for us gave my computer loads of problems, and he deleted my D: drive, (and my computer won't take it if I change ANY drive I have to a D: drive) The computer is 6 years old, is outdated, and it isn't that good to be honest. So I'm looking for a new one, on a budget?

My budget is under $1000 dollars. (or a leeetle over. xD) I'm splitting it between me and my step father.
Anyhoo, I want it to run sims and all the Stuff packs/expansions well. :]
We are looking to build.
I want a very good video and graphics card, maybe a Nvidia 8600/9800 is there a big difference? And how expensive are they. :]

I'm very inexperienced with all this but have some people to help me out here, so it'd be great if you could link to some good processors and other accessories I'll need to run a good looking Sims game. XD
Please try to bare with me, I'm a newbie. X3

jhakain - That should be fine, though it's kinda overpriced for the specs. I think you could do a custom build from someplace like newegg.com for about 2/3 the price and get something just as good if not better for your needs. Quad core is simply not necessary and I doubt anything you'd be running (including TS2/TS3) would make any use of all those cores. You could get a better dual core for as much or cheaper, and a better graphics card (the 9500 isn't bad, it's competent, but you could probably get a better card for less).

Mishellia - There's a pretty big difference between the 8600/9800 - if only because the 8600 line is defective and doesn't handle heat how it should. You can get something very nice for $1000 though... Start plinking around at newegg.com - I know Callistra has recommended some good builds (probably in this very thread) and that will give you a good idea as to what you're looking at, pricing wise, for something good. Just as an example, if you scroll down in this thread you'll see the build I have for my PC which runs TS2 with all EPs and SPs with buttery smoothness.

Well I saw this last night, Processor is that a good processor?

Like I said, I am a newbie. XD
Can you give me everything you need to build your own computer?
I totally fail at this. {I'm 13! o_o}

I was also poking at a few more things.

Motherboard
Power Supply
Desktop Memory
harddrive

Video Card
DVD RAM? o_o


{{yes, I indeed just took all of those off of a post. I'm really, really new to this. Even..finding all of this. XDD}}

The E8400 is a great processor. It's what I have, and good for the money.

The other stuff, Callistra can probably offer you some better input on them but they look fine to me. However, some of the items are listed as "deactivated" on Newegg meaning they're either out of stock and they don't know when they'll be able to get more, or discontinued. You can probably find some comparable items by searching around a bit, but I don't see anything wrong with the stuff you've chosen.

You'll also need a case.

For other specific recommendations, I'd look back on previous pages in this thread, and this other one - there's a lot of info given in both that you'll find interesting. I know this stuff is a bit overwhelming at first but if you do a little reading and research and learn a little bit, you'll do just fine.

Ahh yay that makes me happy. XDD
And I have some time anyhoo, I still need to rack up about 200-300 dollars, and I don't know when I'll be called into work next.

I'm not sure on how to find a good case, but I found a few interesting ones.

Here
Here <-- This one seems to have good airflow, no liquid cooling, right?
and here

The HDD is IDE. You need a SATA.
The mobo chipset is inadvisable.
RAM is on the slower end but good quality and good price
OCZ don't like to give rebates and the price is not good right now. Sometimes they're one of the best deals, so if you're not buying for a while you should still keep them in mind.

8600 was discontinued quite a while ago and the 9800 is also currently being phased out. 9800 still isn't a bad card, if you can get it at a decent price (worth about $80 anymore). A little over $100 starts getting into much better cards.

E8400 is the CPU I have too.

If you read back in this thread and the system requirements thread, I spent a significant amount of time coming up with a LONG list of case recommendations. I've also given recommendations for all other parts, as well as explaining why I don't recommend some of the things you've chosen. Please have a read through the stickies as all your questions will be answered from the information that's already been provided there.

Deactivated means it's discontinued and/or Newegg has no intention of getting it back in stock. If it's just out of stock then Newegg has a grey out of stock button they use.

I hope it's okay to ask this here. I looked at the list of minimum requirements that are posted on the Sims 3 website, but I am still unsure if I will be able to play the game or not. And, if not, I was wondering what would be the best upgrades to do to my computer? I am willing to purchase a new video card, more RAM, etc. if it's needed.

I bought a Dell almost a year ago. It plays all the Sims 2 expansion packs just fine. It's not a long wait at all for it to load.

So my question is before I run out and buy Sims 3 on June 2nd, is my computer ready? Nothing would be more disappointing then going to get the game, and then the game won't work. My pervious computer met the minimum system requirements for Sims 2, but I had problems with it during play. It would crash, and after a few times of trying to play anyway - which I would never do now, I would stop playing and save my computer - the sound card was shot. It was really odd. So now I want to play it safe.

I am worried about the video card mainly...

Here are the specs:
Processor: Intel (R) Core (TM)2 Quad CPU Q6600 2.40 GHz
Memory (RAM): 3.00 GB
Free Space: 207 GB
Video Card: Intel (R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family
System Type: 32-bit Operating System
Homevista Service pack 1

I don't know if you need more information. As I said I am kind of computer illiterate when it comes to hardware.

New graphics card is highly recommended. That has integrated graphics but it most likely has a PCI-E slot. You will likely need to upgrade the power supply to run a new card. Check out the graphics card chart in the System Requirements sticky and the Guide To Buying A New Graphics Cards to learn about checking your computer for the necessary expansion slot and power requirements.

I have a question. I do think my desktop pc is ok for sims 3 but my monitor only supports 1440x990. My graphics card (Radeon X1950 Pro) can support a resolution of up to: 2048x1536. So I considered about buying a new monitor that supports this resolution BUT now I don't know which maximum resolution supports sims 3. Does anyone know?

We don't know yet what the max resolution TS3 will be able to support, but 1440x900 is pretty darn high - your graphics card may be able to run in that resolution in theory but until we get a hands-on look at the actual system requirements of TS3 (not just what they post but actually how it runs) then we can't know whether you'll have a chance in hell of running it at a high resolution.