Can I play Sims 4 on a Surface Laptop 3?

[puzzlezaddict]

@JasonD716  Right, none of the configurations for this particular model include a dedicated graphics card, just the integrated chip.  So the answer is the same as before: medium settings should be doable, more than that may not be.

If you want to see other options, let me know your preferred budget as well as any other details that matter to you.

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict I’m looking like under 1250 thin light and playable sims settings and for school

[puzzlezaddict]

@JasonD716  You can certainly do better than the Surface for your budget, although the thin and light requirement does constrain things a bit.  There aren't many light laptops in this range with dedicated graphics cards, but even the high-end integrated graphics chips should still run the game on medium-high settings.  Then the question becomes whether you want to pay extra for a slightly lighter model or some other feature that matters to you.

The processors with the fastest integrated graphics chips available right now, at least in normal laptops with reasonable prices, are the Ryzen 7 4700U and the Intel i7-1165G7.  The graphics chip in the 4700U is a bit faster on average, but there's a lot of variation depending on the game involved, so I'm not sure which would be better specifically for Sims 4.  You could actually get one of these for $800, although most other options for both are a bit more expensive.  Since I don't know how thin and light you want your laptop to be, or how much storage you want, here are a few different examples:

https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-laptops/new-inspiron-15-5000-laptop-amd/spd/inspiron-15-5505-la...

https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-laptops/new-inspiron-15-5000-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-5502-laptop...

https://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=710_1925_1912_1909&item_id=182956

https://www.lenovo.com/ca/en/laptops/thinkbook-series/ThinkBook-14-Gen-2-AMD/p/20VF004JUS

https://www.thesource.ca/en-ca/computers-tablets/laptops/all-laptops/asus-vivobook-flip-14-tm420ia-d...

https://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/hp-15-6-laptop-natural-silver-intel-core-i5-1135g7-1tb-ssd-16gb...

https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-laptops/new-inspiron-14-5000-2-in-1-laptop/spd/inspiron-14-5406...

This laptop has an entry-level dedicated graphics card, one that's not all that much faster in synthetic tests than the integrated chips in the laptops above.  But the advantage of a dedicated card is that it handles the graphics load separately from the processor, which will presumably have a moderate workload already while you're playing.  This laptop also has 16 GB RAM, which is convenient for multitasking if not strictly necessary.

https://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=710_1925_1912_1909&item_id=165763

This is a real gaming laptop, just thinner and lighter than most.  Its graphics card should be able to run all current Sims 4 packs together on ultra settings.

https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-laptops/new-inspiron-15-7000-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-7501-laptop...

I know these are a lot of links, but there aren't really that many details to keep track of.  For the first list, the point is that the underlying hardware is essentially the same, other than a couple having a larger hard drive or more RAM.  So the important question there is which one you like the best.  Or if you want something a bit faster, take a look at the two with dedicated cards.

And feel free to keep asking questions as well.

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict What’s your favourite out of them

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict Can these play on high or ultra high settings

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict Also are there more updates suggest

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict I’ve narrowed it down to dell inspiron 15 5000 amd and Lenovo thinkbook 14 gen 2 do you think another laptop is better

[puzzlezaddict]

@JasonD716  The only laptop on the list capable of running all Sims 4 packs on ultra settings is the last one I linked.  There are plenty of laptops in your price range that could handle ultra settings, but they're all bulkier, like you'd expect gaming laptops to be, so I didn't include those.  The second-to-last laptop should probably handle high settings without a problem, but ultra may be out of the question.

Which laptop is "best" depends on your priorities, as in, how small and light do you want it to be, would you like to save some money to get a cheaper option, are there other features that matter to you, etc.?  I can't tell you what matters to you, but if you tell me, I can let you know which laptops have those features.

[JasonD716]

@puzzlezaddict
Are there any others out of the ones you listed good for high settings and thanks for helping me out I really appreciate it!

[puzzlezaddict]

@JasonD716  The first group of laptops might be able to run Sims 4 on high settings, but I wouldn't say it's guaranteed.  The settings you could use would depend on which expansions you installed, whether you added high poly (high-resolution) custom content and how much, other details relating to your playstyle, and other factors about the laptop itself.

As an example, all modern computer hardware will throttle performance to protect itself from overheating, but some laptops are tweaked to throttle at lower temperatures than others.  It's very difficult to be sure exactly how a given system will behave until you have it in front of you.  That's why I don't want to make promises a laptop might not be able to keep, especially when the laptop hardware is only borderline powerful enough for high settings under ideal conditions.

Not to complicate things further, but if you don't mind ordering from a store that ships from the U.S., this laptop has the same MX350 graphics card as the Asus Zenbook and is only slightly more expensive.

https://www.newegg.ca/slate-gray-lenovo-ideapad-slim-7-14iil-82a4000mus-mainstream/p/N82E16834645108

If you don't think any of these are quite what you want, you could always look again in a week or two.  Inventory turns over quickly, and prices change as well.