New laptop/computer [ Edited ]

[WallFlower26]

Thank you, I’ll have a look at those. What about all the other Sims?

What does ‘Please note this device does not contain an Operating System.’ mean?

[puzzlezaddict]

@WallFlower26  The sentence means exactly what it says, that the laptop (supposedly) somes with no operating system installed, in this case Windows.  I checked yesterday, and all the laptops I linked listed Windows 10 in their specs.  The comment about no OS on the Amazon product pages didn't even render correctly in Firefox; I had to use Chrome, and there it was.  It's very strange, since Asus computers almost always come with Windows 10 preinstalled.  The product pages for box all say Windows 10 as well.

At any rate, if you're looking to buy from Amazon, you should email them and ask for clarification.  Both of those laptops are sold directly by Amazon, so the company should know.  Asus's own website lists that model as coming with Windows 10, which makes me think there's an error on Amazon's end, but it's still better to check.

[WallFlower26]

Why's it say they don't come with an operating system when they do then?

The pictures show the laptop lights are red so is that what the laptop is like or is that an example?

[puzzlezaddict]

@WallFlower26  I don't know why those product pages said the computer didn't come with an OS.  In fact, I cleared my browser caches this morning, and the message isn't showing up in Firefox, Safari, or Chrome.  So maybe it was a mistake, or a reference to a different model Amazon was offering for comparison, and that model isn't there anymore.  It's still a good idea to ask, just to be sure, but like I said, I would expect this model to come with Windows 10 already installed.

The keyboard has red backlighting, like the product pages say.  This is typical of entry-level Asus and MSI laptops.  The more expensive ones often have RGB.  The important thing is to have some kind of backlighting so that you can see what you're typing in the dark.

[WallFlower26]

@puzzlezaddict Are there any laptops out there that have the same specs and features but different colours/designs? Sorry to be a pain.

[puzzlezaddict]

@WallFlower26  I recommended this model laptop because it was the cheapest good option.  Other brands may have different color schemes; I didn't check because their products aren't nearly as reliable or have cooling issues.

This particular model of Asus has a number of configurations, and the more expensive ones (maybe £1200-1500) do allow you to change the backlight color.  Maybe the cheaper ones do too, and Amazon is wrong yet again—a couple of the pics on the box product pages appear to show yellow backlighting.  But that doesn't necessarily mean that a particular configuration has it.  Either way, the computer itself looks the same no matter which version of this model you get.

It's impossible to search for laptops by color or appearance, and if you wanted to be picky about all the details, you'd probably have to spend £1500 or more.  At £1000, you really do have to make some compromises.

If it really matters to you though, this one might do:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/msi-gp63-nvidia-gtx-1060-16gb-15.6-fhd-120hz-i7-8750h-gaming-laptop-l...

https://www.box.co.uk/9S7-16P522-065-MSI-GP63-Leopard-8RE-065UK_2322960.html

Its solid state drive is smaller, so you'd need to move everything to the 1 TB HDD, and it only has a 15" screen yet is more expensive than the Asus models.  Still, if it means that much to you, it's your money.

[WallFlower26]

@puzzlezaddict What was the budget of the other person you looked for?

[puzzlezaddict]

@WallFlower26  The person I originally mentioned?  They wanted to spend about £300, no more than £400, and I had to say that nothing was available in that price range.  That's how I knew that your £400 budget wouldn't work right away.

At this point, I don't really know what you want, or why you don't like the laptops I've already linked.  If you have a specific feature you're looking for, please let me know, but I can't keep finding increasingly expensive models in the hopes that one of them looks good to you.  The gaming computers in your price range all look similar because it costs more money to incorporate extra design elements, and in the case of the models I linked, that money went towards better hardware instead.  So unless you want to pay a lot more, you're going to need to compromise on something.

[WallFlower26]

@puzzlezaddict What Sims games do you have on your Mac? How many? I do like the ones you suggested apart from the red light/s.

I take it you told the original person there’s nothing you can get with £300 and the same you’re telling me...?

[puzzlezaddict]

@WallFlower26  I have a 15" MacBook Pro (2017), and I partitioned my hard drive and installed Windows 10 on one side.  I have Sims 3 installed on both, although I only play on the Windows side.  Another helper has the same Mac and runs Sims 4 (all packs) on it on the highest settings, but she's starting to get frame rate drops.  The graphics card in our Macs is an AMD Radeon Pro 560, equivalent to an Nvidia 1050, so that's not surprising.

The £600 laptop I mentioned has a Radeon RX 560, a half-step up from ours, and the Nvidia 1060 in the models I linked is a step up from there.  That's why I recommended those laptops—even with the increase in demands that future TS4 packs will bring, the 1060 will still run the game on ultra settings.  Also, I guess I didn't answer your question earlier, but these models would all run TS3 with all packs on the highest settings as well.

I did tell the original person the same thing I told you: that the cheapest good option I could find was that £600 model.  Below that, there's a steep dropoff in the strength of the graphics cards, even if you lower the price by only £50 or so.  By the time you get to £400 range, you don't even get a dedicated graphics card, or a strong processor, or good cooling.  Some people play on models in that category, but they use low settings and typically don't install all available packs, and they still often struggle to play.

The MSI I linked most recently has an RGB-backlit keyboard, if that makes a difference.