New laptop suggestions for OOTP 18

[pgjocki]

So I need a new laptop as my old one keeps overheating and shutting down - usually in the 8th inning of a game I'm winning.

I want to keep the cost to under $600 and have it capable enough to sim and fully support 3D play.

Any suggestions on brand, ram, etc

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[TGH-Adfabre]

I cannot suggest a laptop replacement.
I had overheating problems and they were solved by cleaning my laptop with compressed air. I found a video specific to my brand and it worked perfectly.

Way cheaper than a new laptop.
My current laptop is 5-6 years old and runs OOTP just fine.

Just sayin'.

Good luck,
Tom (LP)

[andyhdz]

I agree. That solves the problem

[Bears5122]

Make sure your fans are working too.

[BaseballMan]

Cleaning the fans might help but if the op has an aging laptop it couldn't hurt to upgrade. It might also help run and use new programs and hardware. No sense in upgrading an older Ram if you can upgrade the whole laptop.
But if its just to run ootp and cleaning the system works i agree with that suggestion.
However if the op has the money to spend and the laptop is old i would sell the old laptop for what its worth and get a new laptop.

[pgjocki]

So the laptop is beat all to heck, my 2 year has dropped/knocked it from the couch and desk and the screen is loose.

I have cleaned the fan; heck I took off the back completely two weeks ago.

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[NoOne]

if 3d is a concern as you want:

Make certain it has a ati/nvidia video card of some sort as opposed to intel graphics. this adds cost to a laptop...

RAM: you only need enough ram... extra ram does nothing.. i cannot stress enough how little unused RAM does... nothing, nothing, nothing

so, just make sure you have enough... maybe look at what you typically use now when using various apps on your laptop and double that = safe.

get what you can with ram, but don't sacrifice anythign else for it at that $600 price.

SSD: get an ssd... trust on this one... unless you have significant storage requirements, get an ssd even if ~200-256gb. i wouldn't go much lower than that without a 2 disk system with an hdd 2nd drive for storage (external or internal, hdd for cost).

the newer ssd may be better, but typically you want ~20-25% space empty for them to run optimally. has to do with how it spreads wear and tear.. fragmentation is inconsequential with no moving parts.

so, SSD/3rd party video card + price range -- find best processor among those that fit the bill. should be the smallest list this way.

intel graphics are probably enough ... i'd at least peak at what you can get with ssd / intel graphics... look into a comparison of the vid cards (not a benchmark software!!)...

many sites will compare FPS of various cards with a specific rig and 3d game... this is the type of comparison info you need to make a wise decision... if the difference in FPS is not large, go intel etc... get the likely better processory for the same price.

when looking at processors, actually go to the intel or amd webpage for that chip and compare... if a word is unknown google it on the side, and it makes sense. you'll find alot of stuff is an e-peen, lol. almost purely marketing gimmicks in some cases. take note of Release Date of the chips you are comparing. typically an older system on the market that hasn't been significantly reduced in price isn't worth it... if it was ~800 3-6 months ago, it's ~500-600 now type thing... make sure if it's an older chip it was a more expensive rig when it hit the market. (historical pricing)

this stuff shifts all the time... so, if i made it sound matter-of-fact about anything specific, that was not the intent... except for getting an SSD and the bit about the RAM... extra does nothing compare what you see for best price...

If you get a HDD: lower RPM is better for heat, less wear and tear, less bad things in general.. and despite what most would think, does not typically mean a drop on performance... hdd speed = aerial density AND rpm. the 5400rpm's typically match 7200rpm performance -- check the specs. (5400 * 1.33 = 7200, so the data has to be that much tighter to match a 7200rpm drive)

[curt]

I would recommend a 17" screen if its in your budget and you like a lot of info boxes when you are in broadcast mode.

[NoOne]

oh yeah laptop... definitely pay attnetion to resolution of the screen... at ~17" i doubt many aren't 1920*1080 +.

if it doesn't move much, bigger screen size is easier on the eyes.

You can still get a small one, if that's the preference, but get one with an HDMI output... connect to your largest screen 1080p HDTV when at home or even on the road... maybe even a wireless kb/mouse and kick back to some ootp from your couch.

[amwendwa]

Definitely make sure the screen is not smaller than "17. I struggled with resolution on a smaller screen but once upgraded to a larger screen, it increased the level of enjoyment big time!

[Bears5122]

I'd look at something like this.

https://www.amazon.com/Acer-E5-575G-...dp/B01LD4MGY4/

Middle of the road processor and video card that should easily be able to handle OOTP. An SSD which I think is a must these days. 8GB of RAM which is all you'd need.

That's about the best value I think you can get for $600 and will have no problems with OOTP. The only area that you'd see gains in is if you upgraded the CPU. You'd be looking at about a $100 jump or more to get a i5-6300HQ and I don't think the differences would be that noticeable.

You could also find laptops with better monitors but again, you're talking a substantial increase in cost to get negligible results. Especially if you're just playing OOTP which does not require a high end monitor.

[BaseballMan]

Wouldn't ram help more with the number crunching ootp does?
Im not seeing how an ssd will help as much since isnt most of the work being done in the cpu and ram? I could see if the game had graphics like the show and you were playing online and i can see the game maybe copying the data faster with an ssd. Im just not sure the benefit would be as good. Unless you can afford it but i would rather have more space than a smaller ssd drive. The only thing it did for my laptop was give me a better boot time and start programs a little faster. It ddint do much if anything once the programming was running. But to be fair i dont play a lot of the online first person shooter type games.
Ive just got the impression that ssds were overpriced hype but i could be wrong.

[eriqjaffe]

Originally Posted by BaseballMan

Ive just got the impression that ssds were overpriced hype but i could be wrong.

Disk reads and writes are some of the slowest operations a computer performs, and SSDs are a lot faster than a traditional hard drive. Computers boot faster and programs open faster.

OOTP still does a lot of disk operations (although not as much as it used to), and my experience is that an SSD makes a huge difference.

If you have an older computer, an SSD is probably the single best upgrade you can invest in. And the best part is that once you've bought it you can just move it to another computer if you decide to get a new system down the road.

[Peanuts]

There are decided advantages to the solid state drives....but one potential downsize is the limited lifespan. If the OP intends to keep his new laptop five + years, the solid state drives have a limit on read/write.

Not a huge risk, but a factor in a decision.

[Bears5122]

Originally Posted by BaseballMan

Wouldn't ram help more with the number crunching ootp does?

Im not seeing how an ssd will help as much since isnt most of the work being done in the cpu and ram? I could see if the game had graphics like the show and you were playing online and i can see the game maybe copying the data faster with an ssd. Im just not sure the benefit would be as good. Unless you can afford it but i would rather have more space than a smaller ssd drive. The only thing it did for my laptop was give me a better boot time and start programs a little faster. It ddint do much if anything once the programming was running. But to be fair i dont play a lot of the online first person shooter type games.
Ive just got the impression that ssds were overpriced hype but i could be wrong.

RAM wouldn't help in that regard. The CPU would be the most important component in terms of simming.

The SSD would help a bit with OOTP. It would speed up loading up the game as well as the speed it saves. OOTP is heavy in the files it creates (replays, archives, reports, etc). I also think an SSD provides the best performance to cost upgrade you can get these days. Being able to load up your laptop in 3 seconds as opposed to a minute. Opening programs instantaneously. Once you've moved to an SSD, there is no going back. I'm assuming the laptop would be used for more than just OOTP.

Originally Posted by Peanuts

There are decided advantages to the solid state drives....but one potential downsize is the limited lifespan. If the OP intends to keep his new laptop five + years, the solid state drives have a limit on read/write.

Not a huge risk, but a factor in a decision.

This was an issue back when SSD first hit the consumer market. But they've advanced a lot since then and it's no longer an issue. In fact, some recent studies have shown that SSD have longer lifespans than HDD.

The main difference is that when an SSD goes, it usually goes without warning. An HDD can often give warning before it goes. But if you're backing up important files (as we all should), this isn't an issue.

He can also salvage the HDD from the old laptop and use that as a backup in case something does go wrong with the SSD.

[Bears5122]

Just ran a quick test. Simmed an MLB season and the RAM usage was always under 1GB. I'd still recommend 8GB for other uses but you could easily get by with 4GB.

Edit: Also realized this is a 32-bit program so it couldn't utilize more than 4GB anyway.

[pgjocki]

That's helpful thanks. No decision yet, going to look this weekend

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[RchW]

Originally Posted by Peanuts

There are decided advantages to the solid state drives....but one potential downsize is the limited lifespan. If the OP intends to keep his new laptop five + years, the solid state drives have a limit on read/write.

Not a huge risk, but a factor in a decision.

I've had a well used SSD since 2011 with zero issues. The lifespan issues are over reported just like any other negative issue.

[NoOne]

yeah 6-8gb RAM probably still okay... i'd avoid 4gb, but if ootp is the biggest hog that you use, even that is golden. a little extra (6-8gb total) to cover the unknown over its life is good.

alternatively, get a desktop and hook it up to your large flat screen in your family room with a wireless kb and mouse ($500-$600 build-your-won will blow that $600 laptop out of the water... heck, maybe equivalent at 200-300ish.) i do realize some need/like the portable nature.

i'm the only computer nerd without a smart phone i leave electronics at home.

[Hoiles]

OOTP ran perfectly fine on my old laptop for 5 years until I spilled water on it... I think any new computer would run OOTP fairly well. OOTP 18 runs like my nose while eating spicy Indian food on my new i7 laptop with 16 GB RAM, SSD, etc.