TS3 Compatible Laptop or Desktop on a Budget

KatNip

Hi everyone! After quite a few years of The Sims, GTA and countless replays of the Life is Strange series, my good old gaming laptop is reaching the end of her lifespan (many issues, including a messed up graphics card, a part of my keyboard is completely dead and requires me to copy and paste letters, my speakers haven't worked in almost a year, countless hardware issues and just the fact that she's gotten very, very old and is standing on her last legs). While I was very interested in this desktop at first, it's simply out of my budget right now with COVID and job hunting and whatnot. I also need this for classes and as my laptop fails to do basic things more and more often, I'm getting a little desperate and running out of time.

I don't want to set a specific budget, but anything under $1000 USD is what I'm looking for; the cheaper, the better, but I understand that you get what you pay for. Any advice for computers suggested (or how I can prolong this laptop's life a little longer) would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

puzzlezaddict

For your current laptop, some of the issues might be addressable, and others not. The graphics card in particular likely can't be replaced, and an external card and enclosure would cost almost as much as a new laptop. The keyboard might be fixable, maybe even with a good cleaning, or it might be totally busted; you could get a USB keyboard for relatively cheap. Speakers probably aren't worth addressing, since you can just use earbuds. As for the other issues, it's impossible to say without knowing what those issues are.

As a practical matter though, if you have this many problems with a laptop, it's likely not cost-effective to fix them, if they can even be fixed at all. Even if every current issue were addressed, it sounds like this laptop is on its way out—this seems like the point where something is always breaking. So you might only get a little extra time out of all the repairs, whereas you could put the same money towards a new computer and not have to worry about any of it.

On that note, would you prefer a laptop or desktop? Either is doable on your budget. Laptops are much more convenient; desktops have more powerful hardware, are easier to repair, and can generally be upgraded, so they last a lot longer. And are you looking to buy now, or sometime soon? If now, I can look for some good options in either category, or both. But if you're going to wait a bit, there's no point in picking out something now. Prices change and inventory turns over, so the best current deal might not be available in a few weeks, and in the interim something better might show up.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict Thanks for your reply! I am looking to buy as soon as possible. I won’t be able to do school without it... distance learning, sigh.

Currently, I am more interested in a desktop, but I’m happy to consider laptops too.

puzzlezaddict

I checked a few different sites, and the cheapest good option I saw was this one, for $600. Its processor is fine, not great but more than powerful enough for Sims 3; its graphics card can handle ultra settings with some room to spare; it has a 240 GB solid state drive, which, while small, is enough space for Sims 3 and all associated content, as long as you manage it carefully, plus a 1 TB HDD for spillover and other data.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/cyberpowerpc-gaming-desktop-amd-ryzen-3-2300x-8gb-memory-amd-radeon-rx-570-1tb-hdd-240gb-ssd-black/6362425.p?skuId=6362425

There are a lot of better desktops in the $700 range, but this one, on sale for $730 (at least until midnight Pacific), has a faster graphics card than any of the others for the same price. It's much more power than Sims 3 needs, not that it's a bad thing. Its processor is stronger than the one above as well, and it has a 512 GB SSD, which is more than enough space for most people who only plan to play one or two games.

https://www.newegg.com/acer-n50-600-ur1i-nitro-50/p/N82E16883101790?Item=N82E16883101790

These two desktops do only have 8 GB RAM, which is enough for Sims 3 but maybe not for Sims 3 plus a bunch of browser windows plus a music streaming app plus whatever else you have open while you play. Memory is cheap and easy to upgrade though, so that alone isn't a reason not to buy either. I'm just mentioning it so you can think about whether to add another 8 GB RAM either now or at some point in the future.

I know you don't want to spend the full $1,000, but so you know what's out there, these two have processors and graphics cards that are overpowered for Sims 3, although they might be useful if you decide to play other games later on. They both have 16 GB RAM and a 500 GB SSD. The second one is $50 more expensive, and for that, you get a much stronger processor, an additional 1 TB HDD, and a somewhat faster graphics card, none of which is necessary.

https://www.amazon.com/CyberpowerPC-Master-Gaming-GeForce-GMA1400A/dp/B07X31NT47
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i7-9700f-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1660-super-1tb-hdd-480gb-ssd-black/6400462.p?skuId=6400462

Like I said though, there are plenty of other options to consider; this is more a sampling of the "best available" at various price points. So if there are details about these that you don't like, let me know what you're looking for, and I'll do another search. It's easy for me to search for options by price or by any given specification, so just tell me what you'd like.

Monitors are sold separately, and good ones start around $100. Let me know the screen width you want, and I'll have a look around. If you want to play at a 144 Hz refresh rate, or close to it, the price goes up a little, and it would also be better to get a system with at least an Nvidia 1660 graphics card, which all of the above have except for the first.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict Wow, thank you so much for your reply! These are great and informative; the first one in particular looks fantastic. I’ll look into all of these!
As for monitors; I know nothing about them! Do you have any recommendations? This is my first time venturing out of the laptop area.

puzzlezaddict

I can make some recommendations, sure, but I need to know how large you want your monitor to be, in terms of either diagonal (the size listed when you're looking at a product page) or the width you want it to be on your desk. There are way too many options to list without knowing the size you want.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict 1920x1080 is good, then

puzzlezaddict

I meant the physical size of the monitor, in inches, that you want it to take up on your desktop. 1920x1080 is the resolution, literally the number of pixels on the screen; those pixels can be spread over a wide range of sizes.

For specific monitors, this is a good example of a quality option for around $100. It has an IPS panel, the highest quality, and a 75 Hz refresh rate, higher than the default 60. The higher refresh rate makes a difference to many people, but not all.

https://www.newegg.com/asus-90lm0351-b014b0-21-5-full-hd/p/N82E16824236986?Item=N82E16824236986

This is another high quality model, also with an IPS panel, although it only runs at 60 Hz.

https://www.newegg.com/samsung-ls24f354fhnxza-23-5-full-hd/p/N82E16824022797?Item=N82E16824022797

It's a good idea to measure the space where you want your monitor to go and figure out how big you'd like it to be. For example, if you'd prefer a 24" monitor, which would be about 21" wide, the larger version of the above Asus is $110.

https://www.newegg.com/asus-va24ehe-23-8-full-hd/p/1FR-000R-00024?Item=1FR-000R-00024

There are lots of options, so if you don't like these, let me know why, and I'll do a more thorough search. These are from the first site I pulled up, so you'd get an idea of what's out there.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict Thank you so much for your reply, and sorry about that ^^;. I'm not at home right now, but I'll measure the space and let you know. Would I have to get a separate keyboard for this; and is this something I would have to put together by myself?

puzzlezaddict

Most computers come with a mouse and keyboard, although not necessarily high quality. But you could use both until you decide you want something else. It's not like they wouldn't work, they just might not be as comfortable to use.

Assembly for a prebuilt computer is pretty straightforward. Plug the keyboard into the back of the computer, the mouse can often be plugged into the keyboard (if it has a passthrough), mount the stand on the monitor, plug the monitor into the wall and into the graphics card (specifically the graphics card, not the motherboard; ask if you're not sure), and plug in the computer. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes, and the monitor shouldn't require more than a basic screwdriver to assemble, or it might even come with the one you'd need.

It's also a good idea to look inside the computer's case to see whether there's any packing material to cushion the components. That definitely has to come out before you turn it on.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict Okay, thank you so much! I have some of your suggestions in mind for sure! Do you have any laptop recommendations as well?

puzzlezaddict

Are you looking for a gaming laptop for Sims 3, or just laptops in general? The desktops I linked all have more powerful hardware than what you could get in a laptop for the same price; even at $1,000, the fastest graphics card you could get would only be faster than the card in the first desktop. So if performance matters, desktops are the way to go.

If you'd like a laptop for other reasons though, it's easy enough to find a few. Just let me know what you want.

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict While I do want to get a desktop, I’m interested in a laptop for convenience, school and cost reasons and would also like to take a look .

KatNip

@puzzlezaddict Just wanted to thank you for your insight! I purchased the first desktop today and I’m getting a monitor for free from my mother’s work. I appreciate your advice!

puzzlezaddict

Sorry for the late reply; I was kind of swamped this past week. If you need any more help, let me know.