[Tyrone Haywood]

get a 650w psu for now and any future expansions you'll do...

look at my specs below.. if you can get a better setup then you'll be fine

[Mario Alcantar]

Hello all!

I was wondering if someone could give me some advice. I've been playing Skyrim on Xbox 360 for a while and decided to get it for PC too. However, my current laptop is unable to run it, I fear, so I've been scouring the internet for a better one.

So far, this is the best laptop I've found for my budget:

Operating System: Microsoft Windows? 7 Home Premium 64 bit

Processor: AMD Quad-Core Processor 1.4GHz

RAM: 6GB

Hard Drive: 750GB

Graphics: AMD Radeon? HD 6650M 1 GB VRAM Dedicated

Would this laptop be able to run Skyrim? I don't mind if it's low quality, as long as it will run relatively well. My main issue with the laptop is the processor at 1.4GHz. Unfortunately I am unable to use a desktop PC, becuase I have no room for it in my cluttered room, so a laptop will have to suffice.

Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

[WTW]

Weak CPU at 1.4 GHz, weak GPU. I say low-med at best.

[jennie xhx]

Processor: AMD Quad-Core Processor 1.4GHz

Would this laptop be able to run Skyrim? I don't mind if it's low quality, as long as it will run relatively well. My main issue with the laptop is the processor at 1.4GHz. Unfortunately I am unable to use a desktop PC, becuase I have no room for it in my cluttered room, so a laptop will have to suffice.

The base, default core speed is meaningless for most modern Mobile CPUs (edit here: no idea where the first version of the descriptive came from). Provide the maximum Turbo speed instead, or if there is none, that should be part of the specs as well.

[Annika Marziniak]

The future of the Server-Size, massive case version of a gaming PC is going to be expensive enough to drive a majority of PC gamers to a less expensive version, when Enthusiast Grade (very High End) graphics cards double their cost in today's value. The Low End has already been disrupted as a market through greater reliance by branded manufacturers on video chips rather than video cards. The Medium (Mainline Gaming) graphics card market will hang on another 2-3 years or so, before it starts to fade as well.

Immobile computer systems will take over in the future that are a great deal smaller than current desktops, with AMD leading the way to Medium Quality video included in its APUs.

I say this here because the member was complaining about not having the space to own anything bulkier than a laptop. There ALREADY ARE a variety of immobile PC options that take small space, but so far haven't offered game quality graphics. It's in the pipeline, though.

[Alexx Peace]

Remote gaming is probably a viable solution for games like Skyrim and poor hardware.

[Casey]

Remote gaming is probably a viable solution for games like Skyrim and poor hardware.

I would hesitate to go that way in anticipation of a severely watered-down product from a variety of aspects, especially graphically.

(But, hey, I'll not want to debate any finer points. My stomach virus condition has me out of bed in the early hours here, half asleep, not feeling at all chipper right now.)

[Emma Pennington]

Hey all,
I've decided it's time to replace my aging laptop with a desktop able to run Skyrim and FO:3 / NV. Looking through various threads I've come up with some ideas. With the following setup what can I expect for performance? Idealy, I'd like to stay under $1k US with monitor and OS.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4bPk

[Amber Hubbard]

Avoid the Raidmax brand of power supply. The quality cannot be trusted, for any size or rating. Other than that, the component list looks good.

[Oscar Vazquez]

Antec EA-650 Green?

[Lovingly]

Antec EA-650 Green?

I'm not personally familiar with the "Green" PSUs from Antec. I have better feelings about Corsair, Enermax, Fortron, Seasonic.

[James Shaw]

I'm not personally familiar with the "Green" PSUs from Antec.

If they're they same as the EarthWatt ones on our side of the pond then they are quite highly thought of, just not the most powerful on 12v rails (but very stable/efficient).

[Epul Kedah]

Hmm, so generally the laptop is a bad idea...
So, If I were to somehow find space for a desktop, what should I go for? I have done some more digging and customised my own pc for a decent price. Here are the specs I've come up with:
CPU: AMD FX 4100 Black Edition
Motherboard: Gigabyte M68MT-S2P
Memory: 4.0GB Corsair DDR3 1600mhz Vengeance (1x 4GB)
Hard Drive: 500GB S-ATAII 3.0Gb/s
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti 1GB
Sound Card: Onboard 7.1 Audio
And finally the monitor:
Monitor: 18.5" Widescreen LCD
Viewable size 18.5"
Resolution 1366 x 768
Response Time 5 ms
Contrast Ratio 5000:1
I am worried that the monitor might not be able to display the graphics to their full potential. I wish I could give more information but that is all I know.
And finally, has anyone ever used DinoPC.com? Is it any good (particularly for those in the UK)
Again, thank you for any help you can give, I realise posts like these must get annoying.

[Jose ordaz]

I'd bump the RAM up to 6 GB to give the OS some breathing room. And that monitor doesn't look too exciting. One thing you are missing is a power supply. You'll definitely need one

Also, split up the RAM from one module to two or three (I don't know which one is more efficient for AMD's architecture). One module isn't as good. Personally, I'd go with the Dominator instead of the Vengeance, but that's more of preference based on what you are planning to do. I'd also pass on AMD, but AMD is good for budget builds.

[Roddy]

@deaths_soul

Thank you for the swift reply!
I have boosted the RAM to 8GB DDR3 1333mhz (2x 4GB) (because 6GB wasn't available) as you suggested.
Also, as I forgot to note it earlier, the PSU is a 500W Xigmatek.
As for the monitor... well you're right, it isn't very exciting, however it is the cheapest and the smallest one available. Provided it is capable of working with the rest of the computer, it will have to do.
Now, I just need to try and make room for it...

[victoria gillis]

Alright, the only thing I'm concerned about is the PSU. Just never heard of that brand before. However, someone else can hopefully chime in there. The rest of the components look good for a budget build.

[Alyesha Neufeld]

Hmm, so generally the laptop is a bad idea...
So, If I were to somehow find space for a desktop, what should I go for? I have done some more digging and customised my own pc for a decent price. Here are the specs I've come up with:
CPU: AMD FX 4100 Black Edition
Motherboard: Gigabyte M68MT-S2P
Memory: 4.0GB Corsair DDR3 1600mhz Vengeance (1x 4GB)
Hard Drive: 500GB S-ATAII 3.0Gb/s
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti 1GB
Sound Card: Onboard 7.1 Audio
And finally the monitor:
Monitor: 18.5" Widescreen LCD
Viewable size 18.5"
Resolution 1366 x 768
Response Time 5 ms
Contrast Ratio 5000:1
I am worried that the monitor might not be able to display the graphics to their full potential. I wish I could give more information but that is all I know.
And finally, has anyone ever used DinoPC.com? Is it any good (particularly for those in the UK)
Again, thank you for any help you can give, I realise posts like these must get annoying.

If you have to go for a modern AMD system then the FX4100 black edition is a good choice, but Intel i3 based systems will be faster for Skyrim and shouldn't cost any more. RAM wise, it should be cheaper to get 2x2gb rather than 1x4gb and this would enable dual channel, but either way 4gb is more than enough. Vengence is really good RAM so no need to change that. Your graphics card choice is very good - if money is a problem you could save a bit of budget by getting the non-ti version of the 560 - the money would be better spent on changing to Intel (but this is Skyrim specific - other games generally demand more of the graphics card and care less about the CPU).

The monitor just means you will be playing at 1366x768 - this is a relatively low resolution for PC gaming, but you won't notice it too much and it means your graphics card will be worked less hard (again making the case for dropping to a non-ti version of the 560 if you want to save money). I think it would still be nicer to upgrade to a larger monitor - you can get 1920x1080 21" monitors quite cheaply these days, but personal preference is more important.

DinoPC are pretty good. Chillblast is another one to look for.

I'd bump the RAM up to 6 GB to give the OS some breathing room.

I wouldn't - it won't have any benefit for Skyrim or any games.

Alright, the only thing I'm concerned about is the PSU. Just never heard of that brand before. However, someone else can hopefully chime in there. The rest of the components look good for a budget build.

Xigmatek is towards the budget end, but it's better than other budget brands. Ideally pick up an OCZ or corsair unit.

[john palmer]

Hey guys,

I am considering a laptop purchase and would like to play Skyrim on it. The machine I am considering is this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834157948

The http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:System_Requirements shows the graphics card as being able to play on high settings. It looks to be the GDDR5 version of graphics memory. The wiki separates the GDDR3 from the GDDR5 versions of this card. Am I reading this correctly? I just need another opinion since it seems too good to be true for the total cost of this machine.

I appreciate any help in understanding better.

Thanks

[Jake Easom]

The http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:System_Requirements shows the graphics card as being able to play on high settings.

Looks like a mistake. Should be low/medium.

[Stacy Hope]

AMD's Radeon HD 6490M is not a High End card - - it's for business charts, graphs, presentations, and spreadsheets. It is Skyrim that is low end, at least as far as minimal demand on graphics cards. I would expect only "medium" in this game on that card, no matter which speed VRAM it had on it, or how much RAM it had.

[Jeffrey Lawson]

Thanks. What's your quick synopsis of this one?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834215245


I know this is an entry level gaming machine. I just don't have $1500 to spend. I realize I will not ever be able to play on high settings. I just want to play the game on PC rather than Xbox. This one has 2Gb graphics memory and the system memory is expandable to 16Gb.

[Tamara Dost]

Thanks. What's your quick synopsis of this one?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834215245

Much better. Usual laptop gaming disclaimer applies, but you should have an enjoyable experience.

[Love iz not]

Processor: Intel? Core? i7-2860QM Mobile Processor (4x 2.50GHz/8MB L3 Cache)
RAM: 8GB [4GB x 2] 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM
Hard Drive: 750 GB 5400rpm Serial-ATA Super Slim Laptop Hard Drive
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M 1.5GB GDDR5 Video

Any idea if this will work? This is entirely theoretical, by the way. I don't yet have this laptop (but will soon.)

[Kevin Jay]

I NEED SOME ADVICE ON A PC A FRIEND IS WANTING TO SELL ME FOR 300 DOLLARS:


INTEL DUEL CORE 3.00 GHZ
4 GIGS DDR2 RAM
ATI 4870 1G VRAM

will this run Skyrim?

[alicia hillier]

Run? Yes.

Also, don't post in caps and don't post in that font style please. It's a bit annoying in this context.