Laptop spec for FGFS
Hi all,
My very old ex-corporate Dell Latitude is on its last legs. Its never been brilliant for FGFS, but ok for code development and testing. It has an I5 processor, and 8GB ram.
I'd like to replace it with a 2nd hand machine, but I'm a bit unsure where to start. Not sure about GPU options, I know I need Open GL supporting hardware, but thats about it. Looking for something more like a 'gaming' laptop.
Any advice is welcome!
Cheers, Scott
Comments
I'd recommend an Asus G14, I have the maxed-out 2020 version. You could get newer ones from say 2023 where they had a RTX4090. It's a great little machine and you can get the older versions for dirt cheap. A good CPU is a must, that's why I recommend the G14 since they have AMD CPUs which perform great.
Thank you for that guidance - dirt cheap appeals to my shoestring budget! I have always made-do with second hand machines, as you get a lot more value for money vs new.
I'm not a gamer, so needed this steer in the right direction with a laptop.
I shall be using a Linux distro which always gets the best out of older machines; I use Linux Mint a lot, but fancy having another fling with Manjaro again.
Many thanks, Scott
scottbouch.com
Great, many people have linux distros on their G14s.
The only thing I'll add is to jam as much RAM into it as the machine can hold. FGFS eats RAM and more is better even to the point of being ridiculous.
VooDoo
Yes, I agree. I have 16gb, but anything over 32gb is preferable.
And the graphics card - don't forget to get a really good graphics card. An integrated graphics chip just will not do it.
All good points thank you..
Had a look at the Asus laptops as suggested, still in the £500 region, I have had to re-calibrate my definition of the word cheap! But againtst the new prices, yes they are cheaper!
My old Dell laptop had 4 Gb of RAM, so I upgraded it recently to 8Gb, and couldn't really notice a difference in FGFS performance, but looking at HTOP, it was clear that the 8Gb was still being mostly consumed!
On the ground I see 2 to 4 frames per second, in the air its better. Is this the onboard GPU? Do laptops have slots inside for graphics cards? Ie, how do you avoid an integrated graphics card in a laptop?
Cheers, Scott
scottbouch.com
Thanks for all the advice, I have now bought a PC!
I have been making-do with old junk computers for many years built from second hand parts, recycled servers, donated old GPU (many thanks Voo-Doo for the GPU donation, it's kept me going!), etc... Presently my best PC is a very basic one I inherited form my Grandmother when she passed away ~10 years ago, with Voo-Doo's old GPU to give it a bit more life.
This is the first time I've invested in anything fairly decent, also the first time I've bought a new PC for myself! Exciting times!
Spec:
NVIDIA RTX 3080 GPU
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X CPU
64GB DDR4 3200MHZ Viper RAM (2 x 32 GB, but motherboard can take up to 4 x 32 GB)
1TB NVME WD Black SN770 storage
ASUS X570 Prime-P motherboard
850W Corsair RMe PSU
360MM AIO liquid CPU cooler
Really excited about this, can't wait for it to arrive, should be before Christmas! Hopefully it will last a good number of years. It has those funny illuminated RGB fans, so I my be disconnecting those, as I think the will be more distraction than benefit.
The motherboard has space for one extra GPU, so I could always try adding Voo-Doo's old GPU to it for additional displays! Will see about that in due course and if the PSU can run two, but thinking it could operate radar displays or PHI.
Cheers, Scott
scottbouch.com
The 3080 should do the job. I am running FG on a 3060 mobile adapter and it runs fine. We'll see about the performance when the HDR pipeline is being released.
Those 64GB RAM will have a big impact as you can load stuff into your RAM then.
Good choice. :)