Which component should I upgrade?

joelyboy911 · August 07, 2009, 12:46:01 AM

Hello all. I have this fairly new computer which my parents bought for me as a fairly cheap replacement for an old one which crapped out (I sort if broke it gradually over time, through overuse), it is a Toshiba Satellite L300, which comes with an Intel 2.16 ghz CPU and 2gb of RAM (I upgraded it to 3 already). I'm not sure about the video/graphics card (I think it might be one of those ones where it doesn't have one? - hopefully someone can fill me in on that subject). So, to cut to the chase, what I'm seeking advice on is which component I should upgrade to improve my Sim City 4 experience. I am experiencing quite severe lag from time to time, and I am forced to continually play with the lowest graphics settings. If anyone knows any easier way to squeeze more out of what I've got already, then this would be helpful too.

SC4BOY · August 07, 2009, 01:14:36 AM

If that is a laptop, its likely that indeed you can't change your video card.. They either are custom designed to fit into the laptop or integrated into the motherboard. A FEW laptops have ONE slot to upgrade video cards, but that is rather rare.. You've done the right thing generally by putting more memory in..

other than that there isn't much you can do.. for laptops there are limited FAST DRIVES (higher spin rates and quicker read/write times) but I'm not sure how much that would help and they are rather expensive. If you use it primarily for simple tasks (read mail, browse the internet, dl/ul the odd file here and there, etc) or just play mostly SC4, I doubt you'd gain much with any reasonable "upgrade"

WC_EEND · August 07, 2009, 02:57:18 AM

I think, the best thing you can do is buy a new computer (laptop or desktop PC)

joelyboy911 · August 07, 2009, 03:17:03 AM

Quote from: WC_EEND on August 07, 2009, 02:57:18 AM
I think, the best thing you can do is buy a new computer (laptop or desktop PC)

I haven't quite got enough money for that.....

I have read about 'overclocking' of CPU's, is this going to give any benefit?

Is it possible to put a new processor in the machine?

WC_EEND · August 07, 2009, 03:33:15 AM

I looked up your computer on Google, and saw it's a laptop. You are unable to upgrade CPU, and GPU on laptops, so that's not an option. Overclocking is a risk because of 2 reasons:
1. Overclock too much and you will fry your computer
2. You need to go into th computer BIOS to overclock ans if you fiddle around in the BIOS without knowing whaat you're doing, there's a pretty good chance you'll kill your computer

BigSlark · August 07, 2009, 03:35:37 AM

If you're using Vista, you need far more than 3GB of RAM. That's the most inexpensive upgrade you could do and it should make a world of difference. Check in the manual or on Toshiba's website to see how much RAM your machine will take, then max it out and see how SC4 performs.

Good luck!

Cheers,
Kevin

joelyboy911 · August 07, 2009, 03:38:10 AM

OK thanks. I am using vista, so I will probably try getting a bigger RAM (all the slots are full now, I think).

Quote from: WC_EEND on August 07, 2009, 03:33:15 AM
I looked up your computer on Google, and saw it's a laptop. You are unable to upgrade CPU, and GPU on laptops, so that's not an option. Overclocking is a risk because of 2 reasons:
1. Overclock too much and you will fry your computer
2. You need to go into th computer BIOS to overclock ans if you fiddle around in the BIOS without knowing whaat you're doing, there's a pretty good chance you'll kill your computer

Yeah, I heard of those things. I will probably leave that one alone.

SC4BOY · August 07, 2009, 07:01:20 AM

Notebooks are extremely poor candidates for overclocking. Their cooling system is marginal at best and to generate added heat, even if the overclock went well, would be a bad idea.

Adding more memory over 3G is highly unlikely to give you much added performance, especially if the Vista is 32 bit, which is very likely. I'd certainly not spend much money on doing it.

cammo2003 · August 07, 2009, 10:52:42 PM

Basically. Check if Vista's 32- or 64-bit. You can do this by right-clicking on "Computer" and selecting 'Properties'.

EDIT: it's probably 32-bit. Checked Toshiba's website.

The model of your notebook should also show here (possibly more specific than just L300), so note it down, and google it to see if you can find out the maximum memory it can take (this is usually found on the manufacturer's website, though your results in finding this information may vary).

It's likely you'd be able to up it to 4GB, which *would* help (though not much), although not all of that space will be addressed by the operating system if it's 32-bit. 2GB-3GB is a sweetspot for Vista 32bit anyway, and not much benefit results from throwing in more unless you're working with particularly RAM-intensive applications.

I'd stay away from overclocking on a notebook - it's likely to result in an oversized paperweight.

About the only other thing you'd be able to upgrade is the hard drive, and that can be *very* fiddly, and would likely void the warranty - and it's not something I'd do if I wasn't sure about it, or if you didn't get an OS DVD with the computer.

This for the record is why I like to have a desktop machine.

joelyboy911 · August 11, 2009, 03:15:44 AM

It is 32 bit, for sure. I think it can hold 4 gb. I would like to have a desktop PC too, but the notebook is much more convenient for the other things I need it for, and I can't afford two computers (not right now, anyway).

Thanks for all your advice everyone. I know what to do now - save for a new machine.

I can live with it for now, as I think I may have triangulated one particular piece of custom content that might be slowing me down: Peg's pines? I have that tree mod, and have used the props in creating some forestry based farms - it seems to slow me down, perhaps they have very complex LODs or something. It might not be the cause either, but I can live with it, as I said.