Min. laptop GPU to run PR?

[WeeGeez]

Hi all, long time no post...
Anyway,
I'm hoping someone can help me out identifying a model of laptop that would be good for playing PR.

Lenovo because I like their build quality, I own an R61 (2007) but it's too slow even at 800x600 so I'm trying to ID a model somewhere in between the latest and the R61.

I cross checked some 3dMark06 scores and I think i'm looking at spending 280squid (alot) for a used ThinkPad X230.
Its integrated HD 4000 hits 7450, my old rig is not far off 7357. Give or take 300Mhz and a gig of ram.

To allow external display would be advantageous, but could tax gpu a little more...

The R61 is perfect though. Tough and conveniently sized, but just needs more power for graphics.
I did consider using external PCIe graphics card in breakout configuration via the PCMCIA slot and this device:

Any suggestions?
Also I really dislike shiny panels on them newer models.

[MaSSive]

Yeah quite better than R61 although depening on which processor exactly model you want to buy has. Ranges from i3 - i7 with different clocks and whatnot. If it cant run win 10 that could be a problem too, unless you want to stay on win 7.

Link with moble GPU comparison , or 3dmark06 test scores...

3DMark scores of 161 mobile GPUs: from 3DMark06 to Fire Strike - 3DMark06 | Hardware.Info United States

Link for X320 on Lenovo site. Close the popup.

Lenovo ThinkPad X-Series | X230 Laptop?| Lenovo UK


And be carefull with used things especially laptops.

[WeeGeez]

Thanks for swift reply,
lol, I'm still using XP and don't intend to upgrade.

Ah, that list is super useful, what level we looking at from that list to run PR maxed out (maybe a little extra for external screen)?
Anyone using a laptop for PR care to be judge of this?

Me old rig, she held 4Gb RAM, 2Ghz, with 7900GS, a good budget build with good frame rates.
I've not played PR for months on it, decided to sell and consolidate for a laptop better than this one I'm borrowing.
Lenovo are seriously good so far, and I definitely see the benefits in owning a portable rig, over a smart phone. hehe.

I'm aware of the requirements for Squad Squad Squad quad core, 8gb, 750TI.
It will be a while before I can accommodate this but never mind because old school PR is good enough!!
Always think about those with LESS.

I was recently given an old Inspiron 1300 - loaded up soldier of fortune II and I was surprised at how good the frame rate was on such a crummy laptop. It was made available in 2006, SoFII preceded it by about 4 years so I reckon for PR i'm looking at a similar gap for hardware to catch up, perhaps a 2010 model (if BF2 is 2006).

[PLODDITHANLEY]

I was playing on a 9600M Gt @ 1920 x 1080 on mostly low which was playable, I have the impression that PR is more a CPU intensive program though.

[MaSSive]

Ideapad 305 (Intel) Laptop | Stylish, Colorful 15.6" Laptop?| Lenovo UK

New with Pentium dual core cpu @2.66 Ghz, 8GB DDR3L @1600 Mhz, 1TB 5400rpm HDD... @?279.99

That is about top for that price you can get that is not used. This should wowrk well with PR @medium but screen is limited to 1366x768

X320 is a lot better though but be careful with used things.

Intel HD4000 and above can handle PR well with at least 512MB VRAM. More important things are processor clock, memory frequency and the speed of the hard drive. So a higher clock CPU, with DDR3 and prefferablz SSD can do well.

[WeeGeez]

Hmm.
A little more than 9600M GT then... I'll keep looking.

Forgot to mention, 280 is too much.
Was hoping for laptop for around 140GBP mark, thus used machine most likely, I don't mind.
Stupid operating system usually pushes the price up, if I can find one without HDD that is ideal.

I recall older laptops from way back with nvidia gpus often overheated and failed, even the gaming laptops, hopefully they've rectified that since.

Thanks for the response so far.

[WeeGeez]

Just an update on what I found from Lenovo

Using a 3DMark06 Score of 7000 minimum as a reference, I compiled a list of affordable Thinkpad laptops (tanks) which can probably handle PR well.
Ascending by date from 2010. Earlier models seem to be sturdier judging by the reviews.

Model, Size/Weight, 3DMark06 Score and link to more information notebookcheck.com which I used as reference.

W701, Portable Workstation 3.92 kg: 11162 Pts

W520, Laptop 2.7 kg: 11656 Pts

T430, Laptop 2.7 kg: 9170 Pts

T530, Laptop 2.7 kg: 9215 Pts

W530, Laptop 2.81 kg: 12059 Pts

T430 was really the first more affordable release and is the one I'm considering getting.
I seen one used for 200 without os installed.

[PLODDITHANLEY]

I don't know what the 'bottleneck' was on my machine but it is an MSI GX720for full specs, I was getting bad FPS in battles, dust, explosions etc, but IMHO it was playable ... just.

Hmm.
I recall older laptops from way back with nvidia gpus often overheated and failed, even the gaming laptops, hopefully they've rectified that since.

My GPU was only showing X1 instead of X16 and PR was unplayable, plus some other weird faults that went when I got a second hand same GPU, I sent of my original one to a Uk company to be reballed - but when it came back exactly the same how do I know they've even done anything?

if buying a secondhand laptop I would aim for a very popular one so that working motherboards can be sourced, also bear in mind mine needed the INSIDE of the grills cleaned at most every 6 months, which involves removing heat sinks and reapplying paste so ideally find one that's easy to clean out.

I am just upgrading an broken old Acer extensa 5230E (900Mhz singlecore IGB RAm) to 5630 mobo (dual core T6400 2.00GHz dual for ebay quid 25) for fun and a spare for the mrs. Sadly GMA 950 so no PR.

I am sure with good research you can sort yourself out in budget.

[WeeGeez]

Hey, quick update,

I tested PR running on a T430 which I picked up for ?150, its real smooth 1600x900, all high.
Unfortunately theres an issue with intel driver that disallows Anti Aliasing entirely.
I presume this is to maximise the lifetime of the chip.
So not quite happy. I'm really doing this as a R&D for community because these laptops are really robust.

Anyway, T430 comes in two variants;
Onboard HD4000 (the one currently under test, above)
or with onboard + nvidia 5400M

I wanted to try the T420 (prior model) which has nvidia 4200M.
The performance in 3dmark06 suggests its on par with 9600M GT, but CPU and memory play a role too so it's hard to judge.
Will report back when I try out T420

@PLODDITHANLEY
I think bottleneck on your laptop may have been low video memory and DDR2 RAM...

Regards all
(I love pesto)

[Sandepp]

Have you tried buying a laptop with and APU ?These things are available cheap and provide better gaming capability than the Intel HD and better single core performance due to the higher clock frequencies .You can get them at $350 first hand or maybe even less if you can find a used one.

[rPoXoTauJIo]

Just buy top CPU you can, PR barely using GPU.