New Laptop/PC Advice -Please Read the Opening Post

[x Joshhy]

4 hours ago, Smurf said:

As I alluded to, the computer you have picked out is probably the best you're going to get for that money.

If you want a better computer for a better FM experience it is going to cost more money.

 

Yeah fair enough. 

Would you say this one is any better? 

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/grade-a1-medion-akoya-p6645-core-i5-8265u-8gb-1tb-hdd-15.6-inch-geforce-m-a1-30026121/version.asp

Edited December 14, 2019 by x Joshhy

[Smurf]

6 hours ago, x Joshhy said:

Yeah fair enough. 

Would you say this one is any better? 

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/grade-a1-medion-akoya-p6645-core-i5-8265u-8gb-1tb-hdd-15.6-inch-geforce-m-a1-30026121/version.asp

Slightly better.

[Peter G]

19 hours ago, Smurf said:

https://www.footballmanager.com/news/fm19-touch-device-compatibility-list

 

Are the T and P numbers just different versions?

 

I.e with or without pen

[1burns1]

Hi all, not technical minded and have a very limited budget so need to buy refurb. It’s for my son to play fm20.

 

Seen this, any good to play it?

 

https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/product/laptops/7737/

[Mbrown]

On 09/12/2019 at 10:10, Themaster999 said:

Cheers  

 

Just bought it  

What’s it like keen on one of them or the Microsoft surface 3 13.5 inch i5 version https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/microsoft-13-5-intel-core-i5-surface-laptop-3-128-gb-ssd-platinum-10199633-pdt.html

Edited December 15, 2019 by Mbrown

[kevhamster]

16 hours ago, 1burns1 said:

Hi all, not technical minded and have a very limited budget so need to buy refurb. It’s for my son to play fm20.

 

Seen this, any good to play it?

 

https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/product/laptops/7737/

Appears to be out of stock.  What's your budget?

[footballguy5566]

Hi, how well would this laptop run fm 2020 like how many leagues how fast would it be ect ect 

Thanks

 

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9396461?clickOrigin=searchbar:home:sku:9396461

[NickG2100]

On 14/12/2019 at 07:18, Smurf said:

 

To be fair I don't know - it's a pretty new processor and probably untested for FM.

I based it on their rankings firtly it's ranked higher here

 

Then 2ndly on their single core rating (as a lot of FM is processed in the single core)

And the CPU rating is higher.

 

 

If you want to play it safe then the Ryzen 5 has the higher base speed but scores the lowest. 

 

 

Cheers again

In that case how important is it to look at the base speed compared to the maximum speed? 

The i5 is ranked well enough but concerned about the base speed. But the max speed well exceeds min requirements

 

Cheers 

[Smurf]

7 hours ago, NickG2100 said:

Cheers again

In that case how important is it to look at the base speed compared to the maximum speed? 

The i5 is ranked well enough but concerned about the base speed. But the max speed well exceeds min requirements

Cheers 

I've always tried to match the base speed as close as possible to the minimum requirements for the game - instead of the turbo speed.

Truth is I wouldn't be 100% sure how  important the base speed plays in FM. But I know that single core performance is important and again it is ranking quite high.

Perhaps @EdL can shed some more light on this.

[Mbrown]

Anyone know if this will be alright for FM20 basically not wanting a gaming laptop as they are normally quite weighty https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/microsoft-15-amd-ryzen-5-surface-laptop-3-128-gb-ssd-platinum-10199639-pdt.html

[kevhamster]

13 hours ago, footballguy5566 said:

Hi, how well would this laptop run fm 2020 like how many leagues how fast would it be ect ect 

Thanks

 

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9396461?clickOrigin=searchbar:home:sku:9396461

Should run it pretty well -  that's a decent CPU with strong integrated graphics.  Not sure how many leagues you want to run, but I ran 8 leagues all divisions on an older version of the Ryzen 5 and it was very good.

[footballguy5566]

1 hour ago, kevhamster said:

Should run it pretty well -  that's a decent CPU with strong integrated graphics.  Not sure how many leagues you want to run, but I ran 8 leagues all divisions on an older version of the Ryzen 5 and it was very good.

Thanks very much for the advice pal! 

[thnigelfc]

Hi Guys

My son is looking for a laptop for my Grandson, he's hoping to start him on the FM series.

He Can only go to £350.00 is there anything out there for this price?

He will only need to cover the English leagues from vanarama south to the Prem.

As I said he's trying to get Grandson into FM so he doesn't need to many leagues running.

 

Thanks Guys

[kevhamster]

6 minutes ago, thnigelfc said:

Hi Guys

My son is looking for a laptop for my Grandson, he's hoping to start him on the FM series.

He Can only go to £350.00 is there anything out there for this price?

He will only need to cover the English leagues from vanarama south to the Prem.

As I said he's trying to get Grandson into FM so he doesn't need to many leagues running.

 

Thanks Guys

The best all-rounder I can find at that budget is this one:

https://www.box.co.uk/80XK0124UK-Lenovo-IdeaPad-320_2472324.html

It won't be fantastically quick and he may find he'll need to turn the graphics settings down to medium or low if playing 3D, but it will run that setup.

[Smurf]

17 minutes ago, thnigelfc said:

Hi Guys

My son is looking for a laptop for my Grandson, he's hoping to start him on the FM series.

He Can only go to £350.00 is there anything out there for this price?

He will only need to cover the English leagues from vanarama south to the Prem.

As I said he's trying to get Grandson into FM so he doesn't need to many leagues running.

 

Thanks Guys

Maybe this https://www.box.co.uk/NX.EFREK.014(C)-(Open-Box)-Acer-Extensa-15_2783236.html

[kevhamster]

13 minutes ago, Smurf said:

Maybe this https://www.box.co.uk/NX.EFREK.014(C)-(Open-Box)-Acer-Extensa-15_2783236.html

Ah, no idea why that one didn't come up on my search!  But yes, go with Smurf's suggestion as that one is better.

[Smurf]

10 minutes ago, kevhamster said:

Ah, no idea why that one didn't come up on my search!  But yes, go with Smurf's suggestion as that one is better.

Refurb section! It's an open box one - so should be brand new!

[kevhamster]

Just now, Smurf said:

Refurb section! It's an open box one - so should be brand new!

Ah nice, I'll have to remember that one.

Cheers

[EdL]

10 hours ago, Smurf said:

I've always tried to match the base speed as close as possible to the minimum requirements for the game - instead of the turbo speed.

Truth is I wouldn't be 100% sure how  important the base speed plays in FM. But I know that single core performance is important and again it is ranking quite high.

Perhaps @EdL can shed some more light on this.

Basically its going to depend on cooling, if it can and its needed to it will stay towards the top end frequency and its fine, but if its overheating then its going to drop down and will thottle performance, also if you are only running on battery it's going to scale back more to try and save battery.

So it is variable - in itself its not a problem, but also it could be - ideal sitauation is playing plugged in and on a cooling tray type thing you can get for laptops.

[J Beckford 16]

Hi, i'm looking for a new laptop, i'm pretty hopeless with all the specifics and got told to come here.

 

My budget is around £500-550 but could probably stretch to a little more. I am UK Based. Mainly want the laptop for purely FM and i usually run a database with around 60k players i believe.

 

Many thanks,

 

Neil

[zakbrown96]

On 16/12/2019 at 12:00, Mbrown said:

Anyone know if this will be alright for FM20 basically not wanting a gaming laptop as they are normally quite weighty https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/microsoft-15-amd-ryzen-5-surface-laptop-3-128-gb-ssd-platinum-10199639-pdt.html

Anyone able to help please, budget of  up to a grand ideally want to only spend £700 due to its only going to be used for football manager only really, but not really wanting a gaming Pc as needs to be easily portable for long coach journeys 

[Welshace]

7 minutes ago, zakbrown96 said:

Anyone able to help please, budget of  up to a grand ideally want to only spend £700 due to its only going to be used for football manager only really, but not really wanting a gaming Pc as needs to be easily portable for long coach journeys 

I mean, it will be fine, it will run the game.. depends on what sort of game setup you play.. 

 

Though you can get a much better spec laptop for that price.. are you looking at weight? what's the maximum you will go to?

[zakbrown96]

7 minutes ago, Welshace said:

I mean, it will be fine, it will run the game.. depends on what sort of game setup you play.. 

 

Though you can get a much better spec laptop for that price.. are you looking at weight? what's the maximum you will go to?

Hi thanks for reply about 3 to 4 kilos 

[Welshace]

7 minutes ago, zakbrown96 said:

Hi thanks for reply about 3 to 4 kilos 

Well hell, even a beast like this : https://www.box.co.uk/Medion-Erazer-P15601_2756373.html#DetailTop

is only 2kg or so.. you can get a much better spec..

[zakbrown96]

15 minutes ago, Welshace said:

Well hell, even a beast like this : https://www.box.co.uk/Medion-Erazer-P15601_2756373.html#DetailTop

is only 2kg or so.. you can get a much better spec..

Would this be more worth it in long run? As Brother can get it for £800 after cashback and the £50 off https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-15-6-intel-core-i7-laptop-512-gb-ssd-black-10194135-pdt.html

Edited December 17, 2019 by zakbrown96

[kevhamster]

2 hours ago, J Beckford 16 said:

Hi, i'm looking for a new laptop, i'm pretty hopeless with all the specifics and got told to come here.

 

My budget is around £500-550 but could probably stretch to a little more. I am UK Based. Mainly want the laptop for purely FM and i usually run a database with around 60k players i believe.

 

Many thanks,

 

Neil

At that budget, these two will do you quite well, which one to go for depends on whether you'd prefer quicker processing or the ability to run graphics at higher settings.

For the higher graphics capability:  https://www.box.co.uk/30023993-Medion-Erazer-P6689_2277805.html

For quicker processing: https://www.box.co.uk/81F400EDUK-Lenovo-Ideapad-330s_2645064.html

Other considerations, again these may or may not factor into your decision, but the Medion has a larger screen (in terms of physical size at least, 15.6" compared to 14" on the other one), but both have the same resolution.  The Medion also has a 1TB hard drive, as opposed to a 256GB SDD on the Lenovo - so this means that the Medion will run a bit slower, but has larger storage.

Both will handle FM at the sort of setup you want, so it's just a case of deciding which elements are more important to you.

[kevhamster]

1 hour ago, zakbrown96 said:

Would this be more worth it in long run? As Brother can get it for £800 after cashback and the £50 off https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-15-6-intel-core-i7-laptop-512-gb-ssd-black-10194135-pdt.html

EDIT: Yeah, I'd go for that if you don't mind paying the extra.  Better CPU.

I originally said the one at Currys doesn't have a dedicated graphics card, but I was wrong.

Edited December 17, 2019 by kevhamster

[Welshace]

5 hours ago, zakbrown96 said:

Would this be more worth it in long run? As Brother can get it for £800 after cashback and the £50 off https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-15-6-intel-core-i7-laptop-512-gb-ssd-black-10194135-pdt.html

Get that, and just look to upgrade the ram to 16gb when you get £40 or so spare..

[cricketdave]

I’ve been playing FM on a MacBook Pro for five years but it’s starting to creak. Can anyone recommend a machine around £600. I favour speed over graphics.

[JordanMilly]

14 minutes ago, cricketdave said:

I’ve been playing FM on a MacBook Pro for five years but it’s starting to creak. Can anyone recommend a machine around £600. I favour speed over graphics.

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/1690000 - Superb processor for FM, decent amount of RAM and a graphics card that'll deal with FM no problem, along with plenty of hard drive space.

[zakbrown96]

18 hours ago, Welshace said:

Get that, and just look to upgrade the ram to 16gb when you get £40 or so spare..

Might sound stupid but how do you upgrade ram? 

[Smurf]

3 minutes ago, zakbrown96 said:

Might sound stupid but how do you upgrade ram? 

Typically - you can go to a site like Crucial - https://eu.crucial.com/

Buy Memory

Tick the option on the right

Scan your computer

 

This will tell you what type of ram to buy  - once you have that you can either buy it from them - or try search for a cheaper one somewhere.

 

And once you receive your RAM - typically there are are 2 screws under the computer where the RAM slots in - Check your laptop model number for a diagram of the RAM slots on google.

Turn off your computer.

Remove the screws

Rub your hands on a radiator to remove static (don't wear static generating clothing https://www.purewow.com/fashion/fabrics-that-cause-static)

ONce you're static free

REmove the RAM - usually it is a push and release system - or it could slide - or there could be locks on each side that need to be unpinned - but the Diagram you googled earlier will explain how to remove it.

Then slot in your new RAM.

Screw the slot back on.

Turn on the computer. 

Check to see it is working https://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000149.htm

 

 

 

 

[zakbrown96]

Thank you @Smurf before the bother orders would a NVIDIA GeForce MX250 GDDR5 2GB 32bits with Intel iris plus 950  be good enough as you can get an I7 10th gen processor for about £650 

[Smurf]

2 hours ago, zakbrown96 said:

Thank you @Smurf before the bother orders would a NVIDIA GeForce MX250 GDDR5 2GB 32bits with Intel iris plus 950  be good enough as you can get an I7 10th gen processor for about £650 

Have you got a link?

[zakbrown96]

21 minutes ago, Smurf said:

Have you got a link?

Found a voucher on dell account, no idea where from but says £200 off and can get cashback https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/laptops-notebooks-and-2-in-1-laptops/inspiron-15-7000/spd/inspiron-15-7591-laptop/cn79108

[Welshace]

40 minutes ago, zakbrown96 said:

Found a voucher on dell account, no idea where from but says £200 off and can get cashback https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/laptops-notebooks-and-2-in-1-laptops/inspiron-15-7000/spd/inspiron-15-7591-laptop/cn79108

if you can get that for 650 quid... definitely go for it... great laptop

[zakbrown96]

40 minutes ago, Welshace said:

if you can get that for 650 quid... definitely go for it... great laptop

Will go ahead and buy it now then thanks guys Your help has been incredible appreciated 

[cricketdave]

Is the Dell a better buy than the HP Pavilion recommended to me?

[BARNESDON]

Good evening, my other half is off to Curry’s / Pc world to buy me a new laptop for Christmas which will be used for FM, and studying the horses only. 

I maybe able to push her to £400, and most laptops seem capable until the processor details stump me!  
Am I correct in thinking AMD Athlon 300U Processor is miles to low? 

I’ve always just had the top 5 English leagues with my current basic laptop, but would quite like to run a few leagues from Europe in order to have more clubs and players available for transfers if possible for this amount. 
 

Any advise would be greatly appreciated rather than me waiting impatient for the game to take an age to continue. 
 

my current laptop 

Processor AMD E1-1500 APU with Radeon (tm) HD Graphics 1.48 GHz

(sooo slow)

RAM 4.00GB

x64 based processor. 

[kevhamster]

12 hours ago, cricketdave said:

Is the Dell a better buy than the HP Pavilion recommended to me?

If you post the links, I can tell you.

[kevhamster]

11 hours ago, BARNESDON said:

Good evening, my other half is off to Curry’s / Pc world to buy me a new laptop for Christmas which will be used for FM, and studying the horses only. 

I maybe able to push her to £400, and most laptops seem capable until the processor details stump me!  
Am I correct in thinking AMD Athlon 300U Processor is miles to low? 

I’ve always just had the top 5 English leagues with my current basic laptop, but would quite like to run a few leagues from Europe in order to have more clubs and players available for transfers if possible for this amount. 
 

Any advise would be greatly appreciated rather than me waiting impatient for the game to take an age to continue. 
 

my current laptop 

Processor AMD E1-1500 APU with Radeon (tm) HD Graphics 1.48 GHz

(sooo slow)

RAM 4.00GB

x64 based processor. 

The AMD Athlon 300U isn't fantastic.

I'd recommend this one at the price range you've suggested.  I have a laptop with the same CPU as this one, and it runs FM like a charm.  Also plays 3D at medium to high settings too.

https://www.box.co.uk/81V50008UK-Lenovo-V155_2560664.html

[Smurf]

7 minutes ago, kevhamster said:

I have a laptop with the same CPU as this one, and it runs FM like a charm.  Also plays 3D at medium to high settings too.

What setup do you have - as you may have a completely different setup to anyone else. And by runs like charm, in what way does it run like charm? Are you 50 seasons in and processing like it was on day 1?

[kevhamster]

32 minutes ago, Smurf said:

What setup do you have - as you may have a completely different setup to anyone else. And by runs like charm, in what way does it run like charm? Are you 50 seasons in and processing like it was on day 1?

Well, I was 7 seasons in on FM19 and it ran as quick as it did season 1.  Same RAM (although I have literally just upgraded to 16GB for reasons unrelated to FM, but literally only as of last week).  The main difference is I have a mechanical hard drive rather than the SSD on this model.

[Topgunner78]

I have just purchased the HP EliteBook X360 1030 G2 i5 IPS Touchscreen which I am waiting on the delivery . 

 

Please can you tell me I will be able to run FM20 on this device with all the leagues?

It has;

Intel Core i5 7300U 2.60GHz

8GB ddr3 ram

512GB Samsung SSD!

 

Many Thanks

 

 

[Smurf]

11 minutes ago, Topgunner78 said:

I have just purchased the HP EliteBook X360 1030 G2 i5 IPS Touchscreen which I am waiting on the delivery . 

 

Please can you tell me I will be able to run FM20 on this device with all the leagues?

It has;

Intel Core i5 7300U 2.60GHz

8GB ddr3 ram

512GB Samsung SSD!

 

Many Thanks

 

 

Yes you can run all leagues on most computers. But this would be incredibly slow.

[JordanMilly]

9 minutes ago, Topgunner78 said:

I have just purchased the HP EliteBook X360 1030 G2 i5 IPS Touchscreen which I am waiting on the delivery . 

 

Please can you tell me I will be able to run FM20 on this device with all the leagues?

It has;

Intel Core i5 7300U 2.60GHz

8GB ddr3 ram

512GB Samsung SSD!

 

Many Thanks

 

 

The answer to your question, unfortunately, is likely no, unless you don't mind very long processing breaks in play. The processor (as denoted by the "u") is an ultra low power processor, designed more for battery life and low temperatures than heavy processing, which is what FM20 needs, and so may struggle after a while of playing when the processor is running at a high temperature, because it'll reduce the processing speed to compensate (https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Core-i5-7300U-Laptop-Processor.189833.0.html). Additionally, there's no dedicated graphics card in that laptop, so you may have to reduce graphics settings.

The reviews for the laptop basically confirm that it is designed as a business laptop, for internet use, word processing, etc, and not for gaming (https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-EliteBook-x360-1030-G2-Core-i5-Full-HD-Convertible-Review.213068.0.html).

Depending on your budget, and if we can identify something better suited to what you want, it might be worth trying to get a refund on that laptop and getting something intended for games. With that said, what is/was your budget for a laptop?

[Townender]

Hello everyone. Right after quite a few years away I want to get back into fm, so I’m going to need to get a new laptop. Ideally I would want to play the top 5 leagues in England and the top 1 or 2 leagues in Spain, Germany, Italy at a push 1 or 2 more country’s. I’m not overly fussed about graphics if I’m being honest and I don’t really want to spend more than £500 and the laptop won’t really get get used for much else, just browsing/a bit of tv etc. So is that a possibility and if so feel free to send me some links to the best ones you can think of. Thanks in advance.

[BARNESDON]

Thanks Kev, 

Does anyone think Curry’s PC World will have anything? 
not fussed by graphics. 
 

 

[Welshace]

18 hours ago, Smurf said:

Yes

 

18 hours ago, JordanMillward_1 said:

no

 

6 hours ago, BARNESDON said:

Thanks Kev, 

Does anyone think Curry’s PC World will have anything? 
not fussed by graphics. 
 

 

Just to clear up what both of these guys have said .. 

 

Yes, you can technically load up a game with all leagues running on any laptop, but NO you won't be able to play the game at any sort of decent rate and it will certainly put undue stress on that cpu to the point of failure after not very long.

[kevhamster]

1 hour ago, Welshace said:

 

 

Just to clear up what both of these guys have said .. 

 

Yes, you can technically load up a game with all leagues running on any laptop, but NO you won't be able to play the game at any sort of decent rate and it will certainly put undue stress on that cpu to the point of failure after not very long.

Barnesdon wasn't the guy who wanted all the leagues running at the same time. 

Edited December 20, 2019 by kevhamster