FM24 - PC/Laptop advice thread *** PLEASE READ OPENING POST BEFORE POSTING ***

[Gangor]

On 27/07/2024 at 15:18, tcoleman1 said:

Thank you for this. I have read quite a bit about the intel chips on reddit and it does seem somewhat pot luck whether you get or good or bad one.

I have been doing some fiddling on the Lenovo website and have managed to create a LOQ that I may be able to get down to a similar price as the other one with a Ryzen 7 8845hs which doesn't benchmark too much lower than the intel one. 

Another question for people slightly more tech-savvy than myself. Is there any benefit of having 1x16gb of RAM in one slot compared to 2x8gb in 2 slots?

When configuring the laptop you can have a GTX 4050 if you have the 16gb (and save another £70) but if you select 2x8gb you have to have the 4060. I know obviously the better graphics cards is preferable but I'd imagine a 4050 will be enough for FM25 judging buu what I have read in this thread!

The benefit of having 2 RAM DIMMs is that it will run in dual channel, increasing memory bandwidth (the speed data is transferred from storage to memory or memory to the CPU) which will impact performance. The benefit of having 1 DIMM is that you can add a second one in the future without getting rid of the one you already have. RAM is cheap at the moment and the chances are you won't get around to upgrading, so I'd personally be inclined to choose 2 DIMMs.

[kevhamster]

On 28/07/2024 at 12:25, Smurf said:

Only issue with 1 stick vs 2 sticks is if you only have 1 X 16gb of ram and it goes faulty the computer won't work til you replace it.

 

If you have 2 X 8gb and I ram stick is faulty you can still use the computer with 1x8gb 

 

It's been about 20 years since I've seen faulty ram.

Not saying it doesn't happen.

The risk is minimal.

The other side of this is Ryzen chips are known for working slower with single channel RAM, so if you want to get the best out of it you are better advised to be running on two sticks of RAM rather than one.

[Smurf]

11 hours ago, kevhamster said:

The other side of this is Ryzen chips are known for working slower with single channel RAM, so if you want to get the best out of it you are better advised to be running on two sticks of RAM rather than one.

Yeh I should have concluded with its better to have 2 

[Delicate Dave]

On 30/07/2024 at 02:57, Gangor said:

The benefit of having 2 RAM DIMMs is that it will run in dual channel, increasing memory bandwidth (the speed data is transferred from storage to memory or memory to the CPU) which will impact performance. The benefit of having 1 DIMM is that you can add a second one in the future without getting rid of the one you already have. RAM is cheap at the moment and the chances are you won't get around to upgrading, so I'd personally be inclined to choose 2 DIMMs.

It's not that simple and as I said before there is nothing to be thinking about anyway. I know the are 100s of discussions about this online but the only thing all of them have in common is difference.

Just because you see 2 slots doesn't mean the MB has a dual channel controller onboard and just because you fill those slots with ram doesn't mean that ram is dual channel accessible. You need a matching pair of ram sticks and even if you conform all that a slight voltage change in less than micro seconds and you lose any gain you theoretically had. Certainly 100% of any gains or losses can be compensated by the way the software is coded. The is really no point fretting over a problem that in reality doesn't exist. This is a simplified answer.

If you want to fill just one slot go ahead, it will make a difference - sometimes that difference will be better or times it will be worse but generally it will be the same.

 

[tcoleman1]

Thank you all for the inputs. I had made my choice on specification but as it was really pushing my budget I took a night to sleep on it. 

Low and behold we went from July into August so when I went back on the Lenovo site to buy it the price had gone  up by £100 and I found a coupon I had wouldn't have worked with it anyway so now it is miles over budget 😂

Back to square one but thanks for the knowledge from you all, I feel I know what I want now and know the right ways to compare all the specs!

[Delicate Dave]

1 hour ago, tcoleman1 said:

Thank you all for the inputs. I had made my choice on specification but as it was really pushing my budget I took a night to sleep on it. 

Low and behold we went from July into August so when I went back on the Lenovo site to buy it the price had gone  up by £100 and I found a coupon I had wouldn't have worked with it anyway so now it is miles over budget 😂

Back to square one but thanks for the knowledge from you all, I feel I know what I want now and know the right ways to compare all the specs!

It really is worth contacting Lenovo, they are likely to give you a new coupon and you never know if they want the sale they give you a decent price.

[kevhamster]

15 hours ago, tcoleman1 said:

Thank you all for the inputs. I had made my choice on specification but as it was really pushing my budget I took a night to sleep on it. 

Low and behold we went from July into August so when I went back on the Lenovo site to buy it the price had gone  up by £100 and I found a coupon I had wouldn't have worked with it anyway so now it is miles over budget 😂

Back to square one but thanks for the knowledge from you all, I feel I know what I want now and know the right ways to compare all the specs!

From reading back, it seems your budget was the £800 sort of range?  If so, this is an excellent spec for the price: https://www.currys.co.uk/products/medion-erazer-deputy-p60-15.6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-rtx-4060-1-tb-ssd-10258794.html

 

[tcoleman1]

9 hours ago, kevhamster said:

From reading back, it seems your budget was the £800 sort of range?  If so, this is an excellent spec for the price: https://www.currys.co.uk/products/medion-erazer-deputy-p60-15.6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-rtx-4060-1-tb-ssd-10258794.html

 

Thank you for that, yes that was the rough budget. Still hopping between sites looking but budget can go to £1000 if from very as I can get 20% off. Seen a decent Acer Nitro 5 on there I'm going to research.

23 hours ago, Delicate Dave said:

It really is worth contacting Lenovo, they are likely to give you a new coupon and you never know if they want the sale they give you a decent price.

Yeah I've not given up yet. I have been on sales support chat a few times to ask for the deal again but no luck so far. Hopefully one gives in!

[Poison]

..

Edited August 2 by Poison
replied to old post by mistake.

[wixta79]

On 02/08/2024 at 09:27, kevhamster said:

From reading back, it seems your budget was the £800 sort of range?  If so, this is an excellent spec for the price: https://www.currys.co.uk/products/medion-erazer-deputy-p60-15.6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-rtx-4060-1-tb-ssd-10258794.html

 

is this the best laptop capable of running fm25 in this price range? would prefer to use currys due to finance offers and could probably creep up in price a bit more if needed

Edited August 9 by wixta79

[Maca97]

Hi, I want to get a laptop for fm, been looking and there are a couple of deals I have found with these 2 laptops can you tell me which one is better. I can get them both at the same price! 
 

https://www.hp.com/gb-en/shop/product.aspx?id=6P0W4EA&opt=ABU&sel=NTB&_its=JTdCJTIydmlkJTIyJTNBJTIyN2VjNTY4NjctOTUyNi00NzgxLWE3MjEtMmFhOGU0YzEyYjVkJTIyJTJDJTIyc3RhdGUlMjIlM0ElMjJybHR%2BMTcyMzA3NDU2OX5sYW5kfjJfMjczODMzX3JlZl9iNTM3NGRmNDI0Y2E3MDNkNjE5YTM5MzcwMWJiNTFhZSUyMiUyQyUyMnNpdGVJZCUyMiUzQTQwNDY0JTdE
 

https://store.acer.com/en-gb/acer-aspire-5-laptop-a517-53-grey-nx-kqbek-005

[Smurf]

8 hours ago, Maca97 said:

Hi, I want to get a laptop for fm, been looking and there are a couple of deals I have found with these 2 laptops can you tell me which one is better. I can get them both at the same price! 
 

https://www.hp.com/gb-en/shop/product.aspx?id=6P0W4EA&opt=ABU&sel=NTB&_its=JTdCJTIydmlkJTIyJTNBJTIyN2VjNTY4NjctOTUyNi00NzgxLWE3MjEtMmFhOGU0YzEyYjVkJTIyJTJDJTIyc3RhdGUlMjIlM0ElMjJybHR%2BMTcyMzA3NDU2OX5sYW5kfjJfMjczODMzX3JlZl9iNTM3NGRmNDI0Y2E3MDNkNjE5YTM5MzcwMWJiNTFhZSUyMiUyQyUyMnNpdGVJZCUyMiUzQTQwNDY0JTdE
 

https://store.acer.com/en-gb/acer-aspire-5-laptop-a517-53-grey-nx-kqbek-005

Had a look through both sites and found this one
https://www.hp.com/gb-en/shop/product.aspx?id=876Z5EA&opt=ABU&sel=NTB#technical-details

 

Which is better than both you put up there

Better processor - 16 gb RAM - Graphics card 


OUt of the 2 you posted the HP is the better but my one has a better processor - better single thread performance which is good for FM
Here's the comparison 

It has a slower base speed, and I know it doesn't look as good.
But for gaming and simulations like Football Manager, overall CPU performance, including single-core performance and turbo capabilities, is more useful.

[Xzibit_demon]

Hello. 
 

looking for a laptop with 16gb RAM and solid infrastructure overall.

can you please recommend a laptop in the bracket of £200-£350 range and £400-£550 range. 
 

Will play FM here and there but it’s mainly to do work activities. Thanks. 

[wixta79]

Medion Erazer Deputy P60 Intel Core i5 16GB 1TB RTX 4060 144Hz FHD 15.6 Inch Windows 11 Home Gaming Laptop on Servers Direct

this is alot cheaper than currys, is this a bargain?

[kevhamster]

13 minutes ago, wixta79 said:

Medion Erazer Deputy P60 Intel Core i5 16GB 1TB RTX 4060 144Hz FHD 15.6 Inch Windows 11 Home Gaming Laptop on Servers Direct

this is alot cheaper than currys, is this a bargain?

Yes, that's an excellent price for that spec.

[kevhamster]

3 hours ago, Xzibit_demon said:

Hello. 
 

looking for a laptop with 16gb RAM and solid infrastructure overall.

can you please recommend a laptop in the bracket of £200-£350 range and £400-£550 range. 
 

Will play FM here and there but it’s mainly to do work activities. Thanks. 

In the lower range: https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/dell-latitude-15-5520-11th-generation-core-i5-16gb-ram-256gb-ssd-backlit-keyboard-15-6-fhd-screen-laptop?_pos=7&_fid=0b9b030cd&_ss=c

It won't be good for the higher graphics settings and it's currently impossible to know how it will be for FM25.

For the higher range: https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/hp-victus-15-fb0020na-amd-ryzen-5-8gb-ram-256gb-ssd-amd-graphics-15-6-ips-fhd-screen-gaming-laptop

These are both refurbs, which is what you probably need to be looking at with the budgets stated.

[Delicate Dave]

4 hours ago, Xzibit_demon said:

Hello. 
 

looking for a laptop with 16gb RAM and solid infrastructure overall.

can you please recommend a laptop in the bracket of £200-£350 range and £400-£550 range. 
 

Will play FM here and there but it’s mainly to do work activities. Thanks. 

For that price, you are going to have to look at the second-hand market. Don't worry about the 16gb ram you can always add more. I would look for an MSI laptop, 4gb video RAM. Others HP, Asus.

[wixta79]

2 hours ago, kevhamster said:

Yes, that's an excellent price for that spec.

in your opinion am i best waiting for fm25 specs before buying this?

[Xzibit_demon]

7 hours ago, kevhamster said:

In the lower range: https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/dell-latitude-15-5520-11th-generation-core-i5-16gb-ram-256gb-ssd-backlit-keyboard-15-6-fhd-screen-laptop?_pos=7&_fid=0b9b030cd&_ss=c

It won't be good for the higher graphics settings and it's currently impossible to know how it will be for FM25.

For the higher range: https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/hp-victus-15-fb0020na-amd-ryzen-5-8gb-ram-256gb-ssd-amd-graphics-15-6-ips-fhd-screen-gaming-laptop

These are both refurbs, which is what you probably need to be looking at with the budgets stated.

Thank you. 
 

By any chance could you share a few that would be 14” screen size? Not sure if the below is acceptable: 

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/lenovo-v14-g3-intel-core-i7-8gb-ram-512gb-ssd-14-inch-windows-11-pro-laptop-82ts000kuk-16gb/version.asp?utm_campaign=176013_Redbrain+Ltd&utm_medium=affiliate&refsource=awin&sv1=affiliate&sv_campaign_id=176013&awc=74730_1723326146_b894c734417ef58067fcf3ccda3d1692
 

if not, then appreciate if you can share a few of that screen size. 

 

[Xzibit_demon]

Found this one as well. Thoughts? not 14” I know but looks solid for that price…
 

https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/msi-gf63-thin-h-series-core-i5-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-1tb-hdd-nvidia-1650-graphics-15-6-144hz-fhd-screen-gaming-laptop?_pos=1&_fid=ef3399b25&_ss=c

[Delicate Dave]

11 hours ago, Xzibit_demon said:

Found this one as well. Thoughts? not 14” I know but looks solid for that price…
 

https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/msi-gf63-thin-h-series-core-i5-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-1tb-hdd-nvidia-1650-graphics-15-6-144hz-fhd-screen-gaming-laptop?_pos=1&_fid=ef3399b25&_ss=c

Very sneaky marketing this "Intel i5 | upto 4.5GHz (10500H) - Six Core" this is a 2.25GHz processor 

Will be ok for a while but honestly second hand you could get this for under £200 it's a 2021 model.

You can get much better.

[Smurf]

3 hours ago, Delicate Dave said:

Very sneaky marketing this "Intel i5 | upto 4.5GHz (10500H) - Six Core" this is a 2.25GHz processor 

Will be ok for a while but honestly second hand you could get this for under £200 it's a 2021 model.

You can get much better.

i5-10500H is perfectly adequate for playing Football Manager. While it's not the latest and greatest, it will still deliver a good gaming experience, particularly if you're not pushing the game to its extremes. 

Cut back on database size and playable leagues and should be good

[Xzibit_demon]

1 hour ago, Smurf said:

i5-10500H is perfectly adequate for playing Football Manager. While it's not the latest and greatest, it will still deliver a good gaming experience, particularly if you're not pushing the game to its extremes. 

Cut back on database size and playable leagues and should be good

Smurf, can you recommend any laptop which fits in the £500-£600 range. Anything cheaper would be great. 
 

looking to casually play FM here and there but will be using the laptop to do PSI exams. 

[Smurf]

5 hours ago, Xzibit_demon said:

Smurf, can you recommend any laptop which fits in the £500-£600 range. Anything cheaper would be great. 
 

looking to casually play FM here and there but will be using the laptop to do PSI exams. 

Has a good processor and a graphics card that's ok 
https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/msi-thin-gf63-intel-core-i7-16gb-512gb-15.6-inch-144hz-fhd-rtx-2050-windows-9s7-16r821-472/version.asp

This is the best processor if it was just for FM this is what I'd go for:
Good processor - no graphics card - but FM should be fine on the integrated one
https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/msi-modern-15-intel-core-i7-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-15.6-inch-ips-windows-11-lap-9s7-15h411-003/version.asp

 

Older processor but still good enough- has graphics card 
https://www.laptopstation.co.uk/products/asus-tuf-fa506ic-amd-ryzen-5-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-nvidia-rtx-3050-15-6-fhd-screen-gaming-laptop?_pos=2&_fid=794e2a041&_ss=c

Both solid processors and handle FM well. The 12450 H is newer and better than the 4600h

13700h is the best choice for FM only.

 

[kevhamster]

On 10/08/2024 at 18:04, wixta79 said:

in your opinion am i best waiting for fm25 specs before buying this?

I'd be shocked if this wasn't absolutely fine for FM25.  That laptop would easily run things like Cyberpunk 2077 and Starfield which are two of the most demanding titles currently available.

[Smurf]

1 hour ago, kevhamster said:

I'd be shocked if this wasn't absolutely fine for FM25.  That laptop would easily run things like Cyberpunk 2077 and Starfield which are two of the most demanding titles currently available.

@wixta79 There's a slightly lesser model available https://www.serversdirect.co.uk/p/1877770/medion-erazer-nb-crawler-e50-intel-core-i5-16gb-512gb-rtx-4050-144hz-fhd-15.6-inch-windows-11-gaming-laptop 

For football manager it would make zero difference.
It's not as much storage (512gb compared to 1tb) - but adding storage is cheap 

And the graphics card is on model down.

But it saves a bit of money.

For Fm25 we have to wait for specs to be released.

[mikeyboy75]

Lenovo thinkpad P53 - Intel Core I5 - 9th Gen 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Nvidia

 

 

Hi guys, looking to buy a laptop to play some FM24. would this be fine to play the game? Or will I need better? Thank you.

[mikeyboy75]

44 minutes ago, mikeyboy75 said:

Lenovo thinkpad P53 - Intel Core I5 - 9th Gen 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Nvidia

 

 

Hi guys, looking to buy a laptop to play some FM24. would this be fine to play the game? Or will I need better? Thank you.

https://combrotechnology.com/products/lenovo-thinkpad-p53-intel-core-i7-9th-gen-32gb-ram-512gb-ssd-nvidia-copy?variant=43015004323980&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw5ea1BhC6ARIsAEOG5pxTXFh47ufV9KwRVQDCJ7yt7BO0XSnotYhKXZewcJx6l868K2v0kfcaAuRsEALw_wcB

[wixta79]

6 hours ago, Smurf said:

@wixta79 There's a slightly lesser model available https://www.serversdirect.co.uk/p/1877770/medion-erazer-nb-crawler-e50-intel-core-i5-16gb-512gb-rtx-4050-144hz-fhd-15.6-inch-windows-11-gaming-laptop 

For football manager it would make zero difference.
It's not as much storage (512gb compared to 1tb) - but adding storage is cheap 

And the graphics card is on model down.

But it saves a bit of money.

For Fm25 we have to wait for specs to be released.

would having the better graphics card future proof me a bit more?

[Delicate Dave]

38 minutes ago, wixta79 said:

would having the better graphics card future proof me a bit more?

Not if it's another Medion. Reliability is the biggest problem with that brand.

[kevhamster]

4 hours ago, mikeyboy75 said:

Lenovo thinkpad P53 - Intel Core I5 - 9th Gen 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Nvidia

 

 

Hi guys, looking to buy a laptop to play some FM24. would this be fine to play the game? Or will I need better? Thank you.

What I don't like is it doesn't give the actual CPU model, although a 9th generation i9 isn't going to be too bad regardless.

No idea on the graphical side of it, as although it mentions Nvidia in the title it doesn't actually say whether it has a dedicated GPU or not

So, it'll definitely run FM24 although I can't give an indication on the graphics side of it.  On the same note, impossible to say if it will be ok for FM25.

[Smurf]

11 hours ago, wixta79 said:

would having the better graphics card future proof me a bit more?

It's not enough of a difference to make a difference.

I think if you can afford the other one with the larger hard drive would be better anyway - it's a bit more expensive.

But just wanted to show you can get it a bit cheaper, but the sacrifice is less storage and a slightly (non-issue) lesser graphic card.

It's up to you.

[Smurf]

13 hours ago, mikeyboy75 said:

Lenovo thinkpad P53 - Intel Core I5 - 9th Gen 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Nvidia

Hi guys, looking to buy a laptop to play some FM24. would this be fine to play the game? Or will I need better? Thank you.

 

13 hours ago, mikeyboy75 said:

https://combrotechnology.com/products/lenovo-thinkpad-p53-intel-core-i7-9th-gen-32gb-ram-512gb-ssd-nvidia-copy?variant=43015004323980&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw5ea1BhC6ARIsAEOG5pxTXFh47ufV9KwRVQDCJ7yt7BO0XSnotYhKXZewcJx6l868K2v0kfcaAuRsEALw_wcB

 

It doesn't give the processor information - no real way to tell.

 

8 hours ago, kevhamster said:

What I don't like is it doesn't give the actual CPU model, although a 9th generation i9 isn't going to be too bad regardless.

It's not an i9 - it's an i5 9th Generation

There's 15 models of i5 processors

 

[Delicate Dave]

9 hours ago, kevhamster said:

What I don't like is it doesn't give the actual CPU model, although a 9th generation i9 isn't going to be too bad regardless.

No idea on the graphical side of it, as although it mentions Nvidia in the title it doesn't actually say whether it has a dedicated GPU or not

So, it'll definitely run FM24 although I can't give an indication on the graphics side of it.  On the same note, impossible to say if it will be ok for FM25.

Core i5-9400H

[kevhamster]

3 hours ago, Smurf said:

 

 

It doesn't give the processor information - no real way to tell.

 

It's not an i9 - it's an i5 9th Generation

There's 15 models of i5 processors

 

Thanks - I completely misread that then.  I should avoid looking at these things when I'm as tired as I was last night!

[Smurf]

2 hours ago, Delicate Dave said:

Core i5-9400H

Where'd you get that info? Just curious

12 minutes ago, kevhamster said:

Thanks - I completely misread that then.  I should avoid looking at these things when I'm as tired as I was last night!

No bother - been there !! 

[Delicate Dave]

3 hours ago, Smurf said:

Where'd you get that info? Just curious

No bother - been there !! 

We;ve all been there :-)

I got the info from the manufacturer's spec on that model, they made it with a few CPUs and that was the only i5. 

[Smurf]

3 hours ago, Delicate Dave said:

We;ve all been there :-)

I got the info from the manufacturer's spec on that model, they made it with a few CPUs and that was the only i5. 

Yes I found it too 😀 

[wixta79]

11 hours ago, Smurf said:

It's not enough of a difference to make a difference.

I think if you can afford the other one with the larger hard drive would be better anyway - it's a bit more expensive.

But just wanted to show you can get it a bit cheaper, but the sacrifice is less storage and a slightly (non-issue) lesser graphic card.

It's up to you.

I think i'm leaning towards the larger hard drive one, though whats your opinion on the reliability of medion as dave said?

[Smurf]

1 hour ago, wixta79 said:

I think i'm leaning towards the larger hard drive one, though whats your opinion on the reliability of medion as dave said?

They used to have a bad name. But I think they were taken over by Lenovo and the standard had improved. That's was about 15 years ago 

I think they're much better than they used to be. 

 

[Delicate Dave]

31 minutes ago, Smurf said:

They used to have a bad name. But I think they were taken over by Lenovo and the standard had improved. That's was about 15 years ago 

I think they're much better than they used to be. 

 

They are still two separate companies and from what I hear the reliability is still not great. But do your own research, I just would buy one, mind you I wouldn't buy another Dell either :-)

[Smurf]

13 hours ago, Delicate Dave said:

They are still two separate companies and from what I hear the reliability is still not great. But do your own research, I just would buy one, mind you I wouldn't buy another Dell either :-)

I've only bought dells for the last 3 laptops - they've been nothing but amazing for me. 

 

Horses for courses. 

Lenovo wanted a share of the European market and took over Medion for the European distribution network. 

Medion has benefited from Lenovo in terms of manufacturing and build quality.

But it's still a 'budget' laptop and the build quality may not be as good as others on the market. 

But you get what you pay for.

[Delicate Dave]

23 hours ago, Smurf said:

I've only bought dells for the last 3 laptops - they've been nothing but amazing for me. 

 

Horses for courses. 

Lenovo wanted a share of the European market and took over Medion for the European distribution network. 

Medion has benefited from Lenovo in terms of manufacturing and build quality.

But it's still a 'budget' laptop and the build quality may not be as good as others on the market. 

But you get what you pay for.

As I've said before, in my old job I bought 1,000 of computers, we used to have a contract with Compaq but switched to Dell for the price advantage. Yes the Dells were almost just as good but these were business computers. Whenever I've used the retail side I have seen issues, and I'm ok with computers getting faults, but I want it out of use not simply because of design. Dell's laptops are great till they go wrong and for that reason, I regard them as the most expensive on the market. MSI, Asus, HP are also great but when they go wrong they cost far less to fix and you only really fix them once. Look up the stories of people having to replace Dell MBs, adaptors, and power sockets it's horrendous, and mostly because Dell makes it that way. 

[Smurf]

1 hour ago, Delicate Dave said:

As I've said before, in my old job I bought 1,000 of computers, we used to have a contract with Compaq but switched to Dell for the price advantage. Yes the Dells were almost just as good but these were business computers. Whenever I've used the retail side I have seen issues, and I'm ok with computers getting faults, but I want it out of use not simply because of design. Dell's laptops are great till they go wrong and for that reason, I regard them as the most expensive on the market. MSI, Asus, HP are also great but when they go wrong they cost far less to fix and you only really fix them once. Look up the stories of people having to replace Dell MBs, adaptors, and power sockets it's horrendous, and mostly because Dell makes it that way. 

You have your experience and I have mine. 

No need to keep on about it. 

The OP can do reviews and things like that themselves.

Something I never had a luxury of back in the day - you bought a computer based on reputation and they were faulty as heck nothing you can do. 

 

These days there's so many sites and information to draw on before committing to an expensive purchase.

Unfortunately, when someone asks for a really low budget, yes they will get a low-budget laptop 

Medion are notorious for bad speakers and sound, and plastic build quality that's not great.

Dell probably have issues (I have never had any)

MSI are expensive
HP have had issues

There's not one computer on the market that is overall better than other computer.

It's all drive by your budget and your needs.

And that's all we try here - to meet the budgets to the needs for FM.

Typically people don't come here with a 2k+ budget - that's easy

Usually it's under 1000 or under
And sometimes even 500 or under

It's difficult to find an all rounder when the budget is smaller and smaller. 

So we do our best - and it's for FM only most of the time.

[Delicate Dave]

20 minutes ago, Smurf said:

You have your experience and I have mine. 

No need to keep on about it. 

The OP can do reviews and things like that themselves.

Something I never had a luxury of back in the day - you bought a computer based on reputation and they were faulty as heck nothing you can do. 

 

These days there's so many sites and information to draw on before committing to an expensive purchase.

Unfortunately, when someone asks for a really low budget, yes they will get a low-budget laptop 

Medion are notorious for bad speakers and sound, and plastic build quality that's not great.

Dell probably have issues (I have never had any)

MSI are expensive
HP have had issues

There's not one computer on the market that is overall better than other computer.

It's all drive by your budget and your needs.

And that's all we try here - to meet the budgets to the needs for FM.

Typically people don't come here with a 2k+ budget - that's easy

Usually it's under 1000 or under
And sometimes even 500 or under

It's difficult to find an all rounder when the budget is smaller and smaller. 

So we do our best - and it's for FM only most of the time.

With respect I'm not "going on about it" I said what I said and then only responded due to you objecting to what I said. Now I'll respond to your further points about the budget;

People looking to pay under around £800 today should look in the second-hand market (even more so for games like FM) and it's not simply because it's cheaper than new;

If chosen with care used have already passed the usage test. The choice is buying a 2-3 year-old laptop that's fairly used or one that has been sat in a shop or storeroom for 2 or even 3 years. And you have no way of knowing why it sat there. Was it a returned sale, was it just over stocking or was it a late production because the production line had a problem with a batch and set them aside to fix? Why is it cheap? the answer to that is seldom good in new products but almost always "I don't need it" in the second-hand market.

In some ways buying a used Laptop is less of a mystery than buying a dated but new stock one. Don't fret chap there is no right or wrong just opinions and choices so stay lucky.

 

[Smurf]

1 hour ago, Delicate Dave said:

People looking to pay under around £800 today should look in the second-hand market

Completely disagree.

[Smurf]

10 minutes ago, Smurf said:

Completely disagree.

I don't comopletely disagree.

 

As I said the goal is to find the person a suitable computer for FM.

If you recommend 2nd or refurbed machines then all good.

 

completely up to the OP if they want to go that route. 

There's plenty of options out there - this is why we are all here trying to help. 

The more people with good ideas like yours @Delicate Dave the better. 

We are all doing our best to help.

Sorry didn't mean to come across as 'counter-pointing' or anything.

[wixta79]

guys i'm a bit dubious of this medion now, even after a brief bit of research, budget being around the £800 mark whats the best i can get for that?

[Smurf]

Just now, wixta79 said:

guys i'm a bit dubious of this medion now, even after a brief bit of research, budget being around the £800 mark whats the best i can get for that?

https://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/system/asus-tuf-gaming-a15-fa507nv-lp023w-gaming-laptop

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/dell-inspiron-7630-intel-core-i7-13620h-16gb-ram-1tb-ssd-rtx-3050-16-inch-w-inspiron-7630-i7-16gb-1t/version.asp

https://www.currys.co.uk/products/msi-prestige-14h-14-laptop-intel-core-i5-512-gb-ssd-silver-10250969.html
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/asus-vivobook-16x-k3605zf-16-laptop-intel-core-i5-512-gb-ssd-silver-10251636.html

 

 

[jimmypitch1980]

Looking for some advice please, due to work I will be travelling to China extensively over the next few months. We're restricted from taking any devices with work information on so FM24 on my Macbook can't come with me (and I dont have another option). I'll be spending a lot of time on flights and in hotel rooms so keen to take FM along.

Planning to buy a second hand laptop that I will use exclusively for FM on these trips. Some points that might help:

I only play with 2D match engine. This laptop won't have anything else on it apart from Steam and FM. 

I've been looking at the £300 refurbished mark for i7, 8GB RAM and most have Intel UHD Graphics 650, will that be ok for 2D with c.50k player database?

Any other options / anything else I need to consider?

https://www.backmarket.co.uk/en-gb/p/dell-xps-9370-133-inch-2018-core-i7-8550u-8gb-ssd-256-gb-qwerty-english-uk/5e5d9517-8613-47c6-9c72-8e01ea255183#l=11

Thanks!