I'm looking for a new laptop for FSX, I would get a desktop, but I have no where to put it, plus, I like the mobility of a laptop. I've found one that looks pretty good, but I would like public opinions, plus, if anyone has this laptop, I'd be happy to know what kind of performance you're getting.

The one I'm interested in is the one on the far right:
http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-15r-n5110/pd

Let me know what you think! :)

Specs:
2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i5-2450M processor (2.50 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.10 GHz)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
15.6" High Definition (720p) LED Display with Truelife™
6GB3 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz
1TB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X Tray Load CD/DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
1 Year Basic Support
5.84 lbs

2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i5-2450M processor (2.50 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.10 GHz)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
15.6" High Definition (720p) LED Display with Truelife™
6GB3 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz
1TB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X Tray Load CD/DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
1 Year Basic Support
5.84 lbs

Nick, that's a small dual core CPU with the onboard (means 'on die') graphics. So it will work with FSX, but since that soft is very CPU limited, you shouldn't expect stellar results when it comes to dense scenery and addon planes. The graphics will only offer limited support for fluent AA settings in games, especially in cloudy FSX skies.

The OS is nice, the RAM amount is too and you can surely live with those 1tb of disk space. It's just that you will see the CPU limits approaching fast.

The laptop folks can't pick the biggest CPUs for thermal reasons (or then would have to live with a noisy fan arrangement), but maybe there's something offering some quad core and a bit of headroom on the frequency. The graphics will work, but you can't throw nice AA settings or something at them.

So maybe there's some quad core plus a dedicated Nvidia or AMD graphic chip. With that, the size may go up and the battery life down though, so it's a tradeoff of some sort.

CoolP wrote on May 20^th, 2012 at 7:04pm:

2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i5-2450M processor (2.50 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.10 GHz) Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English 15.6" High Definition (720p) LED Display with Truelife™ 6GB3 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz 1TB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive 8X Tray Load CD/DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive) Intel® HD Graphics 3000 1 Year Basic Support 5.84 lbs Nick, that's a small dual core CPU with the onboard (means 'on die') graphics. So it will work with FSX, but since that soft is very CPU limited, you shouldn't expect stellar results when it comes to dense scenery and addon planes. The graphics will only offer limited support for fluent AA settings in games, especially in cloudy FSX skies. The OS is nice, the RAM amount is too and you can surely live with those 1tb of disk space. It's just that you will see the CPU limits approaching fast. The laptop folks can't pick the biggest CPUs for thermal reasons (or then would have to live with a noisy fan arrangement), but maybe there's something offering some quad core and a bit of headroom on the frequency. The graphics will work, but you can't throw nice AA settings or something at them. So maybe there's some quad core plus a dedicated Nvidia or AMD graphic chip. With that, the size may go up and the battery life down though, so it's a tradeoff of some sort.

Well, I think it will be A LOT better than my current laptop:

http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/satellite/l500/L505-ES5018

Performance
PROCESSOR*
Intel® Pentium® Processor T4400
OPERATING SYSTEM*
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
GRAPHICS ENGINE*
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M
GRAPHICS MEMORY*
128MB-1341MB dynamically allocated shared graphics memory
Memory and Storage
MEMORY*
3GB DDR3 800MHz memory
HARD DRIVE*
320GB HDD (5400rpm, Serial ATA)
OPTICAL DRIVE*
DVD-SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) with Labelflash™ drive
Audio and Video
DISPLAY SIZE
15.6" widescreen
DISPLAY TYPE*
HD TruBrite® LCD Display
DISPLAY RESOLUTION
1366x768 (HD), 16:9 aspect ratio, Supports 720p content
AUDIO
Built-in microphone, Headphone jack (stereo), Microphone jack (mono), Standard stereo speakers

^^Yeah, I know....I wasn't considering FSX when I bought it a few years back, because I didn't have the disks for it, nor did I ever think I would have any 3rd party add-ons. It was just a casual, everyday computer.
Right now, I get about 4-7FPS, (Even with XTreme FSX Booster) No AA, and setting that should be lower....But I live with it...  :-/

4-7 fps renders you a tough guy.  :) In that case it might indeed be a large step forward. You just shouldn't combine too many addons or run AA in the clouds. I've started with FSX in a Core Duo back then, but I didn't have addons so it was ok, though not that nice or amazingly fast.

If possible, I'd still head for at least some more CPU power on your new purchase.

Nick,

I bought a new laptop a few months ago. It's a ASUS G74SX. This is a pretty fast confuser. I got it to take FSX on the road as I do some talks on board ships and my old Sony would only run FS9. This is not a laptop, but if you carry it around you don't need to go to the gym. This bad boy is big and heavy. Oh did I mention it's heavy?

It runs FSX pretty well. For example, my Captain Sim 727 in the ORBX-PNW gets 25 FPS + all the time. The computer has a built-in boost program which is easier on the processor since it only cranks the chip when it needs it and with the dual fans blowing out the back it runs cool. I use a HDMI cable to feed my HD LCD projector and the large format picture is very neat to show off FSX.

ASUS G74SX - Second generation Intel® Core™ i7 CPU and NVIDIA® GTX 560M GPU with 3GB of GDDR5 VRAM, 17.3 inch screen, about 10 pounds. I bought the largest Targus bag I could find and it just fits! It's also a power hog so I seldom run it on the batteries. But, for what I need it for it does the job.

The laptop CoolP has is also a colorful model which I considered, but it was too much computer for me!  :-?

Lou

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/580/asusz.png

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Now that's what I call a mobile FSX rig.
My guess is, that when you put it on battery only, it may ask you 'really????'  :-? and then laugh at you running for some wall outlet after 15 minutes. Seriously, I think that's a hell of a mobile gaming machine, Lou. Makes sense for FSX.

How do the prices of your two models compare? The gaming machine may not be your choice for writing your PhD thesis while sitting in the library (they will throw you out just for the noise of it), but for the gaming part of life, it may be worth a shot.


Quote:

The laptop CoolP has is also a colorful model which I considered, but it was too much computer for me!

But you liked the screensaver, didn't you?  :P

LOU wrote on May 20^th, 2012 at 8:57pm:

Nick, I bought a new laptop a few months ago. It's a ASUS G74SX. This is a pretty fast confuser. I got it to take FSX on the road as I do some talks on board ships and my old Sony would only run FS9. This is not a laptop, but if you carry it around you don't need to go to the gym. This bad boy is big and heavy. Oh did I mention it's heavy? It runs FSX pretty well. For example, my Captain Sim 727 in the ORBX-PNW gets 25 FPS + all the time. The computer has a built-in boost program which is easier on the processor since it only cranks the chip when it needs it and with the dual fans blowing out the back it runs cool. I use a HDMI cable to feed my HD LCD projector and the large format picture is very neat to show off FSX. ASUS G74SX - Second generation Intel® Core™ i7 CPU and NVIDIA® GTX 560M GPU with 3GB of GDDR5 VRAM, 17.3 inch screen, about 10 pounds. I bought the largest Targus bag I could find and it just fits! It's also a power hog so I seldom run it on the batteries. But, for what I need it for it does the job. The laptop CoolP has is also a colorful model which I considered, but it was too much computer for me!  :-? Lou http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/580/asusz.png Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Lou,
It looks like a great laptop for FSX! But sadly, its too much for me  :'( The one I showed is about as much as I'm willing to spend, I customized a dream computer on a gaming computer website, the total cost was about $9600...

CoolP,
I don't use AA at all, I was once flying a payware Bonanza A36 around the Seattle area, and FSX basically just stopped, no fatal error though, it just stopped, 0 FPS for about 10 minutes, then it would move a little, then the same thing, the finally I was able to shut AA off, I was getting about 1.5-3FPS, so that's basically when I decided I need a new computer, so that this current one wouldn't go out the window and be burn in the heat of the moment (pun intended)  ;)

The same model that I'm looking at has an i7 available, I'm sure of the speed....but it is a 17.3in with 8GB of RAM, I think that its about $150 dollars more, how do you guys think that one would work for FSX?

That i7 sounds much better, Nick. This will be a quad core and may also offer some higher frequency + Turbo mode. That big screen may also be nice and since FSX isn't too sensitive on the actual resolution (in doesn't lose much power at high res), you should be good to go.

Nick, the ASUS G74SX sells for around 1,500 or so at Best Buy. Maybe less when on sale.

Extra long power cord included!  :P

LOU wrote on May 21^st, 2012 at 3:16am:

Nick, the ASUS G74SX sells for around 1,500 or so at Best Buy. Maybe less when on sale. Extra long power cord included!  :P

As much as I would like to get it, it is way over my limit    :'(
The i7 is really pushing it, but it does sounds pretty nice  :)

I saw the ASUS G74SX selling for $AU2499 in a computer store in Melbourne, yet it is available through E-bay for under $AU1500 by quite a lot of sellers (some were as low as $AU1295). They were all brand new, no second hand ones. So I'm sure if you look hard enough, you will find a cheap one.

---

I could grab the laptop (some i5 model) from my girlfriend and see how it runs FSX. Just for the fun of it. Ok, I would lose my girlfriend then, so I'm not sure.  :-/ Maybe I'll postpone that project and just move those Sims3 savegames to see what happens.  :P

I looked today at Best Buy for the i7 17.3in model, turns out it was just the same, with the exception of 8GBs of RAM, and a 750GB HDD instead of 1TB. Plus, it was more expensive. The only Dell i7 laptop model if found was a 14 inch XPS. Which was about 1100 dollars, a lot more than I want to spend. So I think I'll just go with my original choice and see how FSX runs. I eventually want to upgrade the RAM to 8GBs of Corsair Vengeance @ 1600Mhz, but I'm not sure if it would work or not with that computer, do any of you happen to know if it would? Or where I could find out if it would?  :)

Needs more RAM.

Jared_Maurtua wrote on May 26^th, 2012 at 10:37pm:

Needs more RAM.

8 Gigs is all it holds, which is what I'll upgrade it to.

Nick,
The biggest improvement I saw, besides a faster processor was the change to a SSD.
The SSD is a lot faster than the old storage hard drive and even a little tweak in the processor speed will yield more FPS.
Lou

If I recall correctly FSX can only access 4Gb of ram, so 8Gb is more than adequate--- for the game.

Also an ssd won't do anything for FSX other than load the game faster. Does nothing for actual game-play.  Nice that you don't ever defrag an ssd though.

btscott wrote on May 27^th, 2012 at 2:48pm:

If I recall correctly FSX can only access 4Gb of ram, so 8Gb is more than adequate--- for the game.

If that is the case, how come the performance of FSX, increases as I add more RAM, or decreases if I remove RAM? I'm pretty sure that the performance changes I notice in FSX are not imaginary, but are real.

Hey, Mark----From the very beginning Nick Needham and the rest of the FSX/hardware gurus have said that FSX can only make use of 4gigs of ram. I can't explain your perception of increased performance with more ram, but they could if you posed the question on either the Sim Forum (where Nick resides) or on the AVSIM Hardware Forum. Lots of knowledgeable folks there.

Cheers!

Bruce

Mark --- Found this thread over at AVSIM. You may have to register to read it if you are not already a member.

http://forum.avsim.net/topic/374015-how-much-ram-for-fsx-on-win7-x64-in-a-sandy-bridge-setup/

Here's one reply though:

"Thought I would add a quote from NickN's article on Setting Up FSX and Tuning It:  "FSX is a 32bit application and as such even when run in a 64bit operating system memory amounts greater than 4GB will be of little use to FSX directly, however, when applied with a 64bit OS and i7 FSX SP2 (or RTM/SP1 with edited fsx.exe files) will be allowed access to a full 4GB with other processes and applications running along side having access to more (over and above). Therefore 6GB (3x2GB) i7 systems as addons and aircraft become more complicated will benefit FSX on a 64bit OS. If you switch to i7 you are far better off on 3x2GB than 3x1GB in system memory.""

Nick's FSX tuning guide can be found here:

http://www.simforums.com/forums/topic29041.html

It's the FSX Bible so to speak.

Bruce

Well you lost me with that second thread from avsim...

I have been planning a new PC package, I was thinking I would benefit from 8 gb and windows 64 bit OS? Or would I be alright with 6?
Price is nearly the same so i'll be going with 8 I guess.

AC Guy --- Well, there are actually 2 guides in that thread. One is for tweaking W7(turning off features that use resources) and the other is for installing and setting up FSX.

I think most folks have 8Gb(2x4Gb) of ram. When I ordered my new I5-2500k pc last August the hot setup was 2x4Gb DDR3 1600Mhz with cls7 timings, which I have.

I am not a tech guy, but I read all those threads religiously and am just repeating it like a parrot! Since Flight was announced(bummer) I have not followed the AVSIM Hardware forum quite as closely, but there have been no really significant advances in hardware since I got my latest box.

Some folks have 12 and even 16Gb of ram, but for FSX 8Gb seems quite adequate. That's the conventional wisdom anyway.

Really, the best source of info is Nick's guide and the AVSIM FSX and Hardware Forums. Check out the other forums at AVSIM too. Most hardcore (I'm not one) guys are there. I think their registered membership is around 75,000(can't remember exactly).


Bruce

I DID get a better performance from FSX when I added another 4GB of RAM, so 8GB is definitely better than 4GB. ;)

Yes, 8Gb IS better than 4Gb. Fsx can only use 4 by itself, but another 2Gb is apparently used by W7 64 and can be used by addons such as CS and other programs.

What I understood, though, is that 8Gb is more than can be used in total by FSX and any addons. Again, I'm not the guy to try to explain this. I'm just a monkey see-- monkey do guy! That's why I got 8Gb when I ordered a new FSX pc.

If you read the guide you'll know why you got better performance when you added the 2nd 4Gb.

Here's a whole slue of ram usage discussion threads on AVSIM.

http://www.google.com/search?q=FSX%20ram%20usage&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&source=hp&channel=np#hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=Qhk&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=np&q=+site:forum.avsim.net+FSX+ram+usage&sa=X&ei=XLzDT97ZAeWasgKEx8HZCQ&ved=0CFwQrQIwAA&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=7e31dd1cd0ae5982&biw=1580&bih=1003

The computer has changed a little, everything is the same except for, the hard drive, graphics card, and price.
It is no $650USD vs $600USD before.
The graphics card is now an AMD Radeon™ HD 6470M (64-bit) 512MB (Dual)
vs Intel® HD Graphics 3000
And the hard drive has been reduced from 1TB to 750GBs.

What do you guys think now?  :o

Nick, FSX needs a strong CPU to run well. Did I already mention that it needs a strong CPU?  :P

So if you spend more on the GPU, you may gain some headroom for antialiasing and things, but the framerates at airports will still be low since the CPU limits that scenario. No doubt, your new system will be better than the old one though. However, if you spend more or reduce other things like the disk size, do so for getting a better CPU.

Ever thought about buying used hardware? You know, some gamer guy getting rid of his 6 months old rig for the new thingies. Maybe even some shops offer used stuff and if you see some with a nice i7 processor, it's yours.  ;)

Geez, btscott, now that's what I call a long link.  :o  ;D

Reason why FSX doesn't do anything with higher then 4 GB is because its a 32-bit program, and 32-bit programs cannot handle more then 3.5 GB. 8 GB is good since you let the OS use it's own portion of RAM leaving enough for FSX :)

Ok, I see what you mean. Any other programs running, including the OS will use (let's say you have 8gb ram) the other 4. Possibly any addons you have on FSX, too. FSX will use only about 4. So the 8 is worth it.

CoolP wrote on May 30^th, 2012 at 9:37am:

Nick, FSX needs a strong CPU to run well. Did I already mention that it needs a strong CPU?  :P So if you spend more on the GPU, you may gain some headroom for antialiasing and things, but the framerates at airports will still be low since the CPU limits that scenario. No doubt, your new system will be better than the old one though. However, if you spend more or reduce other things like the disk size, do so for getting a better CPU. Ever thought about buying used hardware? You know, some gamer guy getting rid of his 6 months old rig for the new thingies. Maybe even some shops offer used stuff and if you see some with a nice i7 processor, it's yours.  ;) Geez, btscott, now that's what I call a long link.  :o  ;D

I tried to find an i7 model, but they don't have any for this type of laptop. The only ones they have are XPSs and Alienware products are too expensive. But, will a more powerful graphics card also clear up the blurriness in cockpit, such as the gauges being hard to read without zooming in?

Nick you say this is your video resolution: DISPLAY RESOLUTION
1366x768 (HD), 16:9 aspect ratio, Supports 720p content

I'm running my resolution at 1920 X 1080 on a large screen. Instruments look fine.
If I remember, CS did their modeling at even higher resolution. A lot higher.

I guess the long and the short of it is a lap-top is a limiting factor.  :-?

Lou

Yes sir. I would recommend going with a desktop. Much easier to customize and upgrade.  ;)

Unless you need it to portable then, well you have no choice I guess!

wrote on May 30^th, 2012 at 6:24pm:

Yes sir. I would recommend going with a desktop. Much easier to customize and upgrade.  ;) Unless you need it to portable then, well you have no choice I guess!

I do need it to be portable, nor do I have room for a desktop.

As said, I think the new system will run FSX better than your old one either way, Nick. If the budget limits you to a smaller model, there's no problem. Some 64 bit OS is vital, some 8gb of RAM are cool and the disk will also fit. Some i7 would be 'la crème' (and help on fps), but you are right, they may not sell them cheaply.

Do you have a joystick or yoke or something by the way?

CoolP wrote on May 31^st, 2012 at 12:05pm:

As said, I think the new system will run FSX better than your old one either way, Nick. If the budget limits you to a smaller model, there's no problem. Some 64 bit OS is vital, some 8gb of RAM are cool and the disk will also fit. Some i7 would be 'la crème' (and help on fps), but you are right, they may not sell them cheaply. Do you have a joystick or yoke or something by the way?

Yes, I do. I have a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro. Also I have a small folding table where I put my laptop, and a rocking chair  ;) I just move the table, computer, and yoke all as one when I want to. I like the portability of a laptop, because sometimes we'll go visit family for a week or so, (and of course I'll want to fly during that week). Sometime I'll just grab my laptop, and fly a quick traffic pattern or something while we're on the highway!  ;D

Quote:

Sometime I'll just grab my laptop, and fly a quick traffic pattern or something while we're on the highway!

Don't drive and fly. Wait!  :o I like the idea of a mobile FSX platform. Got some very old laptop here, running default FSX and a few of my planes. For IFR, that works, but don't look out of the window.  ;D

RE Ram useage:

In the *beat a dead horse* dept. While reading about GEX on Sim Forums I found this from Nick Needham, Co-Author of GEX and the ultimate Guru on FSX and hardware, which was posted just today.

"I wish to point out that although FSX wont use more than 4GB if its FSX SP2 or Acceleration, the OS and other booted programs can and WILL EXCEED the 4GB need, therefore if a system is a dual channel memory system its best to have 8GB (2x4GB) in the system, 4 for FSX directly and the rest for OS and any other application running

If the system is tri-channel then 6GB (3x2GB)

any more than 6-8GB is in fact a waste unless the system is used for graphics, audio/video and engineering production work

the notion that 4GB is all that is needed is false. A system will run better on more than 4GB with FSX since it can dedicate the entire 4GB to FSX and have a lot to spare for the OS and other applications which can easily demand 1.5 gig more than FSX


As for installing FSX..  if you have 2 mechancial drives, USE THEM. One for the OS and installed applications, the other for FSX and installed addons. Do NOT partition a drive and put FSX on another partition."


                                                                     

---

I've got the new laptop! I'm currently setting it up, no FSX yet. But I'll be sure to post some screen shots and performance data!

Congratulations, Nick. Awaiting your reports. Would be nice reading about another simmer with an improved performance and, therefore, more fun with the game.

I completed an IFR test flight with the 767 Captain. (Wow. Frame killer.)

The whole flight I was getting between 10-15FPS which was OK, but I'm getting 30-40 with other aircraft. The flight was from JFK and I arrived in MIA. The FPS were consistent, and I did not notice a drop when I got closer to, or arrived at the airport. My settings are pretty high (Looks SO much better), and they load pretty fast, as well.  I can finally use Anti-Aliasing  without FSX turning into a picture. And it really makes the experience better! I'll be trying my other payware products out, to see what kind of FPS I get with them. Now that I have FSX Gold, I enjoy flying the Mustang, and I get very good FPS with it, around 30-50. With some tests, My FPS maxed at 64, but that only lasted a tenth of a second. I was goofing around with the F-18, Pulling some (Highly unrealistic) maneuvers, And I captured a screenshot, so, I will post a picture of that, and my 767 flight. More info to come!
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5447/7180332075_8bed55c21c_b.jpg
N388AA on final for 8L @ KMIA

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7237/7180355555_28f50f8eec_b.jpg
Climbed to FL700, then dove straight down, shot by an oil rig at 1400Kias..Then started this turn. Check of the G's, And the FPS!  ;D


-Nick

Sounds like a good start.  :) Did you disable the cabin in the 767? This helps a lot on the fps. Just say goodbye to the passengers before you do it, ok?

24 G, that's nice. You must feel very flat now.  ;D

I didn't disable the cabin, Thanks for the tip though, I'll try it out and see what kind of results I get. And yes, I was squished! ;)

Get higher speed RAM.  Your motherboard is the most important, so it should support a variety of speeds.

Sven2157 wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2012 at 2:12am:

Get higher speed RAM.  Your motherboard is the most important, so it should support a variety of speeds.

I want to get 8GBs @ 1600mhz some day.