laptop on a budget

L

leboeuf

Member
new lappy needed - budget £500

everyday use - used for internet browsing ( eg: youtube, netflix, and watching live football)

must be able to run football manager too.

any suggestions for a specific one, or specifications needed?

cheers
 
Stephen M

Stephen M

Author Level
What sort of RAM and GPU does Football manager need, in general you will not get a gaming laptop on that budget but for the other stuff you should find one.
 
L

leboeuf

Member
Stephen M said:
What sort of RAM and GPU does Football manager need, in general you will not get a gaming laptop on that budget but for the other stuff you should find one.
Click to expand...

thanks for your reply Stephen. Hope the info below helps

Windows

OS: Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 Intel Core AMD Athlon 2.2GHz+
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: NVidia GeForce FX 5900 Ultra ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Intel GMA X3100 256MB VRAM
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Hard Drive: 3 GB available space


Mac OS X

OS: Mac OS X 10.7, 10.8, 10.9, 10.10
Processor: Intel Core 1.8GHz+
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: NVidia GeForce 7300 GT ATI Radeon X1600 Pro Intel GMA X3100 256MB VRAM OpenGL 2.0 compliant
Hard Drive: 3 GB available space


SteamOS + Linux

OS: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS Linux
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 Intel Core AMD Athlon 1.8GHz+
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: NVidia GeForce 7300 GT AMD Radeon HD 2400 Pro Intel HD 3000/4000 256MB VRAM OpenGL 2.0 compliant
Hard Drive: 3 GB available space


Additional Notes:

Earlier cards may only display 2D Match Viewer Mode and are not supported. Earlier cards may require the DirectX 9.0 SDK is installed to run the game. Laptop versions of these chipsets may work but are not supported.
 
Stephen M

Stephen M

Author Level
It seems FM is Linux compatible (http://www.gamingonlinux.com/articles/football-manager-2015-will-support-linux-again.4131/), I am not a gamer so this is only stuff I have quickly looked up. It may be worth checking further as if you are willing to go down that route it will immediately free up £79, the price of the Microsoftt licence. Plus things like Libre Office are also free and do everything that normal expensive Office does. Linux is not great for most gamers as nearly all games are not compatible with it but it may be worth looking at.
Do you have an old machine you can try things on, something like Ubuntu is really easy to install as a dual boot and would give you a chance to see what it is like. You can also run Ubuntu "live" from a USB or DVD without installing but it will be a lot slower. There are many other good Linux distros, i have said Ubuntu as it is my preferred OS and more easily offer advice about it.
 
S

saf94

Member
You don't need a good GPU for Football Manager as the matchday view is not very graphics intensive. What's more important is the processor or, and this is my recommendation, having an SSD. An SSD will run all the calculations extremely quickly and thus will do all the match simulating, other fixtures simulating and general loading very very quickly. This is the best way to get an enjoyable FM experience.

Any decent GPU should be fine, not sure how an integrated GPU would do but I've played FM with poor graphics cards and it's mostly the processor that was the issue for me.
 
L

leboeuf

Member
saf94 said:
You don't need a good GPU for Football Manager as the matchday view is not very graphics intensive. What's more important is the processor or, and this is my recommendation, having an SSD. An SSD will run all the calculations extremely quickly and thus will do all the match simulating, other fixtures simulating and general loading very very quickly. This is the best way to get an enjoyable FM experience.

Any decent GPU should be fine, not sure how an integrated GPU would do but I've played FM with poor graphics cards and it's mostly the processor that was the issue for me.
Click to expand...

thanks for that.
im really not computer literate, which is why i need help.

somebody gave me some specs a while back, but i wanna know if theyre sufficient? :

dual processor

2.1 - 2.4 ghz

i5 processor

750gb+ hard disk

8gb ram
 
S

saf94

Member
leboeuf said:
thanks for that.
im really not computer literate, which is why i need help.

somebody gave me some specs a while back, but i wanna know if theyre sufficient? :

dual processor

2.1 - 2.4 ghz

i5 processor

750gb+ hard disk

8gb ram
Click to expand...

So I'm not a complete expert on computers either however looking at that spec, a decent i5 is more than enough for Football manager. However again I would recommend instead of a traditional hard disk getting an SSD. An SSD is basically a hard drive that can read and write data much much much quicker. For football manager where most of the game is calculating data having an SSD would make all those simulations go 5x quicker. SSD's are however more expensive than a HDD (normal hard drive) for the same storage space.

However if you can afford it I would recommend getting a custom build from this site and getting a 120gb SSD and a 500gb HDD as a second hard drive. Obviously weigh it up if you can afford it. If you can't though then an i5 on its own should be good for Football Manager.
 
L

leboeuf

Member
saf94 said:
So I'm not a complete expert on computers either however looking at that spec, a decent i5 is more than enough for Football manager. However again I would recommend instead of a traditional hard disk getting an SSD. An SSD is basically a hard drive that can read and write data much much much quicker. For football manager where most of the game is calculating data having an SSD would make all those simulations go 5x quicker. SSD's are however more expensive than a HDD (normal hard drive) for the same storage space.

However if you can afford it I would recommend getting a custom build from this site and getting a 120gb SSD and a 500gb HDD as a second hard drive. Obviously weigh it up if you can afford it. If you can't though then an i5 on its own should be good for Football Manager.
Click to expand...


thanks mate. i could do that. but have no idea of the other specs to custom build :p
 
S

saf94

Member
leboeuf said:
thanks mate. i could do that. but have no idea of the other specs to custom build :p
Click to expand...

Well I was the same as you before I ordered my custom laptop from here, I had no idea what any of the specs meant or what was best. Thing is all the options they give you are very good and they don't overload you with 50 options for each part so it's not too difficult. You can always have a go at a build and post it in the check my spec section of this forum and people will give you very good advice and will guide you in building the best laptop.

Give it a go and because PC Specialist offer excellent prices due to their business model, you can get great specs for a lower price than anywhere else.

As a start you can try a build with this one https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/cosmosIV-15/ For around £550 you can get everything you need and better, alternatively if you dont buy it with an operating system you can get it for under £500
 
I

ihavenoideawhatiamdoing

Rising Star
Chassis & Display
Cosmos Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 6300HQ (2.3GHz, 3.2GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
4GB Kingston SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 940M - 2.0GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 12
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB WD BLACK 2.5" WD5000LPLX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8260 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11BGN) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Cosmos Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (48.84WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 90W AC Adaptor
Keyboard Language
COSMOS SERIES UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 13 to 15 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £593.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/cosmosIV-15/My7qgrMHS9/
 
S

saf94

Member
Re my last post, here's the spec I would do, cost: £545

Chassis & Display
Cosmos Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i3 Dual Core Processor i3-6100H (2.70GHz) 3MB Cache
Memory (RAM)
4GB Kingston SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 940M - 2.0GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 12
1st Hard Disk
120GB SAMSUNG 650 SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 540MB/sR | 450MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA II 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (5,400rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
2nd/3rd HDD HARD DRIVE OPTICAL BAY CADDY (12.7mm)
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Wireless/Wired Networking
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8260 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11BGN) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Cosmos Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (48.84WH)
Power Cable
1 x UK Power Lead & 90W AC Adaptor
Keyboard Language
COSMOS SERIES UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
DVD Recovery Media
Windows 10 (64-bit) Home DVD with paper sleeve
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 13 to 15 working days
Quantity
1
 
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