I have a laptop that I’d like to be able to play Civ IV on, but I’m not sure if I can.
I have the RAM to play it, and of course the hard drive space, but I’m worried about the video card. It’s an ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 with 32 MB of on-board RAM. It claims on the ATI website that the memory can be increased to 64 MB with an external upgrade. Is that possible with a laptop, or will I have to find a different video card to put in it? Finally, if I do have to pu another video card in it, how cumbersome is that? I’ve done plenty of hardware upgrades on a desktop, but never a laptop.
Any suggestions or ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.
Fiddling with laptop upgrades is a bit more tricky than with desktops because a lot of that stuff is blanketed by other components. But you should be able to find a guide online to swapping out. If I were you, I would look to at least jump into the 9000 series of GPU’s. May want to consider a mobile R9200 which should suit your purposes. I wouldn’t upgrade just the memory because your core speeds are still gonna be the same.
The bottom line is that the R7000 series is just not gonna accomplish much outside of basic applications. It’s a decent card but you’re better off making a jump to a 9000/9200.
Edited to note: If you DO plan on upgrading, I highly recommend using the Sale/Trade forum at [URL=http://www.anandtech.com]http://www.anandtech.com[/URL] I buy virtually all of my used hardware from there and others here can vouch for the traders there. Just put up a request as to what you want and you’ll get some offers. And the tech support there is fantastic so you could also get a step-by-step on swapping. You can also try Ebay but the ATT folks are far more trustworthy IMO. With that said, there is a Mobility 9200 on ebay right now that was yanked from a V505EX. Couple R9000 Mobiles as well.
What kind of laptop is it (brand, model, etc)?
I just bought a Compaq a few months ago that comes with ATI’s latest “mobile” video card. It’s not swappable, but it does allow for me to set the RAM allocated to it via the BIOS. Maybe it’s something like that (and you just need more RAM). I’m able to play Star Wars: Battlefront on it and others said they can play similar games, but not the latest stuff obviously (Doom3, Far Cry, etc).
It’s an IBM Thinkpad T42.
I flipped through the BIOS but didn’t see anything.
Unless my Video card has a configurable BIOS that I’m not aware of, I think I need
to replace the card. Maybe i just need to bite the bullet and get a new desktop since this was never intended for more than lab work/2D image manipulation from the microscopy we do.
I have a laptop that I'd like to be able to play Civ IV on, but I'm not sure if I can.
I have the RAM to play it, and of course the hard drive space, but I’m worried about the video card. It’s an ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 with 32 MB of on-board RAM. It claims on the ATI website that the memory can be increased to 64 MB with an external upgrade. Is that possible with a laptop, or will I have to find a different video card to put in it? Finally, if I do have to pu another video card in it, how cumbersome is that? I’ve done plenty of hardware upgrades on a desktop, but never a laptop.
Any suggestions or ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.
VERY few laptops have an upgradeable video card. They should but they don’t. I’m fairly certain IBm has none that are upgradeable. Playing games on laptops is just not an easy thing. Generally you have to play older games on laptops because they just don’t have enough graphics horse power for current gen games.
With this laptop, there is probably a bios option (system) that allows you to use more of your system memory for video instead as that is what most laptops do as they dont’ have any dedicated video memory.
Your best bet is just to load it up and try it. Worst case, it just doesn’t run. Best case is it will run, although it may not look that great.
[QUOTE=jcl49er;139882]Fiddling with laptop upgrades is a bit more tricky than with desktops because a lot of that stuff is blanketed by other components. But you should be able to find a guide online to swapping out. If I were you, I would look to at least jump into the 9000 series of GPU’s. May want to consider a mobile R9200 which should suit your purposes. I wouldn’t upgrade just the memory because your core speeds are still gonna be the same.
The bottom line is that the R7000 series is just not gonna accomplish much outside of basic applications. It’s a decent card but you’re better off making a jump to a 9000/9200.
Edited to note: If you DO plan on upgrading, I highly recommend using the Sale/Trade forum at [URL=http://www.anandtech.com]http://www.anandtech.com[/URL] I buy virtually all of my used hardware from there and others here can vouch for the traders there. Just put up a request as to what you want and you’ll get some offers. And the tech support there is fantastic so you could also get a step-by-step on swapping. You can also try Ebay but the ATT folks are far more trustworthy IMO. With that said, there is a Mobility 9200 on ebay right now that was yanked from a V505EX. Couple R9000 Mobiles as well.[/QUOTE]
^- This post needs a “good post” graphic here. -^
Since its the ultimate goal of this post… I’ve never played a Civ game before (not quite sure how I accomplished that), and got Civ4 a week ago. Pretty sweet game. I’m slowly getting hooked.
This is the best I could find after a few mins. digging:
"The system can support up to 64MB of video memory, between its integrated memory and external memory supplied by the laptop vendor. "
So it does sound like it might be in the BIOS somewhere…I think mine is just under “Video” or something. I can look when I get home. You might be able to dig around on ati’s site for info, too.
The more I think about it, though, your problem is probably not with RAM per se but more with the card itself. Desktops are pretty cheap these days and Black Friday is coming up, too!
It's an IBM Thinkpad T42.
I flipped through the BIOS but didn't see anything.
Unless my Video card has a configurable BIOS that I'm not aware of, I think I need
to replace the card. Maybe i just need to bite the bullet and get a new desktop since this was never intended for more than lab work/2D image manipulation from the microscopy we do.
NLP, I can build ya a decent rig (desktop) to custom-suit your needs if you want to get away from the lappy. Or you can just get a Dell if you don’t mind them. Personally I can’t stand them. Only downside to custom building is the lack of tech support but I like fixing things myself anyway.
If you’re gonna get into any decent gaming Mac’s right: you’re wasting your time trying to do it on a pad. Some of the manufacturers are finally coming out with some very high-end gaming laptops but you’ll pay big time for them. For what you would spend on a mid-range gaming laptop, you could have a high-end gaming desktop.
Bios’ differ but there should be an allocation option in there for your video memory so that you can utilize more off the system itself. Just dig around in there and you’ll see it. If you screw something up, just set everything back to default.
Alienware was making laptops with swappable graphics card bays. They might still be doing it. Clevo is the manufacturer - you can probably find the same machines without the Alienware badges for $500 less at other locations. Discountlaptops.com and powernotebooks.com are two of the leading clevo dealers.
Otherwise, it is nearly impssoble to swap graphics chips on laptops as they are 90% of the time built onboard the motherboard.
jcl49er’s absolutely right about the benefits of building your own rather than buying one in the store. I had my computer built 3 years ago by ikonpc and I’m still loving it.
jcl, I just might take you up on that offer sometime in the near future.
Civ is short for the Civilization series by Sid Meier.
The last version just came out (Civilization IV).
Rumor has it though it’s been a bit buggy since they wanted to get it out at the same time as Microsoft’s Empire building game, Ages of Empires III.
Both new games are heavy on the 3D rendering, so people have been worried about whether their systems can optimally support gameplay.
jcl, I just might take you up on that offer sometime in the near future.
Civ is short for the Civilization series by Sid Meier.
The last version just came out (Civilization IV).
Rumor has it though it's been a bit buggy since they wanted to get it out at the same time as Microsoft's Empire building game, Ages of Empires III.
Both new games are heavy on the 3D rendering, so people have been worried about whether their systems can optimally support gameplay.
And thanks everyone for all the responses.
Just let me know. For gaming, custom building is the only way to go so that you’re not paying for garbage you don’t need or you’re not too weak in one area (like RAM/GPU) but okay in others (like CPU/HDD). Sure, you can buy a complete, retail desktop system these days for $350 but you’re gonna get $hitty RAM, probably a Celeron CPU and a GPU that will struggle to play already-outdated games. I’ve built my last few from the ground up and have never had a problem.
If you are the least bit serious about gaming, keep your laptop for all your basic applications and have a custom desktop built to suit your more-graphic intensive apps. Great thing about the gaming industry is that the hardcores upgrade 1-2 times a year to maximize the software/engines. So that leaves some very solid mid-high range hardware available for really good prices. Amazing at how cheap you can get a very capable GPU these days as long as you aren’t the type that needs to play with 16x AF/AA and the resolution maxed out.
I havent had a pre-built PC since about 1997 NLP. Built/upgraded everything myself (been through about 4 setups). Right now I have an overclocked Athlon 64 3500+ based system with 2GB of PC3200 DDR (corsair w/ the mostly for show heat spreaders on them), a couple of fast hard drives, a GeForce 6800 OC gpu, and, of course, my beloved Dell 2005fpw 20" widescreen LCD. It rocks for Battlefield 2, and would play the pants off of CIV IV.
It’s not nearly as hard or as Frankenstein as you’d think. About my only tradeoff is that I have a beige case and everything else is black. And I almost built myself a mini-black pc to replace the aging beige box. Probably will next go around. I just like all the extra drive bays.
NA, ditch that case and splurge on a Thermaltake VA8000BWS (Armor Series). :drool::drool::drool: Plenty of bays for ya too. The Shark is sweet as well but even more expensive.
Yeah, building rigs from the ground up seems like a nightmare until you actually do one. And then you’re like “I actually pay Dell/Gateway, etc. to do this???” Only trouble I’ve ever run into is with a buddy who opted for one of those overpriced fancy towers with about a gazillion LED/lights/fans/LCD displays, etc. on it. Was a pain in the ass getting all those wired up correctly to the mobo but I have to admit that it looked sweet once we fired her up. Lit the room up like a Christmas tree.
I like the more simplistic look but I do love my Coolermaster Aerogate II.
I built my rig a couple months back in the Antec Sonata case. Talk about quiet. Not to mention 120mm > 80mm fans. Sleek, shiney black all the way around, with some blue led on the front.
Next rig I buy/make will probably be a SFF machine of some sort.
[b]You Might Be a Computer Nerd if...
[/b]Your web page is more popular than you.
Your favorite sport is Tetris.
You know what fuzzy logic is.
You talk to your computer.
When given a choice, you look at Computer Shopper instead of Playboy.
You argue with your computer.
Your computer has its own phone line.
You have dreams involving your computer.
You try to pick up women on chat lines.
You can talk to a woman about your hardware and not mean anything sexual.
You spend Friday nights with your computer.
You ask a woman for her email address instead of her phone number.
You've never actually met many of your friends.
You remember how to use DOS.
You think Bill Gates is "a cool guy."
Only computer users can understand you.
Your home page is longer than your resume.
You've ever installed Linux.
You've missed the X-Files because you wanted to play on your computer.
You always understand Dilbert.
You regularly drink Jolt cola.
You spend more time on the Internet than you do sleeping.
You have multiple email addresses.
You've ever setup a LAN in your house.
You understood the above statement.
You search the Internet for computer humor.
Your idea of hurrying is typing faster.
You keep spare mouse pads.
You buy your computer gifts.
You've ever been dumped for paying too much attention to your computer.
Someone mentions foreign language and you think "Cobol".
You regularly use a tape backup on files you have the original disks for.
You get a new computer, take it out of the box, and you immediately remove the case.
You have ever called home to check on your computer.
You do processes in DOS instead of Windows not because it is faster, but because it just confuses people.
You've ever considered getting a tattoo of the "Intel Inside" logo.
You have a pet name for your computer, but not one for your penis.
You know every law about computer piracy by heart, because you've been convicted on all of them.
You no longer interact with your family, you send them email instead; in the same house.
You check your email before you check your answering machine.
You can program the next best thing to Windows, but you still can't get your VCR to stop flashing.
You have more insurance on your computer than on your children.
You receive more chat requests than phone calls.
You stopped paying for call waiting because it kept knocking you off-line.
You don't immediately go into gibbering panic when you hear of a new computer virus.
You've ever emailed your assignment in to your professor.
You've ever tried to see how far you can move the mouse without turning off the screen saver.
You have dialed 911 and faxed them your problem.
You call in sick to work over your computer.
Your first aid kit contains Norton's Anti-Virus.
You know what the acronyms HTML, URL, ISP, and HTTP each stand for.
You tinker with computers at work all day, and when you finally get off work, you rush home to tinker with your computer.
You dedicate your home page to your favorite actress in hopes that she will see it and desire to meet you.
You have more than one home page.
The closest you ever come to having sex is downloading nude pictures off of the Internet.
You have a better computer system at home than at work.
You get jealous when other people use your computer.
You run back into your burning home to rescue your computer, but you leave the dog.
You know exactly how much hard drive space you have free, but you don't know your spouse's birthday.
You run Windows 95 and Windows 3.1 just because you can.
You have the high score on Jezz Ball.
You know what word 31337 stands for.
You keep spare computer parts around the house.
If you have more drives than there are letters in the alphabet.
If you have to run software to use all of your RAM.
If you have more data CDs than music CDs.
When you buy music CDs you find yourself checking for the "Designed for Windows 95" logo.
You run a Windows 3.1 interface inside of Windows 95.
Your sound card cost more than your stereo.
Your computer has more processors than com ports.
Your computer boots to the theme of Hackers.
