Hey,
I've been lookin for a new MMO to play, and LOTRO seems the most appealing. However, my only real computer right now is my IBM Thinkpad R52 Laptop.
I'm worried that I'm going to buy the game only to find that my computer crashes every 20 minutes of game-play.
Specs:
1 GB RAM
1.73GHZ Pentium M
64MB ATI x300 (might be 128mb but im almost positive x300's dont come above 64mb - unless they are SE, which this is not).
-It runs WoW virtually flawlessly, never crashing.
-It runs DAoC, but crashes to reboot every hour or two of gameplay.
-The EQ2 demo seemed to run fine, but would spontaneously reboot every 20 minutes of gameplay on the dot.
My video card appears to clearly be the issue here, because the games run fine...fine...fine... then my computer suddenly reboots (in the case of EQ2, it prompts me with a video hardware error then crashes).
But then again new games like WoW have never had a problem and run perfectly.
I would not mind at all running the game on lowest video setting, but i fear even that wont solve the problem. I dont want to dish out the cash for the game only to find it wont run (I'm a broke college student... cant really buy a new desktop either).
Also, the Catalyst Drivers wont work with my laptop... I already tried installing catalyst and it just redirected me to IBM... who has no updated drivers for the x300.
Has anybody attempted playing with an ATI radeon x300? It seems like it could be a hit or miss, and it would be good to know ahead of time.
Any insight at all would be much appreciated.
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Tupacalipse - DAoC - Merlin, 50 RR6 Shadowblade - (retired - 2003)
Tupacalipse - SWG, Master Fencer(retired - 2004)
Tupacalipse - WoW - Spirestone, 49 Mage (casual)
Tupacalipse - SWG, Master Fencer(retired - 2004)
Tupacalipse - WoW - Spirestone, 49 Mage (casual)
I have no experience with that particular card but the reason WoW runs well and the others do not is because WoW is actually fairly scaled down. It is nowhere near as demanding as EQ2 when it comes to graphics processing.
I would think that you will probably have similar issues with LOTRO since it is fairly demanding. My laptop has the same ATI X700 pro that my desktop does, just the mobile version and it will hiccup now and then at the higher settings but overall smooth gameplay.
Also, 1gb of RAM is a bit low tbh, might want to bump it to 2gb if you can do so within your budget.
I would think that you will probably have similar issues with LOTRO since it is fairly demanding. My laptop has the same ATI X700 pro that my desktop does, just the mobile version and it will hiccup now and then at the higher settings but overall smooth gameplay.
Also, 1gb of RAM is a bit low tbh, might want to bump it to 2gb if you can do so within your budget.
Fear not death, for the sooner we are dead, the sooner we will become immortal - Ben Franklin
It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm wearing milkbone underwear.
It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm wearing milkbone underwear.
Tsakiera wrote:
Also, 1gb of RAM is a bit low tbh, might want to bump it to 2gb if you can do so within your budget.
Also, keep in mind 99% of video cards in laptops share ram with the system... so that means you think you have 1gig, but your video card is taking up 64megs of that too. Not a big hit of course, but something to keep in mind when buying ram for laptops.
As for the OP... it will probably run as it meets the minimum requirements for the game... but how well it runs is up for debate. Like Tsakiera said, LotRO is much more intensive then WoW. I don't think it's as intensive as EQ2, but it is up there for sure. So, you'll probably end up turning everything down a lot, and still be lagging a bit in crowded areas. Just a guess of course, but based on what i've seen of the game settings and how well my desktop handles it...
In a distant land, sink into the darkness...
This game won't play anywhere decent on that equipment. Sorry to say. Videocard won't output more than a few frames per second. Memory will be filled for 100% and that CPU will be burning hot, even while it should be as good as a 3 Ghz normal P4.
And even if you might get it to work expect lousy graphics, low-poly models and massive lag when walking around in busy areas like the town of Bree.
Imho you need at least a Geforce 6xxx series or ATI 9600+ videocard ( a real one , not a mobile spinoff ) and 1.5+ Gb of (real, not mobile) ram.
While the specs of most laptops look 'good' , the memorybus-width of videocards and memory are often only half of what you might find in desktops ; to save space, costs and batteries. The result is that you basically need a laptop twice as powerful as a normal desktop to output the same graphics/speed/playability. And those are pretty expensive.
If you'd play Lotro on this laptop you'd get disappointed with the game while it's actually not the game's fault. (btw also tried Lotro with a Geforce 4/Ti 4200 (64mb) , Athlon 2200XP and 1.5 Gb memory and no it doesn't look nice and it doesn't run smooth all the time)
Btw here is a large thread about laptops , cpus and gpus:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=18483
Edit ; more resources : X1300 benchmarks ; the X1300 is the next update of your X300. The X1300 scores around '200 points' while even a 'NVIDIA GeForce Go 6600' scores 1150 points. And we can assume that a mobile 6600 won't be near a desktop 6600 so your card roughly has 15% of the speed of a very mediocre performing Geforce 6600 desktop card.
Edited, May 14th 2007 12:27pm by GnoofRagnaros
And even if you might get it to work expect lousy graphics, low-poly models and massive lag when walking around in busy areas like the town of Bree.
Imho you need at least a Geforce 6xxx series or ATI 9600+ videocard ( a real one , not a mobile spinoff ) and 1.5+ Gb of (real, not mobile) ram.
While the specs of most laptops look 'good' , the memorybus-width of videocards and memory are often only half of what you might find in desktops ; to save space, costs and batteries. The result is that you basically need a laptop twice as powerful as a normal desktop to output the same graphics/speed/playability. And those are pretty expensive.
If you'd play Lotro on this laptop you'd get disappointed with the game while it's actually not the game's fault. (btw also tried Lotro with a Geforce 4/Ti 4200 (64mb) , Athlon 2200XP and 1.5 Gb memory and no it doesn't look nice and it doesn't run smooth all the time)
Btw here is a large thread about laptops , cpus and gpus:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=18483
Edit ; more resources : X1300 benchmarks ; the X1300 is the next update of your X300. The X1300 scores around '200 points' while even a 'NVIDIA GeForce Go 6600' scores 1150 points. And we can assume that a mobile 6600 won't be near a desktop 6600 so your card roughly has 15% of the speed of a very mediocre performing Geforce 6600 desktop card.
Edited, May 14th 2007 12:27pm by GnoofRagnaros
WoW: 70 UD Rogue on Frostmane
Lotro: 35 Minstrel on Evernight (EU)
Lotro: 35 Minstrel on Evernight (EU)
I have a laptop similar to yours and I must say, I'm surprised how well it runs lotro. Of course there are some lag hot spots like bree, but otherwise, it runs pretty smoothly. I have an ATI 200M.
I have a very SIMIALR setup. I am running a Dell Inspiron 9300 with a ATI Mobility X300 128mb card. I have 1 GB of RAM at the moment (upgrade 2 gig tomorrow). I have the same speed Pentium M as you.
So far I have been very HAPPY with the preformance. The game looks fine. It runs pretty smooth. I am still new to the game though. I have a lvl 7 Minstrel and a lvl 6 Captain. I have not been to Bree yet. I have quested solo and with a partner and the game has been fine SO FAR.
I set the FPS to between 25-30 and was able to put some of the graphic settings on Medium/High. Every now and then I get a bit of slow down, but if I just stand still a moment everything smooths right out.
I am hoping the 2 GB of Ram I just ordered will help even more. Good luck with your system if you try!
So far I have been very HAPPY with the preformance. The game looks fine. It runs pretty smooth. I am still new to the game though. I have a lvl 7 Minstrel and a lvl 6 Captain. I have not been to Bree yet. I have quested solo and with a partner and the game has been fine SO FAR.
I set the FPS to between 25-30 and was able to put some of the graphic settings on Medium/High. Every now and then I get a bit of slow down, but if I just stand still a moment everything smooths right out.
I am hoping the 2 GB of Ram I just ordered will help even more. Good luck with your system if you try!
Trantzz (Diablos)
Before I put the game on my desktop, I was playing it on my Inspiron 8500.
- 2.50GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4
- 512MB RAM
- GeForce4 4200 Go (64MB card)
I fried that card and may have done something to my motherboard (they replaced the motherboard before the video card. When they looked at the motherboard, they said it looked like something had happened to it, but that could just be 5 years of use. They then replaced the video card, which fixed the problems I was having. I moved the game over to my desktop which has no video card. Something happened there, it won't boot anymore (can't reformat the HD either). I moved it back to my laptop. I played for 3 or so hours, maybe. I need another new video card. The problem may simply be the fact that the card isn't cooling, but I don't have any way of testing that now. After I get this card replaced, I can test for you.
Short answer: No, you'll probably need something with a little more power if you want to get the most out of the game.
Edited, May 14th 2007 3:23pm by Tidane
- 2.50GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4
- 512MB RAM
- GeForce4 4200 Go (64MB card)
I fried that card and may have done something to my motherboard (they replaced the motherboard before the video card. When they looked at the motherboard, they said it looked like something had happened to it, but that could just be 5 years of use. They then replaced the video card, which fixed the problems I was having. I moved the game over to my desktop which has no video card. Something happened there, it won't boot anymore (can't reformat the HD either). I moved it back to my laptop. I played for 3 or so hours, maybe. I need another new video card. The problem may simply be the fact that the card isn't cooling, but I don't have any way of testing that now. After I get this card replaced, I can test for you.
Short answer: No, you'll probably need something with a little more power if you want to get the most out of the game.
Edited, May 14th 2007 3:23pm by Tidane
10 posts
although I only play on my laptop while on travel I have a Dell XPS Gen 2 with a ultra pci express 256 meg video card 2 gigs of ram it still hiccups alot. One problem is these games are hard drive intense and my HD is only like a 4200 rpm drive. If you have vista installed you can use ready boost to cache virtual ram to a fast usb ram drive which helps the performance alot.
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