Best laptop specs to run X-Plane 10 great

Question

Can anybody recommend a good (preferably dell) laptop to run X-Plane 10 great with no lagging? Thank you!

Answer 1

Hi Ethan,

One of the "big" problems with laptops is cooling. Unless it is a specific gaming machine don't waste your money.  There are others in this forum who have asked the same question.  One individual who sometimes answers questions in this forum has turned away from a laptop.

You need a "top end" spec laptop for what you want to do considering a minimum of an i5 Intel chip preferably i7 and a top end GTX1060 or GTX1080 Nvidia graphics card.  There are comments in this forum and other sources indicating that other manufactured cards don't give you best performance. Finally you should try for a 17 inch screen.

Brands you should be looking at are ASUS and MSI.  Possibly Acer.  

Why a laptop? Other than for saving space, consider looking at a full PC unit.  Considering what you will spend on a laptop you can build a PC for a lot less and you can add additional cooling and in time change the specs of the unit where as a laptop will mean a complete disposal/replacement.

Hope this helps.

Glenn

Comments

It did help, thank you Glenn! Do you recommend any computer-building sites? Thank you!

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Hi Ethan,

Before I answer your additional comment, one of the big advantages of a PC is that you can run a large TV monitor or multiple monitors which cost a lot less than a genuine PC monitor.  Use 1920 x 1080 TV.  Don't waste your money on a 4K unit.  Use the 4K unit for your general TV watching. The reference I make below to Michael's videos at X-Force PC give a good indication of the use of TVs. 

 I don't know where you reside.

Before you buy, have a look at http://www.x-plane.com/kb/x-plane-11-system-requirements/

I understand that NVidia cards will give you the best performance.

If in the USA try X-Force PC, the recommended PC supplier by Laminar Research. Have a look at this https://xforcepc.com/english/flight-simulation/flight-simulation-computers.html  Michael would be very helpful.  He has some interesting videos on flight simulation and systems.  The link is at https://www.youtube.com/user/col2mab/videos?sort=dd&view=0&shelf_id=0  He has provided useful info to me despite I don't live in the USA.

If in the UK try Wired2Fire.  There link is at http://www.wired2fire.co.uk/flight-sim  I understand they are very helpful and will discuss your needs.

If in Australia, particularly in Melbourne, try CentreCom at https://www.centrecom.com.au/centre-com-gaming  Although I live some 600 Kms from this company I predominantly buy from them. An alternative company is PCCaseGear which can be found at https://www.pccasegear.com/category/1411/systems  I have purchased from them as well.

If in New Zealand ( my guess is this is where you live) or somewhere else you would be best to try Dr Google.

Hope this additional information helps.

Good hunting.

Glenn