New Laptop - Should I expect to run FSX or MSFS?

[Wizard-Bob 9]

Hi all.  I am buying a new laptop so I can scratch my "away from home but still want to fly" itch.  Getting an MSI GE75 Raider with Core i7-10875H, RTX 2070 Super [Mobile], 32 GB DDR4 3200MHz Ram, 1 TB NVMe SSD.  Panel is a 17.3" 300 Hz 3ms display.

I already own FSX:SE.  Curious if suggestions would be to install and enjoy that, or go ahead and try MSFS2020.  While on the road, I will be most interested in "Low and Slow" GA flying, so graphics presentation and performance will be important.

Thanks in advance for any insight!

 

[Chock 17,769]

Yeah, I'd be willing to bet that'll run FSX no problem whatsoever.

When I used to go away training and stay in hotels, I used to run FSX on a £399 Hewlett Packard laptop with just four Gb of RAM and a built-in graphics (and it was using the Vista as the operating system at the time lol).

Believe it or not, it actually worked really well, to the point where you could crank the graphics details up fairly high. I can distinctly remember it running the A2A Accusim B-17 Flying Fortress - which is a pretty complex add-on -  well enough to land it at Boeing Field, which is in an area that is pretty busy scenery-wise.

[Charlatan 68]

You should be able to find a trial for Microsoft gamepass, for £1 or equivalent. You can then install msfs 2020 and try it for a month. Should run OK on that I would think 

[JustanotherPilot 237]

3 hours ago, Wizard-Bob said:

Hi all.  I am buying a new laptop so I can scratch my "away from home but still want to fly" itch.  Getting an MSI GE75 Raider with Core i7-10875H, RTX 2070 Super [Mobile], 32 GB DDR4 3200MHz Ram, 1 TB NVMe SSD.  Panel is a 17.3" 300 Hz 3ms display.

I already own FSX:SE.  Curious if suggestions would be to install and enjoy that, or go ahead and try MSFS2020.  While on the road, I will be most interested in "Low and Slow" GA flying, so graphics presentation and performance will be important.

Thanks in advance for any insight!

 

Your laptop has more grunt than my Desktop, and I have no trouble running FS2020, P3dv45 and Xplane11.51, all with high settings. You should have no problems except, maybe, keeping the laptop cool.

Edited March 20, 2021 by JustanotherPilot

[fppilot 4,371]

My 15 month old laptop is 100% abysmal compared to my 6 month old desktop in all respects.  But worthy of mention is that I had free reign for component selections for the desktop.  Laptops seem to be "take me as I am" or look further...

I quit looking....

 

Edited March 20, 2021 by fppilot

[stans 703]

I'd say it should run either sim rather well. 

[Wizard-Bob 9]

Thanks for the feedback!  I am encouraged that either sim may provide some FUN, so I may just go ahead and install both and try it out.  I'll report back with any significant findings.  Happy simming!

[mattn 45]

I have an Asus I7-10750 laptop which I got specifically for MSFS (it was a huge upgrade from my last PC), 16gig of ram, M.2  NVME storage, and GTX1660ti. I can play with all settings on high and clouds on ultra and get 30-50fps unless in the usual high-density areas (NYC, LAX, London). This is at 1080 resolution.

Your setup should do just fine at 1080, probably even 1440. I wouldn't try 4k or VR though, probably be a disappointment. 

Edited March 20, 2021 by mattn

[Wizard-Bob 9]

5 hours ago, mattn said:

Your setup should do just fine at 1080, probably even 1440. I wouldn't try 4k or VR though, probably be a disappointment. 

Thanks for your experience.  I will be running in 1080p so should be good to go 🙂

[Luis Hernandez 570]

Just make sure the laptop does not throttle due to Turbo Boost. Even on gaming laptops, I don't trust well the coolers unless I downclock a bit both CPU and GPU.

[Wizard-Bob 9]

Thanks again for all the replies.  I appreciate it!

I have now downloaded and can run both FSX:SE (Ultra settings) and MSFS (High-End settings).  Both are running very well.  CPU and GPU temps are staying in the 75 - 82 Celsius range during flight.  I think that is reasonable.

So far, I am a very happy camper!