Author Topic: Laptop for GRLevel3  (Read 4562 times)

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Offline Gulfcoast

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Laptop for GRLevel3
« on: March 23, 2011, 09:56:35 PM »
I'm looking for a new (or used) laptop to run GRLevel3 on...  I don't want a slow, get-by laptop that barely runs it with lots of waiting. I don't care for a 10" netbook size, nor a huge screen to lug around with me either.

There's so many brands and models to choose from, it's really confusing.

Any guidance will be so appreciated...  especially on the laptop graphics.

Thanks

Offline scottm

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #1 on: March 23, 2011, 10:08:36 PM »
Pretty much any modern laptop will run GR3 just fine. I wouldn't worry about graphics at all, even todays on-board, or "integrated" graphic processors will run GR3 flawlessly. I'm not sure what your budget is, but you can get a nice laptop with a 15" screen for around $350.00 brand new, and it'll run GR3 just as pretty as you please.



Offline mackbig

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #2 on: March 23, 2011, 10:14:41 PM »
What Scott said. 
I have used gr3 on a 5+ year old ibm corp laptop with 512MB and low end integrated graphics, a netbook, an old Dell XPS, and a brand new XPS with 6Gig with high end graphics card.  GR3 looks the same on all of them. 

Pick what fits your budget, and has a suitable sized screen.

Andrew

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Offline Gulfcoast

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #3 on: March 23, 2011, 10:25:14 PM »
Just wanted to make sure the "smoothing" feature will work on whatever one I choose.

Thanks

Offline scottm

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #4 on: March 23, 2011, 10:37:51 PM »
The smoothing feature will work just as you expect it to. GR3 does not require a lot of resources to function properly, And as Andrew stated, It'll work just as well on a 200 dollar computer as it would on a thousand dollar computer, relatively speaking of course :)


Happy Tracking  :-P



Offline WeatherHost

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #5 on: March 24, 2011, 06:47:38 AM »
I'm not sure why you specified 'XP only' over there.  XP is past End Of Life and is only on extended support now.  7 is the way to go.


Offline Gulfcoast

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #6 on: March 24, 2011, 07:24:02 AM »
I tried 7 and prefer the old classic screen that I can get in XP.  

Maybe the classic view is available in 7, but I never found it. 
« Last Edit: March 24, 2011, 07:27:58 AM by Gulfcoast »

Offline ocala

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #7 on: March 24, 2011, 01:48:06 PM »
I tried 7 and prefer the old classic screen that I can get in XP.  

Maybe the classic view is available in 7, but I never found it. 
I still use XP but I thought 7 had an option to go back to XP or was that just for compatibility and not  ascetics?   
The blues had a baby and they named it Rock & Roll

Offline scottm

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #8 on: March 24, 2011, 05:00:09 PM »
I thought it did too, Ocala. But after googling it, i think it was Vista that did that.



Offline WeatherHost

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #9 on: March 24, 2011, 05:39:36 PM »
I believe Win7Pro has a go-back feature but not Win7Home Premium.




Offline scottm

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #10 on: March 24, 2011, 05:40:31 PM »
Gotcha, thanks for the clarification  8-)



Offline Gulfcoast

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #11 on: March 24, 2011, 06:05:44 PM »
Now, does anyone have a laptop that GRLevel3 runs well on?   :-)

Offline Chris H.

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #12 on: March 24, 2011, 08:41:10 PM »
Now, does anyone have a laptop that GRLevel3 runs well on?   :-)

Your best bet is to check eBay, Craigslist…or consider buying a cheap netbook.
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Offline mackbig

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #13 on: March 24, 2011, 09:27:20 PM »
I suggest Costco, or another store with a no questions asked return policy.  Best Buy (in Canada) has a 14 day return policy on any computer.  Costco is 90 days.

I actually got a netbook for my wife, ended up she didnt like the tiny screen (yahoo email, you can barely see your email message as you are typing), returned it for full refund after using for 13.9 days.  Got a normal size Dell laptop a few months later.  Funny enough my daugher got almost the exact same netbook we returned as an xmas present...

Andrew

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Offline W Thomas

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #14 on: May 14, 2011, 12:02:31 AM »
GR3 and GR2AE runs great on my Dell Inspiron 1501. I have 2 gb memory and a dual core AMD processor ( which I am not all that crazy about)
No video upgrades at all and it runs great! Seldom ever gets turned off..just stand by mode.  I tether it to my Droid when we are on the prowl and it updates both surprisingly well. I have had this one a few years so you may be able to pick up one fairly cheap by now.

Good luck on whatever your choice!


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Offline Chris H.

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Re: Laptop for GRLevel3
« Reply #15 on: May 14, 2011, 11:15:42 PM »
GR3 runs on my 15.4" Toshiba Satellite A-215 (AMD Turion X2 64 1.6, ATi graphics, 4 GB RAM, Windows 7 Pro. 32-bit)

I don't have much of an issue. If I'm tracking several storms (like I did when the last outbreak occurred), the computer does warm up a bit, but as long as I don't animate more than one or two windows (depending on how many windows I have open of GR3) the computer runs smoothly.

I've had trial versions of GR3 run on the first gen Acer Aspire One netbooks before (Windows XP)…though I wouldn't recommend running multiple windows of GR3 at once, maybe just a couple - at least on the older Atom chips.
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