Inspiron 15R and casual gaming

Hello, I couldn't find the "official" inspiron 15R thread here but if someone could get me the link I'd like to read it and post there. Meanwhile I have some questions about this laptop.

I'm thinking in buying an Inspiron 15R with the next specs:

Intel Core I7-3612QM or I5 3210m with inel hd 4000 graphics.
8GB RAM DDR3
HDD: 1TB 5400rpm
15.6" Full High Definition (1080p) LED Display

I'm planning to use it mainly for college homeworks, some electronic enginering software and programming, but I would like to use as a casual gaming machine, maybe some GTA San andreas, NFS Most Wanted, Age of empires 2 and 3 etc. How does intel hd4000 handle casual games like these?

What about some light photoshop and illustrator (CS4-CS5) work? My current desktop can barely handle this kind of software but it only has 2GB RAM and AMD Athlon [email protected] and an old ATI x1250Mb graphic card.

For more heavy gaming Im planing to build a desktop in the future, btw.

Also, can someone tell me how the new HD 4000 Graphics work? I now this graphic's chip comes integrated in the processor, and according with some research I've done has 625MHz-1.15GHz frecuency, but what about the "size" of that memory, how do I know how many MB/GB has this graphic chip has?

 

I think you should be fine for casual gaming with the HD 4000. You may have to keep the game at low to med settings though.

If you can afford the increase in price, really consider not getting a 5400 RPM hard drive. I can't believe they even sell these things any more. The hard drive is the slowest part of the system and it is being further slowed by the slow RPM. Maybe it won't be that important with certain apps (depending on how much of the memory is utilized). I guess it is just one of my "things".

I know the Dell website doesn't offer a 7200 RPM drive for the 15r unless you go to the special edition, but maybe if you talk to them they can upgrade just the drive.

As far as the i5 vs i7, I'm not sure. You can play games with the i5, but again, you may need to keep it on low quality settings. I think it will depend on the game.

My XPS 15 L521x has two video cards, including the HD 4000, but the 4000 is used for normal stuff and it is supposed to automatically switch to the better card when needed.

 

Hi jrmcr,

As ‘e6bwhiz’ mentioned the Intel HD 4000 should be fine for the casual gaming. Also some of the games will have settings with which you may change the performance based on the hardware configuration.

You may refer to the following link to read more about the Intel HD 4000 Graphics. I hope it will help you in your research.

Intel® HD Graphics Provides Next Generation Integrated Graphics

If you could tell me the country name, from which you are planning to order this system; I can check and get back to you on the hard drive upgrade options.

Please do reply in case you need any further assistance.

Thanks & Regards
Swapnajan MC
#iworkfordell

 

Thank you e6bwhiz and Dellswapnajan, I'm planning to buy it in Costa Rica, it would be great If the laptop could have better HDD options.

 

Hi,

I certainly understand your concern about the different hard drive options. I have checked and found that Dell in Costa Rica currently has only the 5400rpm drives available. Please use the below mentioned link for the Dell official site of Costa Rica, refer to the same if required.

Detalles del nuevo portátil Inspiron 15 | Dell Costa Rica

Please do write back in case you need any further assistance.

Thanks & Regards
Swapnajan MC
#iworkfordell