Trying to play Star Wars The Old Republic

So I started playing TOR yesterday. Im using a Dell Inspirion N5010. Im running graphics at the bare minimum. I keep getting some serious lag in buildings, especially when other players are near. Any idea what I can do to make the gameplay smoother? Thanks

Dell specs:
Specs

Processor
Type: Intel Core i3 M330
Speed: 2.13GHz
Motherboard/Chipset: Mobile Intel 5 Series Express Chipset (HM57)
Memory (RAM)
Type: DDR3
Capacity: 4GB
Storage
Type: HDD SATA
Capacity: 320GB
Video Card: Intel GMA 4500MHD
Sound: SRS Premium Sound (2 speakers, 2W)
Optical Drive: DVD Super-Multi
Webcam: 1.3 megapixels
Screen
Size: 15.6 inches
Resolution: 1024 x 768 pixels
Connectivity
LAN: yes
Wi-Fi: 802.11g/n
Bluetooth: yes
DLNA
Ports
USB: 3
Firewire: 0
eSATA: 1
VGA: 1
DVI: 0
HDMI: 1
Card Reader: 4 in 1
Mic: 1
Headphone: 1
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition 64-bit
Battery
Cells: 6
Life: up to 2.25 hours
Size: 376 x 262 x 32mm
Weight: 2.65kg

TOR Requirements:
Processor:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 4000+ or better
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz or better
Operating System:
Windows XP Service Pack 3 or later

RAM:

Windows XP: 1.5GB RAM
Windows Vista and Windows 7: 2GB RAM

Note: PCs using a built-in graphical chipset are recommended to have 2GB of RAM.

Star Wars: The Old Republic requires a video card that has a minimum of 256MB of on-board RAM as well as support for Shader 3.0 or better. Examples include:

ATI X1800 or better
nVidia 7800 or better
Intel 4100 Integrated Graphics or better

DVD-ROM drive – 8x speed or better (required for installation from physical editions only) Internet connection required to play.

 

Video Card: Intel GMA 4500MHD

That is the problem, and there's very little you can do about it.

You could try lowering the settings more, or dropping the resolution if possible.

 

the video is all the way down Guess I'll have to find a way to get a new computer. Thanks


I've never messed with laptops too much. Can the card be swapped out or would it just be cheaper to get a better computer?

 

Not on your particular system.

For a new machine, check out this forum's marketplace - lots of folks are selling gently used notebooks that are capable of running this game for a fraction of what you'd pay for a new one.

 

insert shameless plug here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/notebooks-desktops-sale/641645-fs-sager-np8760.html

 

I know that these things probably won't help much or not at all, but I pulled them from the Alienware TOR and perhaps they will help you.

Star Wars: The Old Republic Tips for Graphical Performance:

Tip #1:
Compatibility Mode for Windows XP -
Right Click on the SWTOR short cut. Go to Properties. Then the Compatibility Tab. Select the Run this program on compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3.
Also select: Run as administrator. Apply changes.
This makes a world of difference on laptops.

Tip #2:
Disable Visual Themes and Desktop Composition -
Right click on desktop. Select Personalize.
Scroll down to Basic and High Contrast Themes
Select Windows Classic. Hit Apply Changes.
This may take a while to apply those changes. Then you can see how much the Windows look has changed over the years.

Tip #3:
Disable GPU scaling in the control panel
Adjust desktop size and position to no scaling.
You can do this from your AMD (ATI) control panel or your NVidia control panel. I'm at work right now, so I can't look at where the settings are.

the last one prob doesn't apply to you, but if sombody else is having similar issues its just another thing that they can try.

 

Thanks for the insight.