why is steam so laggy?

i have downloaded three games from steam ALL are laggy. the resolution is at the lowest setting and still very laggy. when i play other games like combat arms it runs smoothly. what could be the problem?

 

your computer can't handle it. Need to upgrade.

 

i doubt i need the upgrade. when i play other games even on the highest setting the game runs fine.

 

What games are you playing and what are your specs? I've played a hundred Steam games in the last few years, and the only ones that have given me trouble were badly coded/ported or above my PC specs regardless of Steam.

 

its got AMD phenom X4 9500 quad core processor 6gb system memory 640 gb hard drive nivida geforce 6150 se graphics. running on windows vista

games ive downloaded from steam tf2, insurgency, and alien swarm

 

Alien Swarm lags heavily on my system. You and I both need a more powerful GPU.

 

thats unfortunate i dont have the money nor do i have the skills to install a gpu.

 

for the time being, just get games that aren't graphically intensive. plenty of extremely fun games that aren't very graphically intensive.

 

GPU's are typically not upgradeable. New laptop required. GeForce 6150 SE is like 2005 mid-range laptop card. I'd say Intel integrated graphics GMA 4500MHD is even more powerful. You're stuck with 2005 or earlier games for the most part. Even then you'll have to reduce game detail. That being said, a large majority of my favorite games are probably 2005 and earlier anyhow.

 

if you have a pci e slot on your motherboard. just get a hd5670, should be fine for gaming in 1280*1024 resolution. it uses less than 75 watts so you don't need to change anything else. and it's cheap.

 

how are the games ive downloaded from steam graphically intensive? its all pixelly. on the main menu the background runs perfectly smooth

 

I am assuming you're referring to a DIY ViDock? That is an alternative. However, for the price of the card and DIY ViDock hardware, sell the existing laptop, you could probably buy a laptop for $500 that could manage those games without much issue.

The 6150se is an early IGP (or integrated gpu) that really is not all that powerful. Only option you may have it to run it at 800x600 and all low detail. Otherwise, time for a new laptop.

Your laptop may benefit from Windows 7 or better yet Windows XP. Vista can be unforgiving when it comes to GPU intensive tasks to begin with. But I really don't think it would do much better.

 

im on a pc desktop its the hp a6614f pc i got this back in 09

 

Most mainboard GPU's are there just so you can run an operating system, not much else. I almost asked if it was a desktop though considering the high end CPU, but didn't bother to look if it was a laptop variant. My eyes saw 6150 and immediately was like "old tech".

If it's a desktop then you have a bazillion options. Pretty much any GPU you can plug in there will perform decently and rather inexpensive. Although this probably belongs in the desktopreview forums and not notebook review.

Installing a graphics card is very straight forward.

 

what would you recommend? maybe something no higher than $150 no lower than $100

 

Yeah, that integrated graphics card is holding you back for sure.

Between $100 and $150, I recommend the GTS 450. Here's one on Newegg for $130 with free shipping, plus a mail-in rebate to make it $99.

Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1450-TR GeForce GTS 450 (Fermi) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

 

Thats assuming his psu will handle the gts450 since it needs a 6-pin connector. Many oems with integrated graphics have weak power supplies. Be safer going with a 5670 unless you can find the specs on for that particular computer.

 

Then you should be asking your questions there.

 

As above, this is a notebook gaming discussion forum.

Please use Desktopreview or another desktop forum.

Thread closed.