Graphics Question...

ViperPilot2

Moderator
Staff member
So, I was thinking about a possible Computer Upgrade, and was wondering if the current Intel 'onboard' Graphics Card with 128 Mb would be enough to handle FS9?
The CPU is an Intel Core 7 with 1.8 Gb. 16 Gb of RAM.

Thanks!
 
So, I was thinking about a possible Computer Upgrade, and was wondering if the current Intel 'onboard' Graphics Card with 128 Mb would be enough to handle FS9?
The CPU is an Intel Core 7 with 1.8 Gb. 16 Gb of RAM.

Thanks!
Mate, when FS9 came out, a graphics card with 128 Mb of it's own was considered brilliant. That doesn't even take into consideration the graphics capabilities of the current CPU's. You're more than good!
 

According to that site:

Here are the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight System Requirements (Minimum)

CPU: Pentium II or Athlon equivalent
CPU SPEED: 450 MHz
RAM: 64 MB for Win 98/ME, 128 MB for Win 2000/XP
VIDEO CARD: 8 MB 3D Video Card
TOTAL VIDEO RAM: 8 MB
3D: Yes
DIRECTX VERSION: 7.0
OS: Windows 98/ME/2000/XP (95 & NT not supported)
FREE DISK SPACE: 1.8 GB
SOUND CARD: Yes
CD-ROM: 4x speed or faster CD-Rom drive

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight Recommended Requirements

CPU: Pentium III or Athlon equivalent
CPU SPEED: 1 GHz
RAM: 128 MB
VIDEO CARD: 32 MB 3D Video Card
TOTAL VIDEO RAM: 32 MB
3D: Yes
DIRECTX VERSION: 9.0c (included)
OS: Windows 2000/XP
FREE DISK SPACE: 2.2 GB
SOUND CARD: Yes
CD-ROM: 4x speed or faster CD-Rom drive


I think you'll be good to go...lol!
 
Thanks, guys! I was curious because of the old opinion that 'onboard' Intel Graphics of yore weren't up to the task of making FS9 look all nice and sparkly... :giggle:
 
All I can add is, "Friends don't let friends Laptop". :wavey:

I've beaten it into the ground, but you can swing a NICE desktop tower and monitor without breaking the bank.
Search for "back-to-school" or "small biz" hardware. Those units are built for long hours and rough enviroments.
GPUs have gone thru the roof, but there are still some deals out there if you can live without the bells and whistles and the full-color LEDs.

Recently, I scored good deals on GPUs for both of my towers. I think I spent something like $200 for both.
For games like FS8 and 9 and maybe even FSX, low budget still gets you high performance.
 
Last edited:
For many years, we ran our Shackleton simulator FS2004 with freeware Aeroworx South African scenery & the Shackleton Project payware model (80% full size to fit on a trailer) Actual seats, yoke throttle quad, pedals etc on an ancient Windows XP tower, with onboard graphics, 4GB RAM, onto a projector (scenery) & 2x screens in the pilot & copilot seats without any issues at all!
Power supply? - No idea.

BTW, after simming (FS2004 & P3Dv4.5) on a laptop (ASUS A15 Windows 11, 16GB RAM, AMD & NVidia GPU, 500GB SSD) I'll never go back to a box - just my own thoughts, after busting my back packing, unpacking & connecting my old box, keyboard, mouse, 2x monitors etc at many of our Virtual Flying club (Cape Virtual in Cape Town)
For me, a laptop just works.
 
All I can add is, "Friends don't let friends Laptop". :wavey:

I've beaten it into the ground, but you can swing a NICE desktop tower and monitor without breaking the bank.
Search for "back-to-school" or "small biz" hardware. Those units are built for long hours and rough enviroments.
GPUs have gone thru the roof, but there are still some deals out there if you can live without the bells and whistles and the full-color LEDs.

Recently, I scored good deals on GPUs for both of my towers. I think I spent something like $200 for both.
For games like FS8 and 9 and maybe even FSX, low budget still gets you high performance.
No single word about power supply and corresponding cooling system. Curious.

Bernard

sound recommendation @Sbob and sound query @leuen when one wants to run more than simply a default / basic install - i.e. a setup w/ ample GPU and CPU intensive addons (especially now that a good many are freeware) and all the bells and whistles / HD eye candy & sparkles at maximum throughput and capacity for long hours, burning the midnight oil well into the night, which is what I believe the OP may perhaps have in mind, and accordingly wise words of wisdom to consider, especially, if that necessarily be the case...

cheers!
 
Back
Top