I’m looking to get a new windows laptop for general home use and would like to see if I could spec it out to also run Zwift in 2160P Ultra on a 43" TV. I currently use an AppleTV for Zwift on the same TV. Dell’s G15 and Alienware laptops appear to have sufficient GPU power but I don’t know the nuances of running a 43" TV in 2160P off such a machine. Would one of these laptops do what I want? I would be after one of the cheaper options with enough horsepower for my Zwift needs as other work wouldn’t be particularly GPU intensive. There are a plethora of options for GPUs with 4GB of RAM upwards with RTX 3050, 3050Ti, 3070 … so any guidance to navigate all these options would be very much appreciated.
I can’t help with laptops but all I can say is persist and get it done. I run that setting and recently saw on DC Rainmaker’s site the following screenshot from his Apple TV 4K, the second image for comparison is my NYC picture from today (edit: this website has downsampled my picture, it looks on Strava 17.9 km Ride Activity on December 2, 2021 by Ian S. on Strava). I can understand Apple TV is all some people have and it might be adequate for a casual user, I can’t believe how many people encourage others to do the same with a free choice though.
To preface my response I know this is not a cheap laptop but I was getting a high end laptop anyway for other applications so just went a bit further to try and hve it work for Zwift.
dell G15 special edition, i7-11800H processor, RTX3060, 32GB ram, 1 TB SSD. The 32 GB ram and 1TB ssd are overkill but this particular configuration was on sale with a $340 discount.
I’m running 4K on a TCL 43" lcd tv with the HDMI output refresh rate at 60hz.
Ive ridden a big group ride in watopia tonight with a pace partner and a group of around 100 and also one in Neoyko just now where I was in group of about 40 riders and everything ran smoothly. I’m very happy with it so far.
Very cool…What do you think of the build quality? I had a Dell Precision that was solid but not waterproof…
Last year I picked up a Legion 5i w/i7-10750H & 1660ti from Costco. The other night I was getting 50-60 fps in Neoyko. In Watopia I typically get 90-100 fps (I have a 1080P 144hz screen). I also use the laptop for other uses and I like to keep for years. The way Zwift is going we will be underspecced in a couple of years
Build quality is fine. I have it where moisture won’t be an issue plus I have a honking great big fan in my garage so there is no danger of me getting hot enough to drip significant sweat on it.
