I have artifacts on my screen from time to time. I have these spesifications according to: http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/CYRI/

This test is for Sims3 - Pets. It says it's ok, but according to you this graphics card is only maybe on the basegame.

CPU
Minimum: Pentium 4 processor or equivalent
You Have: AMD Athlon(tm) II X2 245 Processor

CPU Speed
Minimum: For XP 2.0 GHz Pentium 4 processor or equivalent; For Windows Vista and Windows 7 2.4 GHz Pentium 4 processor or equivalent
You Have: 2.9 GHz

RAM
Minimum: For XP 1 GB RAM / Windows Vista and Windows 7 1.5 GB RAM (For NVIDIA ION computers, the game requires at least 2.0 GB RAM)
You Have: 3.0 GB

OS
Minimum: XP SP2 / Vista SP1 / Windows 7
You Have: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition Service Pack 1 (build 7601), 64-bit

Video Card
Minimum: 128 MB Video Card with support for Pixel Shader 2.0 [Nvidia GeForce 6 series or better (GeForce 6100 and 7100 cards are not supported), and all NVidia G, GT, GTS, and GTX video cards. ATI Radeon™ series card 9500 series or better, and all ATI X, X1, and HD video cards; Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA): GMA 3-Series, GMA 4-Series]
You Have: ATI Radeon HD 4200

Minimum attributes of your Video Card
Required You Have
Video RAM 128 MB 2.2 GB
Pixel Shader version 2.0 4.1

Free Disk Space
Minimum: At least 3.5 GB of hard drive space with at least 1 GB additional space for custom content and saved games
You Have: 772.4 GB

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This computer is only 1 year old so it's a bit of a annoyance. I can turn the graphics down for now.

What card would you recommend. Do I need any more then just the graphics card, and is this something I can upgrade myself. Do you see anything low elsewhere?
I don't have that much money so do you have any links to reliable sites sending in Europe?

On RAM I'm using a LAA program because of CAW at the moment. It's also connected to Sims3.

If it's only occasional, your GFX card might be overheating.

Try turning the computer off, taking the side off your case (assuming you don't have a warranty left... if you do, then DO NOT DO THIS!) and carefully using a can of compressed air on the insides, especially the GFX card fan and heatsink.

That might help a little. You can also try running the game with the side off your computer just to test if it's really overheating. If that doesn't fix it, try a driver upgrade.

I don't think the warranty is out yet, have to find the receit. If it was overheating I probably couldn't use it as a footstool? I can test driver updates. Thanks for the suggestions I have turned the graphics down, hopefully it can stay in there a little longer.

Never trust sites like that. They are shit. They detect your hardware incorrectly and then apply inaccurate minimum requirements, to provide you with a report equal in value to what you'd get by playing boules with a chicken at full moon and then doing maths on the entrails.

You're going to see artefacts with that graphics chip because it's nowhere near strong enough for TS3 - certainly not TS3 with EPs and patches. Pets in particular has been the tipping point at which many non-gaming machines are just falling over and giving up.

You don't need to use LAA because since LN TS3 has LAA set by default, and in any case you don't have enough RAM for LAA to be needed.

You certainly can install a graphics card yourself. However, to be able to give you advice, we need more info about the machine. You say you have a warranty, so presumably this is a pre-built machine by HP or Dell or something, not a custom built one? If so, what's the make and model number?

I was pretty sure I had 4 gb not 3 as this test says. That's what the shop told me. I was looking for 4 ram, when I bought it. The pc is from something called american megatrends. I've never heard about them before, can't find any info from them on the case. I got the impression the shop had made the computer themselves. I wanted someone who could supply me with some support later on. I still haven't found the receit. I bought it last summer. Not sure how long it lasts, I think it's about 3 years. Wondering if I should be annoyed by them selling me a sub standard pc, but I didn't bring the sims cover to the shop so probably not

My graphics card specs



By skaribanan at 2011-11-09

My pc specs. I just removed my name there.



By skaribanan at 2011-11-09

On the last picture it says Installed fysical memory(RAM) 4GB, Total fysical memory 3 GB, Fysical memory available 1,65GB.

You do have 4GB of RAM. However, integrated graphics chips don't have any RAM of their own; so they reserve some of the main system RAM for their own use, which is why Windows thinks you only have 3GB.

Ah, yes, it looks like that is indeed a custom-built machine. So, you have two options:
If you don't mind voiding the warranty, then you can do every step of the upgrade yourself. The first step is to take the side of the case off, and find the PSU - big, solid block which the external power cord plugs into. There'll be a sticker on there somewhere giving the make and model of the PSU, as well as some other important info. You might need a torch and an acrobat to get at it! You'll want to note down the make, model, wattage (it'll be a three digit number, e.g. 500W), and the voltage (v) on the +12A rail, if you can find all that. If you can't find the voltage, don't worry too much - we can look that up based on the make and model number. Post that info here; and while you're at it, cleaning out the inside of the computer, focussing on fans, to get rid of all the dust is a good idea.
Also have a look at the PCI-E slots on the motherboard. They're towards the back, and will be right next to covered holes in the case. If you have any cards such as a network card, a card providing extra USB sockets, etc, they'll be plugged into PCI-E slots. Check how many free PCI-E slots you have: some graphics cards require one slot, some take up two.

Once we have that info, and your budget, we'll be able to start thinking about which graphics cards might work for you. Bear in mind that, given the fairly weak specs of this machine, it may be that the PSU isn't strong enough to support any good gaming graphics card. If that is the case, you'll need to upgrade the PSU too: but we'll jump off that bridge when w e come to it.

If you want to avoid voiding the warranty, you'll have to take it back to the shop and have them upgrade it for you. Caveat emptor! The first thing is to get them to tell you what the PSU is, and how many free PCI-E slots there are. Then go home! Don't let them sell you anything - you need to decide what you want first. Once you have a good idea of what you want in terms of graphics cards, then you can ask them about prices for upgrading and so on. Even reputable computer shops will often try to sell you something that's not great just because they happen to have it in a box out back, and will therefore save on not having to order it in for you.

Thank you for the advice I will take some time to think and call the shop. If I'm lucky they have me and my pc on there system. I think I'm gonna take a look at some video's on youtube to get a grip on what you're talking about. I did add ram on my old pc, so I know I need lots of coffie brakes to pull this off if I wanna do it lol. Thank you for helping me out.

I didn't have that much money then either, so I probably bought what I could afford.