So before anyone tells me I have a piece of junk for a computer, I have a Dell Precision M4400 with all the original parts in it, AND 4 GB of RAM and my 700 or so GB HDD. So if it's a piece of junk, it's not because of the CPU, GPU, or RAM.
If you don't believe me, here is my system, per "System Requirements Lab":
It's not a gaming machine per se, but there is no excuse for it not being able to run simple games like Railroad Tycoon 3. But this game, which only requires 128 MB RAM, a 16 MB video card, and 1.2 GB HDD space, GETS 3 FPS.
I've read the problem might be my BIOS, which is A22. From what I've heard (on forum posts 5 years old), I may wish to downgrade to A02, which doesn't throttle my machine so violently. But that seems risky - especially since I have no battery. So I was wondering if you have any other idea what the problem might be?
If you don't believe me, here is my system, per "System Requirements Lab":
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9550 @ 2.66GHz
Manufacturer Intel
Speed 2.7 GHz
Number of Cores 2
CPU ID BFEBFBFF0001067A
Family 06
Model 17
Stepping A
Revision 07
Video Card NVIDIA Quadro FX 770M
Manufacturer NVIDIA
Chipset Quadro FX 770M
Dedicated Memory 512 MB
Total Memory 2.0 GB
Pixel Shader Version 4.0
Vertex Shader Version 4.0
Hardware T & L Yes
Vendor ID 10DE
Device ID 065C
Plug and Play ID VEN_10DE&DEV_065C&SUBSYS_02501028&REV_A1
Driver Version 8.16.11.8992
Memory 3.6 GB
Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition Service Pack 1 (build 7601), 32-bit
Service Pack 1
Size 32 Bit
Edition Home Premium
Version 6.1.7601
Locale 0409
BIOS Phoenix ROM BIOS PLUS Version 1.10 A22
Version Dell Inc. A22
Manufacturer Dell Inc.
Date 05/06/10
Display Maximum Resolution 1920 x 1200
Sound Device High Definition Audio Device
Driver Version 6.1.7601.17514
DVD PLDS DVD+-RW DU-8A2S ATA Device
CD PLDS DVD+-RW DU-8A2S ATA Device
Drive 1
Size 627.4 GB
Free 406.4 GB
Drive 2
Size 71.2 GB
Free 14.2 GB
Browsers
Internet Explorer 8.0.7601.17514
Chrome
Firefox 29.0.1 (en-US)
Safari
Software
Java
Flash
DirectX 11.0
.NET 3.5.30729.5420
QuickTime
Adobe PDF Reader
Manufacturer Intel
Speed 2.7 GHz
Number of Cores 2
CPU ID BFEBFBFF0001067A
Family 06
Model 17
Stepping A
Revision 07
Video Card NVIDIA Quadro FX 770M
Manufacturer NVIDIA
Chipset Quadro FX 770M
Dedicated Memory 512 MB
Total Memory 2.0 GB
Pixel Shader Version 4.0
Vertex Shader Version 4.0
Hardware T & L Yes
Vendor ID 10DE
Device ID 065C
Plug and Play ID VEN_10DE&DEV_065C&SUBSYS_02501028&REV_A1
Driver Version 8.16.11.8992
Memory 3.6 GB
Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition Service Pack 1 (build 7601), 32-bit
Service Pack 1
Size 32 Bit
Edition Home Premium
Version 6.1.7601
Locale 0409
BIOS Phoenix ROM BIOS PLUS Version 1.10 A22
Version Dell Inc. A22
Manufacturer Dell Inc.
Date 05/06/10
Display Maximum Resolution 1920 x 1200
Sound Device High Definition Audio Device
Driver Version 6.1.7601.17514
DVD PLDS DVD+-RW DU-8A2S ATA Device
CD PLDS DVD+-RW DU-8A2S ATA Device
Drive 1
Size 627.4 GB
Free 406.4 GB
Drive 2
Size 71.2 GB
Free 14.2 GB
Browsers
Internet Explorer 8.0.7601.17514
Chrome
Firefox 29.0.1 (en-US)
Safari
Software
Java
Flash
DirectX 11.0
.NET 3.5.30729.5420
QuickTime
Adobe PDF Reader
It's not a gaming machine per se, but there is no excuse for it not being able to run simple games like Railroad Tycoon 3. But this game, which only requires 128 MB RAM, a 16 MB video card, and 1.2 GB HDD space, GETS 3 FPS.
I've read the problem might be my BIOS, which is A22. From what I've heard (on forum posts 5 years old), I may wish to downgrade to A02, which doesn't throttle my machine so violently. But that seems risky - especially since I have no battery. So I was wondering if you have any other idea what the problem might be?