Hi guys, Feeling dumb right now. My Ideapad was getting old, says I cant update to Windows 11 ( even though it seems I have the requirements met) so I decide to get a new LT, I bought a Think Pad, assuming the bigger RAM would be sufficient to run 2019. After some good folks sent me an installer for 2019, now the LT is saying that my hardware acceleration is unsupported or has been disabled.
I called lenovo, they said my Thinkpad with no seperate GPU , its an AMD Ryzen7 7730u with the AMD Radeon integrated graphics, doesn’t look like it will run SU2019. I called AMD, they said it should work. A member here suggested that Windows might not be set up correctly to direct sketch up to the correct graphics card ( it doesn’t have one).
Honestly Im not really impressed with the new Ideapad. Its getting jammed up just web browsing, unsure if because its new and maybe trying to update constantly or dunno. Obviously I am not a computer savvy individual.
Looking for some suggestions. I think I can return the Thinkpad. If that is the only route I can go, can you guys suggest a LapTop in the $750 price range that would be adequate for my use? Honestly the heaviest use I get is probably SU2019. I do some picture editing, and hope to string some short video clips together as well, though I have never played around with that before.
All thought are highly appreciated.
At your price point it might be difficult. For Sketchup use I would recommend almost anything that has a separate (preferably Nvidia) graphics “card” but you might not have many options. I would check too the vendors that offer refurbished “office” or “workstation”-type laptops. New “gaming” laptops in our parts (don’t know where you are from) seem to start about $100 more than the $750 you mention.
Honestly I would get the base M4 MacBook Air, it was at 850 recently on Amazon, there’s no windows laptop that could get even close to the performance of that laptop at that price range. Or you could get even an M1 MacBook Pro for 500-600 dollars and it’s still a great machine with amazing performance.
SketchUp 2019 worked on Mac and supported operating systems that were current in 2019 however you may find that SketchUp 2019 doesn’t run so well with newer Mac OS versions. Some users have reported frequent crashes with newer OS versions and older SketchUp versions. You’re less likely to have issues with newer Windows machines, though.
Might be time to bite the bullet and update to the current version of SketchUp so you don’t have compatibility issues.
not on the M4 or even M1 versions that he is talking about, that’s for sure. you would get crashes upon touching the material panel, plus various silent crashes.
comes from mac os, they secured stuff over the last few years, breaks old version of SU.
what’s odd is that the PC you’re describing should run 19…
The bummer is that it seems like a computer that was adequate to run SU2019 purchased new in 2019 for $600 is now $1000. And salt to the wound is that 2019 may not run properly on it forcing the switch to a subscription based platform. Which I do not want to do at all…
I’m a Lenovo fan after having a great experience with the Ideapad with the 3i. The only issue is that it won’t up grade to 11 and the dust in my workshop is killing my keyboard.
I never liked Dell, my wife always seems to have issues with HP, and I enjoy the mundaneness of windows over apple though i hate microsoft 365 and its copilot AI stuff. My truck is 20 years old, I intend to drive it another 20 years, you know what I mean? And my next truck will not have a computer on board…
I probably won’t buy a mac, I really don’t want to be forced to upgrade every 5 years…
The Thinkpad seemed like it was going to be good in dust and humidity ( my furniture shop is in Hawaii), I am open to other suggestions for a laptop, any thoughts??
watt ? you can keep your mac until it dies. I’ve had to upgrade PCs more often than macs… a month ago I found my mum’s old macbook from 2010, still kicking.
before buying a new machine I would dive deeper on that issue. I find it quite odd that a machine bought after 2019 won’t run SU19, especially since back then, requirements were basically… a machine with a screen and a pulse.
I just retired my 2015 MacBook Pro. In 2025. And my 2019 iMac is my backup machine. Works fine but I was doing more and more rendering, so upgraded last fall.
Use what you know. Use what you like.
If you use it in the shop maybe consider getting a PC with monitor and keyboard. Keep the pc part in a cabinet with an air filter, Then you can replace the keyboard when needed.
Seems like I need the separate graphics card and not an “integrated” graphics…
So the Thinkpad I just bought, has integrated graphics.
My Ideapad has an i5 7200u thats not supported by Windows 11 upgrade. It’s like the only one not on the Supported list, AAAARGH. I like the Idea pad well enough, it needs a new keyboard soon. The battery is toast too. But runs fine.
Windows is saying I need 11 for the security stuff. Worried I won’t be able to go on line…
Hi thanks Mike, thats a sound concept. The bigger picture is I live off grid with no A/C power currently, yes, a shack in the woods, in Hawaii, so not so bad, kinda fun. I need to be able to bring the LT home at night…
I could be talked into anything except spending more than $850. As much as I hate change I am practical usually.
The goal is to keep my perpetual 2019. I can rationalize the LT purchase. I could rationalize spending more on the LT if I could continue with the license. But sounds like a Mac wont run it…
I reread my comment “I probably won’t buy a mac, I really don’t want to be forced to upgrade every 5 years…” LOL , sorry, that was meant as 2 separate statements. I looed again , this Idea pad is 2018. Still, a LT that I can use for 10 years would be ideal.
One argument against worrying about whether it’s integrated or not is the M series from Apple. Those are all integrated GPUs, and give some of the best SketchUp performance we’ve seen. If AMD integrate Radeon into a Ryzen processor, they may have done as good a job as Apple have.
Ok. thanks for that Colin.
So interestingly , I was about to wipe the new LT before returning it, and I clicked on SU and it opened, prompted for license and such, and it opened… seems to work?..
Couple of questions if you don’t mind me pestering u, thanks for your help, appreciate your time.
I may still return the LT.
When after I first ran the installer, it told me I did not have the supported hardware. Then the rabbit hole, and SU website said it was not compatible because no graphic card. So I dropped it, looed for options, but ust went to wipe the LT for return, and it opened, and seems to work… But still worried if for some reason somehow I am forced to subscribe, will it run the SUpro curren?, not so sure… Can I do a free trial for the SUpro 25 without buggering up the 19 ust to check?
so, I download the SU25, it said it crashed when I tried to open it. Said that my computers graphic card (or lack of one) caused the crash and that it was switching back to a “classic driver” I think it said… window is gone into the ether… It opens and seems to work. Is there something that will go afoul later on? If it does work now, might I assume that in the very near future, future versions of SU would not work on this machine?
Maybe it was referencing the Vray, it downloaded as well..
On Windows there is a thing called dxdiag. It shows you what level of DX11 or DX12 you have. The new graphics require DX12. Here are steps that Epic Games give people, to get a report from that utility: