Midland Computers Showroom | Flight Simulation

Why Midland Computers?

By combining our Technical Director’s personal interest in flight simulation with our existing gaming expertise, flight simulation has become an important aspect of our showroom offering.

Over the past few years flight simulation has progressed rapidly. For a number of years the most well-known simulation software was Microsoft Flight Simulator X, but Microsoft ended development of this in 2009 and sold the commercial version rights to Lockheed Martin. Lockheed used this as a basis to produce their commercial simulator Prepar3D, which has had continued development since 2011 and can utilise the capabilities of current PC hardware far better than its predecessor.

Our Technical Director Ian is enthusiastic about aviation, having previously served in the Royal Air Force, and realised after upgrading from FSX to Prepar3D himself that the improved experience it offered presented an opportunity to build on our long-standing specialisation in gaming PCs.

The component specifications required for flight simulation are similar to what we provide for general gaming use, and when suggesting PCs for both requirements we carefully tailor our recommendations to your specific requirements and budget. With flight simulation however we consider the hardware to be only half the story, as there is typically a significant difference in how the PC is used.

While a gaming PC is used for entertainment, the games being played could vary on a regular basis. In contrast, flight simulation enthusiasts tend to stay with their preferred software, and in many cases aim to master flying their favourite types of aircraft in specific locations. The simulation PC consequently becomes more of a specialised tool with which to enjoy your hobby, and often needs to be configured to provide the best possible experience.

With this in mind, we are pleased to be able to offer a complete service for Prepar3D systems.

We can walk you through the process of purchasing your Prepar3D licence, install it on your new PC and install your choice of third party expansions.
We can also supply specialised flight control gear from the Logitech G range (formerly produced by Saitek) and configure these to give the control inputs you need.
We can offer configuration of virtual reality headsets, which are becoming increasingly popular for flight simulation due to the incredible immersion they offer.
We can even provide on-site installation if desired.

You can then get straight into enjoying your flights, knowing you have one point of call if you experience any issues or need assistance in future with software upgrades and expansions.

Whatever your requirements, we will be happy to discuss how we can help. You can contact us by email, online chat or phone. You may alternatively prefer to visit us in person in our showroom, where we have a Prepar3D demo machine with an Oculus Rift virtual reality headset permanently set up.

Take to the skies and experience the joy of flight in the next generation of Microsoft Flight Simulator. The world is at your fingertips.

Microsoft Flight Simulator will simulate the entire earth using textures and topographical data from Microsoft's Bing Maps. Three-dimensional representations of the world's features such as 37 thousand airports, 1.5 billion buildings, 2 trillion trees, mountains, roads, rivers, animals, traffic and more, which is generated using Microsoft Azure technology.

This Simulator is like flying into the future. It's absolutely stunning and they have not forgotten about the simulation aspects either, It’s highly accurate and trumps any other flight sim currently out there.

If you’re looking to upgrade your current system to fully benefit from the incredible detail Microsoft Flight Simulator has to offer, or looking to purchase a new system but don’t know where to start. We can provide a helping hand and provide honest, professional and friendly advice. We build competitively priced computers designed around you and your requirements. Contact us today to dive into this next-gen Simulator, give us a call or pop into our Showroom to discuss.

Microsoft Flight Simulator's Minimum Specs

· OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)

· CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200

· RAM: 8GB

· GPU: AMD Radeon RX 570 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 770

· Direct X: Version 11

· Available Storage Space: 150GB

Microsoft Flight Simulator's Recommended Specs

· OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)

· CPU: Intel Core i5-8400 or AMD Ryzen 5 1500X

· RAM: 16GB

· GPU: AMD Radeon RX 590 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 970

· Available Storage Space: 150GB

Microsoft Flight Simulator's Ideal Specs

· OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)

· CPU: Intel Core i7-9800X or AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 2700X

· RAM: 32GB

· GPU: AMD Radeon VII or Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080

· Available Storage Space: 150GB

Check out this video that shows which planes and which airports are included with each version of Microsoft Flight Simulator...

We hope you all enjoyed the weekend as much as we did! Our stand was extremely busy with a lot of you interested in our systems and again there was a huge interest in VR. We took the Oculus Rift S to the show and it still seems to be the most popular choice for flight sim.

There was definitely a ‘buzz’ around the release of Microsoft Flight Sim 2020. Lets hope it lives up to it’s expectation!

We are still offering £25.00 off all our Flight Sim PC offerings until the 21^st October.

You want the best for your Flight Sim experience! Here at Midland Computers we are specialists in flight simulation and gaming systems, and we bring a personal touch to IT. With 20 years’ experience you can be assured that you are getting the best advice, and recommendations tailored to your exact needs. Pop down for a chat, take a test flight, and experience our dedicated demonstration machines from the largest independent system builder in Shropshire.

This year we noticed an increased interest in the use of virtual reality headsets for increased immersion. Being able to sit inside the virtual cockpit during your flight certainly seemed to appeal to more of you this time! We have experience of configuring and using both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, and took examples of each of these leading VR headsets to the show. Having the two together on our stand gave show visitors the unusual opportunity to try them almost side by side, albeit connected to different PCs and with different aircraft and scenery.

We talked to a number of you about your PC requirements on the day, but we realise that the hustle and bustle of the show environment isn’t always ideal for this. If you couldn't make it to the show or would like to experience one of our demonstration PCs in a quieter environment, you can visit us in person in our Telford showroom and experience the ‘MF-AR7’ AMD Ryzen 7-based PC that was in use on the day. Alternatively we’ll also be pleased to discuss what we can do for you by phone, email or our showroom website’s online chat facility. As ever, our aim is to provide you with a complete solution rather than being just another system builder. We pride ourselves on our personal approach, guiding you through the purchase of your new flight sim computer and accessories, and can optionally install and configure Prepar3D and associated add-ons to get you flying as soon as possible.
Contact us today to find out how.