Still on the hunt for new desktop PC *help*

then you havent had them built by the right guys..

I have built dozens of machines...and only had two warranty issues with individual parts. The secret is using quality components the first time.

It is a AMD 64bit machine with 1G of Dual channel DDR, a decent 128M video card....60G SATA drive with a dual layer DVD burner

I oculd have made it a little cheaper by using a cheaper mobo, but as the basis of the entire system, it pays to get a good one.

 

I don't have a lot of advice, and my advice might not be the right one. R2K and others with more knowledge can tell me if I am wrong.

I would sacrifice a little processor speed for more ram if it comes down to chosing between the two. I think at high processing speeds you start getting a diminishing return. More Ram can make a big difference in the games you play.

 

this is actually a very good point....you can get a older AMD 2400-2600 processor and save 50 bucks that can be put towards increasing the amount of RAM ro something else(like a better video card which will make quite the differencde during gaming)...I have noticed a bigger increase in speed by doubling the amount of RAM than I did when I went from a 2000XP chip to a 2800.

 

You can get a Dell 9100 with a 19" lcd for about 650 or a dell 4700 with 17" lcd for $450. With the extra dough, you can get a sweet video card and more ram.

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/outrageous_desktops?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd

What's best is that you won't have to be tech support.

 

Personally, I don't like Dell, but as a fellow bbs member, this is definitely the way to go.
Dell's Amazing Setup - I don't know how they do it
Goodness, what a beast. For you computer literates, BTX form factor, Dual core for only $100 plus, 19" flat panel monitor, a serviceable video card, etc.
IMO this is your best option. Most powerful, probably reliable, and cheapest for the money. To be honest, I would be hard pressed to build the exact same system for that price. $650 after an easy rebate + tax = $700 which is still well within your budget.

This system can be upgraded to a dual-core processor for only $100 more(basically the newest fad) and I can pretty much guarantee that it should be able to run the newest games fairly well, as I have a similar machine myself. The dual core is essentially two complete processors that work side by side on the same die which will speed up multitasking.

Add $20 for the 80GB hard drive upgrade and your golden.

Of course Ram is always nice, but $100 for an upgrade to 1GB is ludicrous and 512 will do just fine for whatever he needs. I only use 512 myself, and it is fine. If he needs more you can find it at other stores for cheaper and better.

This overall deal is great, however, and if I was in the market for a new one myself I would probably get this (relatively inexpensive) beast.

Total price with all upgrades, 770 + tax, and thats a really good deal. I *might* be able to make it for cheaper, but it is really hard to compete with dell's prices.

Now you might be wondering why I don't like Dell, yet am recommending them to you. You see, Dell cuts costs wherever possible. They also are notorious for being the "Wal Mart" of the computer industry, knocking off smaller competitors and businesses. However, they have definitely acheived their purposes, which is to bring an affordable PC to the average user. To this end, their motherboards may not be able to overclock, but this really doesn't matter for the average non-enthusiast who simply wants a reliable PC. Basically, nothing is overclockable/flexible on a dell PC. But, does it really need to be? Only if you are interested in that area. Dell uses a lot of cheap parts. However, just because parts are cheap doesn't mean they aren't reliable. Several of my friends who have bought dell's have had very few problems with their PC's. Okay, that's enough talk, I hope I have helped.

Ah, I almost forgot. This PC is under the Small Business division of Dell. However, you can sign up as pretty much anything, I've heard of people using their own names, and there really is no penalty involved.

 

Just curious, how come nobody mentions IBM's?

Too expensive? No good?

 

You're not going to touch the Dell in terms of price. These systems are probably at or below dell cost so unless you can get the same kind of deal from Hpaq, you won't do any better on price.

 

IBM doesn't make consumer computers anymore.

 

Oh, I see. thanks

 

Check out fatwallet.com. There's always a couple good computer deals on there.

http://www.fatwallet.com/c/18/

 

I speced out a similar system on hp and the lowest I could get it ws 919 so even with 20 percent off you still won't get as cheap as this dell special.

If you like the HP better, go for it, but you will not be able to beat these dell deals on price unless HP is willing to lose money on the deal

 

Because HP has more overhead. Dell has their entire business built around the fact that they can order parts, have them delivered, build machines, and ship them out the door, all in two weeks. This means they keep almost zero inventory for more than a month.

Being the market leader, they also can bleed their vendors for every spare cent possible. Just like with Walmart, doing business with Dell can make or break you. If you can't supply the parts, Dell just finds someone who can.

This is why IBM sold their PC business to Lenovo. They couldn't compete. Too much overhead.

 

I had ordered a Dell for around 1200 not too long ago with a lot of extra features include upgraded memory,cpu, 19" flat panel and a video card upgrade.

Seems to run pretty good. oh it was at the site mentioned earlier that offers a lot of dell deals.

 

how do you guys feel about Dell's extended warranties? Are they worth it?

 

I think I bought the two year warrnty, it wasn't very expensive

 

I got one of these with a 17" flat screen Monitor, and HP printer for $299 from Compusa the other day.

Compaq 1500NX AMD Sempron 3000+ 2.0GHz Computer

http://www.mysale.ca/sales/45111.html

Go and check the deals at local stores. This isn't a top of the line PC, but it's more than I need and the package all together for that price!

 

I saw that deal. Wasn't the computer like 90 plus 65 shipping?