I don't want it unless it's BRAND NEW

Things are about to happen financially. I'm excited. As yall probably know, Kari got a new job with like a 40% pay increase and I got a ... not so big raise, but still a raise.

So, I'm going to be in the market for a new PC (and maybe even a new car) very soon and I'm stealing harper's post about asking what to get.

First and foremost, I need a desktop.
1. Because my current desktop is from 2002
2. I'm very inefficient on laptops and really never use them unless I'm traveling.
3. I just got 2 bitchin 22" widescreen monitors that my old PC is having a hard time running.

And really my only requirements are that it's gotta be fast, reliable, fairly inexpensive and have much storage for video prod and various other media.

So, I've been leaning very heavily toward a Dell or possibly just building one from the ground up. I've also looked at some Vaios and HPs, but they just seem too bloated with crap and overpriced.

I keep building new PCs on Dell's site and somehow rack them up to $1500 every time (without monitors and all that). However, my buddy Keith keeps building me E520s on Dell's site for like $500 max. He keeps saying, "Buy a stripped down Dell with a good processor, upgrade everything else on your own."

And really. It's so hard for me to do that. I go through their site, check all the good stuff, and get it up to over a grand in no time.

BUT, Keith's advice seems like a really good idea. I can find 500gb HDs, memory, and a dual DVI video card for pretty cheap - at least cheaper than Dell's offer. But it's probably going to be tough for me to get the essentials (case, motherboard, processor, dvd burner, power supply, sound, etc) for less than $500.

What do you think?

Another question I have. Is it better to have 2 separate smaller HDs or 1 gigantic one? It seems that if I have a 500gb drive that is running music nonstop and also trying to serve up my OS and apps that'd be slower than having 2 250gb drives; 1 drive serving up music and another running my OS and apps? Maybe that is totally wrong, but it's something I've been thinking about...
Also, if you have 2 hard drives, if one crashes, not ALL of your stuff is lost.



I currently have 2 hard drives... one for apps and one for file storage (photos, videos, music, etc).

kevi posted

what happens if your computer starts on fire?



I would just grab the dell and build it out. it will be sorta cheaper than just buying a better dell.

harper posted

You gotta build your own computer Broox. You can't go wrong on www.newegg.com



Get an ASUS motherboard and a newer Intel processor with Duo Core. You could build a sweet new tower for like $600-$700 or maybe even less. But Newegg is great because they ship really fast, and always have specials on shipping. Sometimes they give you free shipping even.

Kraus posted

whoa, did you get paid to say all that?

derek posted

Nah, just going from experience. I've had a lot of luck with them.

Kraus posted

yeah, i was going to get a lot of my upgraded items (hd, memory, etc) through newegg.com anyway...



but building a computer from scratch seems so 90s. it really doesn't seem like it'd be that much cheaper to do it myself as opposed to paying someone like Dell an extra $50 to build it for me (with an included an OS, etc)...



however, i'll check it out, price one out, and see what i come up with.

derek posted

even though I switched to Mac because I got sick of window's shit, i still would go completely straight thru newegg. Personally, I don't trust Dell or any other company sans Alienware to give you a good deal or quality software. The $500 thing is much better than going all-out with Dell, but if you're gonna upgrade thru new egg, why not just go all the way?



Outside of a dvd burner, you can easily get a core system for way under $500.



Just my thoughts.

alexei posted

ok...



I priced one out on newegg with the upgraded HD and memory...

-xion hydraulic mid tower case. XON-566TB - $80

-Intel Motherboard. LGA 775 G965 Express
- $125

-Dual DVI video card. Sapphire Radeon 256mb PCI Express - $120

-Intel Core 2 Duo Processor. E6600 2.4Ghz LGA 775 - $226

-Mushkin 2GB RAM (2x1GB) - $111

-Seagate Barracuda 400GB HD. 7200RPM SATA 3.0gb/s - $100

-Samsung 18x DVD+-R with LightScribe - $33



That came to about $800 plus $30 shipping. A pretty good computer for the price, but I probably still need...

-a keyboard/mouse

-an OS

-and maybe a heatsink/cooling for the processor? I don't know if that came with one or not.



So then I'll need to add in:

-$200 for Vista Business, which is the OS I want.

-a decent keyboard/mouse is maybe ~$70

-and a heatsink / CPU fan ~$25



newegg.com: $1,125ish



If I get the Dell PC with the essentials and OS for $500, plus...

-HD - $100

-RAM - $111

-Dual DVI Card - $120



Dell + personal upgrades: $831ish



That was just me thinking out loud... thanks for bearing through it. I mainly just listed all that in case I made some totally stupid selection when pricing that out on NewEgg. I've been out of the hardware game for a while.

derek posted

oh yeah, plus... dell owns alienware.

derek posted

I can get you employee pricing for an IBM if you're interested.

nathan posted

Try something more like this Broox...



-Intel Core 2 Duo 1.86GHz Processor

Item=N82E16819115005

$166



-ASUS P5B-E LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard

Item no. N82E16813131070

$144.99



-Leadtek PX7600GS TDH GeForce 7600GS 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card

Item no. N82E16814122002

$99.99



-CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

Item no. N82E16820145566

$67.00



-Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

Item no. N82E16822148140

$79.99



-SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+RW DVD Burner

Item no. N82E16827151133

$31.99



-ATRIX Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 480W Power Supply

Item no. N82E16811209022

$39.99



TOTAL: $629.95



I just built 2 of these for my office and they are sweeeeeeet. This leaves room for your operating system costs too. I don't think you need anything more than this. This is a great newegg machine.

Kraus posted

If you really want a PC, dell is the best you can get. I have a vista compatible PC, and it just blows. What I really don't think you want is a computer with vista. Overall, vista is bloated, pretty hard to use, and a total rip off. If anything, you should try and get XP Media center edition on a dell, because right now, dell is all you can get that is decent when it comes to PCs
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