the best way t buy.

Aleksey · 12-31-2003, 11:36 PM

What is the best way to buy a ocmputer?
Dell constanly has advertising that p[laces like best buy aren't good for buying computers, and that it's expencive. in reality however, you could a computer at best buy that would be almost twice as powerful, for the same price dell.com gives you, and what's mroe is that that computer would of a name brand like SONY.

Or is it better to to some place online, and order a fully customized comp straight from a factory?

Or maybe to buy seperate parts and put it together yourself. That would the most customized kind.

I'm getting ready to buy a new machiene, and I'm not certain, because al 3 have drawbacks, and advantages, which make them equal. Or at least so it seems to me.

**ian** · 01-01-2004, 12:38 AM

I built my current computer, and it was definitely an educational process.
I remember taking an IBM computer I had, AMD 350 down to the computer shop to get a new hdd installed. The guy at the shop fiddled around with it for nearly an hour and couldnt find a way to add a second hard drive or replace the existing one.

AainaalyaA · 01-02-2004, 07:08 AM

i bought my first computer -- Macintosh
my second was created for me -- i built it.. but trashed it coz it didn't turn out the way i wanted it to turn out.. i discovered that rubber is not such a great idea as a housing
my third was a branded one.. an ibm
fourth was an NEC
fifth were a series of the PowerPCs
sixth is my current one, a Fujitsu-PC
obviously I would only build one if and when the manufacturers can come out with parts that are cheap.. and since I love my nails tooo much, I wouldn't dream of getting into the icky mucky of putting things together unless its Revell or Airfix {you know the model airplanes/ship etc}

Rick G · 01-28-2004, 05:24 AM

If you can provide all tech service yourself, there is no decision, build your own. If you buy good quality parts and shop at places like "NEWEGG.COM" the price will be less than any prebuilt. Just compare apples to apples. Using the build approach you eliminate all the negatives, completly know your system and can customize it exactly the way you want it. Cool cases, lights, cooling, psu, cpu and all the rest. The biggest advantage is no generic parts, warranty's that are longer (lifetime on good memory) and evry component completly upgradable.
Building a computer is a real fun project. The longest part of the process is researching the variety of components out there and selecting the ones that are just right for you. The actuall building of the computer takes about 3 hours plus any software loads you make. Another great thing about a homebuilt is that no more garbage you don't want cluttering up the hard drive.
If you look at my sig, you can see my system and I have less than $700 in it plus peripherals.

**[tab]** · 01-28-2004, 07:04 AM

Hi Rick G...

Welcome to CoFo... I see you have the same video card as me

Rick G · 01-29-2004, 12:06 AM

That 440 is really a econo way to go and is the big bottleneck in my system. I am planning a new computer with AMD and a new high end vid crd. Hard to believe a vid card is more money than a mobo.

**[tab]** · 01-29-2004, 07:37 AM

I got mine for the video out... I'm not really a gamer.

Rick G · 01-30-2004, 07:25 AM

Tab
I just wanted a decent vid card at first, I don't do a lot of gaming but when I do I wish I had spent a bit more.
Have you ever visited the forum at the MSI site? They won't answer your questions if you don't have an MSI board but what a wealth of information from some extremely smart people. I have quite a number of posts there.

se7en · 02-26-2004, 11:47 AM

I got my 2002 Sony VAIO PCV-RX741 desktop (no longer in production) from Circuit City. Total was around $1000.
Then I got raped when I bought my 15" Sony LCD from Best Buy for some $600

Oh well, I was young, dumb, and inexperienced.
I'd just go to Circuit City and get an off-the-shelf computer.
I know Dell has some great prices, but remember- You get what you pay for

BTW, this is my second computer. My first one was a shitty OLD thing my moms friend built for us.

Lord Kalthorn · 02-29-2004, 04:07 PM

Yeah! I would buy from a shop because; lets face it, they're cheaper! Its not the same as building your own but you can easily customize a shop brought one to be your baby! (My Computer is lovingly called Jennifer)

My newest Computer; the one in my Sig, I got for only £1000 the Intel 3.2 HT I was going to get was £900 but for only £100 I got 120MB more Hard Drive and the AMD 64 3200! Bargainlicious, Cheap as Chips! That was from PC World.

View Poll Results: What is the best way to buy a computer?
Get one particially customized, online.	3	30.00%
Go to a place like Best Buy or Staples	2	20.00%
Put one together yourself from previously bought parts.	3	30.00%
What are computers for? O.o	2	20.00%
Voters: 10. You may not vote on this poll

12-31-2003, 11:36 PM	#1 (permalink)
Aleksey Bronze Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: My Chair Age: 32 Posts: 44	the best way t buy. What is the best way to buy a ocmputer? Dell constanly has advertising that p[laces like best buy aren't good for buying computers, and that it's expencive. in reality however, you could a computer at best buy that would be almost twice as powerful, for the same price dell.com gives you, and what's mroe is that that computer would of a name brand like SONY. Or is it better to to some place online, and order a fully customized comp straight from a factory? Or maybe to buy seperate parts and put it together yourself. That would the most customized kind. I'm getting ready to buy a new machiene, and I'm not certain, because al 3 have drawbacks, and advantages, which make them equal. Or at least so it seems to me. __________________ Once in a great while, somewhere between reality and insanity, will stand the one man that makes every person in the world stop and question everything they do. This is, infact, that man.

01-01-2004, 12:38 AM	#2 (permalink)
ian Administrator Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 7,471	I built my current computer, and it was definitely an educational process. I remember taking an IBM computer I had, AMD 350 down to the computer shop to get a new hdd installed. The guy at the shop fiddled around with it for nearly an hour and couldnt find a way to add a second hard drive or replace the existing one. __________________ Computer Forum

01-02-2004, 07:08 AM	#3 (permalink)
AainaalyaA Gold Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: EuroAsia Age: 38 Posts: 308	i bought my first computer -- Macintosh my second was created for me -- i built it.. but trashed it coz it didn't turn out the way i wanted it to turn out.. i discovered that rubber is not such a great idea as a housing my third was a branded one.. an ibm fourth was an NEC fifth were a series of the PowerPCs sixth is my current one, a Fujitsu-PC obviously I would only build one if and when the manufacturers can come out with parts that are cheap.. and since I love my nails tooo much, I wouldn't dream of getting into the icky mucky of putting things together unless its Revell or Airfix {you know the model airplanes/ship etc} __________________ AainaA Lifestyle

01-28-2004, 05:24 AM	#4 (permalink)
Rick G Gold Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Las Vegas, USA Posts: 294	If you can provide all tech service yourself, there is no decision, build your own. If you buy good quality parts and shop at places like "NEWEGG.COM" the price will be less than any prebuilt. Just compare apples to apples. Using the build approach you eliminate all the negatives, completly know your system and can customize it exactly the way you want it. Cool cases, lights, cooling, psu, cpu and all the rest. The biggest advantage is no generic parts, warranty's that are longer (lifetime on good memory) and evry component completly upgradable. Building a computer is a real fun project. The longest part of the process is researching the variety of components out there and selecting the ones that are just right for you. The actuall building of the computer takes about 3 hours plus any software loads you make. Another great thing about a homebuilt is that no more garbage you don't want cluttering up the hard drive. If you look at my sig, you can see my system and I have less than $700 in it plus peripherals. __________________ New Sys Abit AW9D Max OCZ Plat @ x 1gig OCZ Gamextreme 600 PSU 8800 GTS 640 sony dvd burner WD 200 gig sata hdd Thermaltake shark case Viewsonic 22" widescreen

01-28-2004, 07:04 AM	#5 (permalink)
[tab] [...] Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 904	Hi Rick G... Welcome to CoFo... I see you have the same video card as me __________________ DVDRelease.com - Digital-Camera.org

01-29-2004, 12:06 AM	#6 (permalink)
Rick G Gold Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Las Vegas, USA Posts: 294	That 440 is really a econo way to go and is the big bottleneck in my system. I am planning a new computer with AMD and a new high end vid crd. Hard to believe a vid card is more money than a mobo. __________________ New Sys Abit AW9D Max OCZ Plat @ x 1gig OCZ Gamextreme 600 PSU 8800 GTS 640 sony dvd burner WD 200 gig sata hdd Thermaltake shark case Viewsonic 22" widescreen

01-29-2004, 07:37 AM	#7 (permalink)
[tab] [...] Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 904	I got mine for the video out... I'm not really a gamer. __________________ DVDRelease.com - Digital-Camera.org

01-30-2004, 07:25 AM	#8 (permalink)
Rick G Gold Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Las Vegas, USA Posts: 294	Tab I just wanted a decent vid card at first, I don't do a lot of gaming but when I do I wish I had spent a bit more. Have you ever visited the forum at the MSI site? They won't answer your questions if you don't have an MSI board but what a wealth of information from some extremely smart people. I have quite a number of posts there. __________________ New Sys Abit AW9D Max OCZ Plat @ x 1gig OCZ Gamextreme 600 PSU 8800 GTS 640 sony dvd burner WD 200 gig sata hdd Thermaltake shark case Viewsonic 22" widescreen

02-26-2004, 11:47 AM	#9 (permalink)
se7en New Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Georgia Age: 19 Posts: 14	I got my 2002 Sony VAIO PCV-RX741 desktop (no longer in production) from Circuit City. Total was around $1000. Then I got raped when I bought my 15" Sony LCD from Best Buy for some $600 Oh well, I was young, dumb, and inexperienced. I'd just go to Circuit City and get an off-the-shelf computer. I know Dell has some great prices, but remember- You get what you pay for BTW, this is my second computer. My first one was a shitty OLD thing my moms friend built for us.

02-29-2004, 04:07 PM	#10 (permalink)
Lord Kalthorn Bronze Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Greathanc Age: 20 Posts: 35	Yeah! I would buy from a shop because; lets face it, they're cheaper! Its not the same as building your own but you can easily customize a shop brought one to be your baby! (My Computer is lovingly called Jennifer) My newest Computer; the one in my Sig, I got for only £1000 the Intel 3.2 HT I was going to get was £900 but for only £100 I got 120MB more Hard Drive and the AMD 64 3200! Bargainlicious, Cheap as Chips! That was from PC World. __________________ Windows XP 64-bit Edition Athlon 64 3200+ @ 800Mhz 512Mb RAM 320Gb HDD nVidia FX5200 128Mb Graphics Card 4x DVD-RAM/DVD-+RW Drive CD-RW 52x24x36 6 USB, 2 Firewire, 1 Ethernet www.playfordnet.com/greathanc/index.php

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