Help to choose the right PC needed!

[Grimulus]

Hmmm the price is "okay" i guess but personally i'd take the other option for video (i thin it was an onboard option) and then get a separate video card on the side because truth be told, all the previous generation cards toast the X300 (quite possibly including the 9200).

Yeah. I had a friend do that. He bought a 2.8ghz dell and just got the onboard video and stuck his own video card in. it's definitely the way to go if you must insist on getting a dell. I would personally build or have one built.
I'm not sure if the Dell proprietary to the point that if you get onboard video it will not have a AGP slot. it may not. now that i think about it my friend may have just orderd a crap video card from dell to make sure he had an agp, THEN upgraded. that might be a better option.

 

[marmak]

Hi. Thanks for this. One thing you should know is that I'm not a gamer, I've never used the computer to play a game. What I do do, however, is web-design with photoshop. I also download a lot of music although I don't really use the PC to listen to it.

Does that help at all?

x

 

[Yeti]

To be honest I think any of the systems you mentioned will suit your needs just fine. The deciding factor, in my opinion, should probably be the quality/service and price. My old P3 800MHz has worked for over 4 years downloading music and movies and using Autocad, Maple, Matlab, etc.

 

[marmak]

The deciding factor, in my opinion, should probably be the quality/service and price.

Does anyone have an opinion on HP customer service? Everyone's been praising Dell but the PC is about $300 more expensive.

 

[Praetor]

Is HP an OEM?

Anything that you dont yourself build pretty much qualifies as OEM.

Click here for full HP T645UK Spec

Well I can now discount the HP machine as it's using the antiquated i848 chipset (the very first chipset to support Prescott.... and the oldest and cheapest). In my eyes that's out of the question; even for budget systems, I'll cram in the formidable i865.

The RAM is DDR-SDRAM, btw. I called them to ask. Any comments?

Yea I figured, odds are its PC3200 which is your basic RAM for machines these days (i'm running effectively PC3200 myself)

I can buy this system and an 17" LG TFT monitor (is it any good?) for around $1500.

Need to know the specs on the TFT before I can comment but unless space is a critical concern you're probably better off with a CRT.

I'm sorry to go on about this but it's a substantial amount of money and I'd rather get something that I'll be happy with.

Unless you're willing to consider (a) other brands (b) building your own (which would be ideal, and we'd help you out) then (c) you're best bet is probably the Dell as it is the most superior machien there (except maybe the peripherals but you can always customize/upgrade that on the side).

I'm really really grateful for your help.

Glad to do it.

Hi. Thanks for this. One thing you should know is that I'm not a gamer, I've never used the computer to play a game. What I do do, however, is web-design with photoshop. I also download a lot of music although I don't really use the PC to listen to it.

Those requirements will mostly be impacted by the CPU/ram subsystem rather than the video card; you're probably best off with the onboard. Another route you might want to consider is getting an AMD system .... they'll more than do the job for you and you'll save money.

Hi. Thanks for this. One thing you should know is that I'm not a gamer, I've never used the computer to play a game. What I do do, however, is web-design with photoshop. I also download a lot of music although I don't really use the PC to listen to it.

Then i think ill be the oddball out.... my roomate (and thus indirectly myself) has had a nightmare of a time with Dell customer service .... he ended up having me build him a new computer. But seriously though, every OEM has its happy endings and they all have their nightmare stores

 

[marmak]

Thanks for everything. You've now half-convinced me to try and build my own PC. I'm nervous though cos I'm such a newbie! HELP!!!!!!!!

 

[Praetor]

Sure... once you've decided on what the other half wants I can help! Buddy of mine said once: "You're gonna spend $xx on a computer anyways... you might as well (a) get what you want (b) get more for your money"

 

[marmak]

OK. We're both sitting here waiting for advice. Say you go into this site: http://www.pcwcomponentcentre.co.uk, which components would you choose? Where do you start? Is there a list of all the things we should be looking for?

Our minimum requirements (and any suggestions are welcome of course) are:
- Pentium 4 (HT preferably), 3.0GHz, 800MHz
- 512 RAM (what type is best?)
- 160GB
- DVD/DVD-R & RW
- at least 5 USB ports and firewire for my iPod
- Video card (suggestions?)
- Audio card (suggestions?)
- WinXP OS

We've decided to leave the monitor from now as we've got a decent one which will have to do. We've got about £650 to spend on the base unit ($1000)

THANK YOU!

 

[Praetor]

1. Do you do any gaming?
2. More importantly than what you've partially spec'd, what is your budget?
3. I'll do some looking around but you might consider having a look at http://www.overclockers.co.uk/ too; a couple of my mates out ini England have suggested it as being a decent place.

 

[marmak]

1. Do you do any gaming?

Nope, no gaming.

2. More importantly than what you've partially spec'd, what is your budget?

£650 ($1000)

3. I'll do some looking around but you might consider having a look at http://www.overclockers.co.uk/ too; a couple of my mates out ini England have suggested it as being a decent place.

Thanks for the suggestion

 

[Praetor]

Ok ill do some looking around but for starters have a look at http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/93097 about halfway down the page, Option 02. It's an AMD system and will not stand up to the basic specs you've got there (and the video card would be dropped because you dont do any gaming) but that's only $700USD system. To be honest, i'd be quite hardpressed to get a good Intel system for 1K but i always enjoy a challenge so ill do some looking around.

 

[marmak]

I've got a spec for a built system which I can get for $1K. I'm posting it into a new thread