Cheap new computer.

[Heretic]

I was wondering what everyones feelings are on this....right now I have a generic computer PII 266 and was looking at upgrading the mother board, memory and hard drive and that comes into arround $350, but I can buy a cheap tower from bestbuy or something like that for $399 and it comes with Windows XP which I dont have. It almost doesnt even make sense anymore to do a motherboard swap. Before when component equipment actually made a performance difference it did but heck my 266 MHz machine is still cutting the mustard more or less.

SO I pose this question cheap ### computer or upgrade my old one.

 

[LPMEDIC]

in my opinion, it all depends on all the "Bells and Whistles" you are wanting on your new machine. If you do not want extensive graphics, large memory amounts, or just using for things like office work , then i would think the cheaper model would be ok, BUT , if you are into surfing the net, downloadin stuff, playing games, or any other higher deman applications I would think that adding a better board or buying a more expensive machine would be the way to go.. JMHO

 

[SmallTown]

and with the insanely low prices at Dell these days, might be better off spending a little $$$ and buying from them.
If you're going to run windows XP, you'll need at least 512mb of ram. I have 256 and can get pretty sloooooow.

 

[jlabsher]

For a real cheapo check out whoelse walmart.com. Got my kid one for under $200. Comes without monitor, 1.1 gig chip, 128 meg ram and a 10 gig hdd. Has linux but I threw on windows. They also have a 14" LCD monitor for $150.

Great for a little kid or somebody who doesn't need much.

 

[Oz]

Originally posted by johndoug
Go with the bottom Dell. You will be happpy you did.

Dells start at $399 now.

Ditto!

 

[Heretic]

Cheapest Dell I see is $699, can you provide a link?

 

[Oz]

Try dell.com/tv (I don't see a $399 version there either though!) Still, spend a few extra bucks for a Dell.

 

[Warron]

Dells good if your future upgrade plans don’t go beyond new memory, video card, pci card, or cd drive. If you think you’ll ever want to upgrade the motherboard, avoid them. Much of dells hardware and software (including the operating system) require your computer to have a dell bios to run.

Earlier this year, I decided to build my own computer and tried to reuse some of the components and software that came on my old dell, and found they would not work. I ended up having to go out and buy a new operating system even though my old computer went in the trash. Needless to say, I won’t buy dell anymore.

 

[Oz]

I never understood that argument anyway. On average, computers are replaced every 3 years. Why would you want to build a new computer today, say motherboard/memory/processor, and use slower components that are 3 years old from your old computer. I built my own computers all through the 1990's, but today, it's much cheaper to just go to Dell and get what you want with a warranty, and fresh versions of Windows/Office and everything else you use.

To anyone who is buying a new computer, buy all of the RAM you can afford! 256 is a bare minimum with Windows XP.

More Memory = Better Performance = Longer Lifecycle.

 

[itsbob]

Originally posted by Oz
I never understood that argument anyway. On average, computers are replaced every 3 years. Why would you want to build a new computer today, say motherboard/memory/processor, and use slower components that are 3 years old from your old computer. I built my own computers all through the 1990's, but today, it's much cheaper to just go to Dell and get what you want with a warranty, and fresh versions of Windows/Office and everything else you use.

To anyone who is buying a new computer, buy all of the RAM you can afford! 256 is a bare minimum with Windows XP.

More Memory = Better Performance = Longer Lifecycle.

 

[Oz]

What are you trying to say, Bob?

 

[itsbob]

Originally posted by Oz
I never understood that argument anyway. On average, computers are replaced every 3 years. Why would you want to build a new computer today, say motherboard/memory/processor, and use slower components that are 3 years old from your old computer. I built my own computers all through the 1990's, but today, it's much cheaper to just go to Dell and get what you want with a warranty, and fresh versions of Windows/Office and everything else you use.

To anyone who is buying a new computer, buy all of the RAM you can afford! 256 is a bare minimum with Windows XP.

More Memory = Better Performance = Longer Lifecycle.

I think you all are looking in the wrong place for your upgrades.. I never paid more then $200 for a motherboard processor and memory.. and it's worth doing it yourself as long as you know the differences between motherboards.. you can get the same "Athlon" ready motherboard one from say Asus for $200 or one from another company for $75.. you have to do your research!

 

[vraiblonde]

Heretic, buy a new computer. To me, it's the choice between whether I want to buy a new car or build one myself.

 

[itsbob]

Try Pricewatch.com I have a few other companies I deal with directly.. but this is a REAL good site to get the best prices.. you can buy everything seperatly or in combo...

 

[Heretic]

Vrai hehe actually I did build a car once

 

[vraiblonde]

Now that I think about it, it's also like me crocheting an afghan for my niece rather than just buying one. So if you enjoy "the build", do it. If you just want the finished product, buy it.

 

[Warron]

Originally posted by Oz
I built my own computers all through the 1990's, but today, it's much cheaper to just go to Dell and get what you want with a warranty, and fresh versions of Windows/Office and everything else you use.

I don't agree. I just built my own computer from scratch for the same price if not less then I could get an equivalent from Dell.

$1600 for a P4, 2.8 Gig machine with 1 Gig pc3200 DDR Ram, Asus P4G8X Deluxe motherboard, Antec Plus1080AMG case with 430 Watt powersupply, 80 Gig maxtor ata 133 harddrive, audigy 2 sound card, Geforce 4 ti 4400 graphics card, 56x cd rom, 40x24x40 cd rewriter, windows xp pro and more. Some of the stuff was recycled from my old computer, but that was half the point of building my own.

Since every item in my computer is retail (ie standardized), I can upgrade it to my hearts content and reuse it on future computers as I desire. Since companies like dell tend to dumb down the hardware they sell with their computers to save on price, you also get better performance by buying retail. Especially for sound and video cards.

 

[Oz]

Originally posted by Warron
I don't agree. I just built my own computer from scratch for the same price if not less then I could get an equivalent from Dell.

$1600 for a P4, 2.8 Gig machine with 1 Gig pc3200 DDR Ram, Asus P4G8X Deluxe motherboard, Antec Plus1080AMG case with 430 Watt powersupply, 80 Gig maxtor ata 133 harddrive, audigy 2 sound card, Geforce 4 ti 4400 graphics card, 56x cd rom, 40x24x40 cd rewriter, windows xp pro and more. Some of the stuff was recycled from my old computer, but that was half the point of building my own.

Since every item in my computer is retail (ie standardized), I can upgrade it to my hearts content and reuse it on future computers as I desire. Since companies like dell tend to dumb down the hardware they sell with their computers to save on price, you also get better performance by buying retail. Especially for sound and video cards.

A similarly priced Dell, today is $1100 - $1372, including Office XP SBE, and without a monitor. (I priced an Optiplex GX270 and the Dimension 2350 on the Small Business site.) A casual user would still be better off ordering a Dell preconfigured instead of building their own.

 

[Warron]

Originally posted by Oz
A similarly priced Dell, today is $1100 - $1372, including Office XP SBE, and without a monitor. (I priced an Optiplex GX270 and the Dimension 2350 on the Small Business site.) A casual user would still be better off ordering a Dell preconfigured instead of building their own.

Thats pretty funny.

Lets See; Dell GX-270 with the closest configuration as my computer.

2.8GHz processor, Desktop Case, 1 Gig DDR 400 MHz Ram 2 Dimms, Office xp pro, windows xp pro, 80 Gig hard drive, 48x cdrom (no option for second drive), 64 Mb Geforce 4 mx (not even worth half my current graphics card), Soundblaster live sound card (once again not remotely comparable), Harmon/Kardon 395 speakers (lowest one with subwoofer) . No monitor, everything else default. Final cost $1801

The only plus this computer has over mine is Office xp pro vs office 2000 pro on mine. Both the graphic and sound cards are crap as far as I'm concerned. And dell does not seem to offer ata 133 drives (Their's are all ata 100).

Now the Dimension 2350.

This computer is so far from mine that a comparison is barely worth the effort. Integrated graphics and sound, what a joke. And you can't even get a 2.8 Gig processor. Choosing the best options for just about everything and then not coming even remotely close to what I have, produce a computer for $1236 with no monitor. Low price, sure, but comparable to what I already have, not even close.

The lowest price computer I could find on dell that was remotely close to mine is the Dimension 4600. With 2.8 GHz processor, premium sound, Office xp pro, 1 Gig ram, no monitor, Radeon 9800 Graphics card, Audigy 2 sound card, Harmon Kardon HK-395 speakers, Windows xp pro, and everything else default, the price comes to $2175. Well above what I paid. And the only thing this has over mine is office xp pro and a Radeo 9800 graphics card. But considering the graphics card is a dell version (dell uses dumbed down versions of graphics and sound cards plus does not update drivers very frequently), that might actually not be an advantage.

Even the highest priced Dell, the Dimension xps, is only marginally better then what I currently have and that would have cost me over $2600 without the monitor.

 

[Oz]

Dimension 8300 $1761 less 10%, less $150 rebate = $1441 with free shipping, as closely configured to your mentioned config as I could get it, using their upgrades where you mentioned an upgrade (memory/sound/video/hard drive.)

Point is, if you like building your own, do it! I've been there, done that. You pay a little more, and you get a little more or a little better. No argument from me there. But you can put a comparable Dell on your desk, brand new, for less money.

You have built yourself a fine computer. But for the average person, it's bad advice to tell them to build their own. You have to have the knowledge and passion (and time!) to make all of that stuff coexist in an unstable, conflicted Windows environment.

For the average person, the $499 Dell is more computer than they will ever need to run Quicken, send email and surf the web.