dummy ( me) needs help buying a computer

here's the situation...the machine I have here at home is on it's last legs. It's some kind on mongrel my nephew built from the ground up for $500.

Our needs aren't huge. But none of us know anything about computers. Turn it on , shut it off. That's it.

I cruise thru the net, obviously.

My wife does too and she messes around with digital photos.

We would like to have the ability to make our own CDs as well as my 11 year old son would like to be able to do homework papers and play games..Mostly roller coaster tycoon and and impossible creatures (which won't play on this clunker )....

anyway I must keep the purchase to $2000 or below.

Looking at Dells ... The 8400 series and the bottom of the Dimension XPS series fit the budget.

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_xps4?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_8400?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

my questions based on our needs and wants :

Is this overkill ? or not enough ?

Can I get away with 8400 for a savings ?

I figure to make a purchase in about a month. Any info. would help me and would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks .....................

I'd suggest going to a place like www.newegg.com and building one yourself. This way you can ensure that you get everything and you can read individual product reviews and so forth.

thanks..but I'd have as much success flying the space shuttle as building a computer.

It ain't my thing.. I'm hoping for open the boxes..connect the connections and go...

When I say *dummy* ....I'm not kidding. We still have phones with cords in this house. Bought our first dvd and cd player this past year.

:D

thanks..but I'd have as much success flying the space shuttle as building a computer.

It ain't my thing.. I'm hoping for open the boxes..connect the connections and go...

When I say *dummy* ....I'm not kidding. We still have phones with cords in this house. Bought our first dvd and cd player this past year.

:D

Just go for a Dell; for everyday tasks (web, burning CD's/DVD's, simple games), a Dell will suffice. I would recommend that you get a good LCD monitor for it, at least 17". I got one for my mom for Christmas (a 17" Viewsonic), it's brighter than my CRT and it takes up a lot less space.

Just go for a Dell; for everyday tasks (web, burning CD's/DVD's, simple games), a Dell will suffice. I would recommend that you get a good LCD monitor for it, at least 17". I got one for my mom for Christmas (a 17" Viewsonic), it's brighter than my CRT and it takes up a lot less space.


yeah I plan on a good monitor and a printer that my wife can do her pictures on.

Any preference on what Dell models I should be looking at or any other upgrades like memory size and hard drive size and any other crap I don't understand ?

Ah...stay away from Windows XP :shakehead

I would say that the 8400 looks adequate for what you want to do with it.

Websurfing, Printing digital photos, running Microsoft Office, burning CDs, these are all things that can be done on almost any old computer these days. My "old clunker" still runs Windows 98 and it does all these things just fine. No need to spend a fortune. The gaming is the thing you really have to watch out for as far as requirements are concerned.

The 8400 looks like it has a decent enough processor and RAM to handle what you need. Hard drive space wont be a problem since the minimum you can get for that model is 80GB. Just my opinion but I would say it's not worth the extra money to upgrade from the basic processor that comes with it, $500+ to upgrade from 3.2GHz to 3.8GHz isnt worth it IMHO for what you'll be doing with it. Someone who's more of a hard core gamer could probably give you more and better advice.

Dell's are pretty good for the price. (I had 8 delivered at work today). I would take the XP Media (preferred), or XP Pro, not the Home Edition. The more RAM the better(1GB minimum). A good warranty for a neophyte is important IMO.I have 'complete care' on all the laptops and pcs I oversee. I replaced a laptop and a desktop this year at N/C. The laptop had only 3 months left of a 3 year warranty! I also spilt water in my new laptop and the fix was N/C.
XP is definitely different from the earlier versions of Windows. But it's great at keeping users separated, so they can't corrupt each others 'stuff' as one of my users puts it. Hope I didn't confuse you.

Be careful with Dell, I used to trust them but with how big they've blown up they've really taken a step down in production and costs. My parents have a Dell (about a year and a half old) that's fried 2 hard drives because of cooling problems.

The problem seems to be the way the case is built and assembled, It's the normal hard plastic but with a thin aluminum plating on all inside walls. Which isn't a big deal BUT there isn't any cooling to speak of, Sure there's a small fan on the processor (but your cpu wouldnt' last long if it didn't) and they think that adequate cooling is using your power supply as a fan to cool the rest of the computer.

I'd go with what Brownstone said about buying the parts and assembling them yourself. I know it may look like you're going to have to be a rocket scientist to do it but to be completely honest it's EASY and more rewarding and most of all CHEAPER. Most everything now-a-day is plug and play (meaning you plug it in and it plays).

I know of a couple of great tutorials that can show you step by step how to set one up and I've got no problem disassembling my computer and making a picture tutorial for ya on how to build your own computer (my comp could use a good cleaning anywho).

thanks gang...and yeah , I'm confused..

so based on some prior cooling problems with Dell....as well as needing more something for games ...I don't know what the hell RAM is.. unless they play in St. Louis...


Is this the machine for me ?

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_xps4?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

:dunno:

HP Pavilions are decent PCs for the sort of stuff you want to do, Wally. I don't know if they're more expensive than your average Dell or not, but my parents have an HP Pavilion and it does everything they need it to do... they do much the same things as you and your wife (this is not to say that you're ancient like they are) :rolly:

I also have an HP Pavilion at home and I've been very happy with it for the past several years.

Ah...stay away from Windows XP :shakeheadHe doesn't appear to want something with a steep learning curve:I'm hoping for open the boxes..connect the connections and go...Windows 98 SE = Neering the end of its life cycle.
Windows ME = Absolute Garbage.
Windows 2000 = Has all the same flaws as XP on top of its own flaws.
Linux (all variants)= Very steep learning curve, and not user friendly at all.
Mac OS X Panther = expensive hardware, not very user friendly, nor intuitive...
Unix = Linux x 10
Other obscure OS = All of the above, and good luck finding tech support.

What would you recommend he use, and why?

thanks gang...and yeah , I'm confused..

so based on some prior cooling problems with Dell....as well as needing more something for games ...I don't know what the hell RAM is.. unless they play in St. Louis...


Is this the machine for me ?

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_xps4?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

:dunno:A bit expensive, but it will do everything you need. When it comes to RAM, anything at or over 512 Mega Bytes of whatever kind Dell puts in that model would be enough for you.

Edit: A word of advice: Don't be cheap when it comes to the warranty.

He doesn't appear to want something with a steep learning curve

What would you recommend he use, and why?
I was thinking the exact same thing. You definitely want to be using Windows XP (either the Home version or Professional version will do, they're essentially identical as far as I know) as it's the easiest to use, is compatible with everything you need, and is still fully supported. I would not suggest using anything else to anyone who doesn't know a little something about what actually goes on inside the guts of the computer.

Good analysis as well All-Star; ME is total garbage, 98 is very very solid (IMHO) but isnt supported by Microsoft anymore and is becoming less and less compatible with new software, and if you're going to get 2000 you might as well get XP. Anything non-Windows isnt worth getting if you dont know what you're doing.

A bit expensive, but it will do everything you need. When it comes to RAM, anything at or over 512 Mega Bytes of whatever kind Dell puts in that model would be enough for you.

Edit: A word of advice: Don't be cheap when it comes to the warranty.


would the 8400 do what i need ?

It currently comes with a free memory upgrade to 1GB.

It's also about 2/3rds the cost ?


http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_8400?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn&~tab=specstab#tabtop

and thanks...no matter what i end up getting I figure I'll go for a 3 or 4 year warranty.

HP Pavilions are decent PCs for the sort of stuff you want to do, Wally. I don't know if they're more expensive than your average Dell or not, but my parents have an HP Pavilion and it does everything they need it to do... they do much the same things as you and your wife (this is not to say that you're ancient like they are) :rolly:

I also have an HP Pavilion at home and I've been very happy with it for the past several years.


Thanks Kristy !

Do you know of any model numbers ? somethat are good for gaming too for Connor ?

The 8400 looks like it has a decent enough processor and RAM to handle what you need. Hard drive space wont be a problem since the minimum you can get for that model is 80GB. Just my opinion but I would say it's not worth the extra money to upgrade from the basic processor that comes with it, $500+ to upgrade from 3.2GHz to 3.8GHz isnt worth it IMHO for what you'll be doing with it. Someone who's more of a hard core gamer could probably give you more and better advice.

Yeah...I guess that's what I need to know.. can it handle games with the free upgrades they offer. If so it will allow me to get a real good printer and warranty.

My wife and I are far from computer experts, but we just purchased a Dell 4500 series computer and "built it" on line at the Dell site. "Building" it isnt nearly as complicated as you might think. The Dell site allows you to see a preview of what the options you have at your disposal, and it allows you to compare them as well.

We got ours for the obvious net browsing, CD making, game playing, as well as writing term papers for our Masters courses. We didnt get a printer or anything else, because we already had that and didnt need anything great.

But we got more than enough computer for our needs....for less than $800!

I would urge you to look at the Dell site beforwe you make any sort of committment to anything. Maybe it wont be what you want, but I think its well worth the look-see!

Hope this was of some usefulness! Have a great weekend!

Later

http://www.tigerdirect.com/
If you live in the US

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/indexca.asp?
If you live in Canada...

I bought my computer from this place (didn't need a monitor, since I used my old one)...you can order from the net or go there in person to buy the parts. You do save a bit because you yourself are putting it together...However, if you aren't familar with computer parts, just order over the net and they'll send everything equipped.

Hopefully this was helpful... :handclap:

With what you want to do the 8400 should be able to handle it without any problems. It will be able to handle any games. Some of the top of the line 1st person shooters might not be able to run at max detail, but that shouldn't matter to you. I would say go for the 8400.

Wally, for the money you can't beat a Dell. Seeing how you don't want to build your own it seems to be your best choice. Since your family isn't the most computer savey people I would consider going with Window's XP. It makes things like adding new software, hardware, burning CD's, creating MP3's a lot easier.

One thing to watch with Dell is they like to offer you all kinds of extras that you don't really need. Free is cool, but unless you know you need something don't bother spending the money on it.

I am one of those hardcore PC gamers. For what you are doing anything more then a 2.6mhz processor and 512mb of RAM is serious overkill. I have a 2.4mhz processor with 512mb of RAM and I don't have any problems. I will admit that I need more RAM, but's only because the games I play are RAM hogs. Any serious gamer will tell you it's not always about how fast your processor is. It's about the RAM, front side bus speed, and your video card.

Dude, you're getting a Dell. :yo:

Sorry, I couldn't resist. :D

thanks folks..all very useful info....


I'll take all I can get !..

BTW - If you want a CD burner. I would suggest that you go with a duel drive set up. That way you can put a CD in one drive and a blank in the other. It's not really a big deal, just makes things easier. If you aren't someone who burns a lot of CD's don't worry about it. Just a suggestion.

Oh, the 8400 will be more then enough for you. I had it priced at under $1300 for a pretty nice machine.

20 posts and only about 4 usefull.

If I were in your shoes, I would go to your local Bestbuy or electronics store, and get their 'house brand' computer. I suggest Bestbuy because since they don't work on commision, they won't just be trying to upsell you on everything. Just tell them what you want, and they will help you out.

I suggest doing this over buying from Dell because if you have any problems, at least you will have a store to take it back to. With Dell, everything is over the phone.

Some suggestions from me.

Since you're not going cheap, make sure you get a Pentium 4 CPU at least 3.0Ghz. That's the speed of the 'brain' of the computer. AMD 64 is also good. I suggest stay away from anything that says 'celeron'. This is the cheapest CPU on the market, and won't stay current for long. The CPU is the key to your purchase, as everything else can be upgraded but this.

Make sure you get whats called a separate video card. If you see the term 'integrated graphics', stay away. The video card is what sends the info from your computer to your monitor. Cheap out here, and you will have a lot of slowdown when playing games and watching some videos.

Stay away from any of the brand name computers, such as Compaq and HP. They come with a bunch of pre-loaded software that you don't need, and a bunch of stuff that runs in the background that just slow down your computer.

That's my 2 bits. Good luck with the purchase.

I suggest doing this over buying from Dell because if you have any problems, at least you will have a store to take it back to. With Dell, everything is over the phone.


Dell DOES make house calls. I know from personal experience.

Dell DOES make house calls. I know from personal experience.


thanks...'cause I'd need that type of service no matter who I go with...

Is , say a 3 year warranty about enough ?

The main problem with Dell is that they use some weird parts that can make upgrading harder. Their motherboards, in particular, kinda suck.

There are a lot of smaller companies that will build a machine for you , and often can put together a machine equivalent to a Dell in specs for about the same money with better quality. But since most of those places build to order, it'll probably take a few weeks, as opposed to the assembly-line machines from Dell which can be shipped almost right away.

Basically go to resellerratings.com, read customer reviews to find some reliable companies, and then go to a few sites and configure a few computers as close to identical as you can and see what the price differences are. Dell's not a BAD deal, but I'm not sure you won't find something even better in the same price range.

The main problem with Dell is that they use some weird parts that can make upgrading harder. Their motherboards, in particular, kinda suck.

There are a lot of smaller companies that will build a machine for you , and often can put together a machine equivalent to a Dell in specs for about the same money with better quality. But since most of those places build to order, it'll probably take a few weeks, as opposed to the assembly-line machines from Dell which can be shipped almost right away.

Basically go to resellerratings.com, read customer reviews to find some reliable companies, and then go to a few sites and configure a few computers as close to identical as you can and see what the price differences are. Dell's not a BAD deal, but I'm not sure you won't find something even better in the same price range.

I think all OEM's use goofy ass parts though, even my circa 1998 Micron (back when Micron was good), used good off-the-shelf components, with a weird case. Made adding some extra drives a pain. I always recommend building your own, it's not hard and picking out better parts makes for a better PC. All the OEM's are kind of similar IMO. Only thing that is really different is the color of the case.

wally go with a dell or gateway whichever is cheaper, skip the fancy photo printer you will spend way too much money on ink cartridges and paper, for the wife look into snapfish or another online digital photo service for like 20 cents a photo. you could cut costs by keeping your monitor you use now. try looking at the dell refurbished computers. mmbt is right they are a pain in the neck down the road to upgrade but seems like you arent gonna want to get your hands dirty ripping the thing apart anyways....

would the 8400 do what i need ?

It currently comes with a free memory upgrade to 1GB.

It's also about 2/3rds the cost ?


http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_8400?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn&~tab=specstab#tabtop

and thanks...no matter what i end up getting I figure I'll go for a 3 or 4 year warranty.

In a very short word....yes. The box you linked to is much more capable than the sony that I currently use and mine does everything you listed well. things to think about:

Speed really isn't much of a factor any more. All are faster than the networks that you will plug into.

Lots of Ram is a good thing. 1GB or ram is lots of ram.

If you're a serious gamer, buy an xbox or a ps2. Both are better options than a pc for less than $200.

Dell makes a great computer and they'll deliver it to your door. I've had great luck with my Sony, but know I paid a lot just for it to have sony on the front. Personally, its hard to beat either going with dell's option or going to your local circuit city and buying their best $1200.oo system. For the most part, all the name brands are pretty good.

Actually the poster just prior to this one's advice is solid as well. Skip the bundles if you already have a good digital camera, and I prefer hp's printers over dell because I can buy the print cartridges anywhere. Now if they throw the printer in as part of the bundle....bargain. Even the $27 Hp printer that I bought for my wife's laptop does everything pretty well and setup is very easy now. Get the best deal on a box you can and add your peripherals later.

thanks again folks !


The wife has a new fangled kodak didital camera with the docking station ..I freel like Captain Picard here :D ,,,anyway she informed me that she plans on using shutterfly or some service like that to actually get pics done..so I guess I can get aqway with just a half decent printer ..we don't need a scanner or fax.

The clunker I'm typing on right now will probably end up in my kids room for writing homework..

Alienware Desktop Computers (http://www.alienware.com/Product_Pages/desktop_all_home_office.aspx)

Okay gang ..getting close ..will go with the 1GBram..

but which of the following I pick ???

40GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) (this one is standard )


80GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) [add $20 or $1/month1]


160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/ Native Command Queuing [add $60 or $2/month1]


250GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) [add $140 or $4/month1

================================================== =========

and ????

Single Drive: 48X CD-ROM Drive ( this one is standard )


Single Drive: 16X DVD-ROM Drive [add $20 or $1/month1]


Single Drive: 48x CD-RW Drive [add $16 or $1/month1]


48X CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive [add $84 or $2/month1]


Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability [add $90 or $3/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW Drive [add $49 or $1/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive [add $69 or $2/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $109 or $3/month1]


Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW Drive [add $69 or $2/month1]


Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $129 or $4/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-RW Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $125 or $3/month1]


================================================== =======

finally , I think , which one ???

128MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X300 SE ( standard )


256MB PCI Express™ x16 Nvidia® GeForce 6800 GTO Graphics Card [add $330 or $9/month1]


256MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) nVidia GeForce 6800 [add $180 or $5/month1]



:dunno:

Okay gang ..getting close ..will go with the 1GBram..

but which of the following I pick ???

40GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) (this one is standard )


80GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) [add $20 or $1/month1]


160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/ Native Command Queuing [add $60 or $2/month1]


250GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) [add $140 or $4/month1

================================================== =========

and ????

Single Drive: 48X CD-ROM Drive ( this one is standard )


Single Drive: 16X DVD-ROM Drive [add $20 or $1/month1]


Single Drive: 48x CD-RW Drive [add $16 or $1/month1]


48X CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive [add $84 or $2/month1]


Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability [add $90 or $3/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW Drive [add $49 or $1/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive [add $69 or $2/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $109 or $3/month1]


Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW Drive [add $69 or $2/month1]


Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $129 or $4/month1]


Dual Drives: 48x CD-RW Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/dbl layer write capability [add $125 or $3/month1]


================================================== =======

finally , I think , which one ???

128MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X300 SE ( standard )


256MB PCI Express™ x16 Nvidia® GeForce 6800 GTO Graphics Card [add $330 or $9/month1]


256MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) nVidia GeForce 6800 [add $180 or $5/month1]



:dunno:

160 GB is good enough for 90% of needs (that's my system's total capacity, plenty of room for ripping DVD's and apps).

DL DVD blanks are still expensive, but it will come down some day and having dual drives is a must for burning discs on the fly.

If you're somewhat serious about playing new games, that's a good card.

160 GB is good enough for 90% of needs (that's my system's total capacity, plenty of room for ripping DVD's and apps).

DL DVD blanks are still expensive, but it will come down some day and having dual drives is a must for burning discs on the fly.

If you're somewhat serious about playing new games, that's a good card.

I disagree.

I would get the 80GB hard drive (that's more than you'll ever need)

The Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive. If you decide later you want to start burning DVD's, you can buy one later.

And go with the standard video card unless you're into 3D gaming. No need to spend the extra money for something you'll never use.

-80GB would be more than enough memory for you, IMO..
-Get a CD burner, but don't bother with the DVD burner.
-As for the video card, if you're into gaming, getting an above average video card is a must... but if you won't be gaming... don't bother with anything fancy.

I disagree.

I would get the 80GB hard drive (that's more than you'll ever need)

The Dual Drives: 48x CD-ROM Drive + 48x CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive. If you decide later you want to start burning DVD's, you can buy one later.

And go with the standard video card unless you're into 3D gaming. No need to spend the extra money for something you'll never use.

DVD burners are cheap, why wait? You can buy 16x DL DVD burners all day long online for around $70, CDRW burners are about $25. DVD blanks are about 50 cents anymore too, while CD blanks have gotten more expensive. I never thought I'd need a DVD burner until I got one, but with how cheap components/media has gotten, and with the increase in HD space, people need something big and quick to backup files. Also, needs could grow in a few months, if the need arises, the equipment is already there.

well it took awhile but my clunker croaked....

here's what I just bought and so far it's GREAT.

HP Pavilion a1130n

3500+ AMD Athlon 64 Processor
1.0GB PC3200 DDR SDRAM memory

250GB 7200RPM Serial ATA Hard Drive

Light Scribe DVD Writer/CD Writer
DVD-ROM 16 max. speed.

I don't know what any of this means ..but it flys and my wife is happy withn photo crap and my kids are gaming like never before.

Even the printer scanner is pretty good.
an HP PCS 1610 all in one thingy.

:D

oh, we also got the 3 year in home warranty for anything that breaks.

a 15 inch LCD monitor

and about $200 in software my wife needed.

and after the $350 in rebates it cost me ~ $1200.

oh, we also got the 3 year in home warranty for anything that breaks
:shakehead , you should know that extended warranties are a waste of money.

Not a bad deal. If you want to learn what it all means check this site out:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/

:shakehead , you should know that extended warranties are a waste of money.

In my experience, extended warranties are worth every penny when it comes to computers, especially if you're not a computer wiz.

In my experience, extended warranties are worth every penny when it comes to computers, especially if you're not a computer wiz.
Exactly, and therefore for Wally - it was money VERY well spent.

In my experience, extended warranties are worth every penny when it comes to computers, especially if you're not a computer wiz.


I still can't program a VCR... so I took advice of folks here and family...and got the warranty.

I'm willing to spend about $3000 Canadian ($2500 US) on a new computer coming this September/October.

Here's what I want:
- To play the newest latest PC games
- Burn CD's
- Listen to tons of MP3's
- Playing Roms like MAME, SNES etc. etc. (I'd also like to hook up a console like controller w/ my computer)
- Watching movies an TV shows

I'm guessing I should get Windows XP? I don't like Mac and i've heard XP is the best version of Windows. What kind of Video Card should I get? I don't care about burning DVD's/Video Games at all, what kind of CD Burner should I get?

I don't know much about Monitors, Burners, Processors, Virus Scanners etc. etc. Can anyone give me some pointers what to get? and what kind of programs to protect my computer with?

I recommend paying a bit extra for XP Professional if you ever expect to have multiple computers in your house - it includes remote desktop, so you can control your machine remotely.

To build a high end gaming pc, you either need to build it yourself, or buy a pre built one, and probably junk the existing videocard in it, and perhaps upgrade the power supply. The new high end videocard are now drawing so much power, they are now overwhelming the power supplies that come in standard Dell, etc PCs (this happened to a friend who bought a nVidia 6600GT for his dell).

Installing your own video card is not too painful. Installing a new power supply (PSU) is a real pain. As such, you'd get to nearly the same pain level as building your own.

High end custom builders- alienware and some others will build just about anything, and charge you a lot for it.

You might be able to pick out and buy all your parts, and give a friend $50 or pay a computer shop to build it for you.

www.gotapex.com has good deals on Dells - currently, they are offering up a 1200 package with a 24 inch widescreen lcd monitor which is gorgeous (I have it). For that money, they are almost giving away the pc for free. You could drop that 1200, spend 100 on a 400 watt PSU, 200-500 on a wiz bang video card, and bring it to a shop to install the PSU and vid card for you.

You want a dual layer DVD burner. Dual layer dvds hold 9GB on one side of a DVD. The price difference between single and dual layer dvd burners, and plain old cd burners is so minimal, it is not worth saving $20 bucks and not having the flexibility. Dual layer burners are backwards compatible and can burn single layer DVD's (4.5GB) as well as CDs

Processors - currently AMD has a performance lead in gaming, but it is tough finding quality pre built AMD systems. If you go Intel, look for dual core options - this is 2 processors on one physical package. Currently this does not help for gaming, but will help for other multitasking (burning a CD/DVD while watching a movie while posting here while...). Most of Dell's systems should have a dual core upgrade option.

Virus programs - avg is free. Symantec/Norton for home users uses a subscription service on a yearly basis, which is somewhat annoying.

Any new XP system should have service pack 2 installed. Make sure its software firewall is enabled, and automatic updates grabs patches automatically for you and installs them. These steps will help protect your pc.

If you are wondering why this post is so long, the Red Sox are in a rain delay in Kansas City.


ostiguy

Who's Connor?

from my personal experience, get parts off newegg.com or ncix.com and have a friend or someone you trust build it for you


i spent 1700cdn on my current computer ( including taxes) , and it's fricken awesome


amd 3000+ 64 bit processor
120 gb harddrive
lanparty nf4 mobo
radeon x800 pci express
and 19 inch viewsonic crt
1 gig of ram

there is no need to spend 2000 usd on a computer unless it's built to do a specific task. ie gaming, hardcore video editing etc

Who's Connor?


my son.

To build a high end gaming pc, you either need to build it yourself, or buy a pre built one, and probably junk the existing videocard in it, and perhaps upgrade the power supply. The new high end videocard are now drawing so much power, they are now overwhelming the power supplies that come in standard Dell, etc PCs (this happened to a friend who bought a nVidia 6600GT for his dell).

... spend 100 on a 400 watt PSU, 200-500 on a wiz bang video card, and bring it to a shop to install the PSU and vid card for you.

Ostiguy's point about the need for a good power supply for a gaming puter is a very important one that is often overlooked. Higher-end pci-e graphics cards usually need a lot of juice and take it directly from the PSU and not from the mobo's pci-e slot. Also high-end mobos are quite picky. Heck, MINIMUM recommended PSU for Lanparty nf4 mobos is 480w. And if you're ever going to run 2 cards in SLI-mode you'll be looking at something closer to 600w than 400w.