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It just needs to be good. I want to play spore and maybe start WoW again in the distant future. I have 722$ to spend on it. Maybe a little more. But if I spend less I can get a digital camera and put up picks of my stuff here on Dakka.

I also want something that I can replace the drivers in. So in the future instead of buying a new computer I can just upgrade the stuff in the one I have. That means no integrated graphics cards and all that mess.

Anyone have any suggestions or advice based on the info? I'm going to go to Best Buy tomorrow and take a look around at what my money will generally buy me.

I hate to recommend Best Buy, but there it is. The deals were unreal. I just picked up a new Qosmio, and except for the skink-colored paint job, it's great. Well out of price range, though. I wasn't really looking at the laptops in that price range, but there were a TON of them. You should be able to find something servicable.

grizgrin wrote:I hate to recommend Best Buy, but there it is. The deals were unreal. I just picked up a new Qosmio, and except for the skink-colored paint job, it's great. Well out of price range, though. I wasn't really looking at the laptops in that price range, but there were a TON of them. You should be able to find something servicable.

I hear a lot of retailers will be having some pretty decent sales after Christmas too due to the less than stellar Christmas shopping season.

But does Best Buy have stock computers on their shelves with exchangeable graphics and sound cards? I'm not really good with computers but I know how to do a few things inside them. More RAM and some upgrades that kind of jazz. And do you think laptops are more expensive than desk tops these days? Because I am seeing a trend of pretty nice desk tops for well under a comparable or less laptop would be.

Yep. If it lists a graphics card, then it's not relying on integrated, for instance. They have a lot of the fine print on a card at the display, but by all means make the little elf run up there and fetch the box. Tis kinda money, m'fren; no one can fault you for getting ahold of it an making SURE. Ask about return policy as well. Do NOT deviate from it, as they will put the screws to you if they can. Buy it, take it home and put it to the test. If it fails, take it back.

I'd say Acer/Dell for cheapness+warranty service. I've only ever built my own from parts, but for everyone else I'd recommend a package.

I happen to be certified for servicing both those company's systems, but that doesn't help me if you're in America. Trust me, the service is pretty damned good. IMO it's cheaper to build your own, because you can recycle your old chassis (I've been using the same one for about a decade), and you can always bang in a new piece of silicon... it's hell easy, but most people don't like to risk it.

The best packages, in my experience, come from Dell. Intergrated graphics aren't a problem, they can be turned off in the bios and upgraded with a graphics card. I would suggest a package from a dealer over building your own because it includes the operating system, which will cost you a quarter the cost of a cheap system by itself and you know it will work out of the box. Also don't forget to add in the cost of a decent antivirius program.

I just received a new system from Dell. Quad-core w/4 gig of ram and other upgrades for ~$550.00. The cheapest quad I found in bestbuy was $700+. Also remember that with Basic Vista (or any other 32 bit system) that you will only be able to use 3.5 gig of Ram. So if you want an extreme speed machine you need to get a 64 bit operating system (Vista has 64bit versions) I didn't worry about it because I only browse the web and type; but a gamer may want to upgrade in the future.

Remember, the more cores the better (even if substantially lower ghz), the more ram the better. Good luck, I agonized over my recent purchase for a month before I went all in!

Thalor

Thalor wrote:The best packages, in my experience, come from Dell. Intergrated graphics aren't a problem, they can be turned off in the bios and upgraded with a graphics card. I would suggest a package from a dealer over building your own because it includes the operating system, which will cost you a quarter the cost of a cheap system by itself and you know it will work out of the box. Also don't forget to add in the cost of a decent antivirius program.

I just received a new system from Dell. Quad-core w/4 gig of ram and other upgrades for ~$550.00. The cheapest quad I found in bestbuy was $700+. Also remember that with Basic Vista (or any other 32 bit system) that you will only be able to use 3.5 gig of Ram. So if you want an extreme speed machine you need to get a 64 bit operating system (Vista has 64bit versions) I didn't worry about it because I only browse the web and type; but a gamer may want to upgrade in the future.

Remember, the more cores the better (even if substantially lower ghz), the more ram the better. Good luck, I agonized over my recent purchase for a month before I went all in!

Thalor

And went and looked at Best Buy today and I think I'm going to order it online from Dell. I saw an awesome computer for 599 and the same one with several minor upgrades for 699. It had quad, 4 gigs, 400 (I don't know if it's GB or what), and Vista 64Bit version. I think I'm just going to deposit my money get my check and buy the super nice one. The digital camera can wait a few weeks or until my birthday in several months.

Quick! I'm on the Dell website and I'm looking at the Windows Vista packs and I don't know which one of them is the 64bit pack. Here is a link I think will work.

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&oc=DDCWDA1&s=dhs

my personal preference for computers in general, is to make them myself. that way, I know what components are going in, and where probable problems are going to arise. just make sure you know what you're doing (it's not too hard, and can save you upwards of 100$) and set aside at least one full day to do it. my friend and I made my computer one day, and i've been upgrading it steadily ever since, and in fact, thanks to christmas, I now have a Radeon HD4850, and a new powersource to install as soon as I get back to vancouver. I didn't make this laptop, and found out later that it relies on integrated graphics, and so therefore can't run anything more graphically intensive than rollercoaster tycoon (ftw). It's a good skill to have, too. You won't have any fiascos from people from bestbuy et al, and you can still get tech assistance from the manufacturer of the computer parts.
apart from that, follow these rules:
Dell desktops = usually craptastic from what i've heard (since they use cheap parts)
Dell laptops = not so bad.

AMD CPUs > Intel CPUs
never ever ever ever ever ever ever install Nvidia firewall. it crashes computers. A lot.
don't get ram over ebay.
getting other components is usually okay.

If you do end up wanting to make your own computer, PM me. I'll help you out/get my computer-genius friend to help as well.
other than that, good luck.

CaptainCommunsism wrote:my personal preference for computers in general, is to make them myself. that way, I know what components are going in, and where probable problems are going to arise. just make sure you know what you're doing (it's not too hard, and can save you upwards of 100$) and set aside at least one full day to do it. my friend and I made my computer one day, and i've been upgrading it steadily ever since, and in fact, thanks to christmas, I now have a Radeon HD4850, and a new powersource to install as soon as I get back to vancouver. I didn't make this laptop, and found out later that it relies on integrated graphics, and so therefore can't run anything more graphically intensive than rollercoaster tycoon (ftw). It's a good skill to have, too. You won't have any fiascos from people from bestbuy et al, and you can still get tech assistance from the manufacturer of the computer parts.
apart from that, follow these rules:
Dell desktops = usually craptastic from what i've heard (since they use cheap parts)
Dell laptops = not so bad.

AMD CPUs > Intel CPUs
never ever ever ever ever ever ever install Nvidia firewall. it crashes computers. A lot.
don't get ram over ebay.
getting other components is usually okay.

If you do end up wanting to make your own computer, PM me. I'll help you out/get my computer-genius friend to help as well.
other than that, good luck.

That worries me a little bit. What kind of parts do they use that are crap? Since we can custom make it on the website (my sister and I, she is much better with computers than I am) we're making sure not to get any crap and we have a lot of extra parts here to upgrade into the new system when it gets here. It's coming basic with 320 GB and we have a 500 GB hard drive from a refurb that we can put into it. We upgraded the graphics card once so the computer itself won't rely on an integrated card. We're sure that we'll be able to upgrade it later. We have a lot of extra ram from that refurb too. And the case is a larger one so we can keep using it for awhile or bash it up to fit new stuff in it.

Do you think we're going to get burned by Dell being gakky with Desktops? The one we're on now has been really good to us for a very long time. It's just very old and only has a 34.5 GB hard drive in it and no secondary hard drive slot. Other than that we've had this Dell and never had any problems for 7 years. It actually kept up with our gaming habits until right before WotLK when the patch that patched in all the new features of WotLK put us over what our hard drive had basic space for.

To highlight what Capt'nCommunism said,

A) DEFINITELY NEVER BUY RAM ON EBAY!

B) Dell Laptops > Dell Desktops (go somewhere else if you're definitely after a desktop)

It's not that the parts you're choosing are crap, it's just that it's all sitting on a budget motherboard. Dell doesn't have much to do with the oher parts. Your ram will be Samsung or Hynix, which is reasonable.
Don't get a 64-bit processor if you intend to play games on it.
Don't get get Vista unless you're going to get something better than Home/Basic.
Avoid Dell's XPS series in general. I prefer Gigabyte mobos myself.

Don't bother with a quadcore for gaming, just find a dual-core with a wide FSB (1333). Intel E6550 was the best value last time I shopped (with solid graphics card you'll be able to slam 95% of everything on the market ATM), although I'm partial to AMD myself.

Well, until last year. Their architecture is falling behind a little.

This is just my preference, because I push my systems pretty hard and want reliability. I like to put a bit of cash into the motherboard, and that helps the other components to last longer.

Oh, and what's your current Dell model (the old one)? A Dimension? They've always seemed pretty reliable to me too. I'm thinking of their newer ones...

Is there some other website I can be going to to put a computer together and get it shipped to me? Your all instilling a great deal of doubt in me of Dell.

Edit: Yeah a Dimension, lol.

No, seriously, Dell is fine. I was just saying why they ARE so cheap. I personally need the reliability because no one is going to come and replace a part in the odd chance that I burn out a video card or ram chip. I've got to pay for it myself.
If you buy from a company that offers onsite service, not only do you not have to pay for the replacement (it's all under warranty except for Laptop batteries, basically), but they'll send someone to your house WITH the part, to do it right there. No faffing about with replacing your own motherboard, or learning how... for me it's a lifetime hobby, and obviously my job, but I do miss that convenience, because anyone can lose a power supply in a thunderstorm. Dell will replace that too. I wouldn't sweat it too much - if you don't intend to build a system, go with a big brand like Acer or Dell.

The only problem with Acer is that you may have to ship your system off, as opposed to someone coming to your house. The Inspiron or Studio series desktops are probably what's in your price range and demands. Quad-core processors help a lot more with demanding media applications than games, which are generally handled by your video card.

I've just had a look on the US Dell website... I see they're trying to flog 8GB Ram systems. 4 is plenty. I still use XP, so I can't use more than 3, but there's nothing I can't play.

Yowser! I think we posted too many hot terms, like 'D*ll,' 'V*deo,' 'M*dia,' 'Ch*ap,' 'Buy' and so on.

This one a couple of months ago was too good to alert.

That one is pretty funny too. Seem to come out of China. Not really weird. But pretty annoying.

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