I have a buddy who is looking for his first computer and wants something cheap. All he plans to do is surf the internet and check his email. Maybe print off pictures or something like that. He has a 8 year old son who wants to play games but shouldn't be anything you need a fancy computer for. Just games any basic machine nowadays should run.
His daughter is telling him that she has a HP that's been great for 4 years and she just had to replace the hard drive this year where as most of her friends with Dell's have had a lot of problems with their computers. She says she wouldn't get a Dell.
Then there is me on the other hand who thinks HP is crap. I personally think he should let me build him a machine as he could get a ton more for a good price however, I think he wants to pay $5-600 or so and I don't think you could build a machine worth a damn for that. If I'm buying one from one of the main companies Dell is the only cheaper one I'd go with. I like Alienware and Voodoo PC but they are way out of his price range.
He is still not sure if he wants a laptop or a desktop. He wants to look at both. I have a Dell laptop and it's on it's 3rd hard drive. The first one crashed a month or two after we got it then that one lasted 3-4 years then it finally crashed. It's had almost everything in it replaced just recently. Everything other than the Ram which I ended up adding to and the cd burner. We had the extended warranty. However, with all these issues it's still way better than the Sony I had previously that had numerous repairs under the 1 year warranty and died right after that ran out.
Most of what I know about computers is outdated nowadays as I haven't read reviews and studied them too much in the last 3 years or so. For someone like this that just wants a basic cheap machine that will last what's the best brand to go with? I'm still trying to talk him into a nice machine but I don't think I will get too far with that.
His daughter is telling him that she has a HP that's been great for 4 years and she just had to replace the hard drive this year where as most of her friends with Dell's have had a lot of problems with their computers. She says she wouldn't get a Dell.
Then there is me on the other hand who thinks HP is crap. I personally think he should let me build him a machine as he could get a ton more for a good price however, I think he wants to pay $5-600 or so and I don't think you could build a machine worth a damn for that. If I'm buying one from one of the main companies Dell is the only cheaper one I'd go with. I like Alienware and Voodoo PC but they are way out of his price range.
He is still not sure if he wants a laptop or a desktop. He wants to look at both. I have a Dell laptop and it's on it's 3rd hard drive. The first one crashed a month or two after we got it then that one lasted 3-4 years then it finally crashed. It's had almost everything in it replaced just recently. Everything other than the Ram which I ended up adding to and the cd burner. We had the extended warranty. However, with all these issues it's still way better than the Sony I had previously that had numerous repairs under the 1 year warranty and died right after that ran out.
Most of what I know about computers is outdated nowadays as I haven't read reviews and studied them too much in the last 3 years or so. For someone like this that just wants a basic cheap machine that will last what's the best brand to go with? I'm still trying to talk him into a nice machine but I don't think I will get too far with that.
As far as performance goes show me 1 laptop on board speaker system that can compete with the cheapest desktop speakers you can buy. If the desktop speakers go bad you can replace them easily and quickly. Not so with a laptop. In my opinion laptops are a compromise and always will be..... just like any all in one anything. 
