What's a good brand of computer?

[hometheaterman]

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Most of what I know about computers is outdated nowadays as I haven't read reviews and studied them too much in the last 3 years or so.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.

 

[JAG72]

You can find some pretty good deals on Dell's if you look at their small business PC's.

Dell.com Coupons, Dell Coupons - DealCatcher

I was going to build a PC for my sister-in-law but I went with a Dell instead as it was going to give them everything they wanted and saved them a few hundred of dollars over me building them one. They did not get quite as good of a machine but it was still a really good one.

 

[Kevinw]

I echo the Dell I have compaq, HP Dell, a custom built and a Mac.
Dell is your best bang for the buck because of all the coupons.
Check out wwwslickdeals.net

Compaq has blown a vid card, power supply and and a DVD drive. The custom has burned a power supply, The HP laptop has a broken hinge the Dell and Mac-top are fine( second Mac top because of broken hinges)

 

[hometheaterman]

Thanks for the help so far guys. So is the general opinion that HP and Dells are on the same line as far as quality or is one better than the other?

 

[JAG72]

For a general usage machine they both will work perfect. The nice part about the Dell is the 1 year warranty on the system. You can turn the system over to them and not have to worry about helping support it if something goes wrong.

 

[Poke]

I custom build my machines but if your looking for something already built Dell's are not bad so forth.

 

[TheForce]

For laptops I prefer Dell XPS series.

For Desktops, I prefer HP for bang for the buck with Sony Vaio a close second. But I don't buy for price, rather as much in features for Video editing as I can get.

If you want cheap, consider a refurb from Comp USA or Other.

I have a Mac too and it is not the best buy. Macs are more for the cult types. My Dell XPS 1210 runs rings around my Macbook Pro for travel laptop.

People on the go really should consider a good laptop for their first computer these days. If I had only one computer it would be a laptop. I would not have said this 5 years ago.

 

[Frank Jr.]

"If I had only one computer it would be a laptop" Well I am going to be odd man out. First off Don knows more about computers than I probably ever will so take that in consideration for what I am about to say....... I started out with a laptop. Unless I absolutely need the mobility of a laptop I will never buy another one. They are more costly to upgrade or repair. I guess if you buy a top of the line laptop you won't need to upgrade the thing. Try repairing the display. If out of warranty it will cost more to fix than the thing is worth. From what I am told desktops last longer. Like Don said if you need the mobility then buy a laptop. If there is no need to take it with you my recommendation is to buy a desktop. Just my 2 cents. Sorry Don. I guess I am 5 years behind you..

 

[Pepper]

There is no "good computer" these days, they are all crap in one way or another. Unless you can afford something like SuperMicro.

If you build your own it may end up a bit more expensive but at least you have complete choice of parts and can make it as good or crappy as your budget allows.

 

[Frank Jr.]

There is no "good computer" these days, they are all crap in one way or another. Unless you can afford something like SuperMicro.

If you build your own it may end up a bit more expensive but at least you have complete choice of parts and can make it as good or crappy as your budget allows.

If you were to build a good computer how much would it cost?

 

[Van]

I have to disagree with Pepper, my hp pavy has worked better than any other comp I've owned or used. Tell your friend to wait about a month and then go looking for deals on HP's, I got my quad core last year for cheap and all that I had to do was add a video card to play the games I wanted otherwise it would be perfect for non gaming.

 

[JAG72]

If you were to build a good computer how much would it cost?

The one I was building was only $600.

Quad Intel 2.66GHZ
1TB HDD
4GB Memory
Vista OEM
DVD Burner with Lightscribe

Instead I bought a Dell for $600 and the only differences were the following.
Intel Dual Core 2.8Ghz
250GB HDD
Included 20" Monitor

They were working on a tight budget so the Dell was better for them. I would have personally spent the money for the monitor and bought the one I was building instead.

 

[hometheaterman]

I have gotten the urge to build myself a new computer and I did a rough guess of what it would cost me after looking at parts and it looks like between $2000-2100. I do want a new monitor though. I have a old CRT that's great and for the longest time I didn't want to upgrade to a flat panel but now I've gotten the urge to.

I realized either that computer will have to wait until prices come down or I save more and I will have to keep using my current machine or I will have to build it with slightly slower parts. That machine was a 3.2ghz I7 processor, 12gb ram, 1.5tb HD.

 

[NightRyder]

I have a Dell XPS at home and a HP 7800 at work. I haven't had any major problems with either of them. I used to build my own machines but with the minimal savings and lack of full system warranty I just don't feel it's worth it anymore. When I replace my home machine I'll probably get another Dell XPS.

NightRyder

 

[JAG72]

I have gotten the urge to build myself a new computer and I did a rough guess of what it would cost me after looking at parts and it looks like between $2000-2100. I do want a new monitor though. I have a old CRT that's great and for the longest time I didn't want to upgrade to a flat panel but now I've gotten the urge to.

I realized either that computer will have to wait until prices come down or I save more and I will have to keep using my current machine or I will have to build it with slightly slower parts. That machine was a 3.2ghz I7 processor, 12gb ram, 1.5tb HD.

The 12GB of DDR3 memory would be very costly.

 

[mike123abc]

The problem is when you build it yourself you tend to want to get the best possible parts you can afford. The advantage of buying a complete system is that someone else made the decisions on what corners to cut. I would never advise build it yourself to anyone that does not know a fair amount about computers, when you buy a name brand at least you get tech support from India.

That being said if you do not need any windows help, and you can reinstall or repair the OS without any hand holding. Building it yourself is not hard. Building yourself is also better if you are upgrading. If you plan on keeping a lot of your old system (monitor, keyboard, drives, etc) it can save some cash. The main issue is that if you have the OEM version of windows you cannot change your MB without buying a new copy.

When you build it yourself you tend to overbuild your computer. Do you really need to pay double for 10% faster CPU? Do you really need that much graphics power? etc.

 

[mike123abc]

Here is a nice "starter" system from newegg. Expansion later if you wanted to add a second graphics card, another 6GB of memory, etc.

This is why I do not have an I7 based system yet. I would want too many of these extras. A prebuilt system would probably save $100 with a lower priced motherboard, drop the flash drive for $419, save $75 on the OS, drop the power supply down $50, cut the graphics card down to single processor $250, cut the 1TB to 500GB $100, use a less expensive case, etc and come in at $999.

Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S223Q - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151173 $24.99

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129021 $109.99

Western Digital RE3 WD1002FBYS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822136313 $159.99

DIAMOND 4870X2PE52G Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-Bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814103066 $451.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817139006 $20.00 Mail-in Rebate $109.99

CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1333C9 - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145220 $20.00 Mail-in Rebate $89.00

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813131365 $289.99

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115202 $279.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM
Item #: N82E16832116493 $179.99

OCZ Vertex Series OCZSSD2-1VTX120G 2.5" 120GB SATA II Internal Solid state disk (SSD) - Retail
Item #: N82E16820227395
ICY DOCK MB882SP-1S-1B 2.5" to 3.5" SSD & SATA Hard Drive Converter - Black - Retail
Item #: N82E16817994064 -$19.99 Combo $20.00 Mail-in Rebate $438.99 $419.00

Subtotal: $2,114.92

 

[TheForce]

"If I had only one computer it would be a laptop" Well I am going to be odd man out. First off Don knows more about computers than I probably ever will so take that in consideration for what I am about to say....... I started out with a laptop. Unless I absolutely need the mobility of a laptop I will never buy another one. They are more costly to upgrade or repair. I guess if you buy a top of the line laptop you won't need to upgrade the thing. Try repairing the display. If out of warranty it will cost more to fix than the thing is worth. From what I am told desktops last longer. Like Don said if you need the mobility then buy a laptop. If there is no need to take it with you my recommendation is to buy a desktop. Just my 2 cents. Sorry Don. I guess I am 5 years behind you..

Thanks for the compliment but it probably isn't deserved. I just have a need for a computer on the go. I have learned that the Laptop is much more versatile than any desktop since today a laptop can do just about anything a just as good as a desktop. So Frank, consider these facts:

If you buy a good laptop and the screen fails, you could spend a fortune to replace it but more than likely the recondition screen is about the same money as a desktop monitor. PLUS, all laptops can connect to a standard VGA monitor. Plus connect to a standard keyboard and mouse for desktop operation. If you need to up-grade, you can add new cards both plugin as well as internally. For example, I recently decided to upgrade my Dell laptop and bought new memory, a 3 times size hard drive and a new EVDO to Rev A card rather than spend for a new machine. The laptop is an automatic UPS built in. I haven't upgraded to a BluRay drive yet but maybe next year and it will be a SATA 4x burner when I do. I just don't need one yet.

I think what I did say was that if you are on the go... But it may be true that it is not necessary to spend the slight extra for a top end laptop when you would never need one "on the go" I don't go anywhere without my laptop when staying overnight. Now, I away for a 5 week excursion and I not only brought the laptop, but also the new quad core HDTV ready desktop video editing because I need to do some major editing and also need to do other work at the same time.

My wife now only uses a laptop and when in the office connects to her std monitor and KB and mouse at work. On the go, she unplugs and picks it up and takes it to her meetings. I think that is the key, whether you need a computer for mobile use. Then at home, the laptop doesn't have too many disadvantages unless you need a multifunction computer. BTW- my big desktop computer cost twice what the laptop costs.


Finally, I said I would not have said this 5 years ago because back then most of what you said was true and the laptops just didn't keep pace performancewise with the desktops. At least none of mine did. Today, those surplus laptops are connected as render farm machines to speed up my rendering of large video projects. I work a computer until it fails beyond repair!

 

[JAG72]

Very well stated Don. I would have to agree with pretty much all of your points.

 

[Frank Jr.]

We agree to disagree.... If I have only 1 computer/desktop and the monitor dies I can drive 10 min. and have another one up and running a lot quicker and cheaper than replacing the one in my laptop. Refurbished or not. I would rather have a new monitor with a warranty than a refurbished laptop display that still has to be installed. I can't run around the corner and get a model specific display for my laptop. Say I pay 2k+ for an upscale laptop and after the warranty runs out how much is it worth verses the cost of the replacement screen and doing without it? Even under warranty I would do without my laptop. I had someone I know who owns a laptop and the touch pad went bad. The thing can be used with a usb mouse but eventually has to be repaired. Desktop mouse goes bad you just replace it. Keyboards the same way. Laptops are all in one units. Bad idea unless you have to carry it with you. Would you buy an all in one tv/dvd player/recorder/satellite receiver/home stereo? I think not unless you have to carry it with you every where you go. 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. P.S. I may not be well stated but I hope I conveyed my thoughts well enough!