Shopping for a new computer Here's what I want!

[Kevman]

Ironically enough, there's a topic just like this one above.. Anyway, anyone think this is a decent computer? It comes with a monitor for $999.99. It got 4.5/5 starts on a website I checked out earlier.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10126357&catid=20217

[Ayce]

Not too bad, except for the onboard graphics. I'm not a fan, due to shared memory, but it does have a couple of PCI-e slots, so you could get something better later and disable the onboard, freeing up that memory.
Not a fan of Vista either, but whatcha gonna do. :rolleyes:

[Wraith]

I'd say no. It's an older Phenom (first gen), which has performance issues. CAD is pretty close to USD now, and that price seems pretty ridiculous for that (unless you canucks are typically charged a lot more for computers parts). Isn't there a tigerdirect for canada? Newegg ships to canada as well I thought...

[Kevman]

It's about 721 USD... Our taxes are also 13%... I am also paying the 799, As I get the tax money back when I file income tax in Febuary.. Since its for school :p


I've read reviews online and the ones I've seen are 4 - 4.5 out of 5.. I'm not using it for anything crazy, just First Person shooters, and well.. In the future for MWO.. Other than that it's surfing facebook and checking my email.

[DaveMustaine]

The best computer you can buy is the one you build yourself. I learned that the hardway.
my next build is going to be AMD athlon AM 2 socket more than likely ASUS. probably with 1066 mhz RAM. And a halfway decent graphics card.

[cobra96]

The best computer you can buy is the one you build yourself. I learned that the hardway.
my next build is going to be AMD athlon AM 2 socket more than likely ASUS. probably with 1066 mhz RAM. And a halfway decent graphics card.

AMEN!!! build your own...its not that hard and its not expensive either...i could build a machine for that price that would great for anything...retail computers always have things to attract u like a outrageously huge HDD...this computer has like 750GB of space...seriously ive never used more than 50GB of space...plus the intel CPUs are so much better and u could get a way better GPU than that...but if u really like this computer then go for it...it is a pretty good computer

[Kevman]

I don't really have the time to build one... I would have already if I did... I also like the Compaq because it's good to build on, I've changed almost everything on mine, but they recently quit making the sticks of RAM for it... Where as the one I'm looking at has 8 GB of it, and can have up to 16 GB... DDR2 is really cheap, Too..

Also, the videocard, it's a Nvidia 9100, damn nice card.. It's a tough decision.

[Kevman]

So we went to future shop in search of a better deal... I ran into a Gateway... ATI 4850 1024 MB.. 8 Gb of RAM, 1 Tb hard drive, Intel Dualcore processor, and it comes with a 22" LG Widescreen monitor for 999.99.. Same price as the above HP with the monitor... I think I like the Gateway better... Here it is.. Lemme know.


http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10124870&catid=


Ironically enough, we went to BestBuy to compare the 2.. The guy was telling me that if I bought the HP above, and put a ATI 4650 Videocard I'd have a great gaming machine.... But for the same price, and a continued warranty..... I can just buy the damn Gateway...

[gcountach]

First one, I'd pass.

Second one is alright, but still not the best. It comes with a much better video card than the previous, but it's still pretty low on the charts. Check out this link: http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html
Just saying it may require a video card upgrade not long after, and that may require a power supply upgrade as well, etc.

I'd look for a computer builder that specializes in building gaming computers. One example is www.ibuypower.com, but you may be able to find a better one (or someone here knows a better one). That way for roughly the same price, you can theoretically get a much better gaming computer that you can still use for school work. Then again, I don't live in Canada so I don't know what the conversion rates are, who ships where, etc.

[Kevman]

First one, I'd pass.

Second one is alright, but still not the best. It comes with a much better video card than the previous, but it's still pretty low on the charts. Check out this link: http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html
Just saying it may require a video card upgrade not long after, and that may require a power supply upgrade as well, etc.

I'd look for a computer builder that specializes in building gaming computers. One example is www.ibuypower.com, but you may be able to find a better one (or someone here knows a better one). That way for roughly the same price, you can theoretically get a much better gaming computer that you can still use for school work. Then again, I don't live in Canada so I don't know what the conversion rates are, who ships where, etc.

I think I'm gonna go with the Gateway... It comes with a 22" LG Monitor... My 22" CRT is giving me tumours...

The only local builder is Lomar computers, and he mostly builds for companies.. The only 2 local companies I know that sell parts for building your own would in the end, cost about the same as just buying the one with the warranty, and the monitor... I also don't want to piss with buying windows, and setting that up.. I also made sure this one can be added on to at a later date incase I do decide to bump up the ram or video card.. It's got DDR3 Ram too, and an Intel processor..

[ROKKET]

yeah i understand your dilema kevman ,,,,but however that 300 watt power supply is the nitch bug if you can get same thing with a 500 or higher that'd be kewl and i am not sure exactly where you live but i have a few FRIENDS in the great white north who build custom PC's so give me a closer idea of location an i will put you in touch with one of them
and tiger derect does ship up there! if not one of us can always ship it to you

[Kevman]

yeah i understand your dilema kevman ,,,,but however that 300 watt power supply is the nitch bug if you can get same thing with a 500 or higher that'd be kewl and i am not sure exactly where you live but i have a few FRIENDS in the great white north who build custom PC's so give me a closer idea of location an i will put you in touch with one of them
and tiger derect does ship up there! if not one of us can always ship it to you
I'm in Windsor Ontario... It's like... Florida North.

The 300 watt power supply isn't a problem right now, This shouldn't need to be upgraded for a while, I'll ask a friend of mine, he builds for a hobby..

[Tomh]

The 300 watt power supply becomes a problem the instant that you think you might add anything to that system. They've carefully picked a power supply that will JUST meet the power needs of the components that they've included with the machine. Add a stick of RAM, another optical drive, Hard Drive, or even THINK about upgrading your video card, and you'll be in for a new power supply too, or you'll suffer all sorts of random crashes, reboots, and other issues which will take you forever to trace back to your inadequate power supply.

I know you are set against the idea of putting your own machine together, but it really doesn't take that long, and isn't terribly difficult, and in the end, the best bang for your buck will always come from building your own. I put my machine together several years ago now, when the Athlon 64 X2 chips were still new (and expensive). For right around 1,300, I built a machine with all the bells and whistles, including 4 optical drives, two 250 GB hard drives, separate sound and graphics cards, media card reader, etc. At the time, the only store bought PC's close to it's specs were over $2000.

Most of my components were purchased from Tiger Direct. Local shops are WAY too expensive, online vendors are the way to go. My favorites include Tiger, Newegg, and Buy.com.

[Kevman]

So other than the power supply, the gateway is a decent buy? The killer with buying from Tiger direct isn't the shipping, it's the fees I have to pay when it gets to my door... I've bought things from eBay for $20, had them shipped for $5... And had to pay $60 in brokerage.. It's not cool.

[cobra96]

So we went to future shop in search of a better deal... I ran into a Gateway... ATI 4850 1024 MB.. 8 Gb of RAM, 1 Tb hard drive, Intel Dualcore processor, and it comes with a 22" LG Widescreen monitor for 999.99.. Same price as the above HP with the monitor... I think I like the Gateway better... Here it is.. Lemme know.


http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10124870&catid=


Ironically enough, we went to BestBuy to compare the 2.. The guy was telling me that if I bought the HP above, and put a ATI 4650 Videocard I'd have a great gaming machine.... But for the same price, and a continued warranty..... I can just buy the damn Gateway...


go with the gateway...pretty damn good setup...just make sure u keep it cooled off properly

[Kevman]

go with the gateway...pretty damn good setup...just make sure u keep it cooled off properly

I'll go buy it tonight, and let ya'll know... I'm not too jazzed about Vista, as I'm finally used to XP (I thought Win 98 was the cats pajamas).

[gcountach]

I'll go buy it tonight, and let ya'll know... I'm not too jazzed about Vista, as I'm finally used to XP (I thought Win 98 was the cats pajamas).

Did you check on if you get the free Win7 upgrade with it? Trust me, Vista isn't that great, but Windows 7 is what Vista should of been. A lot of people are looking forward to its release, me included.

[Kevman]

Yeah, it was in the Box :)

I have to say, this thing is so fast... It's unbelievable.. No longer do I have to stop typing because my computer can't catch up... Running programs that I ran every day ran at around hmm... 80% RAM... I'm idling around 20 with 7 windows open. This G15 keyboard is like a gauge cluster in a Camaro..

[ROKKET]

you do realize the power SUPPLY is upgradable it'll take some work on your part but you could upgrade to 500watt without serious effort just incase you want to go INSANE with the vid card or ram

[Kevman]

you do realize the power SUPPLY is upgradable it'll take some work on your part but you could upgrade to 500watt without serious effort just incase you want to go INSANE with the vid card or ram

I did it to my last one, cost me $57 and about 3 minutes of work.. Thats why I can't figure out what the big deal is about it?

[cobra96]

Yeah, it was in the Box :)

I have to say, this thing is so fast... It's unbelievable.. No longer do I have to stop typing because my computer can't catch up... Running programs that I ran every day ran at around hmm... 80% RAM... I'm idling around 20 with 7 windows open. This G15 keyboard is like a gauge cluster in a Camaro..

i hate vista...i always use XP...its compatible with almost everything...if u upgrade let me know how windows 7 is...and im glad its working great for u...just remember to keep it clean by cleaning it out...i usually just reinstall windows as soon as i get my machine because i NEVER use any of their pre-installed programs...already have every program i use on a disc

the programs i always use on all my computers are free and work nicely...these are just the ones i use for keeping it clean

AVG antivirus

Adaware antispyware

TweakNow Reg Cleaner

and Defrag ur machine at least once a month

[gcountach]

My recommended Suite:

Avast! Anti-Virus
Spybot Search & Destroy (good to use alongside AdAware)
CCleaner
Defraggler

And as for the crap that comes with your computer, you may wanna check out http://www.pcdecrapifier.com/. It's a script that automagically uninstalls most of the stuff you don't want but the computer company that built your computer put in anyway. It'll gather what is installed on your computer, ask what you want to get rid of, and do it. Keep in mind that, because of its design, it's almost sure to cause a few false-positives with your anti-virus. You can safely ignore those for this instance, assuming you get the program from the official site.

[1969amx]

Please remember The number 1 killer of big box store computers is an undersized or crappy power supply. Not enough power or voltage spikes all conspire to kill your machine.

[Matty]

Hey Dudes, If youre all in the market for some Desktops or parts to customize your own, i know of a great company in Alberta. try www.MemoryExpress.com and another site to check is www.NCIX.com
There may still be another company at www.robotnik.com with great deals aswell, first two are canadian sellers

[kevmeister]

hey Matty, check this out...

www.bcom.ab.ca


I've shopped there before. these guys are strictly hardware and service...