I want to replace my 4 year old Dell with a new PC. The problem is that I have no idea what I should be looking for these days. I am no longer a gamer but do listen to music, spend a lot of time online, occasionally use PS etc, but nothing major. What should I be looking for as far as a processor, amount and type of memory, and video card? I want to buy another Dell as it has been trouble free.

TIA for any input.

 

You want a dual core but a quad core be nice with 2+ gigs of ram and 320+ hard drive. Since your not into gaming then the graphics card really does not matter unless you want a blue ray drive in it.

 

Okay thanks!

 

What is your budget?

 

From dell outlet...the prices are crazy.....

 

Main keys for a PC if you want to use for at least 3-5 years:

Processor, always purchase the fastest one you can afford. (Quad-Core)

RAM - also, the most you can afford... 2GB minimum

Video Card - very important, even if you do not play games. Current os and software put a tremendous pressure on graphics's card processor and memory....if you buy a a cheap video card, your computer will suffer overall. Also, buy the best you can afford. 512MB.

Hard Drive - they are extremely cheap, sometimes you are better off buying one independently... company? Western Digital.

The rest don't matter.

Great sets at pretty good prices: http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/

The only question of course is whether you want AMD or Intel, 32 bit or 64 Bit...

AMD = great for gaming, but do suck in a business environment, math, excel, etc.... (suck=slower)

32 bit vs 64 bit......64 bit is fast becoming a popular platform, but it has very poor software support. Only a few companies now write code for it. But 64 Bit is faster in rendering.

And finally, how much do you want to spend? Do you need an LCD?

 

cheapest: run linux and keep running ur 4 yr old pc ?

planning for the future: i agree with the above, fastest processor, and honestly, you can get 8GB of ram for 200 or so these days. you will need to runa 64 bit OS

the comp i used for my vista media center is a almos 5 year old pentium D (the OG dual core ). its maxed out at 4GB -- started with 1, then 2, then it got so cheap i went for it all. only downside is the AGP cards are no longer being made but not a big issue since the one i bought is a powerhouse anyway (From when i used to play games)

 

Just like 64 bit support, there's very little that's going to actually make use of a quad core. That said, the cost difference with boxed machines from the major players such as Dell is likely to be so small that it would be dumb not to get the quad.

RAM - 2 GB, period. Anything more is pretty much pointless unless you're running the 64 bit versions of Windows.

IMO, your video card reccomendations are overkill for the O.P.'s stated goals. I run 32 bit Vista with Aero on a lowly 256 MB x1300 video card and it's fine.

 

^^^ Don't plan for today, plan for tomorrow. OP will thank me later if he follows my advice.

But the op will save $$$ with your advice.

More than 2GB of RAM is an over kill? Ever ran a transcoding app or photoshop? Did you ever edit a home video? Watch a nice 1080p mkv movie? Browse the web? ALL at the same time?

Video Card: Try connecting a cheap video card to large 42" and larger HDTV....

If you are buying something, you might as well buy the best you can afford.

Why buy an Acura? just get a Hyundai...

PS Yes, you right he may not need all of this power now, but later on?

 

Why Windows Vista only sees 3GB memory in a PC with 4GB RAM and how Vista SP1 fools its users

http://4sysops.com/archives/why-wind...ols-its-users/

 

I'm not running Vista, and I never will. I don't know of any IT who runs Vista. Sorry.

Software you can change easily (free), but hardware?

Again, for a basic system to run office and browse the web your recommendation is great.

It's like people getting a TL without a navi, because they don't need it, and then spend their ownership years regretting it,and purchasing an aftermarket head unit.

I guess we need to wait for the OP to state his budget
(I'm sure he will pick your setup lol)

 

i'm IT-ish and i use vista :P mainly because of easy setup for media center and media sharing. the backwards compatibility is nice too.

granted i dont use it on the machine im on all the time but probably would if it was a monster of a machine.

billiam -- vista 32 bit licenses work with 64 bit versions. so go ahead and download that 64 bit version and enjoy all the memory you can

 

No thanks. Device driver availability still seems to be a substantial issue. Not so much with system compenents, but peripherals.

 

what do you have that doesnt work out of curiosity -- natively or otherwise?

 

Thanks for all of the feedback guys. I want to spend around $1k. I really don't want to mess with upgrading the old PC. We are moving out to the country where we will have DSL and not a cable modem if that makes any difference.

And should I get Vista or XP? I haven't used Vista so I have no opinion on it.

 

Without hesitation XP Pro.... Vista is an eye candy with annoying Allow or Deny screens..stay away.

Under 1K, so you do need a basic system that will take care of your needs...

This is for $750
http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/I..._Configurator/
(to this configuration I would add (Quad-Core)Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Q9450 @ 2.66GHz 1333FSB 12MB L2 Cache 64-bit() [+$110])

or Dell's Super Value System $900
http://www.dell.com/content/products...=19&l=en&s=dhs


I'm sure more people will chime in with good pricing and good PCs....

PS All of the above do not include CRT/LCD. I would probably go with the 1st system, as you getting superior Quad Core processor under 64 bit with dual video card....so you can support dual monitors....you can go with one to save $60)

 

What do you think of this deal?? With the online coupon it's $1049 shipped. Seems like a really good deal to me. And what about the sound card, that's the only option that I have with this build.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My Components
PROCESSOR Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q6600 (8MB L2 cache,2.4GHz,1066FSB) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® XP Professional edit
MONITOR 22 inch E228WFP Widescreen Digital Flat Panel edit
MEMORY 3GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 DIMMs edit
HARD DRIVE 500GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™ edit
OPTICAL DRIVE 16x DVD+/-RW Drive edit
VIDEO CARD Radeon ATI HD 2600 XT 256MB edit
SOUND Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio edit
KEYBOARD & MOUSE Logitech Cordless Desktop S 510 Keyboard and Mouse - Arctic Silver edit
FLOPPY & MEDIA READER No Floppy Drive Included edit
MODEM No Modem Option edit
OPTIONAL PORTS IEEE 1394a Adapter edit
My Software & Accessories
SPEAKERS Dell A525 30 Watt 2.1 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer edit
ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE McAfee SecurityCenter with anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, 30-Days edit
OFFICE SOFTWARE Microsoft Works 9.0 edit
My Service
WARRANTY AND SERVICE 1Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor, 24x7 Phone Support edit
DATASAFE ONLINE BACKUP Included 3 GB DataSafe Online Backup for 1Yr edit
ALSO INCLUDED WITH YOUR SYSTEM
Miscellaneous Award Winning Service and Support
Mouse Mouse included with Keyboard purchase
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1
Network Interface Integrated 10/100 Ethernet
Labels Windows XP™
PHOTO AND MUSIC SOFTWARE No Entertainment software pre-installed

 

^^^

It's not bad, but I did the same configuration as above from cyberpowerpc, but I've added better video card, SATA II faster hard drive with a nice 22" monitor

$1062.00
(before all applicable rebates)

CASE: ($20 off Mail-in Rebate) NEW! Apevia X-Jupiter Jr. 420 Watts Case (G Type Metallic Gray Color with Side-Window)

CPU: (Quad-Core)Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.4GHz 1066FSB 8MB L2 Cache 64-bit

MOTHERBOARD: Asus P5N-E nForce 650i SLI Chipset LGA775 FSB1333 DDR2 Mainboard

MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)3GB (3x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Memory (Corsair or Major Brand)

VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GeForce 8500 GT 512MB 16X PCI Express (Major Brand
Powered by NVIDIA)

LCD Monitor: 22& quot; TFT Active Matrix LCD Display (ViewSonic VA2226W Widescreen WSXGA 1680x1050)

HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (500GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)

Optical Drive: (Special Price) LG 20X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BLACK COLOR)

SOUND: 3D WAVE ON-BOARD 5.1 SOUND CARD

 

^^^ When you are going with a major brand you are paying hundreds of dollars for software and trials that they upload for you. If you are able to acquire software including O/S, save your money, and ask for a clean hard drive.