| Forum Home | ||||
| Press F1 | ||||
| Thread ID: 120802 | 2011-09-27 04:34:00 | Recommended PC Build | Caleb Watson (16566) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1233826 | 2011-09-27 07:07:00 | That's what I always thought. Would going somewhere like ComputerLounge be better than for example Dell online customisation? |
Caleb Watson (16566) | ||
| 1233827 | 2011-09-27 07:13:00 | Yes. Don't buy from dell or hp (Esp. Compaq). They're just bad... Alienware = dell with some lights, blackboard paint and an extended price tag. |
icow (15313) | ||
| 1233828 | 2011-09-27 08:23:00 | So my best bet is to buy a desktop from somewhere like computer lounge? But IF I was to go for a laptop, what would be the best idea then? Thanks for the help |
Caleb Watson (16566) | ||
| 1233829 | 2011-09-27 19:57:00 | Most of the programs you list are not too demanding, world of warcraft can be if you have it at high res and ultra settings - for 1080P ultra in WoW you need about a GTX560 or better. I would reccomend an i5 or i7 for maximum useful life of current hardware, ie will last the longest until it needs upgrading. If you can afford it I'd go for; Z68 chipset asus motherboard i5 2500/2500k or i7 2600/2600k ( K is the overclockable version ) 4~8GB RAM - not too important what speed honestly GTX560 Ti or 6850 hard drive to suit your requirements, SSD boot drive is nice but expensive if you like fast startup consider one. For a laptop get an one with an i5 and graphics with it's own dedicated RAM, refer to the chart on this page www.tomshardware.com to get an Idea of graphics performance. You can get away with less in a laptop due to the generally lower res screen. You can build a really small desktop if portability is an issue, ITX boards and cases can handle real hardware these days. As an example my media PC in the lounge is built in a silverstone Sugo SG06 ITX case which is really small and its specs are pretty good :- i5 2500, 4GB DDR3 -1600 RAM, 320GB laptop 2.5" C: drive, 2TB 3.5" storage drive, slim Blu-ray Drive, GTX460 1GB - gets a bit cramped in there but it's all working very nicely and no laptop could touch it :) |
dugimodo (138) | ||
| 1233830 | 2011-09-27 20:26:00 | Personally I'd wait till next month to see where pricing for the new FX series will settle. I suspect they'll be the better option in the immediate term for mid-range performance. | inphinity (7274) | ||
| 1233831 | 2011-09-27 20:36:00 | A blanket statement saying all of one brand is bad is just rubbish. A bit like saying ALL Mazda's are bad All PC brands make Excellent & occasional dodgy PC's . Buy the cheapest, expect the cheapest. HP make some Excellent PC's (the business class PC's), as do Dell(although Dell can be quite painfull to deal with after) . Personally , I would recomend a mid size tower PC. With a full size std ATX PSU Not a ITX. Ive sen too many SFF pc's that dont take a standard power supply meaning the whole case & PSU has to be replaced when the PSU fails. ALso SFF(small PC's) can be a b8gger to try & work on. In general, laptops: cost more, are slower, arnt as reliable, can be VERY expensive to repair . Try & get something with a manufacturers 3 year warranty . If buying from a local PC builder & they only offer one years warranty, go somewhere else. |
1101 (13337) | ||
| 1233832 | 2011-09-27 21:35:00 | I agree with 1101, standard parts are the best option for future compatibility and service options. I wasn't actually advocating ITX as a first choice, just pointing out you can go small if you want to. SFF PSU's are available and can be replaced by the way, I upgraded mine to a 450W to handle the GTX460 just in the last few weeks. They are definately harder to get hold of and more expensive however. The 3 year warranty is nice, but if you buy local the consumer garauntees act does cover you as well. Also the parts generally have 3-5 year manufacturer warranties individually. Certainly better if the whole thing has a 3yr warranty of course. |
dugimodo (138) | ||
| 1233833 | 2011-09-27 23:10:00 | Daughters started with standard laptops at uni but they later opted for a 14" and a netbook 15.6" laptops are rather unwieldy. If one is getting a laptop at all, it's for portability - so make it portable! Get something less than 15.6" IMHO For a "desktop", personally I am attracted to Dugimodo's Silverstone ITX solution now that we have fast-and-cool CPUs like i5-2500 (Note: some flats or boarding establishments don't allow "desktops") |
BBCmicro (15761) | ||
| 1233834 | 2011-09-28 03:02:00 | I know HP has made some GREAT computers, I still have a running HP desktop from years ago, and my laptop is still running, haha. I will be waiting until the end of this year to get a new computer so I will wait for those new parts. I'm thinking I'll see what happens at the end of the year, might get a custom built desktop or go for a nice laptop. Thanks everyone for the help, you've all been great! |
Caleb Watson (16566) | ||
| 1233835 | 2011-09-28 03:34:00 | :devil A blanket statement saying all of one brand is bad is just rubbish. A bit like saying ALL Mazda's are bad . All Mazdas are bad.:devil Actually Acer for instance - I've never yet seen an Acer that didn't have an ECS motherboard in it. All ECS boards are ****. There are places that tend to stick with the more reliable brands of parts and don't just stuff whatever random thing in their builds. These are mainly the bettter PC shops and certainly not the likes of Comapq an Dell and so on. And Caleb - because your HP is fine after a while doesn't make it great. There are a number of ECS motherboards sill going too - but overall the failure rate is way too high for them to qualify as good. Thats the point. This PC is supposed to be for gaming, I'd sure want quality, I'd want ease of upgrading and I'd want reliable. But then I'm weird like that. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 1 2 3 | |||||