Computer guys

[Lucky]

Where would I find the best computer deal?

The computer is for a 20 year old guy and the only reason he wants it is to write cds and get on the internet...strictly play. I don\'t want to buy junk, but I don\'t want more computer than he will use.

Will somebody please give me some advice? Thanks a lot.

[EXIT63]

sugar mama [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[EXIT63]

Have you tried Best Buy? Or what\'s the name of that online store? I can\'t remember but I\'ll think of it.

[Lucky]

Exit,
I prefer *Sweet Thing*. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[belgareth]

</font><blockquote><font class=\"small\">Quote:</font><hr />
Where would I find the best computer deal?

The computer is for a 20 year old guy and the only reason he wants it is to write cds and get on the internet...strictly play. I don\'t want to buy junk, but I don\'t want more computer than he will use.

Will somebody please give me some advice? Thanks a lot.

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You know that I own a computer company, right? Here are some things to think about:

Games usually take more resources than word processing and spreadsheets.
Audio can be done cheaply where video should be done better quality.
Performance is more closely controlled by memory than processor speed.
Don\'t skimp on hard drive space, you\'ll regret it later.
Most package deals contain all sorts of crap you don\'t need and consume resources.
IBM, Compaq, Dell, HP, etc are all good equipment but can rarely be upgraded. A clone is almost always a better buy in the long run for that reason.
You really do get what you pay for, cheap is still CHEAP!

Let me know if I can help

[pelotudo]

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Performance is more closely controlled by memory than processor speed.
Don\'t skimp on hard drive space, you\'ll regret it later.
Most package deals contain all sorts of crap you don\'t need and consume resources.
IBM, Compaq, Dell, HP, etc are all good equipment but can rarely be upgraded. A clone is almost always a better buy in the long run for that reason.
You really do get what you pay for, cheap is still CHEAP!

Let me know if I can help

<hr /></blockquote><font class=\"post\">

Some of the best advise I have ever heard referring to this field. I started out w/ my Packard Hell when I was in the 8th grade, and now up to a system that I built with only stuff I wanted and needed...and it\'s 1/2 the cost w/ 2x the features (relatively speaking, as prices are going down daily for faster stuff).

-Jon

[koolking1]

Lucky, I\'d buy from Belgareth!!!! He knows what you need versus the big companies who want to sell you more than you need.

[Elana]

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Lucky, I\'d buy from Belgareth!!!! He knows what you need versus the big companies who want to sell you more than you need.

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I second that idea [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Lucky]

I\'ll certainly being checking with Belgrath. Last year I bought 3 different Dell systems - everything was fine until I had a question after delivery. Suddenly, no one in the entire Dell organization spoke English.

I swore I\'d never buy from them again. But, when you are ignorant about technology (like me), your options are limited.

[druid]

i bought from dell with no problems. but then again having a degree in computer science and a good deal of technical knowledge helps me solve my own problems. But please DO NOT BUY FROM HP! a few months ago carly finney (sp?) their CEO made a statement in forbes magzine -- she said \"we are trying to offshore everything\" which means they want to send all the tech work overseas.

but just remember that if you buy from any large corpation that the tech supports is gonna be sub-standard. most of those call centers are located in india and pakistan and most of the people answering the phone do not speak english as their first lanuage.

I would suggest buying from belgrath also. he has already given you some good advice. most people just want to get on the internet and maybe do some word processing and buy a computer capable of so much more and its just wasted. I develope software on mine and was using a pentium 2 400Mhz and it was serving me fine until a couple of months ago. now it is sitting in the other room, chruncing numbers and still getting some use out it.

[tallmacky]

I have built a few computers for friends, I am really good at getting what they need done. If they want to go all out on their system, or want to spend around 500 bucks and under and get a good machine.

I usually buy all the parts seperate and assemble it, I even assembled my own frankenstein of a computer, it\'s a common practice with the pros and you get exactly what you want.

Here are a couple of old pictures that I found of my computer.

Here is a side picture of it when its all together
Here it is open, looks messy but I installed sound proofing in it.


It\'s very easy to do all of this I would check out www.newegg.com

Plus you get far better quality and on and on and on, so in essence finding the best computer deal is buy the parts yourself and an very easy and quick build, the price is far cheaper also.

[pelotudo]

Yeah check out newegg and http://www.pricewatch.com

I\'ve used NewEgg a few times, and their customer service and prices are right up there with the best. You should be able to get a pretty good system (minus the monitor maybe) for ~$500 if you shop right.

-Jon

[krtel]

There a MicroCenter in your area? They offer powerspec pc\'s which are generic pc\'s that are below market price. www.microcenter.com &amp; www.powerspec.com

There\'s one for as low as $399 I think.

- Krish

[DaVinciKittie]

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Last year I bought 3 different Dell systems - everything was fine until I had a question after delivery. Suddenly, no one in the entire Dell organization spoke English.

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Lucky, that also happened to me, and I consider myself pretty techno savvy. Was coming from an HP and needed a laptop. Went through Dell b/c of the \"award-winning service\", and now (6 months later) that I\'m having issues with my network connection (pretty sure it\'s not the cards) I either can\'t understand the people or they treat me like an idiot. If I wanted the d*mn thing formatted I\'d do it myself. Ugh. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

[belgareth]

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Yeah check out newegg and http://www.pricewatch.com

I\'ve used NewEgg a few times, and their customer service and prices are right up there with the best. You should be able to get a pretty good system (minus the monitor maybe) for ~$500 if you shop right.

-Jon

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Pelotudo,

You are speaking from very little experience. I\'ve been in this field for a long time and have helped thousands of people. You wouldn\'t believe how many come to me after they have bought from places like that. I cannot honor their warranty so they end up paying for services that should have been provided by the manufacturer.

Simple fact is that margins are thin in the computer industry. If somebody is selling that low, there is a reason and it is not by cutting profits. Like I said, cheap is CHEAP!

Lucky, no matter where you buy, buy quality and be willing to pay for it. Don\'t get sucked into these package deals or the price wars. The consumer loses more often than anybody else.

[biteme]

Hi belgareth.

So you sell computers or something? Do you have a website for your company?

[koolking1]

Lucky, I used to be in the business myself but very low profits knocked me out due to the big boys selling cheap deals and, it\'s really too bad, all this farming work out to India, etc. but it\'s true. They get paid little or nothing, are happy with it and our smartest American people suffer because of the greed of the big companies!!!

[pelotudo]

I just had a 3 page reply to that comment on my experience, but I\'ve decided to go ahead and keep this on a professional level and not question anyones judgement on this board for the simple sake of arguement.

I\'m speaking from my experiences w/ PriceWatch. I have built a number of computers for friends/family, including my own, from parts that I purchased off the vendors there; and have not had any problems with any of their customer service and satisifaction. Just b/c your customers don\'t know what to look for or what to buy and have to come back to you to rely on your judgement; doesn\'t mean that the vendors are always at fault... People are looking for good parts cheap, and it\'s not always going to happen. I\'ve had to go through a couple returns (one w/ NewEgg, one w/ an ABIT motherboard)..and both times it has been easy and painless. I received the new parts and shipped the old ones back.

If the customer knows what to look for and what to buy, then there isn\'t a problem. A customer that goes in w/o doing any reserach on the company they are sending their $$$ to, hoping to get the cheapest price for the most expensive part...then something happens, that causes a problem.

[belgareth]

Your talking about somebody who is knowledgable in the technology. I am talking about the average user. No, not all vendors are bad, a relative few are bad. But none the less, an average user is at a disadvantage trying to go that way.

[tallmacky]

I would usually agree with Belgareth on this, and many other points, but I have had some experience with NewEgg.com

I had bought every part on newegg.com and I built the computer from top to bottom. I had to use less money wise but all the parts came in their packages in perfect quality. It made my job much easier and my friend is still using this PC (about a year ago). I have also used many parts in my PC from NewEgg.

Newegg also has a very high customer satisfaction rating, everyone who shops at newegg loves it to death [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] resellerratings.com

[belgareth]

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I would usually agree with Belgareth on this, and many other points, but I have had some experience with NewEgg.com

I had bought every part on newegg.com and I built the computer from top to bottom. I had to use less money wise but all the parts came in their packages in perfect quality. It made my job much easier and my friend is still using this PC (about a year ago). I have also used many parts in my PC from NewEgg.

Newegg also has a very high customer satisfaction rating, everyone who shops at newegg loves it to death [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] resellerratings.com

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I am not disputing that. Do you think Lucky wants to build her own computer or open it up and replace parts if there is a problem?

[tallmacky]

you win [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

btw do you think my computer is sexy?

[belgareth]

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you win [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

btw do you think my computer is sexy?

<hr /></blockquote><font class=\"post\">

Maybe, but I\'ll bet mine goes faster [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

AMD XP 3000 (the CPU is just three days old) on a SOYO Dragon Pro MB, 1 GIG DDR 2700 RAM, Dual bootable Raid Drives, SB Pro 5.1 gamer card and 64 meg DDR video card. I\'ve been watching for a good price on a dual CPU motherboard since XP pro will support it. There are advantages to being in the business. Good prices and tax write offs.

[pelotudo]

That system sounds insane. What brand/model video card did you decide to go with, and what\'s the purpose of the system?

[belgareth]

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That system sounds insane. What brand/model video card did you decide to go with, and what\'s the purpose of the system?

<hr /></blockquote><font class=\"post\">

It\'s my plaything. The video is a generic SIS. Remember, my profession requires me to keep up on technology.

[Lucky]

Where\'s that math thread? It would be easier for me to understand!

Thanks everybody - really appreciate the advice.

[Elana]

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Where\'s that math thread? It would be easier for me to understand!



<hr /></blockquote><font class=\"post\">

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[tallmacky]

Ahhh Belgareth I believe you are right.

As of now there is really no sense in buying a dual CPU machine. Yes, Windows XP supports it as of now but linux/unix has been supporting it for ages. In most cases the dual system will not prove to be anymore successful in any of the operations you perform on your computer. Just about all of the software today is not written for dual machines. In that case many of the dual cpu mobo\'s use slightly older chips (AMD Athlon etc...) and one only one cpu would be in constant use.

There are some aspects of pc\'ing that are built and work better under dual cpus, like video editing, number crunching, and CAD (3d stuff).

When I worked for KaZaA I went all out on my system like a total dumb ass, after I realized that they sold the company, I was in the near of buying the last of my computer parts. I think it came to a total of ($1200-$1500) (monitor not counted). I had to sell all of my parts and build a cheaper system.

So as of now it\'s a
Pentium 4 socket 423 (I think) 1.51 GHZ (1500mhz)
2 slabs of 128 RDRAM(rare now) which is 256 RD-RAM
Geforce 2 TNT Riva 32 mb on board memory (still works)
2 13-15 gig hard drives IBM and Samsung
MSI 845 Pro Motherboard
300 watt powersupply (generic)
PC cards Diamond soundcard/ethernet/56k/
6 fans
Minion case with a self made window and a pretty green light [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]
and other boring stuff....................


After I sold all of my top of the line parts (at that time) I just assembled alot of used parts, but it works really well, still very loud even with the sound proofing.


Wanna trade Belgareth? [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[belgareth]

A cool thing I do that you might try if you play games. Run the sound output to the aux input on a decent stereo system. PC speakers are usually pretty weak, even the best ones. This rig will rattle the windows!

I don\'t honestly need the processing power I have. But I do handle several cumbersome SQL Server data bases, handle some telephony apps and manage a few web pages for clients. In a few months, T1 lines are going to be dropping in price and I\'d like to be hooked to the net that way. It will save me a lot of time.

[Elana]

When searching for a computer, the most important thing to look for is how pretty it is. You want one that has a lot of shiny buttons and lights. If you need any more help, please feel free to ask me. I know a lot about this stuff.