$500 to spend: build or buy?

[speedlever]

Need the box only.

Case and PS
CPU and cooling
Mobo
RAM
HD
Video card
HD
Win 7
???

Already have monitor, KB, mouse and external backup drive. Need to replace an old PIII.

BB has an Asus Essentio under $500. Can I do better if I build my own for that price?

 

[DaveSimmons]

What uses? If not gaming or watching HD web video (Hulu, fox, etc.) any box will work, for example the $249 base model Dell Zino.

 

[marmasatt]

What uses? If not gaming or watching HD web video (Hulu, fox, etc.) any box will work, for example the $249 base model Dell Zino.

Agreed. But what *are* the uses? You could kind of do a combination of both (build/buy).

If you want more bang for your buck, and you want to use the 500 bucks for instance, there are some great deals in the fs/ft forum. I think you'd be wise to check in there. I know I'd basically ship you my box, or at least begin negotiations E8400, Asus DDR3/SLI mobo, 4 gigs DDR3, 250 Gig HD, couple of DVD Burners in an Antec 900 case. Performance will blow that generic Asus box out of the water.....

 

[yottabit]

Are you a college student or have any students in your family? You can do much better than that if so. You could get a Dell Studio with an Athlon X4 and a half-decent graphics card, or something with the GMA and a Core 2 Quad through their "Dell Lounge".

 

[VirtualLarry]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...1neGejUhYEk22w

 

[Decembermouse]

Build it. Definitely build it. You can build an awesome computer for $500.

You could do a quad core system with a discrete graphics card. None of this Pentium Dual Core with Intel graphics crap

 

[speedlever]

Thanks for the replies guys. I wonder why I'm not getting automatic alerts as I set up?

Oh well.

Wow.. that's a cheap eMachines. Under $200.

This box is for my son and will be general home use... web browsing, email, storing images, personal finance, etc. Nothing fancy.

Depending on how much of a hurry he's in, I'm considering doing the build for him with these components:
$105 - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM
$142 - COMBO: AMD Athlon II X2 245 Regor 2.9GHz + ASUS M4A785TD-M EVO 785G mATX
$80 - COMBO: Antec Three Hundred Case + Antec NEO ECO 400C 400W
$90 - Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1333 TW3X4G1333C9A G
$55 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200RPM SATA300 16MB Buffer
$28 - LG 22X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model GH22LS50 LightScribe
-------
$500

Or, if he's in a real hurry and doesn't want to wait for me to order and build it, maybe just go to Costco and get this HP Pavillion.

Thoughts?

 

[marmasatt]

If you are not looking for performance per se, why not just get the one Larry just linked you?

 

[Decembermouse]

Yeah, if you don't need serious performance, then I'd go with the Zino HD. I would avoid machines with Celeron processors, or video chips as old as the GeForce 7050, but the Zino HD would be just fine. If you'd rather build a $500 machine though, have a student you know buy Windows 7 Home Premium through Microsoft's website using their @xxx.edu email address for $30. I'd also get the Western Digital Green series 500GB hard drive, it'll run cooler, quieter, and use half the power of that Samsung, and they're quite fast.

 

[M0RPH]

Thanks for the replies guys. I wonder why I'm not getting automatic alerts as I set up?

Oh well.

Wow.. that's a cheap eMachines. Under $200.

This box is for my son and will be general home use... web browsing, email, storing images, personal finance, etc. Nothing fancy.

Depending on how much of a hurry he's in, I'm considering doing the build for him with these components:
$105 - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM
$142 - COMBO: AMD Athlon II X2 245 Regor 2.9GHz + ASUS M4A785TD-M EVO 785G mATX
$80 - COMBO: Antec Three Hundred Case + Antec NEO ECO 400C 400W
$90 - Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1333 TW3X4G1333C9A G
$55 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200RPM SATA300 16MB Buffer
$28 - LG 22X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model GH22LS50 LightScribe
-------
$500

Or, if he's in a real hurry and doesn't want to wait for me to order and build it, maybe just go to Costco and get this HP Pavillion.

Thoughts?

Good build but the HP is essentially the same and you can walk in/ walk out with it from Costco. I'd go with the HP.

On the other hand have you considered that your son may want to play a game or two on it? Maybe think about a discrete video card.

 

[speedlever]

Thanks again for the replies. I am still not getting email notifications of replies to this thread. Not sure why as my CP is set to notify me and the thread says I'm subscribed. Sigh.

Good points and questions all. My son is not a gamer. Discrete video is not needed at this point. In all honesty, anything new right now will be an improvement over the old rig he has now. Even that Tigerdirect eMachines or the Zino.

But I can't bring myself to recommend that route. I'm not a Dell hater, but am not a fan either. I prefer a value build with quality components.

I'd love to build it for him, but he's gonna have to decide how he wants to spend his money. He's not a gearhead, so I think he just wants to get something and get it now.

But maybe that's the suggestion: buy the $190 eMachines... or I'll build him a decent computer for $500.

Good idea about the student buy of Windows 7.

Regarding the HD... I've had good luck with Samsung Spinpoint and WD Raptor drives. I have both a Samsung (320 Gb) and a WD Raptor (74 Gb) SATA drives in my build, plus a 300 Gb IDE Seagate. I'm surprised to see that the WD suggested above is quieter and uses less power than the Samsung.

But it's a quiet Raptor. It runs about 6* warmer than the Sammy in my application. The Seagate runs hotter than the Raptor by around 3*. All are very quiet in my Antec Solo case. They have two 92mm fans keeping them cool. Speedfan shows them at 25*, 31* and 34* presently.