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AwesomeJay

Senior member
May 18, 2004
202
0
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building a computer for my uncle. just basic office applications, surfing.. which one of the two builds do you like better or what would you change? (prices are canadian by the way.. in case they look off to you americans ;) )

BUILD 1
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 2800+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.6GHZ) $94.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value 512MB $59.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Lite-On 16X/52X DVD/CD-RW $36.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 80GB $73.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $554


BUILD 2
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 3100+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.8GHZ) $119.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value DC 1GB (2x512) $119.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Pioneer DVR-110 16x Dual Layer DVD+/-RW $51.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 120GB $96.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $677
 
B

BigCoolJesus

Banned
Jun 22, 2005
1,687
0
0
Originally posted by: AwesomeJay
building a computer for my uncle. just basic office applications, surfing.. which one of the two builds do you like better or what would you change? (prices are canadian by the way.. in case they look off to you americans ;) )

BUILD 1
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 2800+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.6GHZ) $94.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value 512MB $59.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Lite-On 16X/52X DVD/CD-RW $36.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 80GB $73.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $554


BUILD 2
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 3100+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.8GHZ) $119.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value DC 1GB (2x512) $119.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Pioneer DVR-110 16x Dual Layer DVD+/-RW $51.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 120GB $96.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $677
Click to expand...



build 2
 
allanon1965

allanon1965

Diamond Member
Mar 14, 2004
3,427
1
81
at those prices I would go with a full fledged Athlon 64 3000+ venice.......would be not much difference in price and you would have a better machine...I have a venice 3000+ and a sempron 2800+ 64Bit skt 754 in an asrock Matx MB,(its in my muffler case) has the NF4 chipset with the 6100 onboard graphics, much better than prior onboard graphics:) but the 3000 beats the 2800 hands down, mostly i think due to cache and dual channel capabilities on the ram...
 
Maximilian

Maximilian

Lifer
Feb 8, 2004
12,604
15
81
Originally posted by: BigCoolJesus
Originally posted by: AwesomeJay
building a computer for my uncle. just basic office applications, surfing.. which one of the two builds do you like better or what would you change? (prices are canadian by the way.. in case they look off to you americans ;) )

BUILD 1
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 2800+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.6GHZ) $94.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value 512MB $59.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Lite-On 16X/52X DVD/CD-RW $36.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 80GB $73.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $554


BUILD 2
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 3100+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.8GHZ) $119.00

MOTHERBOARD
MSI K8NGM-V NF410 S754 6100 on board video $85.00

CASE
Antec SLK1650 Mid-Tower Case w/350W PS, Black $82.00

RAM
OCZ Value DC 1GB (2x512) $119.00

OPTICAL DRIVE
Pioneer DVR-110 16x Dual Layer DVD+/-RW $51.00

HARD DRIVE
Maxtor DM10 120GB $96.00

FLOPPY DRIVE
Mitsumi 3.5" Floppy Drive, Black $13.00

OPERATING SYSTEM
WINDOWS XP HOME $112.00

TOTAL - $677
Click to expand...



build 2
Click to expand...

build 2

Also what allanon said is very relevant. To add one thing to what he said, go socket 939.
 
L

leigh6

Diamond Member
Jun 2, 2004
3,011
0
0
Sorry guys,

This is a no brainer to me. System 1 is perfect for what your uncle needs. You do not need a gig of ram. 512 is fine. The 2800 is a nice little spiffy processor. If it is just email and internet and some basic office applications there will not be a noticable difference between the 2 systems. The 80 gig hard drive is plenty.

If you go Socket 939 with the venice 3000. Use the setup from build 1. BUT buy 2x256 ram instead of 1 512 so you can run dual channel. (Again you do not need 1 gig of ram) And look for the 6100 onboard graphic mobos. Here is one of them: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813138269
 
C

cubby1223

Lifer
May 24, 2004
13,518
42
86
Depends on how much $$ you want to spend. If I were building that, I'd get a Sempron 2500+, K8M800 board, 512mb ram, dvd burner, 80gb hard drive, etc. But that's just me.

Only thing I really would really say change is the Mitsumi floppy to a Sony.
 
Googer

Googer

Lifer
Nov 11, 2004
12,576
7
81
Originally posted by: AwesomeJay
building a computer for my uncle. just basic office applications, surfing.. which one of the two builds do you like better or what would you change? (prices are canadian by the way.. in case they look off to you americans ;) )

BUILD 1
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 2800+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.6GHZ) $94.00


TOTAL - $554


BUILD 2
PROCESSOR
AMD Sempron 3100+ S754 64-Bit Processor (1.8GHZ) $119.00


TOTAL - $677
Click to expand...


Neither one are good buys. Emachines are cheaper and faster, plus your Uncle gets tech support, you do not want him calling you at 11PM when he cannot get something to work

$549 3400+ Currnet Model Production

Or even better yet is the T6524 is faster and cheaper $549 3500+ Discontined last month and replaced with a lesser machine for the same price

More Prices
http://froogle.google.com/froogle?hl=en...btnP=Go&q=t6524&lmode=online&scoring=p
 
T

Tostada

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
1,789
0
0
You guys are totally insane suggesting that he should get a Venice and/or move up to Socket 939 for web surfing.

I agree that it's reasonable to just get a cheap pre-built ... but if you're gonna build it (which I certainly don't see anything wrong with), I'd say just go with the cheapest 754 CPU. I wouldn't pay more for an MSI board. That board is not better than the similar ASRock or Biostar mATX boards which are cheaper (but maybe they're not cheaper in Canada).

Does the 80GB DiamondMax 10 have the 16MB cache? WD Special Edition drives are usually the cheapest good thing.

I guess I don't know what prices are like in Canada, and NCIX has a pretty terrible interface.
 
B

Bonesdad

Platinum Member
Nov 18, 2002
2,213
0
76
Originally posted by: leigh6
Sorry guys,

This is a no brainer to me. System 1 is perfect for what your uncle needs. You do not need a gig of ram. 512 is fine. The 2800 is a nice little spiffy processor. If it is just email and internet and some basic office applications there will not be a noticable difference between the 2 systems. The 80 gig hard drive is plenty.

If you go Socket 939 with the venice 3000. Use the setup from build 1. BUT buy 2x256 ram instead of 1 512 so you can run dual channel. (Again you do not need 1 gig of ram) And look for the 6100 onboard graphic mobos. Here is one of them: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813138269
Click to expand...



I agree with most...except stick with 1x512...give him the ability to upgrade RAM if software needs change or he starts to multitask.
 
I

imported_rod

Golden Member
Apr 13, 2005
1,788
0
0
Option 1 is more than enough for boring, web-surfing, office apps etc...

Have you checked out to see if Dell can do something cheaper?

RoD
 
halw

halw

Senior member
Dec 22, 2005
228
0
76
Check out this link. These are the authors of Building the Perfect PC and PC Hardware in a Nutshell.
 
bamacre

bamacre

Lifer
Jul 1, 2004
21,029
2
61
This is where you should buy a prebuilt.

Look for a 9100 or XPS 400.

Here is a comparison of an XPS 400 vs the 3500+ e-machine mentioned above...

Originally posted by: bamacre
Pictars.... (and biased review below)


T6524 and XPS 400 Front View

T6524 and XPS 400 Rear View

T6524 Inside #1

XPS 400 Inside #1

T6524 Inside #2

XPS 400 Inside #2


As you can see, both systems were upgraded with 256MB X800 GTO video cards (Sapphire Blade Edition), coincidenally.


What the Dell has that the eMachine does not...
1. Screwless case
2. Screwless hard drive enclosure
3. Physical support for heavier video cards
4. Better ventilation
5. Better cable management (although there are just not as many cables in the emachine)
6. Better design for optical drive assembly
7. Supports standard optical drives
8. Standard 128MB X300 PCIe video card

What the eMachine has that the Dell does not...
1. Option for AMD cpu's (depending on model)
2. Bigger standard hard drive (200GB PATA over upgradeable 80GB SATA)
3. Media Card reader is standard (Dell offers as upgrade)
4. Standard Integrated ATI Express 200 Video

PSU differences
1. eMachines comes with 250w, Dell has a 375w.
2. eMachines PSU has almost no free power connectors, Dell's has plenty
3. eMachines PSU has no PCIe power cable, Dell has one.
4. Zero SATA power connections in the eMachines, Dell's has at least 3.

Costs:
eMachine Fixed $650 - $50 MIR plus tax (shipping usually free) (no monitor)
Dell - Varies (with Dell Outlet, you can pick them up <$400, or retail, currently starts at $969 w/19in LCD)
Of course, most of you know Dell offers coupon codes, hot deals, and with new systems in Dell Outlet, cost varies quite a bit)


I'm sure there are a few things I have left out, but I think this is a decent comparison. If you disagree, feel free to buy both and review them yourself. :D
Click to expand...
 
M

Madwand1

Diamond Member
Jan 23, 2006
3,309
0
76
With some looking, it is possible to get a comparable machine that's name-brand and pre-built, and is not refurbished, at a comparable Canadian price from a Canadian vendor. If you remove the "not refurbished" part, your options and performance/price improve. Your call on that of course.

E.g.

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/...item-details.asp?EdpNo=1879847&CatId=0

Compaq Presario SR1710NX AMD Sempron 3400+ 2GHz / 256MB DDR / 100GB SATA HDD / DVD-ROM/CD-RW / Flash Media Reader / Integrated ATI Radeon X200 Video / 10/100Mbps LAN / Windows XP Home / Desktop PC
Click to expand...

Also need to add another 256 to hit 512 MB -- say around $30

CAD $500 + shipping -> CAD $550 for sample address.

Tigerdirect.ca is not the best vendor for prices in Canada, but it is a convenient point of reference. The best prices are usually had by browsing online first, then walking down to the local computer alley, and paying cash / debit. Usually you also have next to no return options in such transactions. Canada Computers is one exception. They don't have any complete systems in this price range, but here's one example of a better price from them.

http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.ph...howProduct&cmd=pd&pid=008426&cid=HD.96

Maxtor DiamondMax 10 SATA/150 100GB 7200RPM 8MB Cache (OEM) $69.

http://www.pricenetwork.ca is usually a good source for Canadian prices, and a number of the local computer alley stores show up there.

My relatives would probably be somewhat hung up on the name-brand part and would prefer to get something that says "HP"/"Compaq" or whatever. I'd probably prefer to build it myself for fun, but it's their money.

The original set doesn't seem bad. The SLK1650, although good and cheap (and dark black -- need to match with optical), doesn't have drive cooling built in. The SLK3000 does.

The user is going to see only a limited number of things here: 1. The case (+monitor, kb, mouse). 2. The video quality (don't trust all the built-ins; you did well picking the 6100's). 3. The OS (the same). 4. Performance (all about the same in general usage). 5. The name brand. Considering that, if you build it yourself, it might be worth spending a few or more bucks more on a more attractive / better case.

The Thermaltake Tsunami is one such case, and costs around $145 CAD with a PSU. It's probably a bit quietier than the Antec's stock due to slower fans. http://www.pcmetro.ca/cases.htm
 
X

xtknight

Elite Member
Oct 15, 2004
12,974
0
71
Originally posted by: Tostada
You guys are totally insane suggesting that he should get a Venice and/or move up to Socket 939 for web surfing.
Click to expand...

You might as well get the most speed per $. :confused: Nevertheless, due to the situation, I agree with Googer on this one.
 
C

cubby1223

Lifer
May 24, 2004
13,518
42
86
Originally posted by: xtknight
Originally posted by: Tostada
You guys are totally insane suggesting that he should get a Venice and/or move up to Socket 939 for web surfing.
Click to expand...
You might as well get the most speed per $. :confused: Nevertheless, due to the situation, I agree with Googer on this one.
Click to expand...
But...

Web serfing speed is limited by your internet connection, faster cpus don't do a darn thing. Office applications are most often limited by your own typing speed, which again faster cpus do not do a darn thing. So in those situations, the cheaper Semprons actually give you the best speed per dollar ratio.
 
bamacre

bamacre

Lifer
Jul 1, 2004
21,029
2
61
Googer

Googer

Lifer
Nov 11, 2004
12,576
7
81
Originally posted by: bamacre
Originally posted by: Googer
I did not realize that Tiger Direct was selling refurbished PC's. For fourty dollars more there are still some avalable at Office Depot that are not refurbished.

http://www.officedepot.com/ddSKU.do?lev...hopping%20Comp-_-Datafeed-_-Technology
Click to expand...

I still say those are POS systems. Spec's look nice, but it's still junk. I'd take a refurb'd Dell xps 400 with a 1yr warranty over any other prebuilt out there, new or not.
Click to expand...

Please back up your biased statement. Emachines have the highest customer satisfation and have reliablity ratings that are the best in the industry.
 
bamacre

bamacre

Lifer
Jul 1, 2004
21,029
2
61
Originally posted by: Googer
Originally posted by: bamacre
Originally posted by: Googer
I did not realize that Tiger Direct was selling refurbished PC's. For fourty dollars more there are still some avalable at Office Depot that are not refurbished.

http://www.officedepot.com/ddSKU.do?lev...hopping%20Comp-_-Datafeed-_-Technology
Click to expand...

I still say those are POS systems. Spec's look nice, but it's still junk. I'd take a refurb'd Dell xps 400 with a 1yr warranty over any other prebuilt out there, new or not.
Click to expand...

Please back up your biased statement. Emachines have the highest customer satisfation and have reliablity ratings that are the best in the industry.
Click to expand...

Already have. In this thread as well, take a peek. Even included pictures.
 
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