Going to build my daughter a $500 system

[Plumcuda1]

She doent game (has an Xbox for that) Really just going to be so she can surf, downloand some mp3 and chat mostly.

I have priced it out both ways (AMD / Intel) 2800+ AMD system comes out to about the same price as a P4 3.0gHz.


Here are the common items for the system

Hard Drive

Memory

Video card



Here is the AMD combo I was thinking

AMD combo

Intel stuff

3.0 P4

MSI mobo

LMK what ya think. Just remember this doent have to be an uber gaming rig ... I also dont want to build junk ... thats why I am here for any suggestion!

THX !

Havent decided on a case yet .....

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Both of those are overkill for a "web surfing / mp3 downloading / IM" rig.

Dude, get her a ($300) Dell.

- M4H

 

[Plumcuda1]

Well, she doesnt live with me ... so I like her to have nice things .... So a lil overkill is ok isnt it?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Exactly, get her a Hot Deal Dell and a gift cert from the savings for a couple of Xbox games

SHe doent game (has an Xbox for that) Really just going to be so she can surf, downloand some mp3 and chat mostly.

(Goody Two-Shoes personality taking over)
Or if you want to teach her ethics, the Dell and a subscription to Napster Premium or Rhapsody for legal PC music listening.

PS - even if you don't care about ethics, at least make sure you don't end up with a multi-thousand dollar bill from the RIAA for sharing mp3s.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
Exactly, get her a Hot Deal Dell and a gift cert from the savings for a couple of Xbox games

SHe doent game (has an Xbox for that) Really just going to be so she can surf, downloand some mp3 and chat mostly.

(Goody Two-Shoes personality taking over)
Or if you want to teach her ethics, the Dell and a subscription to Napster Premium or Rhapsody for legal PC music listening.

PS - even if you don't care about ethics, at least make sure you don't end up with a multi-thousand dollar bill from the RIAA for sharing mp3s.

Where did I say she was going to DL music illegally? geeez chill

 

[iamskew]

AMD

 

[ultimatebob]

You should get her a Mac Mini. It's much "cooler" looking than anything that you could build for her for under $500, and you won't have to worry about viruses and spyware.

Remember... most girls who aren't gamers don't care about processor speeds or graphics cards. They just want something cute looking that they can IM and download music with.

 

[mechBgon]

Whatever you get her, can I suggest really sweating over the security setup. If they have broadband, I'd get a router (Netgear RP614 is $30 AR at Newegg right now) to provide a first level of firewall protection v. the Internet, and enable the Windows Firewall and Data Execution Prevention on all software.

Norton Antivirus 2005 could be a good pick for antivirus if you fully set it up to use max heuristics, scan within compressed files, SILENTLY delete infected stuff without asking the user for a judgement call, and re-enable the Windows Firewall after installing Norton (it wants to play firewall with its Wormstopper feature for some reason). You can also password-protect the Norton options if you see the need. NAV2004 and 2005 will detect a certain amount of spyware/adware too.

If you can get her into the habit of using a Limited account for daily-driver stuff, rather than a Computer Administrator account, that's a big boost to security too.

Hardware-wise, what's with the PC2100 memory for an A64 or a 3GHz P4? If you want to build, here's my suggestion:

Abit NF8

A64 2800+

512MB Corsair ValueSelect PC3200

Antec Sonata case/power

Seagate ATA/100 hard drive (guaranteed fluid-bearing motor, unlike WD, and a longer warranty)

WinXP Pro if you want it to be able to join domains (school?) and has a longer MS support cycle than Home too

And how about a black Lite-On CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive, so she can watch DVDs

 

[DaveSimmons]

Where did I say she was going to DL music illegally? geeez chill

Well, there aren't any legal download sites for major-label MP3s so it follows naturally.

If you'd said "songs from iTunes" (which are in AAC format) my goody two-shoes personality would have remained sleeping peacefully.

It's no big deal, I'm no fan of the RIAA myself even though I do buy my music.

 

[Chosonman]

AMD Sempron 2400 + Mobo = 140.00 Shipped (Slightly better performance than a 2.4 Pentium 4)
512 MB RAM $60.00
CASE+PSU $50.00
160 GB HD $60.00
DVD-RW $65.00
Cheap Video Card $30.00

$405.00 Shipped (Better than the Dell for $399, Dell has 256RAM, no vid card, and only 80GB HD and it's a DELL!)

Add Windows XP for $80.00

Search: Pricewatch.com

AMD 64 would be expensive but 2400 Sempron is almost as fast as a 2800 AMD 64 2800
and almost $200.00 cheaper for both Motherboard and CPU

 

[mechBgon]

BTW if you pick up a hardware item from MWave, here's a decent deal on Microsoft Works Suite 2005 DVD (OEM): http://www.mwave.com/mwave/viewspec.hmx?scriteria=AA25660

Full-version Word 2002, Encarta encyclopedia, Works spreadsheet/etc, and some other stuffs. Not bad for $45

 

[Monkey muppet]

1x ideal candidate for the mini-mac

 

[Plumcuda1]

Ive never been a fan of macs ... but I havent looked at the new minis... guess I'll google em.


1.25GHz PowerPC G4
256MB DDR333 SDRAM
ATI Radeon 9200 with 32MB DDR video memory
40GB Ultra ATA hard drive
Combo drive
DVI or VGA video output
AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth optional


Doesnt really look all that impressive ....

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: Plumcuda1
Well, she doesnt live with me ... so I like her to have nice things .... So a lil overkill is ok isnt it?

It may be overkill now, but it might not be in a year when Longhorn comes out and the GUI requires a videocard for rendering.

And stuff keeps getting bloated and more complex.

Anyways, i would say get the AMD

 

[mustap]

BTW if you pick up a hardware item from MWave, here's a decent deal on Microsoft Works Suite 2005 DVD: http://www.mwave.com/mwave/viewspec.hmx?scriteria=AA25660

Full-version Word 2002, Encarta encyclopedia, Works spreadsheet/etc, and some other stuffs. Not bad for $45



Are they paying you to advertise this product?i have seen you recommend it a zillion times.just kidding.i think thats a great product and a valuable addition to your daughters self.
as for the pc listen to these guys.most of them know what they talk about

 

[wakawaka]

Originally posted by: Plumcuda1
Doesnt really look all that impressive ....

Its not. Also, all you get for that $500 is the unit. No monitor/keyboard/mouse.

 

[mechBgon]

Are they paying you to advertise this product? i have seen you recommend it a zillion times.

Hehe, nope I wish Newegg would come somewhere near MWave on the price, but they've got it for



OK, I take it back. Newegg used to have MS Works Suite OEM up in the $77 area, but it looks like they figured it out. $49 shipped, that's pretty respectable

 

[mustap]

new$$$ saw that the other shop's offer was better and decided to be more competitive.that sucks.But i guess mwav would follow the same tactic if it was in egg's place.lesson: power corrupts hm i guess that was a little off-topic though.

 

[daniel49]

usually I'm pretty adament about amd but since the price is about even its a tossup and a personal preference call.
I think the amd 64 bit would run cooler for you when the pentiums get to hot they compensate by running slower.


ps: what a nice dad you are hope she appreciates you..good luck

 

[Waylay00]

Teenage girls aren't going to care about processor speed and whatnot. Most girls I know don't even know what a processor is. As said before, they want something cute and easy to operate. A mac mini would be perfect. And if you think your daughter isn't downloading music off Limewire or other P2P programs, think again. How old is she? In my case, I am a 13 guy, and all of the girls I know are obsessed with the new Mac Mini. (But I don't dare talk about my computer expertise to them, because they still think knowing about computers is for geeks. Ahh..they'll learn one day....)

 

[DavidKing]

It may suck, but the Dell and Mac suggestions will impress her (and her friends) more than something the old man build. Plus they have more resale value down the road. Theres always a sucker who will plunk down extra for a 10 year old Dell at a yard sale. Its a sad sad world.

 

[Plumcuda1]

She just turned 13 this week. I really dont think she is DL'n music online right now .... for one her current pc is a pos gateway with a 10 gig HD ... and I dont think her mother would let her. Plus I just bought her a mp3 player for her b-day ... (she keeps a close watch on what she does online)
I would like to know if maybe may daughter wanted a mini-mac ... but I want to surprise her.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Originally posted by: DavidKing
It may suck, but the Dell and Mac suggestions will impress her (and her friends) more than something the old man build. Plus they have more resale value down the road. Theres always a sucker who will plunk down extra for a 10 year old Dell at a yard sale. Its a sad sad world.

I cant see buying a dell when I could build a much better pc for the money of a dell ...

but maybe ..... :disgust:

 

[mechBgon]

If she gets into Sims 2 or some such, the Dad-built rig is going to be more satisfactory than a bottom-rung Happy Meal? computer. Ask RalphTheCow about his experience with his first Dell and Sims2, or search up his threads on the topic.

 

[mustap]

hm 13 years old?i dont know if the computer idea is good at this age but u know your daughter better anyway.as for sims2 i am disgusted from the concept of the game.but thats just me again