Good PC Manufacturer?

[LR6]

I am looking for a decent PC for my church. This PC will only be used for office stuff & I would like to have something that will be as problem free as possible. I would like to get at least a P4 or Celeron D with an Intel chipset or a Athlon/Sempron with an Nvidia chipset. with 512MB ram & a decent hard drive.

Who should I buy from? due to previous experience, dell is completly out & most AMD systems that I find on the web have VIA chpsets. I have read many times in the past that VIA chipsets have a lot of problems, is this still the case? even Anand in his business PC guide recommends a Nvidia chipset motherboard.

I have thought about the alienware bot, velocoty micro, systemax & emachines. I have even considered building the thing myself, but I don't want to be the only source for tech support.

What do you think?
thanks
LR6

 

[spanky]

dell. there are tons of deals that roll around. check out the hot deals forum.

 

[Commodus]

Do you need Windows software specifically? If you don't (i.e. it's just MS Office, Quicken, that sort of thing), then I'm wondering if getting an eMac wouldn't be a viable option. I'm mainly suggesting it because you won't need to put nearly as many safeguards on it to prevent it from being infected with spyware/worms/viruses.

If you do need to go with an x86 system, try going to MPC ( www.mpccorp.com ). They're one of the few US companies that still has all of its tech support in the US, so church members won't have to struggle to understand a Bangalore accent just to get help.

 

[nick1985]

this is one of the rare times where i say just get a cheap dell.

 

[aloser]

Why not build one? There's a lot more flexibility, and it often is cheaper (I paid $1500 for my system; the closest Dell has to it was $3000). As to VIA, I had nuthin' but problems with them on both motherboards (I started with a 1-gig Cel3, and then upgraded to a 1.8 P4, both w/ VIA chipsets) - I upgraded to a SiS on the P4 and was VERY thrilled (Now I have Intel on my P4 3.2-gig). Anyway, if you are able, I would build one. (The internet is mostly tax-free to begin with, but churches are tax-exempt no matter what. Some companies will do other discounts for non-profit groups as well.) If you don't want to build one (or can't) I'd search the major makers (Sony, etc.) - sometimes the right person could donate one (publicity for them as wel as a tax-writeoff).

 

[SLCentral]

Alienware Bot's are nice, but kind of overpriced for a office/church enviornment. I also think a Dell is a good option here, but if you really don't like them, I'd really reccomend building yourself. Even though you're worried about tech support, not only are there communites like AT to help you, but you probably can tech support yourself a hell of a lot better then HP, eMachines, or the like can.

 

[thraxes]

On the high end it is possible to beat Dells prices bu at the low end it is simply not doable when you also consider the software that is included.

Dude, you're getting a Dell

 

[Commodus]

Didn't he already say that he ruled Dell out?

And anyways, I don't know if I'd consider $549 US (plus whatever it costs for a 17" CRT) from Alienware to be too expensive.

 

[aloser]

Originally posted by: Commodus
Didn't he already say that he ruled Dell out?

And anyways, I don't know if I'd consider $549 US (plus whatever it costs for a 17" CRT) from Alienware to be too expensive.

Well, the thing is, that would require reading the original post......

 

[SLCentral]

Originally posted by: Commodus
Didn't he already say that he ruled Dell out?

And anyways, I don't know if I'd consider $549 US (plus whatever it costs for a 17" CRT) from Alienware to be too expensive.

Still...it's a lot more then the bottom-line Dell, which, with deals, can be had for under $400.