Recommend a new desktop computer for workplace

[TangoJuliet]

I was asked by my job to pick out a new desktop for the breakroom. We have a budget of $1000-1500 which would need to include the desktop and monitor (or all in one). I asked about getting an iMac and that was squashed.

Is there anything out there that you would recommend? Any hot deals? I've built several of my own computers and I DO NOT want to do that for work. I do not have the time and do not want to deal with any issues that may pop up if something breaks.

I was looking at some of the HP All-in-One computers and they do look like they may work out well as space is a concern. Not sure how well they work though. Also these are NOT the touch screen versions as I'd like to stay away from those.

As for computing the majority of use will be internet browsing but there are some people that play WoW on the current PC. I guess disk capacity is not much of a concern as we won't be storing that much on it. We would need MS Office on it as we do a bunch of word, excel, etc stuff.

Recap:

Budget $1000-1500
No Apple(s)
The smaller the better
Need monitor or can be an All-in-One (iMac like)
Be able to play games like WoW
Need Office software

 

[Emulex]

just get a hp business class machine or workstation - the decent ones come with 3/3/3 next business day warranty.

 

[Zap]

How about a Dell Inspiron Zino HD? I just priced out one at $1217 including a dual core Athlon II CPU, 4GB RAM, Mobility Radeon HD 5450, MS Office Home & Business, 21.5" monitor with microphone/webcam/speaker bar, KB/mouse, DVD writer, Wireless-N, 500GB HDD, 4 year warranty and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. Best part is the Zino weighs in at 7.8"x7.8"x3.4".

 

[TangoJuliet]

How about a Dell Inspiron Zino HD? I just priced out one at $1217 including a dual core Athlon II CPU, 4GB RAM, Mobility Radeon HD 5450, MS Office Home & Business, 21.5" monitor with microphone/webcam/speaker bar, KB/mouse, DVD writer, Wireless-N, 500GB HDD, 4 year warranty and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. Best part is the Zino weighs in at 7.8"x7.8"x3.4".

Yeah I just saw those too. They kind of look like a Mac mini. I'd probably like to keep it under $1000 if I decided to go with it though.

 

[Zap]

You can knock off almost $200 if you ditch the 4 year warranty (down to 1 year) and another $80 if you go with a lower end MS Office (Home & Student instead of Home & Business).

 

[xSauronx]

just get a hp business class machine or workstation - the decent ones come with 3/3/3 next business day warranty.

this. you need to get the extra warranty period and thats going to drive the cost up a bit.

 

[vbuggy]

Dell Studio XPS 8100 w/:

- i7-870
- W7HP64
- 6Gb
- 750Gb
- Dell SX2210 Full HD monitor + Webcam
- 1Gb GTS240
- Dual DVD drives - ROM + RW
- MS Office Home & Business 2010
- 3-year onsite

Comes to $1598
Add $29 for the under-monitor-slung soundbar.

Much better all-rounder than a Zino.

Or if relatively pathetic performance is not really a problem, you could look at the Vostro all-in-one PC - which while it packs last year's CPU's and Intel HD graphics, are cheap.

 

[TangoJuliet]

any other suggestions?

 

[ecom]

For office, I would choose Dell Optiplex The bad thing is that the graphics card options are really expensive for what you get. Eg for Radeon 4550, it's a $84 option. If you can, buy the graphics card from Newegg or similar for a better deal. You might only be able to put a Radeon 5450 or similar due to power available (or lack of). For office stuff, the onboard graphics is fine though.

You can probably pick an Optiplex 760 or 780 out of the Dell Outlet. They have the same 3 year warranty as new computers.

I picked this one at random for $550 from Dell Outlet (free shipping):
# OptiPlex 780 Small Form Factor Base Up to 88 Percent Efficient PSU
# Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E8400 (3.0GHz, 6M, 1333MHz FSB)
# Genuine Windows 7 Professional
# 250 GB SATA II Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
# 4 GB DDR3 NON-ECC SDRAM 1066MHz (2 DIMMs)
# 8X DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capability

Dimensions are (in): 12.4 x 3.65 x 13.4

Random monitor...
Dell Refurbished UltraSharp U2211H 21.5-inch Flat Panel Display, 90 day warranty, $200 or $249 new w/ 3 yr warranty

There are some that cost less.