What to tell the old man...

[TurtleCrusher]

Considering an E8400 is $7-10 on eBay any given day, and a Q6600 isn't that far behind, an upgrade to the CPU to a quad and an SSD is far better than the ripoff he got on the A4-5000 system.

The A4-5000 is by no means a bad CPU in laptops and runs everything well, but in a desktop computer?

 

[ehume]

OP: he won't know if he needs a new rig until he has tried an SSD in his old rig. We have a Dell 530s we put into service in Sept 2008. It has a 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo E7200. It came with a 500GB HD and it was s-l-o-o-w, despite upgrading the OS from XP to Win 7-64. I replaced the SATA II HD with a 500MB Samsung 840 EVO. Even though the SSD is SATA III and is held to SATA II speeds by the hardware, the rig runs like a striped ape. It's like a new machine. It positively snaps to everything it does.

After that success, I turned to my old laptop, which was also of 2008 vintage. It was even slower than my wife's machine had been. Since I had upgraded my main machine, I had a spare 128GB SSD. So I replaced the laptop's 256GB HD with the 128BG SSD. That brought it back to life. It was usable again -- so usable that when my daughter's gaming laptop ceased to function recently, she has been using the 2008 laptop as a spare. The fact that it won't play games I see as a positive -- we get more work out of her.

As I see it, SSD's make such a difference that you should never give up on a machine until you have put an SSD in it.

 

[VirtualLarry]

If your FIL wants something semi-modern but also compact, and upgradable, check out the Asus VivoPC. You can get complete systems with Win8.1, 4GB / 500GB, and an Ivy Bridge Celeron 1007U 1.5Ghz dual-core CPU.

Very decent for web browsing. I have an 11.6" laptop with this CPU in it.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0628&cm_re=asus_vivopc-_-83-220-628-_-Product

The HDD is upgradable just by taking the top off of the little mini-PC. An SSD upgrade should be easy!

 

[krumme]

Firstly tell him there is no **** way you can be family if he insist on keeping that overpriced crap.

Then ask him why the hell he has got so little respect for you as to ask you to waste valuable time on that kids stuff while instead you should be **** your wife from behind.

Then explain to him that redtube is invented so he doesnt have to download and keep all his *****.

Thats when you tell him he needs a ssd.

Now ho is saying advice from at forums is of no use???

No cussing in the technical forums, I edited out your bad language.
Markfw900

 

[NTMBK]

Go home krumme, you're drunk

 

[krumme]

Go home krumme, you're drunk

Naa

 

[krumme]

We have a little quad jag notebook in house and once had a core2 5300 as kid machines. The core 2 is a noticeable faster cpu for normal office use, browsing and gaming. Its not even a side grade. Its a downgrade.
The penryn model is also actually a lean variant so it doesnt even use much power. The 5300 with a ssd is a fine machine.

And btw my point was he have to more like coach the man to alter his decision

 

[Piroko]

If your FIL wants something semi-modern but also compact, and upgradable, check out the Asus VivoPC. You can get complete systems with Win8.1, 4GB / 500GB, and an Ivy Bridge Celeron 1007U 1.5Ghz dual-core CPU.

Don't think the best course of action is to recommend a slightly faster compromise - but a compromise nonetheless - over a very mediocre compromise of a system.

If money isn't that much of an issue he is really best served with a Haswell i3, a SSD and a proper 24" fHD monitor. If it is an issue, do a processor swap and a SSD upgrade only.

 

[VirtualLarry]

That reminds me. I sold two nearly-identical machines, with Biostar 775 mobos, and E5200 or equivalent CPUs, and 500GB HDDs. They were decent performers at the time, but due to lack of SSD, they weren't spectacular. I need to follow-up on trying to upsell the customers on an SSD replacement. I was scheduled to do that, actually, for one of my customers, but I was ill, and they never re-scheduled with me.

 

[VirtualLarry]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-790-_-Product

M550 128GB $55 + $1 ship.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

May it be noted though, Chrome is multithreaded. I do not see any difference in rendering webpages from my laptop in sig to my Bay-Trail netbook. I see 80%+ utilization during brief moments loading a single webpage on the bay trail, meaning all cores are in use when loading one page. CPU intensive things the P8700 is faster, but in general the Bay-Trail quad is every bit as snappy as the dual core. The only part I don't like is that it's in a desktop. Maybe if it had a huge SSD paired with it would I find it decent enough. A mechanical HDD, regardless of speed or size? Nope Nope Nope.

The A4-5000 is good enough for Civ5 on medium settings on a 1366x768 laptop I've seen, so the IGP isn't as bad as it's being said to be in here.

 

[daveybrat]

Here's the perfect PC for them, get it now!!!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...=Combo.2133302

Total cost with combo promotion is only $434.98

Same size 21.5" LCD LED monitor but the Acer computer specs blow that HP out of the water. And it comes with Windows 7!!

Intel Core i3-4160 3.6 GHz
Processor Main Features
64 bit Dual Core Processor
Cache Per Processor
3MB L3 Cache
Memory
4 GB DDR3
Hard Drive
500 GB SATA III 7200 RPM
Optical Drive
16X DVD+-R/RW SuperMulti Drive
Graphics
Intel HD Graphics 4600
Ethernet
Gigabit Ethernet
Power Supply
220W
Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit

 

[bononos]

Nope. I have a 19.5" AIO with an E1-2500 in it (half of an A4-5000), and web browsing with Waterfox in Windows 8/8.1 is SLOWER than using a refurb C2D with GMA4500 (and Win7).

Kabini's IGP is NOT fast. Not like their A10 Kaveri.

So is kabini a no go then, for a 'granny' notebook? I was thinking of getting a new notebook for the parents but stuck in an ssd into their c2d notebook.

 

[VirtualLarry]

So is kabini a no go then, for a 'granny' notebook? I was thinking of getting a new notebook for the parents but stuck in an ssd into their c2d notebook.

You did the right thing IMHO. Kabini is really weak.

 

[tential]

Haha, if Larry thinks it's junk:

/thread

Seriously lol. OP definitely have him return it now, case closed.

 

[4ghz]

Return that computer and spend that money on a SSD, Core 2 Quad and a 23" to 24" IPS monitor and Win 8.1. Take what's left and tell him to treat you to a dinner.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

A Q6600 or a Q8200 goes for $27 and $24 on ebay respectively. Add a cheap SATA 2 or better SSD and you're golden. If he is using XP then go for 8. If he has 7, stick to it.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Well, my comment was because that desktop I bought was a mainstreamer machine, and low budget with a mediocre CPU even for the time: It was a $399 Acer... bought four or five years ago. It was slimline BTW.

It was just a secondary machine to keep a Windows desktop in the house and to run Quicken for Windows. My main desktop from that era is a Core i7 iMac.

I'm shocked you can buy a tower in 2015 with much lower performance 4-5 years later, esp. considering my machine was $399 back then, and actually included a 20" monitor. Mind you my machine only had 4 GB RAM, but still...

I knew a fellow college alumnus -- a dropout -- who later returned to get a BS in computer science. Last time we spoke of it 5 or 6 years ago, she was deathly afraid to open her computer case and work with the hardware!! It was a for-profit school like so many today, but I won't post the name of it or discuss more detail for my friend's sake.

Look at this as a wider topic -- something that includes an "enthusiast Gini index" for incomes or a willingness to spend different sums on computing-- a rank-order of priorities. did I say we have folks here building Dream Machines of the Year? We do -- it's impressive.

People have "indifference curves" and different budgets. The budget lines are slopes or partial-derivatives; the curves are about personal preference. If computing is necessary but your priority is frequent vacations to Cabo San Lucas, you'll buy a Dell desktop, a lappie, maybe even a tablet and cell. You'll be more inclined to pay for "extended service contract" or Geek-Squad. You accept what the floor-room salesman tells you. Maybe you took some Windows Office and "windows" classes at the local JC.

Folks with the same income may behave differently. So one person might pick up a $500 Dell, and somebody else will spend $6,000 on parts. There would be a whole range of behaviors and outlays, and I'm just a point on the line.

 

[escrow4]

A Q6600 or a Q8200 goes for $27 and $24 on ebay respectively. Add a cheap SATA 2 or better SSD and you're golden. If he is using XP then go for 8. If he has 7, stick to it.

No point buying old used junk. If you want dirt cheap a G1840 + 4GB RAM + H81 mobo + case/psu (find some rebates) is it. That said, I would never buy or use anything daily that is less than an i3. Life is too short for compromises. And a desktop sits there until it dies. Give it some juice at least.

 

[Blue_Max]

He'd be better off taking it back and buying an SSD to put in his old machine.

Agreed! Maybe a RAM upgrade too... if he's only got 2-3GB, moving to 6-8GB if he's got 4 slots would be nice if you can find 'em cheap. Maybe a Q6600 processor for $20-40 depending on what's available and works in his rig. Even a silent low-end video card to speed up those windows apps (Intel IGP sucked in the Core2 era.)

Heck, one of those tiny Intel NUC machines with an i3 or i5 would still be far superior for about the same price in the end.

 

[Blue_Max]

No point buying old used junk. If you want dirt cheap a G1840 + 4GB RAM + H81 mobo + case/psu (find some rebates) is it. That said, I would never buy or use anything daily that is less than an i3. Life is too short for compromises. And a desktop sits there until it dies. Give it some juice at least.

That's a good point too... bad capacitors, etc... might be worth it going new. Like I said about the Intel NUC machines, etc. Cheap and waaaayyyy better than that AMD junker in question.

 

[ehume]

I think that a lot of people are recommending the SSD upgrade. This is wise because you can always re-use an SSD.

One other item is the OS. If your FIL is using XP, time to get him into Win 7 (win 8.1 is still too flaky, and Win 10 won't be out until Q3).

 

[TurtleCrusher]

No point buying old used junk. If you want dirt cheap a G1840 + 4GB RAM + H81 mobo + case/psu (find some rebates) is it. That said, I would never buy or use anything daily that is less than an i3. Life is too short for compromises. And a desktop sits there until it dies. Give it some juice at least.

Unless he's 3d modeling or 3d gaming, a Q6600 paired with an SSD is better than easily 98% of actual users need. No reason to spend more than $70 on the upgrade.

It's an old guy. An SSD + Quad is overkill really. An i3 is throwing money in the toilet. He has the board and ram for a Q6600 already.

 

[Eug]

Esp. If he's not getting a laptop it's gonna be hard to find an inexpensive pre-built machine with an SSD. Adding an SSD would increase the cost considerably, and potentially void the warranty.

I would recommend returning the machine and getting a new one, but you may have to forego the SSD unless the OP wants to become the hardware customer support service guy for the machine.

As I said earlier, as long as it has decent RAM and a decent CPU, and a decent 7200 rpm HD, it will likely be fine for his needs. An SSD can always be added later if necessary but just realize it may add $150 or so to the cost, which for a low end machine is a $25-30% price premium. And that's assuming the OP's time is worthless.

The reason I mentioned the price of my 5 year old machine is because there has got to be a better performing pre-built machine, perhaps even in a nicer form factor, that could be had for about $500 to $600. I paid under $400 CAD 4-5 years ago for a higher performing machine.

 

[Eug]

Here we go. Right on their website the i5 model is going for $499 with 8 GB RAM and 1 TB drive. If he went with an i3, it's even cheaper.

http://m.store.hp.com/webapp/wcs/st...rlRequestType=Base&langId=-1&catalogId=10051#

Then add in a 21.5" 1080p monitor and he's set.