Brand of computers

[ELITEofWARMANGINGERYBREADMEN88]

I am looking into a new comp under 1,000 USD. Should I go with a Dell,HP, Gateway or what? I be using it for college and games.

[pevergreen]

Build it yourself.

[Tellos Athenaios]

Build it yourself is probably the best option, but this assumes that you are talking a desktop (or small form factor) not a laptop.

Dell is a matter of getting yourself a good deal (they sometimes offer really good value for money deals) but if you tack on upgrades to a particular base configuration be sure to check with component retail to see if you can't get a better deal by simply choosing a plain base configuration and installing upgrade components manually.

The plus point is specs and price, and an eye for using good quality kit. The downside is that the machine is not always put together quite as thoughtfully as one would like, presumably to drive price down or accommodate the need to do the shiny dance. For instance looking at a studio 15: laptop case and lid are not quite as sturdy and unyielding as you would like, plus on the one hand the screen is located at about the same height as the keyboard (as opposed to having the screen raised firmly above the keyboard) which means a less ergonomic viewing angle to the screen itself and on the other hand the construction of hinges means that the screen cannot tilt as far back as more conventional designs (which exacerbates the previous issue). But to illustrate the plus points using the same machine: keyboard gives good tactile feedback, laptop motherboard is definitely a notch above what you would expect from a laptop at the price and you get a Core i3 and DDR3 RAM with dedicated graphics card. Battery life is “average”. Mediocre by some standards, but quite good for “desktop replacement” type.

Last time I bought an HP (desktop) it did its job fairly well, considering. As far as specs go, HP has a habit of doing it almost but not quit right (specs of CPU/RAM/disk and connectivity all make solid sense but they might drop the ball on for instance graphics; again, presumably to get the price point down). The upside is that if you don't need to meddle with the innards of the case (much), then you get kit that is put together sensibly, runs decently, in all probability can withstand a little accident, and will last its time.

The big downside to HP will only be apparent to those who want to do (semi-frequent) upgrades. With their desktops my experience has been that they're cutting corners on things like PSU (not much leeway for power hungry upgrades), and motherboard (for instance using only 2 RAM slots instead of 4, few PCI expansion slots etc.), and wireless kit. Also their internal layout can be a pain to work with. (who thought it a smart idea to flip a hard-disk enclosure on its side and mount it vertically so the lower front half of the interior of the case is basically unusable??)

[rory_20_uk]

As I'm sure you're aware, there are many, many sites that review what is the "best for the money" at a given point in time, both in reviews or in items. One example is www.tomshardware.com which does the best systems at a price point.

In terms of brand, think that again it's best to look at group reviews. This will often pick up smaller companies and special deals that otherwise might not be available.

[pevergreen]

On Tellos's post, if you get a copy of Windows with the PC, you may run into trouble if you change parts. I added a graphics card to a Dell computer, the Windows XP license then did not work, as hardware had been changed.

[The Spartan (Returns)]

Build it yourself.

Yeah, honestly brand doesn't really matter.

[jabarto]

On Tellos's post, if you get a copy of Windows with the PC, you may run into trouble if you change parts. I added a graphics card to a Dell computer, the Windows XP license then did not work, as hardware had been changed.

That's odd. If it was an OEM license the hardware change limitation is a concern, but simply adding a graphics card shouldn't have tripped it.

[TevashSzat]

If you are looking for a decent gaming laptop (since most college students can't do much with a desktop), I'd suggest you take a look at the Asus Gaming line. They have a ton of great performing laptops that are priced very competitively. Best Buy tend to sell alot of their really cheap (under $1,000) models.

[rory_20_uk]

Why can't college students use a desktop?

To get a decent gaming laptop you need to be generally loaded and prepared to put up with sub-par hardware, or seriously loaded... and be prepared to have a dislocated shoulder and still not the best hardware.

I'd imagine that one could get a desktop for gaming and a simple laptop for lectures for close to the same cost of a gaming laptop.

[Husar]

But then people couldn't play WoW during lectures...

[Tellos Athenaios]

I'd imagine that one could get a desktop for gaming and a simple laptop for lectures for close to the same cost of a gaming laptop.

This. A lightweight laptop that doesn't run out of juice halfway through the first lecture of the day, plus a mid-to-high-end desktop will work out as the better deal.

[Xiahou]

But then people couldn't play WoW during lectures...

Pffft... most netbooks can run WoW. It's an old game.

[Husar]

Pffft... most netbooks can run WoW. It's an old game.

If yout netbook can run it, does that mean you signed up for OnLive?

[Centurion1]

yeah i need help picking out a laptop for uni as well.

anyone care to help me out i know a fair bit about computers but am not sure what specs to go through. it has to be able to handle like physics and engineering software and possibly business programs and i will want to do some light gaming on it (im not a huge gamer, gasp!)

Any ideas what i should b elooking for?

[TevashSzat]

@rory_20_uk

True in some regards if you only look at Alienware or boutique dealers like Falcon Northwest, but like I said, if you look at the Asus line of gaming laptops, they are extremely competitively priced. MSI also has some really nice deals that perform great too. My Asus G51 can easily play almost every game out there right now maxed out with no problems and it was a bit under $1,000.

A desktop is unfeasible simply because you can't and shouldn't be stuck in your room with respect to computing. A computer is too vital in college for general use for you to have to be stuck in one place all the time just so you could have decent access to it. Furthermore, gaming laptops while they are heavy really aren't that bad. Compared with sticking a couple of textbooks in your backpacj, its really nothing.

@Centurion1

I can give you some advice but it depends.....budget, location countrywise, preferences.

[Centurion1]

im on a big scolarship so my parents will probably be willing to spend pretty high. im american, nothing too ghardcore gaming wise, im a windows man ummmmmmm the latest game for computers i play is probably rtw lol.

[Husar]

I'd humbly suggest something with a midrange graphics card then, look for a GT 9600 or so, not a 9400 or lower, ma laptop has a 8600m GT and plays games quite nicely, it's an MSI and suffers from a few other issues though, so maybe avoid MSI, heh.

[pevergreen]

The studio range from dell would probably suit you.

[Centurion1]

that would support mild gaming and normal requirements?

could it play first generation games at a limited capacity?

[pevergreen]

Yup, I had the previous range (the XPS m1530) I could run Rome/Med 2/Empire. Powerful enough to do all normal computing needs.