cheapest option?

first of all sorry if this is in wrong section, feel free to move/delete if it is.

hey,im a gamer and im in need of a new desktop computer as my laptop is pretty dated and tbh i just hate laptops with a passion.... ive been looking around for good ones taking price into concideration..... i want to spend around £1k or "$1 513".

i come across this computer

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/st...null&sm=null&tm=null&sku=807769&category_oid=

now... it fits in well with my price range but this store hasnt realy got a good reputation for value of allot of its products..... i was just wondering would it be cheaper to build it myself? or are these specs worth the money?

thx
migz:major

 

Hi Migz,

(Personal opinion imminent) Don't buy from that group of companies, support is abysmal at best.

Last time I built a PC, HP/Dell wanted 1.5 - 2.5k (with software), I built for @740 (without software) + @ 16 hours research and finding stockists (for a PC that was ~ 20% better specced).

At the £1000 price point, you'd do well to save money once you've paid for an O/S, but you'll almost certainly have a better machine.

Good luck.

 

Build it yourself. That way you save money and you still have manufacturer's warranties for all components.

If you do build yourself, look out for OEM parts, especially software. OEM parts are very cheap compared to retail but they are of the same quality. The only difference is that OEM parts are intended for computer manufacturers or builders, and retail for the general public.

All you get extra with retail is a fancy box and perhaps a thicker manual, and perhaps access to more tech support. However, the marginally better package with retail is not worth the extra ££.

Look out for OEM especially with Windows. You can pick vista home premium up for about £80-£90 instead of £200-£300

 

Hi

I've built quite a few p.c's in my time, get a name brand if your not a tech the restore disc could save you hundreds in potential service fee's.

If you've got some tech skills build it yourself, but be warned unless you've got a bit of paper saying your a tech and you short something out or incorrectly wire something nearly every store I know would say tough luck there's X amount of dollars down the drain.

I once had a customer, looked a bit like a biker, that reckoned he new all about computers and had built his last one, he refused our offer to build the parts, new mobo and cpu and couple of sticks of ram, for about an extra $65.00

Well about two hours later he came back saying we had sold him something which was basically a dud. Long story short turns out he wasn't aware of the P4 extra power attachment to the mainboard and had cooked his components...sorry no refund... nothing we could do for him - except feel sorry for him.

Thats my advice, also when you do get a p.c get yourself some imaging software like ghost or drive xml. Make this the first thing you do - image your unit clean with out any free games or silly toolbars from yahoo etc or incompatible drivers partially un/installed files, this is so you can restore it just how you got it...and you probably going to want to at some stage if its by choice - before you sell it in a few years or if it has a major meltdown or issue. This will save you time and tears..be careful of drive xml tho the images are smaller but I think you have to put the image on the same sized Hdrive or it throws a wobbly..Im not sure on this though I've never used drive xml.

Always shop around and play the stores off against each other, in my neck of the woods I expect 10% discount off for cash so dont be afraid to ask...business's are screaming for cash at the moment and there are some good deals to be had..dont be hasty the rright system will come along, and dont compromise on getting exactly want you eant or you may resent or end up being ambivalent about your new pewter...

If you can build it yourself collins advice is on the money you can expect to save 20% to possibly 30% but be mindful of the above.

L8r guy :wave :gluck with your purchase.

 

I can't comment for things overseas, but I also can't imagine why it would be any different. Initially looking at that computer to me, it looks like a rip-off. If you have the skills, it's almost always cheaper to build your own computer. Not only will you get more bang for your buck, but you will also get a more reliable computer and not one filled with trialware and other junkware. I say almost because there is the odd, very rare occasion where it might be more practical to pickup something in the store or have someone do it for you.

I see that computer you specified is selling for 999 (im assuming) Pounds.
That translates to around $1800 dollars Canadian.. so that's what I'm going to benchmark this from.

So let me start by saying, you could build a similar computer for half that price. At least in Canada... again, i apologize if prices are much higher in the UK.

I apologize but I'm not entirely familiar with major vendors in the UK, but I do see that Misco has an operation there, so I will price a similar PC ordered from Misco.co.uk

Phenom X4 9750 - 121
Gigabyte MA7AG Mobo - 65
4GB PNY PC6400 Memory - 39
ATi Radeon 4850 512 - 95
1tb hard drive - 50
Dual Layer DVD Burner - 20
Antec 300 Case - 40
Antec 480 Watt PS - 50
Genuine Copy of Windows Vista SP1 - $61

Total - $511, or, roughly half the price of the Acer you are looking at, and thats with a 1 terrabyte HDD and not a 640.

If you wanted to spend the same money ($999), you could probably built a total *** kicking CoreI7 system that would trump that Acer in every measurable aspect of performance and still spend less money.

And keep in mind, even if you are nervous about building a computer, you could always pay someone $100 to put it together for you. So even if you did that, @ 611, you have $300 left over you could put towards a 28 inch LCD

Food for thought.

 

... or get a copy of DriveImage XML (for free) and make your own restore CD.



http://www.runtime.org/driveimage-xml.htm

 

If you know how to build systems yourself I just built a real nice system with components bought of E-bay ... including High Def 22" Widescreen LCD ... for appox AU$1700

 

Hello,
PCWorld is the UK equivalent (or worse) of BestBuy or Circuit City.

Computer components in the UK are more expensive than in the US/Canada.

I would be very careful with the PSU you provided in the build as it looks kinda low powered. But it's an Antec so you may get away with it.

For future reference, ebuyer is cheaper than Misco with better choices in some cases.