whatchya think of this PC?

http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid.../order/D/rpem/ccd/productDetailReview.do#tabs

I am considering getting this, it is at a very good price, has high ratings, and has a great processor. all it needs is a ram and video upgrade and it will be ready to game on. it has a PCI-E slot and DDR2 Ram with 4 available slots, and an ASUS socket 939 mobo so it will be good for upgrading. should I buyt it this january? I now have $500+ and my grandparents are taking me to frys this january to pick out a computer and I am sure they would be willing to help whether it be a loan or part of my birthday present, my birthday is feb 6th.

 

AMD does NOT use DDR2, what are you spending on the video card? How do you know thats an ASUS mobo?

 

you are right, I guess it doen't use DDR2 but what I meant is the ram is 240 pin DDR and I have heard in reviews that the mobo is ASUS so I am not sure but that is what I have heard, I am egtting an nvidia 6600gt at the best price I can find for the video card.

 

DDR2 is 240 pin, DDR is 184 pin

It's not uncommon for PC manufacture to use several different mobos for any givin model. ( even visual inspection may not reveal the true manufacture)

It's possible to be an Asus mobo but will be configured to suit HP, Bios/settings/Options will be different than that of retail version mobo.

6600GT PCIe Newegg has one today for aprox $119 after $20 rebate.

 

I have the down grade of that comp and i hate my comp =/ Dont know how well thatll perform.

 

Personally, I would stay away from HP. Go for a Dell.

For example @ www.techbargains.com/dellcoupons.cfm has this computer with a 19" LCD (though I would upgrade to 512Mb of RAM at least):

"Dimension 5150 P4 3Ghz Desktop 19in LCD $579 shipped free

Dimension 5150 Desktop P4 630 3Ghz 256MB/80GB Serial ATA, CDRW/DVD, Dell 19in LCD, Standard warranty, XP Home $579 after rebate. Shipped free. $24 handling.

New: Free 2 yr on site warranty after $44 mail in rebate"

Also note that the HP does not include a monitor. The price really isn't all that great when you consider that. You could build that HP system for nearly the same price. And you would be guaranteed that it has the components you want.

 

I would get a dell but I really want an AMD processor.

 

I would stay away from any manufacturer that uses proprietary parts.

If you don't want to build it yourself or don't have a friend that can, there are plenty of "white box" manufacturers that can put together a better system.

 

i would never get a dell, they use the cheapset cpu they can find and often have low video card compatablity, also i find they freze alot, just my 2 cents, besides, i build all mine :>

 

Last AMD based HP I had was using an Asus Nforce motherboard. That was back in the Athlon XP days, they may have changed since the AMD64. Last Sony I had used an Asus motherboard too.

 

...what?

The CPUs are the same, retail, or OEM. Low video card compatibility? With what??

Now I will agree that Dell uses crap motherboards, at least in their Inspirons.

 

Dell are about as good as it gets as far as OEM manufacturers are concerned.

I agree that their motherboards are pretty crappy, but that applies to most OEM's.

One thing I hate about Dell is that unless you pre-order the tower with a floppy drive, you can't install one later as the tower won't take it.

Dell, along with Micro$$oft have both been trying to phase them out, but until Windows provides an easy way to install Raid drivers and improves Plug 'n Pray, I still believe they are useful, especially considering they aren't expensive.

 

Agreed. Windows isn't ready for the death of the floppy, when its the only way to install raid/sata/scsi (when needed, of course) drivers during a clean install of XP.

 

low vid card compatability as in, the last one i opened didnt have a apg or pci express slot. And cheap cpu as in they use celarons half the time my old school 32 bit athlon 2800 could eat a celeron for breakfast!

 

You get what you pay for there.

You buy a budget machine, you get onboard video, a budget cpu, and a whole other slew of budget devices. Dell does have budget machines, but they have several other models, to which you can customize what you want.

Athlon XP vs. Celeron is an apples to oranges scenario.

Performance CPU vs. budget CPU.

Corvette vs. Focus.

 

yup, and dell is the king of budget pc's

 

I saw one go out three times--in one year.

 

Warranty?

 

Nope, Dell have plenty of high end models and hardware.

As stated, they are customisable, so you can order premium components.

Just because you got one that didn't have a PCI Xpress or AGP doesn't mean all Dells are like that, it just means you didn't do your homework.

What, do you think if you order one from them with the top of the range video card and CPU, they would say "no, we are the kings of budget PC's only"?

 

I have been researching for months, I can't wait to get my computer, I am probably getting this one tommorow the CPU caught my eye on this one, I have heard good things about AMD and I might upgrade to an X2 in the future, also HP has great support. 1 year parts/labor warranty and 24/7 phone support, my dads PC is an HP pavillion 750n and it is still working, the only part that went bad was a CD burner.