£500 to spend on PC - Help needed please

Hizz

I need advice and help please.

I need to buy a computer system for our family use. Our current one is very old and slow (567Mhz, 128MB of Ram). Doesn't have CD writer.

If you had an all inclusive £500 all in to spend, what would you buy? Or, is there something in particular I may need to look out for on ebay?

Our req'd uses are:-

• internet
• e-mail
• basic word processing
• games (ours doesn't have 3d card much to frustration of our son)
• Want to write to CD - would like to downlod music etc.
• If poss, would like to do some video/photograhic editing

Also need a printer that has reasonably cheap cartridges. we currently have a HP Deskjet 840c - cartridges are expensive.

Have looked at the Dell ones but hear differing reports on service.

Also would like either 17 or preferably 19" TFT monitor.

Have looked through the links for the Mesh products that Cat-the-Fifth posted on another thread:

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default...TION&KEY=52478

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default...ION&KEY=125909

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default...TION&KEY=72070

Do you have to pay for the software separately?

Are there sites that have discount codes to make my money go further? If so, which?

f1charlie

How about the first machine on this list:

http://www.wizmarkcomputers.co.uk/hotdealsdell9150.htm

I know you are a bit wary of Dell, but Mesh didn't have a very good reputation for service at one point either (don't know if it has improved).

This one is a bit above your £500, but remember to go through Quidco to get 4.5% cashback on Dell.

There are usually free versions of most types of software you would want - OpenOffice, various anti-virus and firewalls, photo and video editing programs, etc.

Canon printers seem to be good for running costs.

Charlie

divadee

my cousins hubby just boughta pc from mesh as he had liked them in the past. he wanted some fancy super duper pc thing cost him about 1500 :eek:

when it arrived and he got it out of the box he heard a rattle took teh side panel off and was disgusted by what he found. 2 screws had come out and could of damaged the pc loads if he hadnt found them.

He said also componants hadnt been well placed in the pc, so he had to have a change around!!! He said the price was very very godd, but the build quality was rubbish.

mrmilo69

hey, ebay can be a good place to look, however generally make sure you get a warranty as lots of people don't give any guarantee on what they sell. However that tends to be a double edged sword, as many of the people who give warranties are shops, and a lot of shops on ebay have seemingly good spec PC's with very poor parts. Beware of " integrated graphics " Another thing i'd say to watch out for, " AMD 3800+ CPU " many sellers will claim this runs at 3.8 Ghz, when this is not the case! Cross reference items with reputable dealers online to see if you are genuinely getting what you're seeing on ebay.

P.S Pentium D does not mean 2x the operating speed!

DuncanMiller

my best piece of advice is to register at https://www.computershopper.com and look at their latest lab tests for budget pcs

they test 4/5 pcs normally around the £500 mark and give you all the info you need to make a good decision.

DuncanMiller

Sorry that should have been https://www.computershopper.co.uk - the .com address is an american site.

Jona323

I am considering buying one of these, but it does not include the operating system.

https://www.cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pentium-D-Dual-Core-64Bit-5-6Ghz-1GB-80GB-DVDRW-Bde_W0QQitemZ110040516449QQihZ001QQcategoryZ179QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

CAT-THE-FIFTH

The links do not seem to work so here they are again:

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default.aspx?PAGE=PRODCATEGORYVIEWPAGE&USG=APPLICATION&ENT=APPLICATION&KEY=52478

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default.aspx?PAGE=PRODCATEGORYVIEWPAGE&USG=APPLICATION&ENT=APPLICATION&KEY=125909

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default.aspx?PAGE=PRODCATEGORYVIEWPAGE&USG=APPLICATION&ENT=APPLICATION&KEY=72070

Remember that you have to make allowance for the postage which is 40 quid in the case of Mesh!

The operating system comes on almost all ready built pcs (including the above ones) as standard unless otherwise stated.

You can get free software like Open Office(for word processing),the GIMP(for image editing) and AVG(antivirus) which work fine!

CAT-THE-FIFTH

I also think that you will need to increase your budget if you want to play any games as a decent card would cost at least 80 quid. I would bduget around 600 quid all inclusive.

For instance if you get the following machine

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default.aspx?PAGE=PRODUCTCONFIGPAGE&USG=PRODUCT&ENT=PRODUCT&KEY=125299

You will need to increase the RAM to 1gb and choose at least a 7600gs. If you upgrade to a DVD-writer this would take the total price to just over 600 quid including postage.

Image and Video processing and gaming need a decent amount of RAM hence the 1gb.

The Intel Core is the faster than the Pentium D but I would think that more than shear speed a more balanced machine is required for your uses and budget.

I hope this helps!!

ddavis

I had an all inclusive 500 to spend and got myself a very good deal with Dell. I don't think you'll be able to beat them at present. Check them out

CAT-THE-FIFTH

Looked on the Dell site and I came up with this

# Dimension C521


Date 05/10/2006 09:50:12 Central Standard Time
Catalog Number 202 Retail ukdhs1
Catalog Number / Description Product Code SKU Id
Base:
AMD® Athlon64™ X2 3800+ Processor (2.00GHz, 2x512K cache) 74939 [210-17022] 1
Microsoft Operating System:
Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition (Does not include Operating System Re-installation CD) 55610 [619-10687][620-10492] 11
Cover It with Dell Support Services:
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only 73615 [680-16614] 30
Memory:
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 533MHz [2x512MB] Memory 72796 [340-13514][370-12565] 3
Hard Drive:
160GB (7200rpm) Serial ATA Hard Drive with 8MB DataBurst™ cache 72809 [400-12864] 8
CD/DVD Drives:
16 X DVD +/- RW Drive 76101 [429-11154][429-12331][429-12367] 16
Monitor:
Dell™ 17" Value Flat Panel (E177FP) 66359 [480-13823] 5
Video Card:
256MB ATI Radeon® X1300 Pro PCI Express graphics card 73464 [490-10580] 6
Speakers:
No Speakers 6655 [520-10217] 18
Gedis Bundle Reference:
List D10C16 Dimension C521 73863 [200-41560][706-10601] 22
Shipping Documents:
C521 Documentation with UK Power Cord 72782 [340-13923][640-10401] 21
Adobe Reader:
Adobe Reader 6.0 - English 20764 [640-10399] 601
Order Information:
Dimension Order - UK 11744 [800-10122] 111
SecureData Software.:
No Secure Data Software 66636 [640-10512] 330
Standard Warranty:
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only 73614 [680-16608][680-16609] 29
Dell Internet Order:
Dell Internet Order. 21417 [815-10000] 650
Promotions Hidden Option Class:
512MB RAM FREE - Double Memory Promo 2x512 MB 533MHz 28289 [236-10168] 605
Sound Cards:
Integrated 7.1 Channel High Definition Audio 73326 [510-10160] 17
Keyboard:
Dell™ Black Entry Quietkey USB Keyboard - UK/Ire (QWERTY) 69692 [580-12325] 4
Mouse:
Dell USB 2 Button Wheel Mouse - Black 63104 [570-10088][570-10277] 12
Floppy Drives:
No Floppy Drive 73389 [385-10468] 10
Modem:
No Modem 63323 [530-10564][640-10270] 14
AntiVirus & Security Software:
No Security/Anti-Virus Protection 50863 [650-10124] 40
Microsoft Application Software:
Microsoft® Works 8 - English 9078 [630-10933] 25
Network assistant:
90 days trial of Network Assistant included 66419 [640-10504] 675
Digital Photography:
No Photo Organising & Sharing Software/No Photo Editing Software 59893 [640-10339][640-10340] 87
Dell System Media Kit:
No Resource CD 52024 [340-13317] 319

Comes up to £484 including VAT and delivery. Not a very good card for gaming but good for everything else!!


To summarise: Athlon X2 3800+ dual core,1gb RAM,160gb hard disk,dvd rewriter,x1300pro graphics card,17 inch TFT