Hardware advice for 2 new PC's

SamanthaD

Hi,

We had an electricity surge the other week which managed to wreck both of our computers, but thanks to our friendly home insurers we are now in the position to replace them both, but I honestly haven't got a clue where to start.

Am looking to buy one which is going to be used 95% (plus!) of the time for games, my Son is addicted to "Evercrack", so need one with good graphics capability, and a good monitor (a flat one rather than the ones that look like old TV's!), I've seen these new home media PC's but haven't got a clue if that would be of any use.

The second one is more for use as a home/business PC, just needs internet access and be able to download photos from my camera etc.

Obviously this being a money saving site I want to spend as little as possible for the best specification, but I suppose my budget would be about £2000 for both of them, I was wondering if this is a reasonable amount, if anyone could recommend some good specifications/companies, as I know nothing about the hardware side of computers.

I was thinking of going the Dell or PC World route as they seem quite easy to follow, but have been told it is the smaller builders/manufacturers that offer far better value and service, but have no idea where to start, any help/reccomendations would be greatly appreciated, especially if they offer discounts for 2 pc's!

Samantha

albertross_2

http://www.dmxcomputers.co.uk/blogcategory/dell-hot-offers.html

You don't need to spend anywhere near 2k for 2 decent PC's nowadays.

greyster

£1k per computer is very high. You will be able to afford 2 top end PCs for that price.

You may want to spend a little more on the 'gaming' PC and a little less on the 'office' PC, as office PCs don't need much power. Infact I just gave my mum my PC from 4 years ago and it loads XP/Office very fast, just to give an addiction.

You may want to have a look at https://www.alienware.co.uk - quite costly but high quality parts for gamers. They also have stylish case designs unique to them. I heard somewhere that dell have now bought alienware.

You may wish to get the office PC from dell. They make good office PCs are they don't really cater for gamers.

have a look at hotukdeals.com for dell offers, they is always a deal on which isnt obvious on their site and don't forget to use quidco.

Your son should know who alienware is, they're elite and carry a price tag that comes with it. I would not have suggested it if i felt the budget didnt cover it.

SamanthaD

Thanks Albertross, so does that mean Dell are the ones to go for?

Samantha

superscaper

greyster wrote:

I heard somewhere that dell have now bought alienware.

That's true although it makes no difference as Alienware still operate independantly and Dell have their own high end gaming systems (XPS) but in comparison for high end gaming Alienware are better than Dell XPS.

greyster

SamanthaD wrote:

Thanks Albertross, so does that mean Dell are the ones to go for?

Samantha

Not for the gaming PC, unless your son or someone can upgrade the graphics card.

superscaper

greyster wrote:

Not for the gaming PC, unless your son or someone can upgrade the graphics card.

I'd agree, I think because you are getting two very different computers I think you are best off getting from two different places. I think Dell would be fine for the office pc but somewhere like alienware for the gaming machine. I'm not sure you'd be able to get a discount for two at one place, unless a local independant store did a deal to build both pcs for you.

albertross_2

For the gaming PC, you just need to make sure you have a (plugin, not onboard) graphics card that meets the minimum spec for the game, it will be on the box. Are you talking about Everquest 2?

Also, if you still have the old PC's it may just be the power supply that has gone, new ones cost a fiver upwards. Your old graphics card may still be working..

https://www.ebuyer.com

You might also want to buy a Belkin mini ups for the new ones, in case it happens again.

crox

I 2nd the ups, I was going to buy one solely for my wi/fi router but a mate talked me out of spending £25 on one. Then the kitchen fitter managed to blow my router while doing the kitchen wiring (don't ask me how) so it cost me £60 for a new router + £25 for the ups :-(

toffeeblock

If I were in your position I'd buy a great desktop with loads of storage capacity and a good gaming spec. (I'd recommend mesh-computers / dell / Sony or other main brands, never buy ACER or other minor brands). As the others have said £1k is more than enough for this. Bear in mind that Vista is coming out soon and Dell offer free upgrades so they may be a good place to start looking).

I'd also recommend getting a decent laptop as the second machine (<£1k for sure) and, assuming broadband is available at your address, get a wireless router to share the internet connection.

Since we bought our wireless laptop, for similar uses as you describe, we have found that we use the machine a helluva lot more for web surfing due to the convenience of the wireless connection. You can still connect the laptop any printers etc. you have in your home office but you can then sit in the garden, surf the web and sip a gin and tonic whenever we get some good weather next rather than be stuck in the office! Plus you can take it with you wherever you go to show off your photos to others.

superscaper

toffeeblock wrote:

If I were in your position I'd buy a great desktop with loads of storage capacity and a good gaming spec. (I'd recommend mesh-computers / dell / Sony or other main brands, never buy ACER or other minor brands).

I'd agree looking into a laptop for the office pc might be a good idea but I wouldn't rate those companies for a gaming pc at all. I'd suggest Alienware, Scan, Vadim (I've heard are quite good but may be too expensive) or build it yourself.