Need to buy new PC and monitor, Advice very much appeciated

Lady_K

I have been unlucky that my pc has completely died after various infections as some folks may have seen in my other thread. Therefore I am now needing to buy a new pc and larger monitor as I have an old heavy one with small screen so basically I need want a complete new system including windows 7. I would appreciate any guidance on this if possible.

I was thinking about using novatech as I had heard they are quite a good firm and have won some awards is this a good idea?

I dont do gaming but I would like a system that will last a long time so I don't mind paying a reasonable amount. I need something thats easy to clean back to factory settings in the event of any future problems that can't be fixed.
I am not sure which windows 7 to go for but I was thinking either profesional or ultimate is it worth the extra? They are pre installed on novatech doe this mean you don't get physical copy?

Is AMD or intel processor better and I don't know what to do about the hardrive, wether its beter for 2 smaller ones or 1 big one, I have not got a clue how the double ones work

Is it worth paying extra for wireless mouse and keyboard? I never really bothered with them before as I just thought they can't be as good as wired but trying to cut down on wires everywhere and thought they may have improved?

The monitor biggest they seem to have on novatech is 24 inch led and lcd which is the best? I can't do with shiny screens that reflect things due to eye problem so thats important. Are the ones on novatech ok?
edt - Just noticed there are bigger monitors and some hard glass ones what is the difference in those? so many now I don't know ht type is best?

Sorry if is lots of questions but I havent bought a pc since 1999 I just want to get it right

I've now seen there are touchscreen pcs and monitors, as I want this to last me a long tme should I think about getting one of these?

gonzo127

Lady_K wrote: »

I have been unlucky that my pc has completely died after various infections as some folks may have seen in my other thread. Therefore I am now needing to buy a new pc and larger monitor as I have an old heavy one with small screen so basically I need want a complete new system including windows 7. I would appreciate any guidance on this if possible.

I was thinking about using novatech as I had heard they are quite a good firm and have won some awards is this a good idea?

I wouldn’t go on awards as some companies get loads but I wouldn’t touch them with a 900 foot barge pole, this being said Novatech are pretty good as a company, other ones to look at are Ebuyer, Aria, DinoPC and Cyberpower – I would normally recommend Scan however they are more for parts than prebuilt systems

Lady_K wrote: »

I dont do gaming but I would like a system that will last a long time so I don't mind paying a reasonable amount. I need something thats easy to clean back to factory settings in the event of any future problems that can't be fixed.
I am not sure which windows 7 to go for but I was thinking either profesional or ultimate is it worth the extra? They are pre installed on novatech doe this mean you don't get physical copy?

I would recommend setting some budget aside for a external hard drive, then you can do a ‘disk image’ (you will need some software for this but well worth doing) of your hard drive once you have got all your programs installed (anti virus etc) so that if you need to all you have to do is disk image your hard drive back onto your system in the event of problems
Other wise just go for windows 7 home premium just from reading you thread you will not likely get any usage out of the ‘extra’ features included with the others

Lady_K wrote: »

Is AMD or intel processor better and I don't know what to do about the hardrive, wether its beter for 2 smaller ones or 1 big one, I have not got a clue how the double ones work

Either processor will suite, intel are generally faster but they do command a premium compared to AMD

Lady_K wrote: »

Is it worth paying extra for wireless mouse and keyboard? I never really bothered with them before as I just thought they can't be as good as wired but trying to cut down on wires everywhere and thought they may have improved?

Very little in them in my mind, just remember wireless ones do need charging every now and then

Lady_K wrote: »

The monitor biggest they seem to have on novatech is 24 inch led and lcd which is the best? I can't do with shiny screens that reflect things due to eye problem so thats important. Are the ones on novatech ok?

Don’t just look at packages you can buy a monitor separate and connect it up just the same, this will give you a much wider choice – also remember that this is the one thing you will actually notice the most, for a ‘non power’ user I would suggest put a decent amount of money here as this is what you will be looking at all the time when using it, yes its very nice to have a super powerful PC but unless you are going to use the power its better putting the money at what you will actually be looking at

Lady_K wrote: »

Sorry if is lots of questions but I havent bought a pc since 1999 I just want to get it right

I've now seen there are touchscreen pcs and monitors, as I want this to last me a long tme should I think about getting one of these?

I wouldn’t bother

googler

If all that killed it was virus infection, then you don't need a new PC - you just need a new Hard Disk and OS install.

The data on the current disk is probably still accessible if you hook that drive up as a secondary or external drive.

gonzo127

oh and the other things what sort of budget are you looking at - an ideal price and maximum price would help us come up with ideas for you

otherwise

do not, under any circumstances, go to PC world!

stilltheone

Spending more on a PC is absolutely no guarantee of longevity.

What is the make and model number of your old PC?

What is your budget for the new PC?

Lady_K

I wouldnt go to pc world thats the one thing I do know

As for price, because this is hopefully to last me years I would rather pay more for something that will last longer so everything combined monitor and all I'd say up to £1500 with flexibility.

In answer to googler
I'm not going to buy a new hardrive for it because I have brought the pc back from the dead a few times but not quite this dead so its time for a new one now, after this long I think I've had my moneys worth

stilltheone
I mean I don't want a really cheap one that might have cheapest parts tht might break down quicker. Old pc doesnt have a make and model it was made up and and its third hand to me, its not worth saving now or spending money on

Lady_K

Regarding the disc image idea with external hardrive, I would be interested to try that but do some pcs come with that installed internally too? And if an infection occured would it spread to both drives?

RussJK

Lady_K wrote: »

Regarding the disc image idea with external hardrive, I would be interested to try that but do some pcs come with that installed internally too? And if an infection occured would it spread to both drives?

Set things up securely, and you should be okay. Leave it a week or so, to give AV definitions a chance to catch up.

Gonzo/stilltheone give good advice on a new PC, but as Googler suggested, a virus alone won't (normally) render a computer unfixable. I'd have to read your other thread though.

getmore4less

Crazy budget if you don't need high gaming spec

what are you going to use it for?

Spend 1/3 of that and save the rest for a new one in 5 years then 10 years(if they break)

I have found off the shelf dells work good are value with decent service add a 24" 1080 monitor will come in at £500ish.

Have a look here for the current dell deals to use as a benchmark for other suppliers.

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

depending on use you can focus a few extras to meet your specific needs

Always a lot cheaper to go behind the curve and either do some upgrades or get another new one a few years later than try to get the best avalable now.

For general use the cheapest thing you can find will often do the job and last for years

closed

Is your pc really completely dead? Checked fuse, turned off at the mains, unplugged everything? A new psu is less than a tenner.

What are you using now to post, won't that do?

www.dmxdimension.com

spending 1500 now in the hope it will last a decade is not a good idea when a £300-350 will do all you need leaving you 1200 to upgrade to something newer every few years should you wish to.

you can restore any system to factory settings by doing a disk image backup

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=45197656&postcount=8

Lady_K

Yes I realise now that I don't need to spend that much but I do want a monitor too, I wont be spending that much now thankfully.

I've tried turning it off and on and the fuse and cleaned it out inside but i'M GOING TO BUY A NEW PC ANYWAY then put the broken one in spare room so i CAN TRY AND MEND IT THERE afterwards and use it as back up because this laptop in on loan from daughter at moment.

I am just swamped ith the amount of different pcs and monitors at the moment and cant even start to decide. I didnt really want to get a dell but I've even been looking at those. Is the novatech make ok? or should I consider a hp one?