What do I replace dead desktop with...desktop, laptop or even a Mac ????

richardvc

Had a fabulous miniature Asus desktop that sadly died yesterday.

Here is where I need your help......

Now everyone I speak to says replace it with a laptop but I had a laptop five years ago and it was just not up to the job (as in it wasn't tough enough).

I am typing this on DW's laptop which I find ok....

I've looked at desktops but they are all massive boxes and cables which I don't like at all. We live in a clutter free house.

I quite like the All-in-ones but have been told to avoid them but cannot remember why !

I loved the Imac 21.5" visually but have used windows stuff all my life and have an android phone etc etc so am not geared up to Apple BUT that machine was a work of art. I also am not keen with the idea that once you have Apple you are married to them ie Itunes etc etc

So this is what I would like :

At least 17.3" screen
500 gb Hard Drive
At least 3 gb Ram
DVD Rewriter

I spend a lot of time on my PC so it needs to be resilient but I don't do demanding stuff on it.

My main uses are music, photos, internet and word / excel stuff. I also run and maintain a website but that is all internet template based (mr site). I am not a gamer nor do I download films onto it but DO watch the occasional bits and pieces on Iplayer / YOUTube etc etc

I have a budget of up to £1000 for the right machine but bizarrely wouldn't spend that on a laptop but might on the right desktop. Ideally I would spend less than £600.

So if anyone can point me in the right direction it would be much appreciated and finally TWO more questions.

1. Is there anywhere else to go and look at PCs etc other than PC World as I hate that place ???!!!

2. Is it difficult, practical or sensible to transfer to a MAC from windows when I have thousands of MP3s, an Android phone (HTC Desire) and everything I do is seemingly Windows based ?

Thanks for your help.

Richard

Mondez

Why not just get another mini desktop? I don't get how a normal desktop can be more of a mess or wires than the mini though, they have the same need for connections do they not? What was the model of the one that died?

To be honest, while someone seems to have tried to convince you to try a Mac, from what you are saying I would say don't bother, you seem happy with what you know and its a hassle to start with getting used to everything being in different places and doing things in slightly different ways. Besides an iMac IS an all in one which you've been told to avoid though you don't know why. Only reason I can think is that they are more of a pain to fix if for example the hard drive dies (none more so than an iMac BTW).

£1000 is way overkill for practically any desktop system, only professional development systems tend to cost that much.

cte1111

We've just replaced a similarly dead desktop with this:
http://www.marksandspencer.com/HP-TouchSmart-300-1015UK-Desktop-PC/dp/B003GWUAZY?ie=UTF8&ref=sr_1_46&nodeId=46460031&sr=1-46&qid=1335256460&pf_rd_r=0TR1SZER10P3BZAWA4FM&pf_rd_m=A2BO0OYVBKIQJM&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=46460031&pf_rd_p=215570647&pf_rd_s=related-items-3
which was £449.

It's a bit lower spec than you were looking for (320GB hard disk and 2GB RAM).

I've already got a good laptop but wanted a stationary PC for my children to use and for my husband when he is working from home. Main reasons being I don't want the children to take it off to their bedrooms (so I can keep an eye on what they are doing) and laptops seem less robust, e.g. can be left lying around and get broken. It's also easier for some work to have the keyboard and mouse separate from the main unit.

If you're interested in a laptop, I've always had Sony Vaios which are pretty good IMHO.

cte1111

If you want to look at PCs somewhere other than the dreaded PC World, I found John Lewis pretty good (bought my laptop from them). Or you could look in PC World then come home and buy it from someone else online.

richardvc

Hi Mondez and thanks for your reply.

The mini desktop was a Asus Nova PX24 which was the size of a large paperback and those style/size desktops are not available any more sadly. Yes you can get them on ebay but that won't be happening.

All the current ones are far larger in size and that is not a direction I wish to go in. Secondly with the mini desktop the leads were short and not at all cumbersome as it sat on my desk.

No-one has tried to convince me to try a mac but I like to have a full range of options and whilst I am happy with what I know if there is something better on offer I am always open minded.

The lure of the all-in-ones is the fact that they have that clutter free look about them which really does appeal.

I guess it is looking the direcion of laptop isn't it ?!! but are they sturdy enough ??

richardvc

cte1111 wrote: »

If you want to look at PCs somewhere other than the dreaded PC World, I found John Lewis pretty good (bought my laptop from them). Or you could look in PC World then come home and buy it from someone else online.

I like that idea !!:D

C_Mababejive

Do yourself a favour...dont buy a MAC. They are just over priced fashion statements.

EDIT

I use a pc based lappy... a toshiba A210-12u bought from john lewis about three years ago for about £350 ISTR.

I have had it dual boot compatible with ubuntu linux for maybe 2 years and i can honestly say that i am now fully comfortable with linux and windows is just a thing of the past.

Kirri

Best thing I did buying an iMac, I didn't buy it for a fashion statement either, I hate even that phrase!

I got one to replace a laptop, due to lack of space I wanted something neat and it does look neat and tidy in a confined space, so easy to use and set up, everything just works, there's no real setting up of anything, things just plug in - I'd never go back (though still use Windows pc's when working unfortunately).

If you have any friends with a Mac, go and play about on one for a bit before deciding, it's best to see and decide for yourself as there are so many Mac haters around who may not have even used one before.

Agree with the suggestion above of going to look in John Lewis too. Or go to an Apple shop.

macman

How has it 'died'? Almost everything in a modern PC is fixable-whether it's economic to do so is another matter of course.
AIO's are fine, the limitation is that you can upgrade very little, so get one that covers all your needs in terms of screen size, processor, RAM etc from the outset.
The other downside is that they're more tricky/expensive to repair.
iMac is the one to go for if you are happy running the Mac OS rather than Windows.

gonzo127

since you do none demanding things maybe something like this

http://www.ebuyer.com/lenovo-q180

just remember these come with atom processors so are not geared up to really hard tasks

or this http://www.ebuyer.com/344478-acer-aspire-revo-rl70-nettop-dt-sjeek-006

same as above these as they only come with the AMD e450 cpu which is virtually the same as the d2700 atom and not designed for really powerful tasks (but will both the atom and the e450 will do what you need unless you are meaning full RAW photo editing as you photo related tasks?)

of course you can use the above with your current monitor and keyboard mouse etc, or use your remaining budget to get a top quality monitor and a fully wireless keyboard and mouse to your liking

googler

Why not establish which part has failed, and replace it?

PCs are basically an assembly of

Power Supply
Motherboard (with subsidiary parts such as graphics card and RAM)
Disk Drives
Optical Drives
Case and Connectors

One of these has gone wrong, it shouldn't be too difficult to establish which and rectify....