Confused on Processors - Wantto buy pc

iregretitall

Hello,

I want to buy a new pc either a base unit on it’s own for about £230 or base and TFT 19" for about £310 I have been looking on ebay but I am very confused with these new processors coming out.

I much preferred it when they stuck to Pentium 2 and 3 and 4 at least you knew what the latest processor was, but now with all these AMD x2 and Dual core and dual core 2 and Pentium D which all seem to have on ebay the 2.0GHZ x 2 = 4Ghz its really confusing.

I just want to find a product on a buy it now where I will be getting good value for money, preferably a core 2 duo as I have been told that they are the best processors, I’m not 100% on that though someone just mentioned it to me at work, I have been looking on ebay for the past weeks pending 2- 3 hours of my time every night, but I don’t know really what I’m looking for, like I said I just would like something where I am getting good value for money without stupid P&P costs I’m willing to pay up to £25 postage.

I require the pc to be able to handle some of the new games out like world of Warcraft and be able to play video smoothly and also things like listening to music whilst doing things with out music jumping etc, I’m not after a top end system as I know you pay a premium to have the latest system just something slightly above average where if I decide to buy a new game then I don’t have to worry about if I can play it without my pc jumping and freezing up

Yes I would prefer to purchase on BUY IT NOW on ebay but if you know a site tat will do a pc cheaper than that then please post a link and the ref or model number so I can check it out thank you

hobo28

Go for a Core2 Duo. Don't pay too much attention to the clock speed and totally ignore the "2.0GHZ x 2 = 4Ghz".

If you want to play Warcraft smoothly then the faster the CPU the better really. A decent graphics card helps but WoW isn't all that gfx intensive. All that raiding & standing around IF actually taxes your CPU more.

As an IT geek myself, I found choosing the CPU easy but the choice of graphics card is just silly. I mean is a 7600GTS better than an 8500GT? How does that compare to an X1950 or do I want the Pro version!?!?! I wish they'd make it easier!

RAM you want at least 1GB if you want to run XP and WoW. More is always better.

Personally I think your budget is very tight for what you want. If you can stretch another £100 out of the budget then the world is your oyster.

BillScarab

I find the best way of choosing CPUs and Graphics cards is to look at the charts on www.Tomshardware.co.uk

The Core 2 Duos are generally consider the best processors around at the moment but AMD have had to cut some of the prices of their CPUs to try and compete so on a low budget one of those might end up being better.

However I think your really going to struggle to get a decent machine for that sort of money. For £230 you're probably going to get a Celeron with onboard graphics rather than a C2D with any sort of graphics card. I don't see how your budget will get an above average machine, as £230 is very little for a PC.

grae-uk

BillScarab wrote: »

I find the best way of choosing CPUs and Graphics cards is to look at the charts on www.Tomshardware.co.uk

The Core 2 Duos are generally consider the best processors around at the moment but AMD have had to cut some of the prices of their CPUs to try and compete so on a low budget one of those might end up being better.

However I think your really going to struggle to get a decent machine for that sort of money. For £230 you're probably going to get a Celeron with onboard graphics rather than a C2D with any sort of graphics card. I don't see how your budget will get an above average machine, as £230 is very little for a PC.

On the "buying from ebuy" issue. If youa re lookingf ro buy it now, then the prices are usually gunna be higer than if you were going to chase a few auctions. Have you considered https://www.ebuyer.co.uk. They are pretty good for pricing of components.

The alternative is to look at a prebuilt machine like a Dell. Their Small Business Vostro range is offering some good deals at the moment: http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/vostro_dt?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&s=bsd

Having said all that i fully agree with Bill, that £230 / £310 is a very small amount to get any decent machine. And while the Intel would be the better processor you may have to consider a AMD turion due to your budget.

HTH

Graham.

Amalea

First suggestion- don't buy a PC from ebay! Too risky, no warranty and what happens if it goes wrong?
I agree with what others have said, for that price you will not get one capable of playing games-decent graphics cards are typically the most expensive component for a PC. Also you should look at the amd processors as they are generally cheaper.

This one from overclockers would run games-you wouldn't be able to set the settings very high but you are looking at about £500 (when including the operating system) and it doesn't come with keyboard/monitor/etc:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-036-OK&groupid=43&catid=966&subcat=

grae-uk

Amalea wrote: »

First suggestion- don't buy a PC from ebay! Too risky, no warranty and what happens if it goes wrong?
I agree with what others have said, for that price you will not get one capable of playing games-decent graphics cards are typically the most expensive component for a PC. Also you should look at the amd processors as they are generally cheaper.

This one from overclockers would run games-you wouldn't be able to set the settings very high but you are looking at about £500 (when including the operating system) and it doesn't come with keyboard/monitor/etc:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-036-OK&groupid=43&catid=966&subcat=

Looks expensive for what you are getting. You can pick up a better Dell for less money/same money with a tft monitor

isofa

I'd have a good look at Dell, they have decent powerful machines for £320 + VAT (which is a little over your budget), but they are bound to have less powerful for less. This is the one I've seen this morning on a flyer it's £319 + VAT:

Dell Vostro 200, Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2Ghz, Vista Business, 1Gb RAM, 320Gb HD, 20" TFT, 16x DVD-RW drive. It only has an Intel Graphics accelerator, so that'd probably spoil the gaming. (You can find the Vostro range in the Small Business area of their website, often you can better value for money comparing home and small business machines with Dell!)

The Core 2 Duo would be my pick of processors, but AMD will offer better value for money.

Personally wouldn't touch eBay for this type of purchase.

iregretitall

Thanks for the great response everyone, isofa i would really be intrested in that offer from dell, but i am having trouble finding that offer on there website have you got an e-value code as that seems to be what they use on there or a reference number for the offer, thank you

C_Ronaldo

isofa wrote: »

I'd have a good look at Dell, they have decent powerful machines for £320 + VAT (which is a little over your budget), but they are bound to have less powerful for less. This is the one I've seen this morning on a flyer it's £319 + VAT:

Dell Vostro 200, Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2Ghz, Vista Business, 1Gb RAM, 320Gb HD, 20" TFT, 16x DVD-RW drive. It only has an Intel Graphics accelerator, so that'd probably spoil the gaming. (You can find the Vostro range in the Small Business area of their website, often you can better value for money comparing home and small business machines with Dell!)

The Core 2 Duo would be my pick of processors, but AMD will offer better value for money.

Personally wouldn't touch eBay for this type of purchase.

vista on 1Gb of ram, i wouldnt recommend it

GoofyGAT

The best that I can do is just over £400 with a 7900GS graphics card added separately:

Configure this Vostro MT 200 to the spec below:

* Intel Dual-Core E2140 Processor
* Vista Business [I'd go for XP Pro for no additional cost]
* Base Warranty - 1 Year Business Hardware Support
* 2048MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2x1024]
* Dell 19" Value Wide Flat Panel (E198WFP)
* Integrated X3100 graphics [replace with a £63 7900GS / Dell forum compatibility thread]
* 250GB (7200rpm) Serial ATA Hard Drive 8MB
* 16x DVD +/- RW Drive
* Keyboard & Mouse
* Integrated 7.1 Channel High Definition Audio
* Microsoft® Works 8.0 - English

Dell PC = 352.57(includes VAT & del) -9.45(being 5% Quidco cashback) +63(for GPU upgrade)
Grand total = £406

WoW should be fine, but on account of the limited GPU, you may have to play some very graphically-intensive games on lowish settings. G

NOTES:

- Another GPU option would be the £48 8600GT

- GPU comparison list - the superior 8600GTS compared here, with the GT lower down the list

- Dell purchase, if you're not a Business buyer (from here): "The links provided below will take you to the Vostro systems on the Dell UK Small Business website. You are still allowed to purchase these systems if you are a home user. During the checkout process you will be asked to provide a business name, however it is perfectly acceptable to enter your own name in this space."

isofa

The e-value code for the one I saw today (and posted above) is: PCPUK4-D11V206

Hope that helps.

I've often found going in as a home user getting a price and a spec, then doing the same as a small business user with the same item gets a slightly different price, so it's always worth checking.

I'd agree with C_Ronaldo that you'd ideally want more RAM, but you can upgrade it cheaply using Crucial: https://www.crucial.com/uk/

Unless of course you ask for it to come with XP Pro, then 1Gb will be fine for a while.