Dell Advice

[jcrowley13]

Im just about to purchase a Dell and am a little worried im making the wrong decision.

I read on here that Dell's can only be upgraded with Dell components - is that true?

Also I noticed on savastore.com you can buy motherboard kits which include the processor, and ram, basic spec is

AMD Athlon XP2600+ (2.08GHz) Processor
Heatsink and Fan
MSI-6712 KT4 VL Motherboard
256Mb DDR Memory

Would I be able to purchase the above and just take out my current motherboard (im using an Emachines at the moment) and swap everything over?

My current PC is basically 2 years old, and a little outdated. The motherboard option would be much better than what I have now (900 Celeron 128 Ram) at a lot cheaper price

Any help much appreciated

J

 

[Techy]

as with any computer manufacturer the warranty maybe in jeopardy if you fit thrid party hardware, best thing to do is read the small print before you buy it, secondly i can't see any probs with the above configuration but what i will say to you is if it all goes wrong who you gonna call???

think about it.

J

 

[Ian]

I have heard about EMachines, but I am not entirely sure what one it. Is it an integrated machine, or a pretty much standard one? (A website or picture might help). I only ask because with a name like that, it sounds like an all in one integrated machine.

As Techy says, upgrading is a cheaper choice and a great idea if you are aware that you won't be able to get as much support if you purchase and install your own components. If you have some time, or want to learn how to do these things yourself though, It is a satisfying experience.

 

[jcrowley13]

Emachines

Its an emachines e1300dvd model, no pictures im afraid. Not sure what you mean about integrated but sound and graphics are all on motherboard.

I know Emachines do sometimes have a bad press but ive had mine 2 years and am quite happy. The only thing I dont like is the limited upgrade options - I can only increase ram to 256 and hard drive to 40 gb, plus I dont think you can upgrade the processor but not sure.

One other option I have is a reconditioned emachines from PC World. for £349.00. The link is

Pc World

sorry I couldnt link direct but it said time out


The spec is
Intel Celeron 2.3Ghz processor

256Mb RAM

80Gb Hard drive

DVD & CD-ReWriter Drive

Intel Extreme Graphics

6 x USB Connections

17" Pristine CRT Monitor (15.7" V.I.S)

Works 6.0

Windows XP Home Operating System

1 Years FREE Onsite Warranty

which I think is pretty good, about the same spec as the Dell but £200 cheaper. All that puts me off is that its reconditioned, and its from pc world

 

[Ian]

That seems like a pretty good deal, and although not the fastest PC in the world, it is quite a bit better than your previous PC.

If it it reconditioned, it should still carry a full warranty and most likely be indistinguishable from the original.

It looks like you could upgrade your old PC, but you might want to get a graphics card and new hard drive to go along with it.

 

[muckshifter]

Celeron :crazy: nope. :angry:

Look for a P4 at least or an AMD ... don't be frightened of buying reconditioned units from PCWorld, it's usually old stock like that Celery (or somebody could not keep up the payments ). Dell make heaps of crap just as E-Machines are cra.. oh, you got one of those, sorry. :spin:

Anyway ... "Intel Extreme Graphics" is onboard video ... make sure it is NOT onboard video.

 

[jcrowley13]

Thats one thing I was worried about the Dell, it comes with Intel Extreme Graphics, and there were no option to upgrade to a video card. I presume though I will be able to upgrade to graphics card and will certainly do that

 

[Techy]

Do you like PCI graphics cards?

 

[jcrowley13]

I have no preference either way. I have in the past been meaning to get one for my Emachines, because that has integrated graphics also and there not so good but there are some good bargains to be had on graphics cards if you look in the right places

 

[wowitfoth]

Do not support Dell! They are not what they once were and having to deal with two family members Dell computers I have learned much. They make there own key components, i.e.: Mother board and power supplies for example. Also they do not comply with voltage standards! Dell is in the Business to sell pc's not repair or hotrod. They are reliable but designed to become obsolete every 2-3yrs. And they expect you to buy another. I will never by a off the shelf box again. A neighbor had a garage sale and I bought there old one for five dollars. No disc's and deliberately crashed it dead! I dissected it, wrote down any info on parts and used my sister's Dell to research and learn about this p.c., then used her software to rebuild it and was a complete success! It was a Pentium Pro with SCSI drives, so I did not want to put to much money into it. I spent less than $100 and had Dual hard drives, USB, Dual Boot Win98SE and 2000 Pro! The pride I got from it was priceless and never even opened a pc case prior to that! I am typing on my $500 dollar machine now and it is exactly what I need and not stuck with a pc designed for the masses. I had to rack my brain on that first one, but it is nothing but enjoyment now. Everyone comes to me now for help and I am studying for A+ now to help myself! I doubt you will find a $5.00 one, but spend a $150 in the classifieds try it, you can do it. I also switched my devotion to AMD! By the way Dell’s tech support has been moved to India! 2-3 hour hold times are not uncommon! Support was made Dell a great pc!