First-time buyer - superbudget PC Package

[schillaci_90]

Hi,



I'm looking to buy a PC package for a superbudget price - maximum £400. I'll mainly be using it for word processing, and to surf the net on broadband, downloading largish files such as digital music. The rough specifications would ideally be:



Min. Processor: 2.0GHz

Min. RAM: 128MB

Optical Storage: CD-Rom/CD-Rewriter (poss. DVD)

Display: CRT/TFT Monitor included

Audio: Sound card & Speakers

Operating System: Windows XP Home

Software: Microsoft Works or Office.

At the moment, I'm considering some of the offers from Acer, Dell, Mesh, Packard Bell and eMachines, and at the EuroPC website, but can't decide which is the best. I'd appreciate any advice on these, or recommendations for similar packages under £400 for delivery or pick-up near West London.

Thank you in advance!

 

[ChristopherP]

For what you want, i'd have to reccomend Dell there... Check what they are offering in jan. sales

 

[Reefsmoka]

Definatly Dell, they will have some killer sales going on. You should eaily be able to pick up an adequate PC to fit your needs with a £400 budget.

www.dell.co.uk

 

[schillaci_90]

Okay, thanks for the pointers, I've done a bit of searching and I've come up with some options:

1) Evesham Quest S24 Plus (www.lowestonweb.com) - £397 (including VAT, but NOT shipping).

Specification: AMD Sempron processor 2400+; Microsoft XP Home; 256MB DDR RAM 333MHz; 120GB Hard Drive with 8MB buffer; Direct 2D/3D graphics onboard; 17" CRT Monitor; DVD-ROM (16x)/CD-RW (52x32x52) Drive; Sound Blaster compatible audio; Creative SBS260 Speakers; Microsoft Keyboard and Mouse; Floppy Drive; Microsoft Works 8.0.

2) Dell Dimension 3000 (www.dell.co.uk) - £361 (including VAT AND shipping).

Specification: Intel Celeron D processor 330 (2.66 GHz, 533FSB, 256k cache); Microsoft XP Home; 512MB Dual Channel DDR333 RAM (2x256MB) (Special Offer); 40GB (7,200 rpm) IDE Hard Drive; Dell E773p 17" (16.0 VIS) Value CRT Monitor; 48X DVD/CDRW Combo Drive; Creative Labs SB Live 5.1 Sound Card; Dell A215 speakers; Dell QuietKey Keyboard and USB Optical Mouse; Microsoft Works 7.0.

3) Budget PCs from Tiny (http://www.tiny.com/home_pcs.php/11236) - Around £350 to £400.

I'd welcome opinions on the pros and cons of these, and further pointers to any similar packages...

 

[KGB-911]

NEVER GO FOR OPTION NUMBER 3 - Tiny are useless

 

[ChristopherP]

The lowest on web one looks the best, i think they have free delivery too...

go to www.novatech.co.uk and see what they have to offer...

 

[floppybootstomp]

Number one is fair, it's 2Ghz, btw, and I wonder what the motherboard is? Why don't these 'off the shelf' systems ever list the motherboard? Could be a PC Chips board for all we know. Anyway, I digress, number one is a fair spec for the price.

Number 2: Try and avoid a Celeron processor, they're slow.

Number 3: As KGB said - beware and avoid.

 

[ChristopherP]

if it were a choice between these 3, i'd definatly go for one. One thing, DON'T compare AMD and Intel speeds on GHz... a 1.8GHz AMD CPU will outperform say a 2.4GHz Intel easily. It depends on the specific model though... Just so you know.

Look at places like novatech, savastore, multivision, Aria places like that...

 

[schillaci_90]

One more for the mixer

Okay, thanks lads. I checked out Novatech, but their prices started creeping way over £400 when I included Windows XP, the monitor and speakers. I found this at PC World:

4) eMachines 5210R (Reconditioned) (http://www.pcworld.co.uk/) - £366.99 (including 15% instore discount)

Specification: Intel P4 2.5 GHz Processor; 512 Mb RAM Memory; 80 Gb Hard Disk Capacity;Win XP Home; ATI Radeon 9100 IGP (64 mb Graphics Card Memory); CDRW and DVD Drives Fitted (48,24,48); 17"CRT Monitor; Soundcard and Speakers; Keyboard and Mouse.

What's your views on reconditioned computers and eMachines in general? Is P4 better than the Celeron and AMD Semprons?

 

[ChristopherP]

I don't like emachines.

Go for the Sempron...

 

[floppybootstomp]

I don't like emachines.

Go for the Sempron...

 

[muckshifter]

Sempron ...

 

[crazylegs]

no contest go for the dell free delivery excellent after sales service.....forget the rest dude ...

 

[ChristopherP]

its a slower PC

 

[auketts]

Don't go anywhere near Evesham

I have parted with £900 and they seem not to care that my machine is useless - simply does not work.
Terrible service, terrible company.

 

[ChristopherP]

Did you put that on a credit card - and are you protected against things like this?

 

[scumbob_squarenuts]

Agree the Sempron looks the best deal. I would always advise anyone buying a new system to pick AMD over Intel, far better value for money, especially for what you want to use it for. It is also a good idea to shop locally, smaller shops often have the best deals. Another thing, avoid PC World, Tiny and Microdirect like a rabid dog, all 3 have poor after sales and their systems are often cheap because they are made up of sub standard components and they will cut corners at any opertunity.

I found this Sempron 2600 system that seems to fit your specs. You would have to buy a display and software seperatly but it looks good value at £199 with decent specs. Even with delivery charges and the cost of a monitor and software it should be well under £400, their Athlon 64 option looks good too!

http://www.gladiatorcomputers.com/P...kCode=PCSPROA100&CategoryId=5.5&Link=Featured

 

[Abarbarian]

http://www.savastore.com/productinf...vastore&product_id=10282313&pid=5&rstrat=3169

This is around £200 . Search the site and you'll find more like this , you can customise the pakage to suit yourself .