Seeking Desktop PC Help

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OptimusPrimeval

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I have seen a Windows 8.1 (which I can live with) PC on sale for the price of £230, the specs are as follows.
Processor Intel Core i3-4150 Dual Core (3.5GHz, 3MB Cache)
Memory 4GB (DDR3 1600MHZ)
Hard Drive 500GB (7200RPM)
Optical Drive DVD-Writer
Serial ATA Motherboard MSI H81M-P33 Socket 1150 Motherboard
Motherboard Form Factor Micro ATX
Chipset Intel H81
Network Card 10/100/1000 Gigabit Fast Ethernet
External Ports Rear: 4 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB 3.0, 1 x PS2 Keyboard, 1 x PS2 Mouse ports Card Reader 3 in 1 Card Reader VGA Port 1 x VGA Port DVI 1x DVI-D Out
Case S003B Black Slim Micro ATX or Mini ITX Case Power Supply 300W PSU Dimensions 99mm x 306mm x 400mm (W x H x D)

I want to use it mainly for web browsing and office work but would also like to use it for some light to moderate gaming (ie Football Manager).
Just wondering what people's thoughts on this would be? Is it a good PC to go for? I don't want to spend any more than this. But I would be looking to upgrade the PC over a period of time. Would I be able to upgrade the processor and put in a low profile graphics card (as it is a smallish case.) or change the case and put in a full size one? Would this all be possible?
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I look forward to receiving your replies.
Optimus
 
For your needs it's a fine machine at a good price.

If you can find a mid-priced (I'm talking around at least £100 here) graphics card that fits it would be worth it for gameplay though the i3 will handle the graphics for games that don't have high graphics demands.

Other than that I really don't think it would be worth upgrading further but yes, you could put it in a bigger case and yes, you could put in a suitable i5 or i7 processor and it would work (note the CPU socket number).

And welcome to the forum :)
 
floppybootstomp said:
For your needs it's a fine machine at a good price.

If you can find a mid-priced (I'm talking around at least £100 here) graphics card that fits it would be worth it for gameplay though the i3 will handle the graphics for games that don't have high graphics demands.

Other than that I really don't think it would be worth upgrading further but yes, you could put it in a bigger case and yes, you could put in a suitable i5 or i7 processor and it would work (note the CPU socket number).

And welcome to the forum :)
Click to expand...

I have a couple of questions about the motherboard now...

http://uk.msi.com/product/mb/H81MP33.html#hero-overview

In the compatibility tab where it lists the processors, does that mean that every single one of those is compatible with the motherboard or am I missing an obvious point?

Also, what is the chipset? Is the chipset an important factor to consider when upgrading?

Oh and what does Haswell and Haswell refresh mean?

Sorry for the seemingly silly questions, but it has been a long time since I bought a PC.
 
OptimusPrimeval said:
I have a couple of questions about the motherboard now...

http://uk.msi.com/product/mb/H81MP33.html#hero-overview

In the compatibility tab where it lists the processors, does that mean that every single one of those is compatible with the motherboard or am I missing an obvious point?

Also, what is the chipset? Is the chipset an important factor to consider when upgrading?

Oh and what does Haswell and Haswell refresh mean?

Sorry for the seemingly silly questions, but it has been a long time since I bought a PC.
Click to expand...

If you want to upgrade the PC for "Light to moderate gaming", the best Low-Profile Graphics Card you can get is this one:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-058-KF

It should fit nicely and has very low power requirements. The i3 processor you have should work fine for what you need I think.
 
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