Cheap PC

[rob4001]

Hi,

I was asked by a friend to build them a cheap PC including a monitor. It will only be used for web surfing, e-mail and MS Office. I have built my own PC before but mostly for games and I don't know what is best for a cheapo system. Would it be better to get pre built systems? If so can you recommend any.

Thanks

[excalibur2]

Hi,

I was asked by a friend to build them a cheap PC including a monitor. It will only be used for web surfing, e-mail and MS Office. I have built my own PC before but mostly for games and I don't know what is best for a cheapo system. Would it be better to get pre built systems? If so can you recommend any.

Thanks

Cheaper to buy one, and why would you want the personal hassle from your friend if anything goes wrong.

You could start by looking at the cheapest in Mesh or Dell........AMD or Intel doesn't matter for your friends needs, but would advise to get 1 gig of memory, if Vista is pre-installed, and of course always pay by credit card.

BTW if you know anything about computers, then don't let your friend pay a ridiculous price for extra warranty.

[staffsMike]

If it were me i'd get the following:

AMD 64 3800+ X2 (am2)

a motherboard like this

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=548095

This RAM (1 stick - 1GB leaving room for an upgrade to 2 -4gb later)

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=143574

Akasa ZEN case

something like this for the PSU

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=138557

and you're done

Thats about £215 best guess...too early too figure it out lol

EDIT really was too early..

Add £50 for a dvd writer and HD.

Ways to save money..perhaps against my best advice is to buy a case with a psu in it..but i can't comment on the quality of psu you get.

[Clunk]

Agreed, you can usually pick up some kind of dell for peanuts, or I think you can pay cash if they have been fed.

[Sprite]

It's probably cheaper to go Dell.

[Lucio]

Main thing that makes the difference I found at the very low end oif the price range is the cost of Windows. Even buying an OEM version you still can't get a machine down to the same price Dell offer them.

[Gunbuster]

I've found http://www.wizmarkcomputers.co.uk/al...ecodedeals.htm pretty good for getting evalue codes for Dells, saved my folks around £100 on theirs. Don't foget to remove the expensive support package if you think you are up to the job. Also PC Decrappifier is handy for removing on the 30-day tie ins that they slap on PCs these days http://www.yorkspace.com/pc-de-crapifier/.

[steve threlfall]

I've found http://www.wizmarkcomputers.co.uk/al...ecodedeals.htm pretty good for getting evalue codes for Dells, saved my folks around £100 on theirs. Don't foget to remove the expensive support package if you think you are up to the job. Also PC Decrappifier is handy for removing on the 30-day tie ins that they slap on PCs these days http://www.yorkspace.com/pc-de-crapifier/.

Wish i had know about that when i got my HP laptop. Norton makes a dual core amd64 perform like an old cyrix

[hsncool]

get a second hand one, that way u got a lower spec, all you need, and it wont cost much. then just buy a case, and put all the second hand stuff in it, to make it look like a new one, and reinstall os to make it seem brand new!

all gud!

[DanceswithUnix]

It would be nice to know what their definition of cheap is. I have been asked the same in the past. If cheap=500 quid, then they get a lovely quiet Shuttle with LCD panel, DVD writer etc.

Anything less than that and they get Dell.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Dell does do some excellent deals so it maybe worth waiting for one!! If you are still going to build your friend a pc the following specs should be enough for general purpose use:

Your Basket
QTY Price (ea) Ex VAT Total Inc VAT Remove
Asrock ALiveNF6G-DVI, NF6100, AM2, PCI-E (x16), DDR2 533/667/800, SATA II, SATA RAID, uATX £33.99 £39.94
1 LN16634 Asrock ALiveNF6G-DVI, NF6100, AM2, PCI-E (x16), DDR2 533/667/800, SATA II, SATA RAID, uATX
LG GSA-H42NBAL 18x DVD±RW+RAM IDE (PATA) Black OEM £15.50 £18.21
1 LN17430 LG GSA-H42NBAL 18x DVD±RW+RAM IDE (PATA) Black OEM
LN9707
80 Gb Samsung HD080HJ SpinPoint P80, SATA300, 7200 rpm, 8MB Cache, 8.9 ms, NCQ £24.45 £28.73
1m 3XS Serial ATA Cable SATA150/300 Certified (RB-410) £0.65 £0.76
1 LN5128 1m 3XS Serial ATA Cable SATA150/300 Certified (RB-410)
1m FAST 3-way IDE ribbon cable Flat (ATA133) (RB-368) £0.75 £0.88
1 LN8202 1m FAST 3-way IDE ribbon cable Flat (ATA133) (RB-368)
LN14238
AMD AM2 Sempron 3000 Manila Core, 1.6GHz, 256KB Cache, Retail £24.49 £28.78
LN10111
1Gb Elixir, DDR2 PC4200 (533), 240 Pin, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 4-4-4-12 Retail £29.96 £35.20
LN16642
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP2b OEM Single Pack £47.77 £56.13
LN9285
Microsoft Ivory Optical Value Pack V2 - Multimedia Keyboard & Wheel Mouse Optical £11.49 £13.50
LN15618
17" Daewoo HL720AD Silver LCD, 1280x1024, 8 ms, 500:1, 300 cd/m2, Speakers, VESA £89.95 £105.69
LN10311
Asus TM-231 uATX Tower Black Hi-End with 300W aFPC PSU £25.59 £30.07
If you change any quantities, please re-calculate your basket
Scan Finance - Buy Now Pay Jan 2008
Pay £37.58 deposit and then NO payments for 9 months, then settle the balance and pay NO interest.

Scan Finance - More Sense Than Money

Net Total £304.59

Carriage £15.21

V.A.T. £55.96

TOTAL £375.76

Under XP a single core Sempron will have enough power to do most stuff. The 6100 series integrated graphics are also among the best of the breed(if that is saying much!!).

The system also will not consume much power - hence th 300w PSU will be enough.If you need something more powerful the Silverpower SP-400P1B is a decent 400w PSU and costs around 25 quid from Scan.

[hsncool]

i think u cud probs take the xp home out......................ahem