Need some advice or pointed in the right direction

[irratebass]

Originally Posted by Silound

IB -

Your basic problem here will be the cost of the monitor...typically a 19" screen will add anywhere from 50-300 to the cost of the overall computer (depending on brand, specs, and quality).

Microsoft Word typically will cost more, as most computers come bundled with a basic trial version. Full upgrades, even with the price deal from a computer purchase, will cost about 100-400 more depending on which version of Office you're getting.

If you tell me a bit more about what you're going to do with it (Youtube, games, browsing the net, watching DVDs, using it as a home entertainment device, etc etc), I can offer some suggestions, but a $650 top end may curtail what kind of computer you can get depending on what you use it for.

Word I understand will be something that will have to be purchased extra, that I will have to explain to the wife.

This will basically be a computer for surfing the web, updating resumes, youtube, very little gaming.....so not looking for a home entertainment center or anything jut a nice computer that will last and give me plenty of memory and space.....does that make sense?

The $650 pricetag is kind of the cap that wifey has not objected to.

Originally Posted by elderboy02

Here you go Mickey: http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0373549

Micro Center also has a 20" HP montor for like $89.99

Wow, this is nice....thanks Dan!

[shark]

I recently upgraded to a Gateway SX2855-UB22P that I bought turnkey from Best Buy. It's running Windows 7 Home Premium (64 Bit), an Intel Core i3 processor at 3.1 Ghz, a 1 TB hard drive, 4GB of DDR3 memory, a DVD player/burner. Only kinda weak point I see so far is the Intel integrated video. Not really an issue since I do no gaming, but it handles HD video and the like really well, IMO. It didn't come with a full Microsoft Office package, however. Hey, I'm happy with it, since the prior machine was a 900 Mhz Celeron machine with a 20 Gb Seagate HD and 512 MB of the old RAM I don't recall the exact spec of, other than the front side bus was only 100 MhZ...

[Silound]

Dan found a really nice deal. It doesn't include a monitor, but you can order a decent 19" for 125 on Newegg. Office will run you another $130.

I dug around, and ~$800 delivered is the best price I can come up with for a computer that includes Office Home and a 19" monitor. I could shave $100 off of that number, but in my opinion, in 3 years you would be looking at either major upgrades, or a whole new system again. The $100 buys you another 2-3 years of longevity.


You might ask the wife if perhaps you could purchase the computer + Office first, and wait a few months before dropping the extra money on the monitor. I understand that may leave you using an older monitor, but it spreads out the cost to make it slightly more manageable on a budget.

[irratebass]

Originally Posted by Silound

Dan found a really nice deal. It doesn't include a monitor, but you can order a decent 19" for 125 on Newegg. Office will run you another $130.

I dug around, and ~$800 delivered is the best price I can come up with for a computer that includes Office Home and a 19" monitor. I could shave $100 off of that number, but in my opinion, in 3 years you would be looking at either major upgrades, or a whole new system again. The $100 buys you another 2-3 years of longevity.


You might ask the wife if perhaps you could purchase the computer + Office first, and wait a few months before dropping the extra money on the monitor. I understand that may leave you using an older monitor, but it spreads out the cost to make it slightly more manageable on a budget.

That is a way to go, but that will be a hard pill to swallow.

[ApexAZ]

I bought a lenovo recently and I love it. Solid laptop thus far and has awesome specs for an unbeatable price. Dell, HP, Gateway, Toshiba, etc, couldn't hold a candle to the price. It was literally hundreds less.

[Chingas]

Brother, if built and fixed far too many computers to count. The guys recommending the Lenovos are on track. Lenovos are a decent build that'll do just about all home pc, moderate level operations. Taxing tasks will take a shade longer but you may never do those tasks.

HP's have been good for awhile as well. Noticing less and less issues with them. You can hit their site and "build your own" to get the right price.

Essentially for light duty you can get away with an Intel i3 processor. I've always been a fan of AMD and some serious deals can be had if you head down that Road.

PM me for software ideas.

You might want to drop by Best Buy. I bought my Toshiba for $400. My Dell which is about 3 years old broke last month and I got a Mac.