the "help sparkmaster find a new computer" thread

[MysteriousVisitor]

tis a sad day for Sparkmaster today, as my computer died from what appears to be a sudden heart attack/motherboard overload. I have used/abused this computer for 3 years now (a dell, what do you expect?), and I shall miss it dearly. Especially the 1200$+ in purchase cost plus upgrades ive put into this thing

So, i be in the market for a new computer. I'm looking at a mid to high end laptop. One brand that i've been looking closely at is ASUS. I'm also considering HP. I found a few good computers on newegg, but I'm going to do my homework before sinking a thousand plus dollars into a computer.

And this time I'm paying for the extended warantee -____-

So, does anyone have any suggestions as to what my new computer shall be? I'm looking at a budget of about a thousand dollars. I would like a gaming type laptop, but quality is my number one priority. I dont want this one to konk out on me like my desktop did.

Also, I would like to thank sony for making such an awesome gaming console that has the ability to surf the internet. Thank you Sony.

 

[Lil Snap]

I, nor the other 7 people I know that own one, have never had any problems with my Toshiba. mine is now 4 1/2 y.o. and I have really enjoyed it. Other friends have had Dell and hated them. I think HP is prob. pretty good, but no first hand experience.

Circuit City might be a good place to watch since they are liquidating. I know that the service plans are 3rd party but I would find out how to get the service if you were to need it, 'cause the stores will be gone.

 

[Chris H]

Circuit City isn't really a good place to shop. They brought all their prices up to retail and THEN put 10% off, so it's not actually a sale.

I'd try to find a nice computer parts store around you. It's generally cheaper to buy all the parts and assemble the computer yourself.

 

[Mesmerale]

HP, not so much.

They install a bunch of crapware into your system. (Courtesy of this tech guy who occasionally works at my workplace.)

 

[kevindhca]

Sparkmaster, you could just buy a new mainboard/CPU and put it in the case. You already have everything else, so you could have a new Quad-Core for about $350.
REUSE those old parts, help save the planet.

 

[MysteriousVisitor]

in theory slapping a new motherboard and CPU in would be the best way to go. Problem is, its a dell. Dell machines their cases so that only dell manufactured motherboards can fit. This means I would have to buy from dell, or buy a refurbished one online. I doubt dell would sell directly to me, meaning I would have to go to a dell "approved" repairer and pay out the arse for parts and labor. The Geeksquad guy (for what its worth) quoted me 500 plus dollars, not counting labor.

i will probaby attempt to fix it myself with an 80 dollar refurbished motherboard sometime in the future. I've been looking for a good laptop that will last me a few years anyway, this just gives me added incentive to find a good one quickly.

And if i do end up tossing my old computer, it will be properly recycled

 

[Fire2box]

I would like a gaming type laptop

No No No NO NO NO NO!!!!!!

Gaming laptops are BAD! Their GPU's can't be upgrade so in 3-5 years you won't be able to play any new games. And as for the games that are currently coming out you can only play them on low or medium/low at best.

 

[ZombifiedKitty]

Build a desktop, and I would agree that the GPU on laptops is the killer.

Two years ago I built my desktop for exactly 800 clams, 2.5 GHz 64bit dual core, 4 gigs of ram, and 400 gigs of raid 1 SATA seagate HDDs. Nothing but the best execept when it came to graphics I went low since those always drop in price. Now two years later I buy another drive for backup.

Best thing is to salvage what you can from the dell like drives (hard and optical disk) and the best bet nowadays is barebone kits. Don't go for the highest end stuff, go a couple rungs lower on the ladder. The operating system is still slower than the hardware ALWAYS. Then save money and upgrade gradually. I would have saved a lot of money by only buying 2 gigs of ram. With $1000 you should be able to build a VERY fast quad core system, I'd limit things to 4 gigs of ram and 750 gigs of HDD in this market. Newegg is your friend.

Be sure your ram is verified with w/e motherboard you get, CROSS CHECK compatibility. Used to be only a problem back in the Intel P2 days but it still happens sometimes.

 

[dogboy]

I was impressed with the Toshiba when I went looking for a new laptop. I liked the feel and layout of the keyboard. It also gets high marks from Consumer's digest, etc. As for gaming, go with your playstation. It's dedicated for that sort of thing.

 

[kevindhca]

Sparkmaster, a quick google search reveals some divided opinions about Dell case compatibility.
I would measure the locations of the mainboard mounting studs and compare them to possible mainboard choices.
Most cases have many different locations for the studs, to allow for a variety of mainboards to be installed in them.
Even if you need to get a new ATX case, just get a low priced one, the're less than $100.
Oh and you will need new RAM for a new mainboard.

 

[MysteriousVisitor]

Normally I would agree with the consensus against a Gaming laptop. Upgradibility is why I chose a desktop over a laptop years ago. However, circumstances in the near future will proclude my use of a desktop and make a laptop the only real way to go for me. Luckly, the laptop i ended up ordering (and spending way too much money on :sweatdrop has MXM, meaning that a graphics card upgrade, whilst complicated, is doable. This one is also pretty TOTL right now, so it should suffice for the forseeable future when a desktop will not be usable for me. After that period, though, I do plan to go back to a desktop being my primary computing platform. If future circumstances warranted, I would replace the motherboard and pick up a cheap netbook for school/internet usage.

 

[Ben]

Whatever you get i would look at websites like slickdeals.net and fatwallet.com for good deals. If you keep an eye on there for a month or 2 you can often get great deals. I got a core2duo 2.0 GHz, 128 MB nvidia graphics card, 4 gigs ram w/ upgraded battery for under $500 using those sites.

 

[Wzrd]

I have 4 laptops and 2 desktops. I like my Toshiba. It's a fast laptop and haven't had any problems with it at all.

 

[Lil Snap]

Normally I would agree with the consensus against a Gaming laptop. Upgradibility is why I chose a desktop over a laptop years ago. However, circumstances in the near future will proclude my use of a desktop and make a laptop the only real way to go for me. Luckly, the laptop i ended up ordering (and spending way too much money on :sweatdrop has MXM, meaning that a graphics card upgrade, whilst complicated, is doable. This one is also pretty TOTL right now, so it should suffice for the forseeable future when a desktop will not be usable for me. After that period, though, I do plan to go back to a desktop being my primary computing platform. If future circumstances warranted, I would replace the motherboard and pick up a cheap netbook for school/internet usage.

So are you gonna keep us in the dark about what you ordered?

Spill it!:biggrin:

 

[MysteriousVisitor]

I ordered an Azus G50VT. A Core Duo T9400 processor, 500 gigs of storage (plenty for me), and a NVIDIA GeForce 9800M graphics card. All for alot of money. Too much money . But I'm happy with it.

 

[Lil Snap]

Hey as long as you are happy, that's all that matters!

Until you get the credit card bill:biggrin:

 

[Bryce]

The only advice I have to give to someone looking to buy a pre-built computer is to not do it. Computer parts are so cheap these days that you can build a computer just as good if not better than pre-built computers. Not to mention minus all the bloatware crap they pre-install on those machines. I haven't bought a pre-built computer since 2001 and my parents bought the laptop for me as a graduation gift. That's the only pre-built computer I have.

It is NOT THAT HARD to build a computer. All it requires is a the knowledge to read the manuals, take time to get the cables managed nicely, and how to keep it clean. That means, none of that crap-IE shit many here use.

 

[SomebodyE]

The ASUS G50V is a nice machine, if a little gaudy looking for my tastes. It should serve you well.

the laptop i ended up ordering (and spending way too much money on :sweatdrop has MXM, meaning that a graphics card upgrade, whilst complicated, is doable.

Hmm, I thought the upgradable laptop graphics thing never took off, there just wasn't a big enough market for it. Its a cool feature to have though.

You should always build your own desktop if you can. Building a computer is like playing with legos, which should be great for everyone on this forum.

 

[jeep]

Sparkmaster, you could just buy a new mainboard/CPU and put it in the case. You already have everything else, so you could have a new Quad-Core for about $350.
REUSE those old parts, help save the planet.

Actually, a nice quad core is about 230, go get a Q9400 for 230 or a Q6600 for 200. If you have an AMD go get a Phenom 2 940 for 230 or A Phenom 2 920 for 200. If you need a mobo for an Intel go get something from the P5Q series or a EP 45 UD3R. I don't really know what AMD to get though I haven't looked at them recently.

 

[MysteriousVisitor]

The ASUS G50V is a nice machine, if a little gaudy looking for my tastes. It should serve you well.



Hmm, I thought the upgradable laptop graphics thing never took off, there just wasn't a big enough market for it. Its a cool feature to have though.

You should always build your own desktop if you can. Building a computer is like playing with legos, which should be great for everyone on this forum.

Honest to god, I would, but future circumstances will prevent me from hauling around a desktop tower, monitor, and other stuff. I will eventually, though!