Need a new desktop PC...what's good???

[Mickeys.friend]

We really need a new desktop computer for the family....I want to spend no more than $500. Is this realistic for something decent?? My son has his own laptop, so it will mostly be used by me, my husband and 9YO daughter...The one we have now is a Compaq/HP and we've had it for almost 8 years....I like it...it's just old now with not enough memory, sound card no longer works, etc...Give me your thoughts please...

 

[Mickeys.friend]

no one?

 

[Lintasare]

I would check the HP website. You can build your own machine. I did that a couple years ago and spent about $650 for a new PC and monitor.

Sometimes they offer really good deals.

 

[rock_doctor]

If your current monitor is good then $500 is do able. Just keep an eye on new egg, dell (worst customer service on the planet but descent prices), circuit city (online) and the Sunday news paper. Some of the best prices can come from Staples, Office Depot or similar when they are running a sale. You could also try your local walmart to see what they have on sale or clearance. They only problem is, walmart tends to have older models. Good luck

 

[BigDaddyWill]

Here's a link to a good general purpose PC at a reasonable price,

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Compaq+Presario+CQ5600Y+Desktop+%26+20%22+LCD+Monitor+Package/9999139200050017.p?id=pcmprd139200050017&skuId=9999139200050017

Good luck in your search!

 

[Mickeys.friend]

I really had not realized i could just buy everything but the moniter...Interesting. My moniter is less than a year old and a flatscreen...I have to look into that...Thanks all!
LIZ

 

[dawson5]

Here is a listing of just computers at B&M stores in PA:

http://salescircular.com/pa/computer/cpuoyp.shtml

I bought our desktop from Newegg. I am signed up for the newsletter, it comes out on Tuesday in the morning. I found a heck of a deal (Gateway, core2 quad, 4GB memory and a TB of HD) for under $600 three years ago, no monitor. The specs at the time were pretty good compared to what I could get at BB or one of the office places. I had free shipping and because there is not B&M store in Indiana, no sales tax. They do offer long term warranties, it takes some digging though. Wonder if SquareTrade might be better for that though.

 

[mtblujeans]

Would you consider a refurbished machine? I recently purchased a refurbished Dell with Windows XP Pro OS for less than $200.00 for my adult DD and DGS. But, it comes with practically no guarantee to it.

 

[SplashMo]

www.gotapex.com often has good deals.

 

[luvdisney00]

Would you consider a refurbished machine? I recently purchased a refurbished Dell with Windows XP Pro OS for less than $200.00 for my adult DD and DGS. But, it comes with practically no guarantee to it.

I purchased a refurbished Dell and a refurbished Apple and both came from the manufacturer with the same waranty as a new one would have. Refurbished is a great option to save money, both of the ones I bought were refurbished inside, but the casing shell was brand new. The only thing is to be careful of the ones refurbished by individuals or small electronics companies (they might be great, but no guarantees) and stick with the manufacturer or a reputable company. Best Buy sells refurbished, but I have no experience buying theirs. My daughter's Dell netbook was waranteed for a year (same as new) and we had no prolems with it, she's had it for 2 yrs. now.
Good Luck with your purchase!

 

[Nayan]

Build your own! I built the one I'm on right now, a really nice powerhouse gaming rig with a water-cooling system. The nice part about building your own rig is you know what parts are in it and if one fails you have the know-how to replace it instead of replacing the whole computer. Check out Tom's Hardware diy forums and Newegg for parts. It's easy and I'll bet you can get more computer for your money then buying one off the shelf.

 

[TammyAlphabet]

Mac!

 

[jedijohn]

Here is my tip: Buy one with Windows 7 (I have the 64-bit edition); all other versions of windows are inferior. Don't get me wrong, I liked XP but W7 is leaps and bounds better. It runs more efficiently, it has a lot of neat features, it seamlessly installs drivers without the need to hunt for the discs, and it is far more secure.

I would recommend building your own PC (which is what I did), but it takes a fair amount of knowledge & research to do so. Personally we use Dell's at work (fed gov't) and haven't had a single issue.

I did a quick glance at the Dell website, and here is a machine with respectable specifications for the price point you are at: http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-580/pd?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~oid=us~en~29~ltd-inspiron-580-anav1~~&redirect=1&redirect=2

If you hunt around online you might be able to find a coupon code or something to discount the price a bit.