This is -embarrassingly- my first computer purchase. (I’ve made do without one for years now since I sit at a PC all day.) Would appreciate advice on any types to avoid or what company/brand you swear by.
I’m also a bit of a Mort when it comes to recommended amounts of speed and memory… if you were a single guy who will mainly be working in Word and not spending too too much time surfing the Net (aside from the occasional illegal download :o ), what kind of package would you consider ideal?
All the techs I know avoid Gateway and Dell like the plague. I think Compaq and HP are “okay,” but most techs will also tell you that if you want a good computer, you build it from the ground up and don’t buy a pre-made box.
However . . . most techs also want the top of the line components and like to tweak their systems just so. 
For a regular user, a pre-made box should be more than sufficient. I’ve purchased two Systemax computers from Tiger Direct in the past, and had no problems at all with the original components. They were both totally fine for basic computing with some basic game-playing capability, email / net surfing, checkbook maintenance, and word processing.
A system like this would likely more than meet your needs. There’re less expensive computers which feature Windows XP Home, but I would recommend avoiding them - XP Pro is much better & has fewer problems, imo. Like many pre-built computers, Tiger’s don’t include a monitor. So depending on your budget, you could pick up a CRT monitor cheap (like this), or go for a more expensive, but easier on the eyes and space-saving, LCD monitor (like this). I wouldn’t necessarily recommend a refurbished monitor - they are less expensive, but too often even the highest grade ones will have some burn-in or other annoying (albeit minor) issues.
All the main brands unfortunately use proprietary components, make upgrades difficult, etc.
A flexible base system can be easily upgraded for little $, making that the best choice for many years to come.
I would go with a “white box” system from the local industrial park hole-in-the-wall computer storefront. Make sure you compare systems based on hardware and included software together.
Remember, your goal is to save money for 5 years, not this month. If you try to cheap it out, you’ll pay big.
Some people out there are going to hate this answer, and I wouldn’t buy one for the way I use computers, but…
If you are looking for a basic system, no planning on doing any component upgrade/replacement yourself, and want to be able to walk it back into the store and tell someone to make it work (ie, someone else gets to give the inevitable conflicts that will occur occasionally), I would suggest taking a look at your local office supply store, and see what they offer.
We bought a system for my SOs mother. She wanted to be able to send/recieve emails, do a little net surfing, and run computer games for the pre-teen grandkids.
She did NOT plan on changing any of the components, isn’t really up to a lot of mantainence on it, and isn’t planning on playing any graphics intensive games real soon.
The machines offered at the big-box office supply store were perfect. For under $1000 (USD) we were able to get her a computer (including a DVD reader and a CD burner), monitor, printer package that will cover her needs nicely for 5+ years. The convenience of being able to take it back to the store (open 7 days a week, including evenings) and having the store take care of repairs is wonderful for her.
The one thing I would watch out for (and the salespeople should be able to check on this) is combination boards. Some of the big names (like Dell) use boards that will have a combination of functions. Modem/sound card is the one I see the most. While it can save a little on upfront cost, it’s a pain in the butt if either part of the card ever gives out.
I just finished assembling my dream computer a few months back, and just recently finished researching/purchasing one for my girlfriend.
2 totally different ways to go, but both with their advantages.
- Doing it your damn self.
Pros - you cherrypick the parts you want. It can be very educational, and after all the research you have a good idea of how the damn things work. You can shop around for the best price on each part. (when I was looking to order my case, most places had it for $129, and I found a few for $119 or so. A few days I found a place (computerhq.com) that had if for $85! 
Cons - You have to put everything together, and if theres some kind of problem or something is defective, you may have problems. I had a bad stick of RAM, which I didn’t discover until I had assembled the computer 2 months later. By then I couldn’t return it. Installing the OS and troubleshooting can be a pain, if you don’t know what you’re doing.
- Buying from a store
Pros - You buy the thing, you plug it in, it works. There are some pretty good deals out there, and you can get a very nice machine for less then a grand. As long as you buy something decent you most likely won’t upgrade it so much that you run into problems with some of the stuff being proprietary. (Do you really plan on upgrading that motherboard in 4 years?)
Cons - You may get cheaped out on some of the components such as the power supply or the soundcard. They install tons of ads and “features” and bullshit programs you don’t need or want, and make it impossible to remove it.
My girlfriend ended up buying an HP from CompUSA, and she got a great deal. I could have assembled the same computer, (with a little better sound card and PSU ) for about $50 or so less. We decided in this particular case *that few bucks saved wasn’t worth the effort.
Thanks for the generous replies, all.
So among the points I gather are (please correct me if I’ve misinterpreted):
–Dell and Gateway, for all of their promotional dominance, aren’t resoundingly recommended (?)
–Building it piece-by-piece via an office supply/ generic PC store is the smartest way to go if I have the time/patience and want to be as thrifty as possible. Otherwise, places like CompUSA or Tiger Direct will still give me a decent deal, yes?
(One point I should’ve added to my ‘user profile’ is that I am one. Lazy. F–k. Take no pride innit; simply a fact. )
Dell has prices so cheap that upgradability is a non-issue. Just buy another one. Fro your very simple needs buy the cheapest one they have available (I just looked - $400, with a bunch of free “upgrades”). I don’t think the local computer shops could touch Dell’s volume discounts. Plus they have a warranty and won’t go out of business, like a bunch of local shops around here have.
And a bunch of my techie co-workers (I’m a programmer) have owned Gateway and Dell computers, and right now, proces are so cheap that building your own machine is no longer a matter or of price, but of performance, choice and geekiness.
Ah.
Well that certainly appeals to the lazy f–k in question.
I think that ftg gives the best advice, certainly if you don’t want to do build one yourself. There are usually local builders that could make up a nice system. The upgrade path is definately cheaper. That said, there is nothing wrong with Dell as compared to all the others. Also consider a laptop.
Based on that description, pretty much any 15-year-old, $85 computer you can buy from the salvage 800 companies listed in the back of computer magazines would do for you. A Macintosh IIci would do nicely, for instance. So would a 386-dx clone running Windows95 for that matter.
Another way of putting it: if that’s all you want it for, you’d have to work really really hard to find a computer being sold today that would fail to fit the bill. So you need to think about what other characteristics you want it to have. (If you don’t want or need it to do anything else, perhaps reliability, or warranty and service track record).
Get a Mac, then you can ignore the six million Windows viruses out there… like the one running around the net this week.
Consumer Reports recently ran some articles on computers, including a table of brands and their Repair Records. This is based on reports from their members, which is thousands more reports than any of the magazine or online sites. I’ve found it very trustworthy in the past.
Avoid eMachines like the plague. The computing equivalent of a Kia, without the 100,000 mile warranty.
I agree with the “find a local custom place” bit. You’ll get exactly what you pay for, and more importantly, exactly what you ask for. Personally, I find volume builders’ proprietary software mods to be the most annoying things in the universe.
I built my own system, but I wanted a top-end graphics system and couldn’t afford one any other way. I learned more than I’ve ever learned in three days, too.
You can also ignore the six million software packages available only for Windows. 
Thanks- I’ll have to look that up.
And many thanks to the more recent posters for their input. Gee, I’m really hoping rjung responds to Fear’s Windows-centric bait.
That’s funny, because in my six years as a tech I hate working on HP or Compaqs! Gateways are “just OK” and Dells are awesome to work on.
Were I you, I’d just buy the cheapest thing Dell’s got going - usually $399 after rebate - and I believe that they’re doing free shipping right now too. As others have said, you can’t really go wrong with a “build it yourself” or “have a local OEM do that for you” box, but with Dell’s pricing such as it is these days, I don’t recommend that route any more unless I know the end-user is a gamer or CAD monkey (or other demanding computer user).
I’d stay a mile away from Comcrap (Oops…mean Compaq) and e-machines.
When asked, where to buy a pre-built… I say Dell. I can’t compete with their prices.
I run a software company. We have used Gateway desktops for years and they work fine and have been reliable. I wouldn’t say they are any better than Dells from our perspective, but Gateway offered a better leasing program. Gateway laptops were a disaster and we now use Fujitsu. Our IT guys hate Compaq desktops because of how proprietary they are, but we do use Compaq servers.
For home, I have bought several Dells and been pleased. I bought one eMachines and will agree with the people who recommend against it.
There are issues with upgrading the lowest-end machines. Search the web for issues around adding a second hard drive to a Dell 2350, for example.
Also take into account what level of technical support you need. My friends and neighbors have had pretty good experiences with Dell and Gateway. If you build a PC yourself, you won’t get any technical support, but may not need it.
I loathe compaq computers. The ammount of pre-installed crap and advertising drove me to breaking the damn thing (really. smashy smashy!) If you’re looking for something simple, Dell has great computers for the same price. Avoid e-machines as well. Those are cheap because they suck, not because it’s a good deal.
I think some of the confusion over Compaq and HP (good or bad?) comes from the fact that there are different lines of product with wildly varying quality. I used to sell computers, retail and direct-to-business, and here’s my experience:
Compaq Deskpro (business line) - excellent machines, excellent reliability, pretty good compatability
Compaq Presario - total junk. Worse than E-machines. No compatability whatsovever.
HP doesn’t have their own brand of computers anymore, now that they merged with Compaq, but it used to be about the same with their lines of PC’s, but not quite to Compaq’s extreme. The business line was very good (not quite as good as Compaq Deskpro but close) and the home PC line (Pavilion) was crappy but not nearly as crappy as Presario.