I’m a senior citizen and aside from TV watching and book reading I like to have me some Internet-browsing and game-playing regularly, but my eight-year-old computer has developed a steady yowl and seems about to give up the ghost and quit on me. What suggestion could you offer to help me through this – where should I go to learn about and look for another suitable computer?
Many thanks for any help.
MizQuirk
What sort of game playing are we talking about? Windows Solitaire or brand new cutting edge stuff?
Should we assume Windows?
And do you prefer a laptop or desktop?
Would a desktop computer fit your needs, or do you prefer something portable?
Do you have a price range in mind?
Do you have specific examples of what you mean by “games”?
Is eyesight an issue? Would you benefit from a very large monitor? (Though I think we all could…)
Some choices you’d make are:
Windows of Mac: If you currently use Windows, you’re probably better off staying with it.
CPU: can’t go wrong with Intel Core series, Core-i7 is high end, i5 is next tier down, i3 is pretty decent mid-range. Anything less (Pentium, Celeron, Atom) are low-power or budget processors, they are OK depending on your use. AMD’s Ryzen processors are really nice but I don’t know much about their low-end processors.
Memory: 8GB is reasonable. If you have to ask if you need more, you probably don’t.
Storage: SSD (solid state drive) is the best thing to happen to the PC industry since the flat-screen display. It’s significantly faster and more reliable than the old-fashioned hard drive, though they are smaller capacity and more expensive. Unless you have hundreds of gigabytes of stuff to store on your computer, get a computer with SSD if at all possible. In fact, even if you do have hudnreds of gigs of data, you should buy a computer with SSD as a primary drive, and add an external hard drive for storage.
Graphics: Most PCs have graphics integrated into the CPU (Intel HD Graphics), and this is OK for web browsing, word processing, etc. “Discrete” graphics like Nvidia GTX and AMD Radeon give you smoother performance for games and graphics-intensive applications.
Display: I always look for IPS displays, which is a type of LCD display panel. It gives you better contrast and wider view angle than the cheaper and more common TN LCD. Beyond that, it’s just a matter of choosing the size and resolution. 1080p (1920x1080) is common and probably adequate for most people. Though if you are buying a larger monitor, say 26" or larger, you would benefit from higher resolution - WQHD (2560x1440) or even 4k (3840x2160).
That’s about it.
Do you have any idea what the specs of your old computer were and was it filling your needs?
If and only if you are not hung in the Micro$oft world, here is a suggestion. (I’ve been using these computers for at least four years.)
Raspberry Pi Model 3 - $35. Add $160 for a power supply for the Pi, monitor, keyboard, and pointing device if you want them (but your old ones might work just as well). The computer is sightly larger than a standard pack of filter cigarettes. It provides wired and WiFi connections for Internet, as well as Bluetooth Low Energy for things like keyboards, but also has four USB connectors for wired stuff; the video interface is HDMI. The operating system is on a Secure Digital chip, with applications, data space, etc. You can get 128GB SD cards for less than $50, and you’re not likely ever to want more than that; all of my SD cards are either 32GB or 64GB, and I’ve never had a storage space problem. (Unless you buy an external disk drive there’s never going to be any noise made by the computer.)
No, it’s not Windoze. But that’s a huge plus in my opinion and experience. Download the NOOBS (New Out Of Box Software) from https://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/noobs/, choose a distribution, transfer the OS to the SD card, plug it in, connect peripherals, power up, and literally within minutes you can be in business.
You can order RP and accessories from https://www.adafruit.com/product/3055. There are also bundles available from many sources like http://www.newark.com/raspberry-pi/raspberrypi3-modb-1gb/sbc-raspberry-pi-3-mod-b-1gb-ram/dp/77Y6520.
Yes, it requires some technical understanding, especially for transferring the OS to the SD card.
I don’t think that anyone who asks for help choosing a computer is in the target market for a Raspberry Pi based solution, which requires considerable technical knowledge, not just in finding and installing the software, but also finding the necessary hardware components and building the machine.
I would raise the question of whether a tablet would meet the OP’s needs. A tablet can certainly do web browsing and (some) games, which is all the OP said he needs.
This advice can be safely ignored, MizQuirk. It’s completely wrong for your needs.
Or maybe a Chromebook if the gaming needs are minimal?
Open the case and see if you can locate the origin of the noise. It’s likely either the PSU or the CPU. Chances are one of the fans has stopped working, probably because of dust. If you see lots of dust, get a can of compressed air and blow that dust away. DO NOT use a vacuum cleaner as that can result in a static discharge. And keep a finger on the CPU fan when you are cleaning it. DO NOT open up the PSU; there are dangerous currents inside, so just blow air through it.
If all that fails and you don’t need a GPU, take a look at the Intel NUC boxes.
Those things are nice and compact, but rather expensive for what they are. And Intel only sells them as barebones, so you have to install memory, storage & software yourself, or buy from a third-party vendor who assembles them.
Unless you are very short on desk space, I think you are better off with a conventional desktop PC.
Others have hinted at this, but I’ll come out and say it: What sort of price range are you looking at? Even without going to the Raspberry Pi extreme, you can get a fully-functional, low-maintenance chromebook for a couple hundred bucks, which might (depending on what you mean by “games”) suit your purposes. On the other hand, if you’ve got money to burn, you could easily drop thousands on a top-end rig.
Luckily, this is not a problem.
Just easy-peasy stuff like Solitaire and Free Cell
Yes, Windows. Don’t know desk top or lap top.
No and Yes.
No no – not money to burn but a couple hundred would be okay. I want to connect with bank for bill-pay, library for book renewal, etc.
This deal makes me wish I was in the market for a laptop:
[tigerdirect item 40940833](http:// m.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6379871&srkey=40940833)
It’s refurbished but I’ve had good luck with TigerDirect refurb items.
Is it being a portable device important to you - can sit on the couch* and use it, take it with you on a trip etc?
*Edit: I’ve literally no idea if couch is the right word in the US