My fiancé’s parents decided that they wanted a computer for Christmas. They just want to be able to check email and print out labels and addresses on envelopes. Her mom insists on a flat screen monitor.
I’m a pretty computer savvy guy, but in the interest of not spending more than is necessary, I turn to you guys for advice.
What is the smallest MHZ processor that they sell right now? I’m thinking that they could do everything they want to on any old 486, but they don’t sell those new anymore.
What is a good company that sells a comp/monitor/printer combo? I looked into dell, but it seems that you have to buy all the components separately. The cheapest flat screen they had for sale was about $250. I bought my 19" flat screen at Best Buy for under $200, which makes me wonder how much the rest of their stuff is over priced.
Any other advice on a new computer that doesn’t require much processing power?
I’m going to keep researching, but any advice would be appreciated.
If you can afford it, an entry-level Apple iMac goes for $999. Outwardly, it’s nothing more than a thick 17" LCD monitor - the entire computer is behind the screen.
Before you think that’s expensive, keep in mind that you’re setting yourself up to be their dedicated help desk by giving them a computer, and I guarantee they’ll drive you nuts with questions about things like viruses and spyware - two things that just don’t exist in the Mac world.
Well, in related advice, I’d suggest buying the platform you’re the most familiar with. Even though I’ve used Macs a fair amount, I am far from fluent on them. If I bought one for my dad, there’s no way I’d be able to provide support for it.
That said, assuming you’re going for a Windows machine, Dell has some decent enough options for around $500. Without doing any customizing, their E521 has two packages available right out of the box, the ‘Enhanced Multimedia’ and ‘Versatile Multimedia’.
I’d recommend the ‘Enhanced Multimedia’ package (the ‘Versatile’ comes with too little memory, IMHO), which is quoted on their site as $619. The ‘Enhanced’ is at $479. Both of those come with a flat-panel monitor.
I customized the ‘Enhanced’ to have 1 Gig of memory, which brought the price up to $534.
They have printers available, but they are way too expensive. You can find a decent printer at your local Staples. They’ll probably have a decent HP deskjet for between 70-120 dollars, depending on the model.
Oh, and the reason why I suggest 1Gig of memory is that I think Windows XP will run less than optimally without it.
Those suggestions also assume that what you said is truly all they’ll want that computer to do. No DVD burner, integrated audio and video, etc etc etc.
I am worried about become their tech support, but I already serve that role for my own parents, why not my in-laws as well?
I have nothing against the iMac except my vast cavern of ignorance about it. If I get the IL’s a windows machine, at least one of us will know what is going on with it.
If they want burned DVD’s or anything else, it would be easier for me to just do it for them than to explain it. I’m pretty sure they’ll just want to email, print and do some web browsing.
The cheapest way to do this would be to build your own by doing the shopping at newegg.com and/or your local PC wholesale fair.
But I would think twice on doing this when ti comes to getting it for someone else you’ll be expected to help. Last time I built a PC for a friend we went from hanging out once a month or so to me coming over every week because of his PC. The guy was computer illiterate and he needed help with the most mundane and easy of tasks, not only that but his brothers managed to do unbelievable things to that PC, I was astounded. One time I found several crayons and a pencil INSIDE the case. The case had NO opening large enough to allow these things inside and the case was supposedly locked. Poor PC
So yeah, I recommend you go with a brand name on this one. Dell and gateway both have cheap and very decent machines available that will include Tech service and a warranty. I’d recommend going AMD right now as the prices are very low on their dual-cores and compare prices on upgrades with the same component on newegg.com. It might be cheaper to get a PC with no RAM/Hardrive and buy RAM seperately than to spend an extra $100+ for an upgrade from the manufacturer.
As For viruses/spyware this is just part of the cost of buying a PC nowadays. Even with the price of some good virus/firewall/spyware software you’ll come out good over a mac in terms of price. Mac people pay a premium for other aspects of those machines which might/might not be important to you or your in-laws.
Some recommendations:
CPU: dual core is not necessary and might be overkill for emailing/web surfing but you can’t beat the responsiveness/crispness of the UI on a dual-core. And their cheap! (intel and AMD have introductory models, AMD’s are cheaper now IIRC).
At least a gig of RAM is required now a days for smooth operation.
Hardrive space will depend on whether they plan to use the machine as a multimedia platform. I would still recommend getting either two internal or one internal and one external drive for backup purposes.
Also, you probably already know this, but automate everything. My mom would never efrag, check for spyware/viruses, check the hardrive on her own. So I tell her to leave the computer on overnight on saturday and I have the system do all these tasks overnight then.
I’d insist on one, too. They’re pretty cheap (seriously, 17 inches is fine, why bother with 19?), they are sharper and run much cooler, not to mention that they take up much less space on whatever desktop you are using.
The only drawback to them is that they look the sharpest at their “native” resulution and not quite as sharp at others. Not really a big deal, though. A 17" monitor at 1280x1024 or 1024x760 looks fine for what they need it to do, and you can always increase font and icon size if they are having trouble.
I’d echo going with a Dell or HP package deal (computer + printer) and buying the printer separate. Avoid Lexmark printers (which is what most Dell printers are, just rebranded Lexmarks)
That’s the whole idea. After you tell them “Oh, I’m sorry but I don’t know. Why don’t you call Apple’s tech support?” a couple times, they should stop bugging you for help.
Just got a flyer from Walmart and they have some pretty cheap, but not bad, laptops for sale that have the basics without all the bells and whistles.
Laptop would be perfect for them…they can just fold it away when they aren’t using it, most are pretty easy to turn on and turn off, maybe splurge and get them an external mouse and keyboard - and printers can be bought for pennies.
Plus, I think laptops seem less intimidating for people who know nothing about computers - they look like “fancy typewriters”, and if you think about it, that is all they really want.
I agree with DMark about getting a laptop. No setting up cables and more space efficient than a desktop. I wouldn’t bother with a separate keyboard, but get a wireless mouse (preferably optical), and they can plonk it down anywhere to use it.
Another consideration is your parents’ age/health. I helped my mother buy a desktop PC a 3 years ago. Lately her health has declined and she has mobility problems (not surprising at 81 y.o.), so this crimbo she’s getting a laptop that she can keep beside her, instead of having to struggle into the chair at her computer desk.
Thanks for the suggestions. I didn’t really consider a laptop, but that might be the way to go. Yes, a fancy typewriter is all they really want.
I agree that a 17" flatscreen would be fine and much cheaper (from what I’ve seen) than a 19". But, the MIL insists on the 19" so I guess that’s what it will be if we get them a desktop computer.
I would like to get them a Mac and be able to wipe my hands of the customer service, but that just isn’t going to happen.
