I need to get a new desktop computer. Last couple of times I did that, I went to the friendly neighborhood computer geeks and they set up a system for me. But I wasn’t happy with the service I got the last time, and I’m wondering if that’s how people do it nowadays.
So, find a new friendly neighborhood geek, go to Costco, go to Fryes, buy online? Ideas?
Unless you are wanting some sort of high end gaming computer, they are pretty much commodities these days. The last 3 I bought, I just purchased online in the configuration that best suited me.
The way I see it, if you (not you, specifically) have to ask your ‘friend that knows a lot about computers’ for help picking one out, you likely don’t need anything special. If all you do is check your mail, a few message boards and daze in and out of sleep with youtube playing, just about anything from Best Buy is fine. Pick one out for $500-$700ish and you’ll probably be fine.
I’d still recommend getting the bottom of the line junk, and if you start getting over a grand, you’re looking at gaming systems that the average computer user doesn’t need.
And, to make it even easier, most things that you’ll need for today and to future proof you a bit are going to be standard. Most (all?) computers are going to be able to handle gigabit ethernet, they’re going to have Terabyte hard drives, or close to it, they’re going to be able to handle the graphics that youtube/netflix/hulu will require. About the only thing off the top of my head that you’ll want to keep an eye on is the amount of ram they come with.
So, yeah, that’s my general advice to people. If you have to ask me, just go to Best Buy with $600 and find one that looks pretty.
If you’re gaming or running it as a server or using memory or CPU intensive programs, that’s different.
I bought 2 at best buy and 1 online over the last 12 years. I was happy with all 3 purchases (the first one I bought in 2007 and it still works).
On line from the Apple store. It was delivered that evening.
I go to my friendly neighborhood computer geek brother and have him build it for me. He knows what all the high end parts are and how they fit together, so when I do get the itch to game then by god the machine will game.
Try MicroCenter.
As a PC guy, I agree, though I would stay away from no-name unbranded PCs (*). Go for a major brand like Dell, HP, or Intel. My mother loves her Intel NUC box, for example - it’s so small.
If you want a PC to run games or do special processing, then it’s a whole different ballgame.
Of course, if you do go to an assembler, you can get some gorgeous cases like the Streacom DB4 - a snip at £270 :).
My last three computers (all laptops-- as a freelancer, I need to be mobile), I went to the Dell website and designed them exactly as I wanted them in every particular where I had a choice.
What are you going to use it for? If it’s browsing and Internet, it doesn’t matter terribly much. Newegg and Amazon are probably alright. If you want high performance, you may want to build it yourself (even if it’s a little scary the first time).
I buy used/reconditioned from eBay.
This is what I do as well. I recommend it.
Maybe 3 years ago, when I went shopping for desktop computers at Best Buy, some of the models (Acer?) had a tamper-evident seal on the case, saying the warranty would be void if the case were opened. I asked one of the pimply-faced clerks what was the point of having a tower if you couldn’t open the case, he didn’t see who would ever want to do that…
I ended up ordering a custom PC from Lenovo, with the desired number of expansion slots, room for additional hard disks and eSATA and a full-size empty bay for my Blu-Ray burner. Oh, and a serial port, just because I could. 
I’m still happy with it.
I’ve had very good experiences with Tiger Direct refurbs. Clean OS installs, great condition, awesome bargains. Don’t even think about getting anything other than an SSD. Remove the leading [m.] for the desktop site:
http://m.tigerdirect.com/applications/campaigns/deals.asp?CampaignID=3331
I used to do the Dell refurbished store. Get the most bang for the buck. Now my neighborhood computer geeks are two of my sons. They build themselves top of the line gaming systems about every other year. I get their hand me downs.
What I’ve learned is the monitor is more important than the hardware specs. As said upthread, unless a gaming or other specific hardware intensive purpose is desired, most any off the shelf system is fine. Monitor specs is where the user interface is important.
What should a person look for in a monitor?
I like bigger is better. With the higher resolution in the graphic cards, the text and icons are getting harder to read as my age goes up. The 17" monitors at work are a real eye strain. At home I run a 24" display at about 3 feet distance. I recline in my chair unless I’m typing. At work I can’t. At work I also take advantage of the systems that have two monitors if I’m doing any work beyond [del]web browsing[/del] email.
Geeks. They’re called geeks.
:rolleyes:
I’m thinking about replacing an older 22" monitor that has max resolution of 1650x1050. I’m looking at ones that are 24" widescreen ones or larger and possibly a 4K monitor. Some are HDR. Is that worthwhile in a computer monitor? Because you can spend $200 or you can spend $1200. There’s a huge amount of variation.
I bought my last two laptops at Costco. Good price and good machines for what I do with them.