Is this computer worth the money?

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

My company is selling off some of their older computers for $200. I’ve been looking to pick up a desktop since my laptop is over 5 years old now.

It’s an HP Compaq Pro 6300 Business PC
Here are the specs:

One of these two processors:
Intel® Core™ i5-3570 Processor
Up to 3.8 GHz Max. Turbo Frequency (3.4 GHz base frequency)
6 MB cache, 4 cores, 4 threads
Intel HD Graphics 2500
Supports DDR3 memory up to 1600 MT/s data rate
Intel’s Stable Image Platform Program (SIPP)

Intel® Core™ i5-3470 Processor
Up to 3.6 GHz Max. Turbo Frequency (3.2 GHz base frequency)
6 MB cache, 4 cores, 4 threads
Intel HD Graphics 2500
Supports DDR3 memory up to 1600 MT/s data rate
Intel’s Stable Image Platform Program (SIPP)

4GB Memory

465GB HDD

Windows 7 Pro, 64 bit

I’m not look at it for gaming or anything, mainly for running Photoshop and linking up movies to my Xbox.

So is that a good deal for $200 or should I look elsewhere?

#2

Some of that isn’t too bad. The CPU is previous generation Intel Core (Ivy Bridge), but not bad. But there’s not much memory (especially if it’s running a modern 64-bit OS) and the “Intel HD Graphics 2500” part means that it’s using the somewhat limited graphics capability in the Intel Core i5 processor itself. That’s adequate for “office productivity” type stuff, but I’m not sure about streaming video (HD video, at least). And only I wonder if Photoshop would want more memory than the 4 gig you show there.

Essentially, the machines you’re showing there look like midgrade office productivity desktops.

#3

I didn’t notice in time for the edit that you’re going to be streaming media to a Xbox rather than rendering it directly through the PC’s own display system. That reduces the burden on the performance of that integrated video in the CPU. I still wonder if 4 gig of RAM is enough, considering that video memory for the system’s display is coming out of it (Intel integrated video swipes video memory from system memory).

#4

It’s a good deal.

The processor is worth >$200 alone.

#5

Those are more like what most companies would be calling “new” pcs, not old ones they are clearing out. Not significantly slower than even the best new computers, and certainly reasonable for the price. 4GB ram is fine, only less than that really causes issues.

#6

Yeah, I’ll probably pick up some extra memory and upgrade to 8 Gb (should only set me back $50)

#7

I’ve got a laptop with an Ivy Bridge i3, HD graphics 2500, and 4GB of RAM. It streams HD video without any problem at all. Picking up extra RAM probably isn’t a bad idea if you’ll be doing heavy photoshop work, but you shouldn’t need it for streaming HD video.

#8

Good deal, actually. I expected worse. The video is crap; should get a PCI-E if you ever did game, and strongly consider getting one anyway. Not top of the line, but then it’s used. It’s older but not terribly old.

NB: That HD is sold as a 500 Gb hard drive, but it’s really 465 useable. It’s because gigabytes and gibibytes are different things. Every HD manufacturer uses GB or 10[sup]9[/sup] bytes and not GiB or 2[sup]30[/sup] because it looks better on paper.

#9

That is a good deal. I’d make sure it has a PCI-e socket you can plug a graphics card in to. I’d also check on how the RAM is configured : if all the slots are full, upgrading it will be a PITA.

Most likely only 2 of the 4 memory slots are populated, so you would be able to easily (and very cheaply) add another 8 gigs of RAM (just slot in 2 4gb modules in the other 2 slots).

12 gigs is about what you need for today’s applications. I’d consider putting in another 16 gigs just to be on the safe side.

A nice graphics card will require you to upgrade the PSU, probably.

And you’ll want an SSD if you want a fast computer.

All told, this is another $590 or so put into it. (about $100 for a decent PSU, $150 for the SSD, $200 for a mid-range gfx card, and $140 for 16 gigs more memory)

I mean, you don’t have to spend that much, but that’s what it takes to get a computer capable of doing everything as quick as modern tech will allow.

#10

As for whether it’s a good deal for those specs: Yes. As for what a computer with those specs can do: Aside from some gaming, pretty much everything.

It shouldn’t have any problem streaming HD, or running Photoshop, or really 99% or what you throw at it. And unless you plan on running them all at once, 4 gigs of ram should be plenty for essentially all modern desktop software.