If you build your own computer, do you actually save money?

Question

What are the disadvantages and advantages of building your own pc? And should I buy a prebuilt pc or build my own?

Answer 1

Personally I don't think it is worth it anymore.

This was true in the past, but with the inexpensive units out there and if yiou figure what you need to buy, you won't save money.

Just to buy a copy of windows for example a full version is close to $200.00. Heck you can get a whole pc for under $500.00.

Try adding Adobe photo shop, even the cheap version, and some cd/dvd writting software and your over $500.00.

Yes there are alot of free programs out there, but most don't do the job of name brand purchased software.

Gone are the days of borrowing someone else's copy of software and making a copy and using it. Authentication process used by most companies today make this impossible. It's illegal anyway, always has been.


Building your own if you are not sure what you are doing is also alot of work, if something does not work correctly, who are you going to call??

Even the most inexpensive pc's have some sort of warranty, and tech support.

I've built my own in the past and wouldn't do it again,(and I know that I'm doing).

You get so much free software with a pre made unit that that alone is a reason not to build your own.

Not worth it. Just buy one premade.

Answer 2

ok... if you build your own you have to buy all your parts... now depending on where you get parts from, if you get new, and pretty high end parts, you will usually be paying more that a big company like Alien Ware or HP would, but big companies will mark up the price, then retailers raise the price, really the only advantage of building a computer is that you can make it with specs that you want, for instance if you know you need a lot of hard drive space for storing stuff, you will put a large capacity hard drive, and maybe multiple high capacity hard drives, but if at the same time you know you don’t need much RAM cuz you run simple programs than you don’t have to add a lot of RAM, while a big company will assume that by you wanting a computer with a large hard drive you will need a lot of RAM, so you may save some money there... hope i helped.. good luck.. have any questions just message me.. yee

-shamar [give me 10.. 10 points!!]

Answer 3

Building your own lets you configure it the way that you want. Cost wise it is cheaper to buy a prebuilt system. Quality wise it is better to build it yourself. The real drwback to building is that not all parts are compatible, so you are better off starting with what is called a barebone system that has the case, mobo, and ram as a start, then add what you want for the rest. The drawback of buying prebuilt is that they are not always checked before they leave the factory. That is why you see so many refurbished computers available from Compaq, Dell, etc. My site below will show you how to build your own. Hope this helps and Happy New Year

Answer 4

I've built half a dozen or so computers, a couple cheap ones and a few high end ones, and one chrome water cooled gaming monster.
The answer is NO, you do not save money over preassembled systems. You cannot buy the individual parts in the bulks quanitities as cheap big retailers do. So you do pay more, not a whole lot more, but enough to be a concern.
The upside is that you get to build exactly what you want. You know your system inside and out, you can use all high quality parts. And, you get a nice feeling of accomplishment for doing something that a lot of folks can't/won't do.
But in the end, it is more expensive. I mainly do it because it's fun and i'm a gadget geek.

Answer 5

Building a computer is quite easy, you buy all the parts adn plug them together, its like lego. The parts only go in one way so its hard to stuff up. In terms of how much money you will save depends on the computer you buy. If you want a low end computer your probably better off getting a premade one from dell or hp and such. However if you want a performance computer for gaming or move editing, the big companys really try to rip you off with prices.

Answer 6

not always and it depends where u buy the parts too... but the better benefit isnt how much u save but in my opinion its the warranty. store warranties are limited and they usually suck... buying parts separatly usually ocmes with company warranty which lasts longer and more coverage. thats an advantage. also u could save money just dont cheep out on anything or ull get cheep parts. disadvantages of building ur own computer are that theres always the risk of frying ur parts by shokcing them rendering them useless but only during the process of putting it together

Answer 7

It depends on what you put into it. The real advantage is that you can customize it completely and you don't have to pay out everything at once. The disadvantage is that if you take too long, some components might be substandard by the time the whole project is completed. Also, if there's a problem with putting it together you might not find out right away, and you won't have anyone to take it to.

Answer 8

you can save a fortune if you know of places that sell their parts cheap, and know what you are doing.

One major reason to build your own is to avoid all the 'extra bonus software' that companies bundle onto your machine, such as 5 toolbars, 2 virus scanners and 2 games that have spy ware in them (thanks gateway! you know i love you). A copy of XP is cheap as chips, and the rest of the software you can get for free anyways.

But seriously, and this is coming from a guy who has built at least 200 computers over 5 years for people, do not overlook places like dell, hp and ibm. You can save yourself a lot of money at times going this route if you buy a base machine, and then customize it yourself later.

I always recommend that people buy an old computer off eBay, for approx $50. Then play with it till you are comfortable pulling out expansion boards and ram etc, reconfiguring the layouts of these boards, and just generally learn what you are doing. Then you can make as many mistakes as you want without risking your savings. Once you are happy, go out and do it for real.

There is nothing more satisfying then seeing something you built run for months on end without a glitch. My record is 1year 2months without a reboot or power down on one machine i built

Answer 9

I said once it is cheaper until you start over buying the best stuff to put in it, ( but if you had someone put all the same stuff in, it would cost twice as much ) so yes you do save a Lot of money
go to new egg .com and Tiger Direct .com and look around there for info and parts
plus you know how it works and YOU can fix it yourself, and you get a much better computer by building it from scratch..

good luck
smile

Answer 10

All my boxes since '94 have been white box. I'll never buy a "name-brand". I want only what I need in my computer, not a lot of nebulous BS that's gonna clutter it up and slow it down.