how do i pick out the best desktop computer for my famalies needs?

Question

I have a wife and 2 teenagers who use the pc all the time. our old pc is several years old and they are always complaining how slow it is. they say we need one that takes a graphics card and all this other stuff that i dont know anything about. I need to know the best and cheapest to fit all our needs. Also where to get one.

Answer 1

The best way to get exactly what you want for the cheapest, is to talk to a computer builder. If you buy from dell, hp, or any other major company, you will be paying HUGE mark-ups for a computer that you can get cheaper. I build computers, so if you want I will be more than happy to help you out.

Thanks,
Charlie
COMPUTERS, ETC.
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Answer 2

depending on what you already have, it may be cheaper to upgrade the video card and the RAM. This makes a huge difference on some computers. If you buy a new PC, you should always get the biggest and fastest you can afford, only because they become out dated so quickly. Up until amonth ago or so, I ran a 1.8 ghz with 512 ram and 128 video, ran great with xp. Not, I have new pc with 2.0 ghz, 1GB RAM and 256 expandable video,I am running Vista now, and I think my xp was faster. It is not as pretty, but it does the job. Vista is a resource hog and XP works well on small systems and really cranks on a juiced up system. Good luck.

Answer 3

Shop around your local electronics stores and compare. Stay away from Celeron and Sempron processors. These are cheap processors and will be slow due to have low cache memory. Buy new and spend the extra on the warranty, it will save you when needed. You can never have enough RAM so shoot as high as can be with this, nothing lower than 2GB as this will keep your system from being slow. If you are using dial up for your internet connection then it will always be slow no matter what system you have. Check out an HP a1730n, should run about $800 with the extra warranty.

Answer 4

Head over to dell.com and check out what they have along with your kids. Have your kids pick the features that they might be interested in such as graphics cards, software such as Microsoft Works, etc. You'll get an idea of how much a custom computer will be.

Write down what features your kids picked and shop around for those features at your local computer dealer. Or you can just simply get one at dell. I personaly thinkg they have great prices.
I recomend something with an Intel® CoreTM 2 Duo and lots of memory (anything above 1G). Large Hard Drive for music storage and videos. CD Burner for music cds, files, etc. As to internet speed, I think you shold also consider a high speed internet service if you havent already.

Answer 5

reddog,
This is a excellent PC for your needs, it's the first one on the page. Good Luck