Time to buy a new PC

[Fierce Critter]

We're finally in a position to afford a new PC. We're going for something with at least a 40 GB hard drive, 2 GHz processor, 256 MB RAM, and Windows XP Pro. There are other bells and whistles we're interested in, but those are the basics we're basing our purchase on.

We are pretty brand-loyal to HP - our current PC is a 5-year old Pavilion and we have never had a single problem with it. Matter of fact, just about every peripheral we have is HP, and we have nothing but good stories about all of it.

But the current, new models they have with our minimum requirements are about $150 out of range of what we'd like to pay. So we're branching-out our options.

We don't mind an older model HP. We are also open to other brands now, as well as custom-builds (with warranties).

Thusfar, we've looked at HP's website & Ebay. Visited Staples, Best Buy & Circuit City. Some definite possibilities on Ebay. But we won't actually have the cash for a few weeks.

We're seriously considering making up a spreadsheet "wishlist" to take to a computer show coming to Raleigh December 18-19th, showing it to dealers and asking them what they can do at what price.

If anyone has any suggestions for other places to look, I very much appreciate the input.

[Fierce Critter]

Nevermind. Jon remembered he gets a decent Chri$tma$ Bonu$, so we'll add that to the funds we already had allotted and get ourselves a sweet HP package deal.

[gothicmom]

Dell usually has great deals this time of year.....We are VERY happy with out DellS. Never had any serious problems with them.

[torn asunder]

techbargains.com is where i just ordered my dell laptop from... there's a link to "coupons" on the front page, which is where they list all the deals everyone is running. also, i saw a tv commercial today for a dell desktop that was $499 after rebates, with a free cd burner upgrade, and free shipping...

[Fierce Critter]

Thanks for the tip, TA.

Now that we realize we'll have the fund$ available, we're going to go with the HP.

Too damned bad we don't have the ca$h on hand right now. Just got a Wal-Mart paper in my mailbox - they have just the system we want on sale this Friday for $498. It's a Pavilion a705w-b, Celeron-D processor 2.93 Ghz, 256 MB DDRSDRAM, 40GB hard drive, CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive, front panel 9-in-1 memory card reader, plus a 16-inch viewable flat CRT monitor.

Doesn't say what operating system is on it, though. And we're pretty set on Windows XP-pro.

Closer to Christmas, I know Circuit City will have a similar deal, though. So no biggie.

[nodrew]

I'm sure it comes with XP Home. Most retail computers do.

Watch out for the $499 Dells. They usually only have 10 gig hard drives and 128mb RAM. That's how they can afford to put that P4 inside. That and the P4s they use are the 2 year old ones that they pick up from Intel cheap, that even the cheapest current AMDs can beat hands down.

Unfortunately, if you want a Dell that has the same power as most, "more expensive" computers, you'll end up spending almost the same amount of money.

Custom building through a company like Dell or even through HP's website is about the only way you're gonna get XP Pro on a retail level computer without purchasing the upgrade version.

[Fierce Critter]

I'm actually not interested in a Dell at all. Some people suggested them, but we've had such good luck with everything HP, we just don't care to change.

Wal-Mart has another system I didn't see in the brochure. An HP Pavilion a735w-b with 17-inch flat monitor. Comes with AMD Athlon XP3000 processor, 512 MB DDR SDRAM memory (64 MB shared video), 80 GB hard drive, DVD+RW drive, 9-in-1 memory card reader. $598.00. Unfortunately, we won't have the $$ this Friday.

Hopefully there will be other deals like this closer to Christmas. The shop waited until after Christmas to give out the bonus checks last year, though. That could mess up our chances of any holiday deals, unless I can move my budget around to have cash available before then. That's always a risk, however. You never know with this company how much they're going to give the guys - and there's always that possibility they won't give them a penny.

[Ginevra]

Remember, too, many business will be looking to liquidate stock the week after Christmas/before the New Year. You may still get the deal you're after or, better yet, a better one than what you're eyeing now.

[Fierce Critter]

Good tip.

I think one deal we were interested in last year actually might have come AFTER Christmas. As I recall, we already had Jon's bonus money, and it was at Circuit City.

Only problem with places like that is, the "savings" actually comes in the form of a mail-in rebate. So even if you can afford a $500 package, you have to shell out $800 and wait for the $300 to come back. Not sure we'll be able to work it that way.

[nodrew]

One trick around that is to get their no interest financing deal, most places have it for at least 90 days, pay what you have into it and use the rebate money when you get it in two months to pay off the rest. Thus getting your computer and building credit at the same time

[Fierce Critter]

Unfortunately, though we sold the house we ended up not being able to afford last year and avoided foreclosure entirely, the situation still destroyed our credit.

We could try for that, but I'm 90% sure we'll be turned down, if not laughed at hysterically when they see our credit score.

Nevertheless, it IS an option that I hadn't thought of, and I very much appreciate the idea. Thanks!

[gothicmom]

It's worth a try....you never know

[Shade Everdark]

One other place you might want to look is Slick Deals. They sometimes have some great computer bargains, though most of them are Dell.

There is a mix of the kind of computer Drew was talking about, with stripped down hard disk and RAM memory, but they also have some better deals that aren't as obvious on their website. Worth a look at least.

Also, if there are any local computer shops in your area, you can usually put together a pretty respectable system for under $500. It won't be bleeding edge, but it will almost certainly stand you in good stead for a long time (a long time as far as computers go, anyway).

[Dubh Aingeal]

Could also take a look here http://www.compgeeks.com/

[Dubh Aingeal]

Here is another place you can check out and configure your own pc...

http://www.kaospcs.com

[Fierce Critter]

Once again, we changed our mind.

We have our eyes on the Michigan prize big time these days. We decided to not spend the $$ on a computer and put it in our moving fund instead.

If things work out for us the way we're anticipating, we'll be making better $$ in Michigan anyway, and will be able to afford a new system not long after moving.

We're just going to limp along on this one for now. Maybe invest about $50 into some more RAM off Ebay and some high-quality CD-R's we can use to free up some hard disk space.

I will refer back to this thread when the time comes, so I still very much appreciate all the input offered.

[cthulhu63]

I'm also looking for a computer, for a friend. Her needs are pretty simple, so I don't need much. All she wants it for is word-processing. A cheap 486 would work. Anyone know of a good used computer place where I can get a dirt cheap system?

[Fierce Critter]

Ebay always works. If you want to avoid shipping costs, check out the classified ads, or if you're downriver (or St. Clair Shores), there are great vendors at Gibraltar Trade Center.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

Thats an interesting take on HP. "never had a problem". The company i used to work for National Tech Team (now TechTeam Global) did all the home user 1st level phone support for HP for several years, from our end it seemed like they where constantly installing notiriously failure-prone parts to be able to get their systems out the door cheap.

Not to say there were no happy hp customers, just semed like HP was (at the time) the Value-Village of pc makers, the bottom line was the concern, not reliablity. I've read that they have changed their act in recent years though.

Most people that know me, seem to assume that im the "pc hacker" type and that i wouldnt buy a brand name compuer, nor would i encourage anyone to buy one, but would build the thing myself from custom parts and encourage others to do so also. I used to always build my stuff myself but, Bleh, not anymore. Did that shit for a living for too long. Less headaches if you buy a pre-built system, and if it breaks, its THEIR problem not yours to figure out whats wrong and i can bitch to them not at myself. =D

You never really listed why you need to upgrade specificlly. You mostly just use the computer for internet access correct? Current system to slow for that?

If and when you do revisit the new computer issue, if you have your heart set on HP that will cut down on a lot of the confusion that many buyers have. HP only has so many different models, ya just pick one , pick some options that you want and then poof... your done (to over simplify)

[Fierce Critter]

You never really listed why you need to upgrade specificlly. You mostly just use the computer for internet access correct? Current system to slow for that?

We use it for a lot more. I do a tidy amount of graphics work, and we both have gotten into some gaming, though barely a drop in an ocean compared to a lot of people here.

Also, I'd like to be able to use complex music-related programs like various digital instruments, and someday, ProTools. No way in hell to do that on this old clunker.

Some programs we want to use now just won't work on this system. Part of the problem is the "come with" aspect of the older HP Pavilions. The video driver on here just can't cut it. For instance, the morph program I used to create my avatar? The only reason I was able to do that is because our laptop kicks this PC's ass. The PC couldn't run the program - the laptop could.

Our current hard drive is at capacity. I've cleared off some MP3's, and freed up a GB, but it's only a matter of time before we fill that again. At 10 GB, we want to at least double that, and preferably go to 40 GB.

We only have 64 RAM. Definitely need at least double that. Preferably go up to about 256.

And the 533 Mhz processor just doesn't cut it for us anymore.

If and when you do revisit the new computer issue, if you have your heart set on HP that will cut down on a lot of the confusion that many buyers have. HP only has so many different models, ya just pick one , pick some options that you want and then poof... your done (to over simplify)

Right. You start with their basic system, and then can add options for more $$, or downgrade options or eliminate them altogether and subtract $$ from the base price. It's quite buyer-friendly.

Our 6635 Pavilion is going on 6 years old now. The only problems we had were self-inflicted (viruses, etc) or parts failures due to things like lightning taking out the modem (we easily replaced it and now unplug the phone lines during storms).

Even though E machines are cheaper, and Dells have a better reputation, I'm hard pressed to switch due to my personal experience with HP, and would highly recommend them to anyone who asked.

[TheLordShaper]

Or with anything HP related you can just ask me since I head up the Mid-Michigan marketing and sales team for their US consumers sales division through my employer. That is not an open invite for tech support to everybody but if you want any advice on HP related gear, PC, ipods, ipaqs, cameras whatever, msg me and ill be happy to assist. Besides FC, I owe you for all the help on the kittie! BTW, Troy, HP has most certainly cleaned up their act in the past few years. You be hard pressed to tell the guts of an hp from most custom builders out their as HP uses no proprietary components anymore. They also are currently the world leader in PC systems only slightly ahead of deal. We also have the highest rated customer service score of any pre-built manufacture and the strongest customer loyalty due mainly in part I’m sure to satisfied customers. Remember, people that have a bad experience are 10 times more likely to say anything then those that have a good one.

~TLS