Basic desktop PC sought @ around $500 - Realistic?

seanbaussie on 22/01/2013 - 18:21

Hi,

Looking around for a low priced dekstop pc which is primarily for my kids to play on, do their emails, homework (ppt presentations / word docs), web surf - so doesn't need to be anything special.
The one more intensive task I undertake is a little bit of video editing of home videos - so needs to have a reasonable processor + a firewire port.

There's limited space on the desk so small form factor would be good - though not essential, and would look for a cheap 20" monitor to go with it.
I've got a copy of winXP but wouldn't mind upgrading to win7 64bit.

Saw this one - http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/91651 - which works out to be about $600 with an extra 4GB RAM (and without firewire, didn't price that), would prefer closer to $500.

Any ideas?

Computing

Comments

  • _Bruce_ on 22/01/2013 - 18:47
    +2

    At that price point it is hard to get Firewire (1394) included, so consider this:

    http://www.scorptec.com.au/computer/46828-at-cpevfw

    With the screen included it is hard to get to your price. Honestly though, you are not going to benifit too much from the extra RAM. Most applications are still 32bit and can only access 2GB or 4GB (depending) of RAM anyway.

    If you were to upgrade anything that would help it would be:
    - Upgrade to G645 or similar
    - Upgrade to SSD
    - Upgrade to i3

    Note that SSD upgrades won't be listed anywhere at this price point, so you will either need to fit it yourself or negotiate (like firewire).

    Final Note: I expect others to also comment that these systems are worthless and you need to for an i7 with 16GB of RAM. This isn't really true. For basic home video editing these systems will work reasonably well.

    • scrimshaw on 22/01/2013 - 18:49
      +1

      You can buy a Firewire card for $10 to $15 bucks from eBay, with free shipping.
      Try these two

      As for the monitor, a 21 to 22 inch will set you back $99 bucks at the very least. Using Mildsurprise I found this.
      Acer V243HQ 23.6 - $98 dollars Officeworks

      • _Bruce_ on 22/01/2013 - 18:52

        First one is inconsistant on PCI vs PCI-Express and the picture is PCI, but sure, my link was just an example. To find a prebuild with Firewire will push you into a different price bracket entirely.

      • seanbaussie on 23/01/2013 - 10:03

        Thanks for that - actually I've got a PCI or PCI-E card in my old pc, so can save that $15 - didn't think of that.

        BTW, the monitor you gave is out of stock in a whole lot of officeworks' but for $1 more I did find this one with lots in stock around the place: http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/products/Technology/Com… which is a bit smaller but would do the job fine.

        Much to think about - thanks for the help.

  • _Bruce_ on 22/01/2013 - 18:56

    OK so scrimshaws' monitor ($98) and firewire ($15) card combined with this:

    Desktop PC i3-3220/4GB/500GB/USB3/Ultra-Slim Case $349 + Delivery ($19)

    Gets you to $481 without a keyboard and mouse. If you don't have one lying around you should have too much trouble getting that for the remaining $19.

    Edit: Knew that seemed too good, no windows in that package.

    • scrimshaw on 22/01/2013 - 19:53

      He's got Win Xp. Good enough for basic use I guess, but would strongly recommend spending the $40 and getting the online upgrade to Win 8. Download the Upgrade assistant here:
      http://windows.microsoft.com/en-AU/windows/buy

      In other words, he would only be spending $40 bucks for an up-to-date operating system. Not a bad way to make use of the XP installation.

      Remember, that price jumps from $40 to $200 on Feb 1st.

  • Noblejoker on 23/01/2013 - 10:44

    I will give a one up to the original deal you mentioned with Mr PC Geek http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/91651
    I bought my desktop through them 6 months ago with customised parts - quieter case, better psu, ssd
    They were excellent to deal with - suggest you email them and discuss
    Top build quality and shipping
    They were about the same price as me buying parts and assembling myself - but they do a better job!
    (No relation to Mr PC Gekk - just happy with my Ozbargain through them)

  • James101 on 23/01/2013 - 17:59

    What about a Mac Mini? Last generation refurbished models are a bit cheaper http://store.apple.com/au/browse/home/specialdeals/mac.

    Or try Gumtree for used models, small & quiet (some old models also have a dvd drive), firewire, and make sure the model is compatible with Mountain Lion.

    • _Bruce_ on 23/01/2013 - 18:27

      Without screen is hardly in the same cost bracket that we are talking about.

      • James101 on 23/01/2013 - 18:44

        Yes it is "around $500".

        And OP was considering a $600 PC.

        So the Apple Refurb for $529 + monitor is a good match, otherwise used models on gumtree are often < $400.

    • scrimshaw on 23/01/2013 - 18:59

      If he gets a Mac mini the video editing software he currently owns would have to be run under Windows. Too complicated.

      Also the cheapest Mini is $529, and only comes with a piddly 2GB of RAM which, I'm not sure or not, is even upgradable without voiding the warranty.

      Just get a regular desktop, you get more memory, more choices with hardware, and more storage options. SSD's are a crucial upgrade for any desktop down the road, which the Mini doesn't support.

      • James101 on 23/01/2013 - 19:15

        What video editing software was puchased?

        iMovie comes preloaded on all Mac. Last gen refurb Mac Mini's RAM is user upgradeable to 16GB (even though it only states 8GB on the website) and much easier to upgrade than in a PC. HDD upgrade not as simple but there are video guides http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBongunj4pc

  • dreamerman on 24/01/2013 - 08:31

    I bought a $199 special from VisionTech and quiet happy with it apart from a faulty memory which was later replaced with no hassles. After adding own video card, my son is happily playing LoL and steam games on it.

    • scrimshaw on 24/01/2013 - 10:25

      quiet happy with it apart from a faulty memory which was later replaced with no hassles.

      While you are technologically savvy enough to know how to trouble shoot computer issues and replace your own memory, some people know zilch about hardware and won't know how to fix it.

      Case in point — my uncle, he knows his way around Windows 7 but he is completely stumped when the screen reads: No Boot Device Detected, Insert System Disk.

      Of course, anyone that knows a bit of hardware recognizes that as a disk problem, but to the uniniated it might as well be in gibberish.

      • dreamerman on 24/01/2013 - 11:53

        scrimshaw, the vendor replaced the memory under warranty. Actually, I could not figure out what is wrong so I took it back to the vendor. After testing, they confirmed it was the memory and replaced it.

  • ethereal88 on 24/01/2013 - 09:24
    -2

    i3 3225 + 8GB DDR3 1600MHz + Asrock B75 PRO 3 ATX + Corsair CX 430v2 + 128GB SSD + pick a case and DVD burner.

    DONE. Comes to under 600 ex monitor and OS.

    The i3 is what I recommend to any office box. Don't get the Celerons or Pentiums. They just don't have the puff, and there is little point paying $70+ for a Pentium when an extra $50 gets you an Ivy Bridge i3. That i3 is also decent for light editing, but if you want to render 1080p x264 24/7 you need an i5+.

    • Noblejoker on 24/01/2013 - 09:41
      -1

      Agree with your idea but - original link to Mr PC Geek systems have more for less
      Core i5 for $449 + extra for ssd or case/psu upgrade. Can still be had <$600 and they build for you!

      • ethereal88 on 24/01/2013 - 16:25
        -1

        Crap case and crap PSU. Worthless.

        • Noblejoker on 25/01/2013 - 10:31

          As is said - $449 + extra for ssd or case/psu upgrade
          Professional build with warranty and cheap shipping
          he didn't say he wanted to build - he said he wanted to buy
          Anyway - agree to disagree

    • cgb on 25/01/2013 - 10:37

      To the parent & original poster, I found http://pcpartpicker.com/au/ recently, which allows you to build systems from components, detects incompatible components, and can supply pricing from the cheapest suppliers per part, as well as a price per supplier for the build. It can alert you when pricing for parts drop below a threshold, and plots the price per part (and per system build) over time.

      Highly recommended in general, but specifically because you are trying to put something affordable and this site can help you with that. It also allows you to retrieve a static link to a build for sharing between people. e.g. I've slapped together something close to ethereal88's suggestion:
      http://pcpartpicker.com/au/p/zoio
      which comes to $516, and to use another feature of the site, copy in plaintext:

      PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/au/p/zoio
      Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/au/p/zoio/by_merchant/
      Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/au/p/zoio/benchmarks/

      CPU: Intel Core i3-3225 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($135.00 @ PCCaseGear)
      Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($86.00 @ Foxcomp)
      Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.00 @ Foxcomp)
      Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($105.00 @ Scorptec)
      Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.00 @ PCCaseGear)
      Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($68.00 @ Foxcomp)
      Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($19.00 @ PCCaseGear)
      Total: $516.00
      (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
      (Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-25 10:35 EST+1100)

      Hope that helps.

      • _Bruce_ on 25/01/2013 - 11:50

        Everyone seems to have forgotten that the target is $500 including monitor.

  • ethereal88 on 25/01/2013 - 15:21
    -1

    Yes, well Australia is a rip. What else is new. $500 needs to magically turn into $700.

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