Basic Use PC Super Small budget.

O

overlord20

Gawd
Joined
Feb 5, 2010
Messages
623
Have a budget of $400-500.. The Less the better :D. I was thinking i3-530 and mATX with 2gb ram and then a cheap pci-e 2.0 gpu. Probably 500gb hdd. If its possible awesome! if not thanks anyway :D.. This is to replace a pentium 3 for my uncle. forgot to add PSU. Thanks :D

EDIT:

Sorry...

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

This is a basic use pc. Browsing the net, watching vids, word proccessing.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

$400-$500 or as cheap as possible. Tax including shipping not.

3) Where do you live?

USA

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.

CPU- i3 530?
GPU- Something cheap
PSU-
Mobo- mATX
case- cheapo something
HDD- 500gb

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

none

6) Will you be overclocking?

no
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?

Standard 19" (non wide)

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

Next Few weeks

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.

Nothing special.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?

Yes
 
Last edited:
Please answer the stickied "ANSWER THESE QUESTION FIRST!" so that we can help you better.
 
Or, if you're impatient, consider this:

Dell Small Business - Dell Vostro 230 Desktops with Core 2 Duo, 2GB Memory, 320GB HD, DVD-ROM, and 18.5" LCD from $439 plus Shipping!

Two Dell Vostro 230 deals from Dell Small Business, expiring 7/21/10. They each include a 2.93Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 w/VT, 2GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333Mhz, 320GB HD, 16x DVD-ROM, Windows 7 Home Premium 32-bit, 15-month antivirus, 1 year warranty, plus a 18.5" Dell E1910H LCD monitor.:

* $439 after $252 instant discount: DELL VOSTRO 230 MINI TOWER DESKTOP DEAL
* $449 after $266 instant discount: DELL VOSTRO 230 SLIM TOWER DESKTOP DEAL
Click to expand...
 
All right think about it this way: If you get a prebuilt Dell, you're not on the hook for any support. In addition, you now have the fallback response of "I can't open up the PC without voiding the warranty" as another way of being off the hook. In addition, there's no way you can build a DIY that can match the listed Dells in terms of performance AND price without going with really shitty parts.

So with that all in mind, do you still want to build?

Oh and i3 530 is a bad choice for the money for the usage scenario you've described so far. Since you want a mATX mobo, does that mean you want a mATX case as well?
 
mATX case too but I just got on of those like 5 min ago from a friend. So we are good on that. I just really don't like buying pre-built. And honestly that dell doesn't seem like a good deal at all to me. core 2 duo? I would like to get something a bit more future proof..
 
overlord20 said:
mATX case too but I just got on of those like 5 min ago from a friend. So we are good on that.
Click to expand...

I have no idea what you just said. That entire line doesn't tell me anything.
overlord20 said:
And honestly that dell doesn't seem like a good deal at all to me. core 2 duo? I would like to get something a bit more future proof..
Click to expand...

Ok, look at the base price of $449 for the slim: Subtract the cost of OS and monitor which is $220. Subtract the cost of 2GB DDR3 which costs around $45. That's now $175 for a E7500 + DVD burner + 320GB drive + mobo + PSU + case. How is that not a good deal?

Oh and for the usage scenario you've described, there's zero need to upgrade that CPU in future. I mean unless web browsing and video watching started requiring a 4Ghz CPU, I see no reason why "future proof" is a factor here. Care to explain?
 
Talking to him about the dell. And its an off brand with 3 120mm fans. Top Front and rear. I don't really like buying pre built but If Its only $175 then worth it i guess :D
 
ok to answer without saying get a dell (because when faced with the same question I built, not bought)

35 - Case HEC 6T Series 6T10BB
55 - HDD SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB
40 - Video XFX HD-545X-YNH2 Radeon HD 5450
50 - PSU CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX
48 - Memory Crucial 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333
180 - CPU + Mobo Intel Core i3-530 + ASUS P7H55-M PRO LGA 1156 Intel H55 HDMI Micro ATX

Shipped for 415 & it has 30 in MIR.. It sounds like you may not need the case so that would knock 35 off & to be honest I wouldn't bother with a video card. The Clarksdale graphics are pretty stout for being onboard & that would knock off another 40 so if you removed those it would drop it to 340 shipped.
 
Thanks Bastage! Exactly what I was looking for :D. I feel more comfortable building it myself. As We have had dells and they always had Failing HDD's or something went wrong. Had to wait a month for someone to come fix it for us because we couldn't due to warranty issues.. PAIN IN THE ASS!
 
If you're near a Fry's or Microcenter, you can get a great combo deal where the mobo basically ends up free.
 
2nd hand parts off ebay?

I3 is overkill for what you are planning to do it seems....
 
This is for my uncle not myself as I have everything I need + some :p. But This computer will have to last awhile.. and I think an i3 would be perfect as its low end and will be plenty fast for way longer then a dual core will be.
 
overlord20 said:
This is for my uncle not myself as I have everything I need + some :p. But This computer will have to last awhile.. and I think an i3 would be perfect as its low end and will be plenty fast for way longer then a dual core will be.
Click to expand...

Core i3 is a dual core however...
 
Wow.. I thought all the ix where quad.. Interesting. Performance wise though. Is an i3 Fast then a Core 2 Duo? I would hope so.
 
tempo* said:
2nd hand parts off ebay?

I3 is overkill for what you are planning to do it seems....
Click to expand...

Maybe the Pentium 6850 (or whatever that one is) but for a basic use PC the Clarksdale graphics & not needing a stand alone graphics card makes them more cost effective.

@overlord20 an i3 should perform better then a C2D at equal clock speeds
 
i3's are dual core + HyperThreading, so 4 threads total. Yes, they outperform C2D's, especially in multithreaded scenarios. If you can, wait for a Fry's combo; the most recent was an i3 540 or 530 + Gigabyte H55 S2H for like $105, IIRC.
 
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