Going to build as a Christmas present...

E

EET

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 14, 2006
Messages
200
...for my aunt & her family. They have 2 younger teenage girls, and it'll be for internet, their homework, etc. I plan on building this to be slightly future proof, because they probably won't be upgrading for quite some time. I've already settled on 2gb of ram (partially because of the price) and a C2D setup, but I need a little advice on what processor & onboard video chip to use. I'm under the understanding one of the lower end chips overclocks well on stock voltage? I may or may not try it (going back to the future-proof thinking), but I figured I'd go for whichever processor that was, as I'm trying to stay under $200 on the cpu. Is one better than the other for onboard video (ATI vs nV), or is it a toss-up? Like I said, they probably won't be playing any games on it, and if they do I'll be getting a PCI-E mobo anyway, and they can just upgrade.
 
Why not just buy them a Dell? For non-gaming and general work PCs, prebuilt is sometimes the better choice.
 
I would never overclock a computer given as a present unless the person was a power user that would be competent enough to maintain the system.

Someone using a computer for non-intensive tasks doesn't need their processor overclocked. A low end C2D like the E4300 is already more than overkill.
 
Oh and in the PC world, nothing is ever future proof. Just easily upgraded

Anyway, most C2D CPUs can OC pretty well on stock voltage. Since this is a general usage PC, I would not recommend overclocking since there is always the risk of an overclock going bad. As for onboard video, it's pretty much a toss-up IMO.

A few questions:
- What's the budget for everything?
- What else will they be doing with the PC besides internet browsing and word processing?
- What parts do you need for the budget? monitor, hard drive, etc?
- Would a micro-atx be a better option since A) it's smaller and B) it doesn't look like they'll need too much expansion options.
- What OS will you be using?
 
Get them a Dell, they will be more happy and satisfied with it.

It will cost you less then building it. You won't have to be computer teacher and tech support, Dell will do that and does a good job at it. All the stuff will match (monitor/PC/keyboard/etc) which does go a long ways for the "cool factor" on Cousin EET's Christmas present.
 
Don't really have a budget as of yet, but it's not going to be too pricey. Everything will match, as it will be just a standard black. I'll also be building the computer and including all the accessories (monitor, mouse/kb, hard drives, everything). I prefer a built as opposed to prebuilt from the experiences I've had/seen from barebones and prebuilt systems. It's just a personal thing, I'll eat the extra $ from building one. Thanks for the input so far :)
 
Well until you provide a budget, we can't really help you. Also, go back to my previous post in this thread and answer the questions. Otherwise we can't help.
 
Met-AL said:
Get them a Dell, they will be more happy and satisfied with it.

It will cost you less then building it. You won't have to be computer teacher and tech support, Dell will do that and does a good job at it. All the stuff will match (monitor/PC/keyboard/etc) which does go a long ways for the "cool factor" on Cousin EET's Christmas present.
Click to expand...

as much as i hate dell, this really does seem like the best option. Met-AL brings up some very good points. I know you stated you're opposed to prebuilt..but don't throw the optoin completely out yet. Plus, most people outside of us geeks see the Dell logo and think "ooh..nice". That will carry some weight when it's opened as a present. And, as an added bonus they will be able to brush up on their multi-cultural communication skills should they ever call Dell's tech support. :D
 
I have been down this road a few times before. I had an aunt and my mother that wanted PC's. To come even close to the price Dell had, I was pricing it out of junk (crap case, crap motherboard, etc) and it still didn't include a liscense of Windows and was more expensive.

In the end, boy was I relieved. My aunt totaly screwed hers up and it was Dell's headache. Phew on that one! My mother had Dell teaching her how to do all kinds of stuff, from working and setting up her email, to how to make user accounts for her grandkids (my sons).

To each their own, money isn't always the issue and if you enjoy being tech support, this should turn out to be a very nice Christmas present for them.

Could I suggest a Coolermaster Centurion Case? Probaby the nicest quality case you can get for the money: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
 
A good dell deal is easier, but if you must build, you must answer Danny's questions for more opinions.
 
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