Home visitor computer build help.

[SpeedyVV]

My mom has visitors all the time.

There used to be a laptop that they could use, but it broke.

She asked me to give her a computer that guest could use for Internet, Skype, MS-Office.

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

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
No budget, would like bang for the buck.

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.

London, UK
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
CPU, Mobo, Memory, Storage, PSU, Case, WebCam, Head Set (for Skype).

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
22" 1080p Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse

6) Will you be overclocking?
If possible.

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
22" 1080p Monitor

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

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.

USB for memory sticks, WiFi

Good onboard GPU for simple games (old games) for kids visiting would be a bonus, but not essential.
Definitely and SSD as very little storage is required.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Windows 8.1 Pro x64

 

[Dangman]

Get a cheap Dell?

 

[defaultluser]

Intel is always a good buy because you don't sacrifice single-threaded performance (which can be incredibly important for older games). You also have an impressive upgrade path (unlike FM2).

It's cheaper to get a Pentium and upgrade to a cheap discrete GPU than it is to buy a Core i3 for the faster integrated graphics. Unless you're playing Crysis 3, you're not going to notice the difference between the Pentium and the i3. You're certainly not going to notice the difference on any other game:

And Intel also enabled QuickSync for their Pentium processors as well (may eventually be useful for Skype), so there's no other reason to go with the i3 that I can see.

http://newsroom.intel.com/community...-sync-video-on-pentium-and-celeron-processors

Suggested system:

Haswell Pentium 3.2 GHz + H81 motherboard + 2x4gb DDR3 1600 = 150 quid.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Penti...mputers_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1EN3XNARHNJNP7RF2TNG

http://www.amazon.co.uk/H81M-PLUS-M...ss/dp/B00EIG2O2O/ref=pd_bxgy_computers_text_y

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-PC3...id=1398137335&sr=1-20&keywords=crucial+memory

You should probably pick up a decent PSU like this Seasonic 430w unit:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonic-S1...1_2?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1398137573&sr=1-2

For a cheap SSD I would recommend the 250GB Evo 840:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-250...id=1398137760&sr=1-1&keywords=samsung+evo+840

That brings you up to 300 for everything except the case, optical drive, webcam and headset. You can add a video card if you want, but I suggest you give it a go using integrated graphics only to start.

I can't offer you any recommendations on the rest of the system, but I know for a fact that Dangman can handle your case needs.

 

[SpeedyVV]

Get a cheap Dell?

Not a bad suggestion, but I prefer to build my own.

Intel is always a good buy because you don't sacrifice single-threaded performance (which can be incredibly important for older games). You also have an impressive upgrade path (unlike FM2).

I am really surprised. I thought for sure that for a non enthusiast system AMD would have been the way to go.

But I really stopped looking at AMD about 2 years ago, so I really can't comment.

It's cheaper to get a Pentium and upgrade to a cheap discrete GPU than it is to buy a Core i3 for the faster integrated graphics. Unless you're playing Crysis 3, you're not going to notice the difference between the Pentium and the i3. You're certainly not going to notice the difference on any other game:

Very interesting chart.

So yes, I guess Pentium is the way to go then.
If I ever feel the urge to add a GPU the 750 ti seems to be a good match.

And Intel also enabled QuickSync for their Pentium processors as well (may eventually be useful for Skype), so there's no other reason to go with the i3 that I can see.

http://newsroom.intel.com/community...-sync-video-on-pentium-and-celeron-processors

Suggested system:

Haswell Pentium 3.2 GHz + H81 motherboard + 2x4gb DDR3 1600 = 150 quid.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Penti...mputers_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1EN3XNARHNJNP7RF2TNG

http://www.amazon.co.uk/H81M-PLUS-M...ss/dp/B00EIG2O2O/ref=pd_bxgy_computers_text_y

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-PC3...id=1398137335&sr=1-20&keywords=crucial+memory

You should probably pick up a decent PSU like this Seasonic 430w unit:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonic-S1...1_2?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1398137573&sr=1-2

For a cheap SSD I would recommend the 250GB Evo 840:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-250...id=1398137760&sr=1-1&keywords=samsung+evo+840

That brings you up to 300 for everything except the case, optical drive, webcam and headset. You can add a video card if you want, but I suggest you give it a go using integrated graphics only to start.

I can't offer you any recommendations on the rest of the system, but I know for a fact that Dangman can handle your case needs.

Probably go will all your suggestions, except I might save a bit on the SSD with a 125GB one instead.

For Windows + Office I really think 125GB is enough. Even when adding a game or two should still be plenty of space.

Any suggestions on a good webcam, headset for Skype? Bang for buck.

 

[defaultluser]

I am really surprised. I thought for sure that for a non enthusiast system AMD would have been the way to go.

AMD has not been competitive in the under $90 price point for years (roughly 90-100 pounds for you). This happened in 2011 when Intel stopped branding older processor architectures as Celerons and Pentiums, and standardized all their chips on the latest tech (Sandy Bridge at the time). The Pentium I used for your build is also based upon their latest core revision (Haswell). They also released entry-level chipsets that allow OEMs to make boards that are within 10 bucks of the cheapest AMD boards.

All that AMD has for sale in that area is underpowered dual-cores that get stomped by the inexpensive Pentium I gave you (it's 50-60% faster). They also castrate their integrated GPUs just like Intel does, so the processors they have at the same price point as that Pentium only has 128 SPs (their better models have 256 or 384). This makes them a poor recommendation for budget shoppers, because they lack the CPU power to drive a real discrete GPU, and the iGPU is also marginal (unless you spend $20-30 more).

An AMD quad core is nice, but unless you're going to be encoding videos all day, or playing games like Battlefield multiplayer or Crysis, you don't need to pay twice the price for it - most games don't use 4 cores, and few that do actually need them to produce playable frame rates. I also don't think you need the improved iGPU gaming performance based upon your request...and if that changes, you can use the money you saved toward a real GPU.

If you want an AMD build I can throw together an FM2 system, but I just don't recommend it