Issues Choosing A New Computer

[MuLLinS]

Hey all,

I play World of Warcraft and am now experiencing some heavy endgame raiding and my FPS is starting to really bother me, and I just feel my 2 year old comp isn't up to par.

I have an HP a500n, but i added 512 RAM and a VisionTek Radeon X1300 video card. Despite the upgrades, Im pretty sure that my comp's processor, an AMD Athlon XP 2800+ (2.08 ghz) is capping the max performance i can have with any high-end video card.

In light of this, Im thinking of just starting from scratch and buying a neew computer with around $700 to spend. My question for you guys is - Should i go to Dell and have a comp built for me or should I build my own computer with the amount of money I'm willing to spend.
The Dell option would be much easier in terms of not having to get everything put together, but I just want to make sure that I'm spending my money for the best possible Computer i can get for this budget. Please let me know what your opinions are on which option I should persue..Dell custom build, or buy my own parts from an online Computer part store and build it myself.

Thanks in advance

 

[ViolentPacification]

Definitely build it yourself

 

[J Macker]

I'm all about DIY, however, there can be some VERY good deals that Dell does once in awhile.

Often, you can get a "free upgrade" to LCD.
Use a 30% off coupon, as well as a $$ off coupon to bring the price down.

I've seen some deals with a 24" LCD and a P4 computer for $1200. that's a great deal, considering the LCD is worth over $650.

just go to the hot deals section daily, as well as the fatwallet forums and wait it out for a couple months to get a good deal.

or, you can build it yourself, and get all your own custom parts, without the lame dell logo on your box!

 

[zero_vertical]

if you were building a total budget pc, i'd say go prefabbed with Dell. if you want a performance rig that will game well and upgrade well over the next 2 years, you should DEFINITELY build it yourself.

zv