Hi, first-time builder here. I've been wanting to try this for awhile, and just got a family member who needs a new computer to be my guinea pig! My mother needs a new computer to replace her 5 year old 500MHz PIII with 96MB of memory and 9Gb hard drive. The only thing worth salvaging from her old system is her recently purchased lcd monitor.
She needs the computer for basic office type applications (excel, word), internet surfing, and to store digital pictures. No gaming, no crazy video editing, so nothing flashy needed.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, this has got to be something that I can reliably put together and not have crash a lot, or ever! I've never built a computer before. By far the most complicated thing I've ever done on a computer is install a LAN card 3 years ago, so I guess that qualifies me as a BEGINNER. Still, I'd like to have a go at this.
Cost is at a premium -- I'd like to impress her with how much cheaper than Gateway I can do this for. With that in mind, here are the system requirements as I see them:
P4 cpu -- unsure what speed she really needs -- could probably get away with something pretty slow here
a rock solid reliable motherboard with onboard video, audio and ethernet connection -- willing to pay a premium for name brand if the quality is there, also, MUST BE EASY TO INSTALL AND CONFIGURE, be nice if it was micro-atx too
basic 40GB hard drive
512MB memory
basic multi-optical drive -- to play dvd's and play and burn cd's
CONSERVATIVE looking case, nice if it was small, like micro ATX!
basic but high quality keyboard and optical mouse
all exterior parts must match in color. bonus points if the parts are all retail and include manuals! extra bonus points if the parts compelement each other and are easy to install together!!
How cheap could I do this for? I'm hoping $650, maybe even cheaper, but am very flexible on price (she's used to paying $1800 everytime she buys a new computer). Can someone help me with a parts list from newegg or tigerdirect?
She needs the computer for basic office type applications (excel, word), internet surfing, and to store digital pictures. No gaming, no crazy video editing, so nothing flashy needed.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, this has got to be something that I can reliably put together and not have crash a lot, or ever! I've never built a computer before. By far the most complicated thing I've ever done on a computer is install a LAN card 3 years ago, so I guess that qualifies me as a BEGINNER. Still, I'd like to have a go at this.
Cost is at a premium -- I'd like to impress her with how much cheaper than Gateway I can do this for. With that in mind, here are the system requirements as I see them:
P4 cpu -- unsure what speed she really needs -- could probably get away with something pretty slow here
a rock solid reliable motherboard with onboard video, audio and ethernet connection -- willing to pay a premium for name brand if the quality is there, also, MUST BE EASY TO INSTALL AND CONFIGURE, be nice if it was micro-atx too
basic 40GB hard drive
512MB memory
basic multi-optical drive -- to play dvd's and play and burn cd's
CONSERVATIVE looking case, nice if it was small, like micro ATX!
basic but high quality keyboard and optical mouse
all exterior parts must match in color. bonus points if the parts are all retail and include manuals! extra bonus points if the parts compelement each other and are easy to install together!!
How cheap could I do this for? I'm hoping $650, maybe even cheaper, but am very flexible on price (she's used to paying $1800 everytime she buys a new computer). Can someone help me with a parts list from newegg or tigerdirect?
(not to imply that your mother is old)
