I haven't built a PC since 2011. My last PC was an iBuyPower desktop and honestly, it's been a great system. It had an i7 6700 and GTX 970 and still chugs along at 1080p even for today's games. That said, it's been about five years since I bought that desktop and I'm getting the itch to do a new rig. I'm debating building or buying whatever iBuyPower config has a current-gen i7 processor and an Nvidia 3070. It seems to me that these days you can get a better deal ordering an iBuyPower PC than building your own. I did an exact parts comparison and it was actually cheaper to get the config than to order the parts. I'm probably going to do it around late winter into spring because I want to see how the economy is going to go before splurging. It's crazy how expensive graphics cards have become. The big advantage for build is customizability and not skimping on certain things like the motherboard and power supply. Thoughts?
Is it still more economical to build vs buy?
- Thread starter beedubaya
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Thing is if you build your own you know exactly what you are getting. Manufacturers work to a budget and that. sometimes, can mean that the components they use are not up to their stated specs. Of course that applies to off the shelf components as well so you have to be on the ball when you build your own.
Joe C
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OEM,s purchase parts in large quantities, which means they obviously get a much better price on parts. They also get the most "economical" parts they can find in order to be the most profitable. This means that your not going to get the best power supply, motherboard or memory out there. OEM bean counters will shave off every penny they think they can get away with, as long as it will last as long as the warranty. Yes...everything today has what they call a MTBF designed into it..... MTBF is an acronym for Mean Time Before Failure. It is designed to operate after a certain amount of time, hopefully on their part it means after the warranty expires.
You'll still get a MTBF factor when you buy your parts for your own build, but it will be better that what an OEM will offer. It might be cheaper today in the short view but in the long run, you'll be better off building your own. Most pc part manufactures will give you a much better warranty than any OEM, providing your getting your parts from the most better known manufactures with good reputations. Also, by using your own parts your options for upgrading are much better. OEM's do not make it easy or sometimes even possible to upgrade your cpu or memory. In some extreme cases (Dell, Lenovo & HP...ect) your cpu is what they call a BGA chip, and your can not replace that easily either, I've even seen some very cheap tiny laptops with 32 gig ssd drives that can not be replaced either. (they are soldered into the motherboard, or proprietary parts )
You'll still get a MTBF factor when you buy your parts for your own build, but it will be better that what an OEM will offer. It might be cheaper today in the short view but in the long run, you'll be better off building your own. Most pc part manufactures will give you a much better warranty than any OEM, providing your getting your parts from the most better known manufactures with good reputations. Also, by using your own parts your options for upgrading are much better. OEM's do not make it easy or sometimes even possible to upgrade your cpu or memory. In some extreme cases (Dell, Lenovo & HP...ect) your cpu is what they call a BGA chip, and your can not replace that easily either, I've even seen some very cheap tiny laptops with 32 gig ssd drives that can not be replaced either. (they are soldered into the motherboard, or proprietary parts )
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Nukem
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There are also other options for pre-built as well:
Corair: https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/Systems/c/Cor_Systems?q=&rawFilterQuery=(-nameSearch_en_sortabletext:*workstation* AND nameSearch_en_sortabletext:*one*)
NZXT: https://www.letsbld.com/
Even Dell has them, but I personally only like the laptops.
Corair: https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/Systems/c/Cor_Systems?q=&rawFilterQuery=(-nameSearch_en_sortabletext:*workstation* AND nameSearch_en_sortabletext:*one*)
NZXT: https://www.letsbld.com/
Even Dell has them, but I personally only like the laptops.
Joe C
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Your Corsair link for pre-built pc's only provide a 2yr warranty.
If you build your own with a Corsair power supply... you get 10 yrs warranty.???
https://www.newegg.com/corsair-rm-series-rm750-cp-9020195-na-750w/p/N82E16817139168?Item=N82E16817139168&nm_mc=AFC-RAN-COM&cm_mmc=AFC-RAN-COM&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-PCPartPicker&AFFID=2558510&AFFNAME=PCPartPicker&ACRID=1&ASID=https://pcpartpicker.com/product/6Y66Mp/corsair-rm-2019-750-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020195-na&ranMID=44583&ranEAID=2558510&ranSiteID=8BacdVP0GFs-b04tasgnTSXJM7QptvrcUw
Nukem
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I didn't really look into it, I just posted some other options to look at besides ibuypower...
PP Mguire
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TechnoChicken
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Yah, Dell's desktop are pretty meh, and they always do that stupid thing with the I/O shield so you can't put a different mobo in
Nukem
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The newest ones aren't bad from Dell. Just over priced for what they use to configure the machine.
But the usual arguments are still present. Build your own:
Pros:
- You pick the parts to fit your budget and needs.
- You know how to fix it if something goings wrong
- you have the pride of saying "Yep, this was all me"
etc...
Cons:
- Warranty for parts are individual companies or 3rd party seller.
- Price can skyrocket if your not careful
- Machine needs ALL parts (I.E. KB, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS etc...)
etc...
Pre-Built Pros:
- Warranty is usually from the company for all parts.
- It comes to you ready out of the box.
- You get a whole computer minus monitor, speakers. (Unless you buy it from them as well)
Cons:
- Usually pricey for the service.
- Limited parts the company offers (usually)
So it comes down to what you want to do. Most decent prebuilts are on par, price wise, with a self built and they usually come with all the periph's included. I would suggest going to PC parts picker and doing a virtual build there. then go to the custom sites and check out compatible machine there and see the price difference. (If there is any)
But the usual arguments are still present. Build your own:
Pros:
- You pick the parts to fit your budget and needs.
- You know how to fix it if something goings wrong
- you have the pride of saying "Yep, this was all me"
etc...
Cons:
- Warranty for parts are individual companies or 3rd party seller.
- Price can skyrocket if your not careful
- Machine needs ALL parts (I.E. KB, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS etc...)
etc...
Pre-Built Pros:
- Warranty is usually from the company for all parts.
- It comes to you ready out of the box.
- You get a whole computer minus monitor, speakers. (Unless you buy it from them as well)
Cons:
- Usually pricey for the service.
- Limited parts the company offers (usually)
So it comes down to what you want to do. Most decent prebuilts are on par, price wise, with a self built and they usually come with all the periph's included. I would suggest going to PC parts picker and doing a virtual build there. then go to the custom sites and check out compatible machine there and see the price difference. (If there is any)
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TechnoChicken
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The XPS laptops i have heard are pretty good
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