NTLNewsgroup said:
Hi,
I am looking to buy a new desktop pc just for home use, mainly internet and
word processing.
Which are the best companies for reliable systems??
If you just want to buy a PC and use it for a few years, no upgrading etc.
Get a Dell.
If there's any chance that you'll upgrade the PC from time to time, find a
local respectable shop and have something custom built.
For low cost:
- AMD socket 754 based mainboard. PCI & AGP slots. DDR memory. Onboard sound
and LAN
- Mid video card ATI 9600XT or 9800 card.
- 100 gig HDD, 7200rpm and 8 meg cache
- 512meg of PC3200 (DDR400) DDR memory (2 pieces of 256meg)
- 19" flatscreen CRT monitor
- Optical mouse and media keyboard
Better, but more money:
- AMD socket 939 based mainboard with PCI-E slots. DDR2 memory, if possible
(I don't know of any 939 mainboards using DDR2 at this time), Onboard sound
and LAN (you can add cards later if necessary)
- Better video card, PCI-e interface, such as ATI X700. X800 is better but
MUCH more money.
- 200 gig HDD, SATA, 7200rpm and 8 meg cache
- 1 gig of CAS2 PC4000 (DDR500) memory (2 pieces of 512meg)
- 17" LCD monitor - 500:1 contrast, 16ms refresh, 260 brightness (or
better)
- Cordless optical mouse/keyboard
