View Full Version : Pre-Built Pcs
muddyfox470
22-05-2005, 00:18
Lol.
Well just got online, and a friend has JUST bought a PC probably from comet and the likes, i don't like being rude or anything so i dont ask too many questions, and i don't want to make him feel he has made a bad choice.
However, lol, he bought a pre-built HP PC with 17inch TFT lol, so apart from all the substandard components etc, i am guessing that it is slightly overpriced, but for what he is going to use it very little else is required.
Anywho, he told me it has Pentium 4, 512Mb RAM, 160Gb Hard Drive, but no floppy drive :P However he like the idea of having 4 (yes FOUR) whole USB ports, i nearly laughed in his face but i thought that would be cruel! lol.
He knows very little about the hardware side of the PC, so it is most likely they have been sold a PC that is substandard, and overpriced for their needs, a really well unbalanced system lol!
He just said about specs : i could look on the box but i can't be arsed; lol well i would have been glad to help him, point him in the right direction etc so he could have got a better buy, as i see that Mesh have some good pre-built offers atm. (£499 inc TFT!!!)
Personally i would always build my own now, but those that need a PC out of the box i guess its ok.
I know i have seens stuff like this before, and that people have ranted etc, and been annoyed at how friends waste their money, and how shops are intent on selling these overpriced letter writing machines (my mate will be using Championship Manager etc, but little more else!)
Anywho, have you any recent stories and who would you recommend as the best pre-built system manufacturer (if you could choose any one?!) for the average Mr and Mrs Computer User.
Also partake in Poll if you do so wish.
Ian
PS. How come the Systems Sub Forum is down?
PPS. I think this is the exact system. http://www.comet.co.uk/comet/html/cache/349_243051.html
EDIT: Dont you just love how comet describe the PC specs, a large L2 cache makes 'word processing ... faster' lol :P
the poll is too limited...
it depends on what the system is gonna be used for as to where i buy a prebuilt or a diy syste,...
i would send noobs to dell. cheap and cheerful with good backup service.
Beerbaron
22-05-2005, 00:30
custom made all the way :)
arent dell ment to do fairly good pre-built systems?!
six5tring
22-05-2005, 00:37
hey dude,
comet employee here. i'm a build my own man but I have to deal with people wanting new PC's all the time.
i find the HP's overpriced units and would go for fuji/itworks stuff any day. (if purchasing from comet) same internal components not paying so much for the name.
i think the most obviously HP over pricing is on tft's.. you can get a 19" LG for £199 or an slower responce HP for £270
for £810 you can get a 3.4 ghz, 1gb RAM, 250gb sata, x600 blablabla.. now although this seems expensive to you and me for most people they don't have the first clue about PC's but want something fairly powerful this is for them.
we do best in the budget ranges..for example 6/7months ago we used to do a sub £300 HP with 2.6cele, 256mb, 80gb, dvdrw + software. used to sell like hotcakes.
if i was to buys a pre-built i'd go dell. as it is i actually sent one customer today to check out kustom :)
six
cool_dude
22-05-2005, 00:55
deffo a custom pc ;) for me :)
would never buy a pre-built pc, mainly because i have fun building a new rig :D
my dad keeps on about 'dell' i think they're proably the best prebuilt pcs available (apart from ailenware) but im persuading him to go custom :)
theuncharmed
22-05-2005, 00:58
I've had Tiny/Time and Dell - would recommend Dell all the way. never had a problem with my Dimension 8300. good back up service and smart looks.
however I do now build my own instead, simply because Dell use their own parts for their machines and spares/upgrades can be annoying.
Six, I don't know, but our local Comet has a 23" HP widescreen TFT and it does look rather smashing. Although dearer than other sources, the price they were asking for the monitor wasn't that bad.
And, yes, Dell is probably, all round, the best pre-built you can get, both on price and quality.
The System forum has been closed as questions might as well have been in Hardware and Kustom peeps found themselves having to check it a lot 'cos people put questions there instead of e-mailing sales and some got quite peeved when they didn't get instant answers.
jellybeard999
22-05-2005, 01:58
on the "i want a pc for work and net, which is easy to use and has good service" front... you cant beat the cheapest dell + TFT going... great value for office type PCs
however, on the performance side, i think there is a great rip off going on (£5k for a vapo pc... that could be built for £2-2.5k) and the dell "XPS" systems with an INCREDIBLE X300 that is blistering for games :rolleyes: etc
so cheap, you cant build cheaper than a dell bargain model ... but performance, build your own / get a friend to :p - only thing lacking is support, but if you build it yourself, and use forums, no reason you cant figure it out eventually..
i got my shuttle built by Kusto, does that count as "PC Tailor Made for you by Manufacturer"? (i have built most of my other pcs myself though)
Although prebuilds do look horribly expensive when you are looking at just hardware prices, you forget about the warrenty and repair services that go with it.
To joe average, he'd no sooner attempt to fiddle around inside his computer than he would his microwave.
Although prebuilds do look horribly expensive when you are looking at just hardware prices, you forget about the warrenty and repair services that go with it.
To joe average, he'd no sooner attempt to fiddle around inside his computer than he would his microwave.
...and a Windows license and any software bundled with it.
I prefer to custom build. It is just so much more satisfying I find. :)
I can see where a pre-build might be the better option though for some.
And the 'free TFT' deals you see everywhere could be tempting.
shaunyboy
22-05-2005, 11:25
I prefer typewriter he he lol :D . No i go for kustom built pcs. but t the mo am sttck on a crappy emachines :o
Custom made Macs are a little difficult to come by ;)
Have just taken delivery of a shiny new 20" iMac G5 - it's luverly.
LANcaster
22-05-2005, 15:15
Has anyone else noticed how ludicrously poor the grammar and spelling is on Comet's web site? You would expect a large company like that to invest some money into proof-reading their site content before publishing it, it hardly encourages you to buy anyway from them (not that I would anyway)!
Have had a good chuckle at their explanations of the front-side bus and processor cache.
Incidentally, congrats on the new iMac Bob; they are very nice machines. :)
I usually use a mish-mash of bits from my previous PC so I always custom build. Probably this question is 99% gonna be the same answer on the forums of kustompcs.co.uk :)
six5tring
22-05-2005, 17:52
Six, I don't know, but our local Comet has a 23" HP widescreen TFT and it does look rather smashing.
Havn't got them in are store yet.. biggest we've got are 19"'s. larger +19" monitors are a much less competative market so i guess that the pricing on all brands is probably more similar.. but 15/17" market is all over the place.. some of our 17"'s are cheaper than the 15's! (thats comet sense :p)
i think the comparisons that are quite biased.. as us lot here will base are pricing on net pricing.. but if you try and build a system using parts from highstreet PC retailers you almost certainly will end up spending similar/more than a prebuilt sys!
Our web site is poo by the way and most of the call center staff don't seem to know the foggiest about most things. some of our incorrect specs are classic though :)
six
Euphoria
22-05-2005, 19:02
Cutom made PC all the way for me. Dell do make good PCs. One of the directors at work just bought one and asked me to check it out. I wouldn't say no! It came with a 6800 Ultra :P
my first was prebuilt by local pc shop my second was an ebay but that arrived in a damaged case so i wipped the bits out and put into another case realised it wasnt too bad and built my own ever since
ninnyhammer
22-05-2005, 23:15
Honestly, muddyfox, what an idiotic poll. Also, how many times do you say "lol" in your post - I ran out of fingers to count on!! I seriously think you should consider editing your post and removing all the ridiculous "lol's" that blight the landscape.
how many fingers do you have ? I count five LOL`s lol :)
First system i had was an IMB Cyrix 300, 4.3 GB HDD onboard GFX and Sound and was built by a local independant shop. I knew nothing about PC's so much so infact that within 2 hours I had to take it back to the shop to get it fixed.
6 months later I built my own after realising that building PC's was as easy as s**t. Never will I ever buy a system from a shop / chain store again. Not only do you have to deal with wholely substandard components but, as in the case of my first PC, some dodgy places will take advantage of a n00b PC user and charge of graphics when even though they are onboard.
My opinion in all honestly is the vast majority of PC users who buy premade chain store branded systems are retards who know less than I did when I bought my first system although I make a tidy sum from these retards who continually manage to muck up their systems and need someone to fix it for them so I can't complain too much.
Thats a bit strong calling noobs retards :) because everyone in here has a modicum of knowledge we wil mostly all say make our own , but does that mean if you cant fix you car the mechanic can call you a retard ( not getting at you personally) just trying to illustrate that we all dont know everything so if your busy thinking nasty thoughts about a noob in the computer sense think what the other guy is thining about you whilst fixing your car, washing machine etc etc, you get my point. :)
Most people will want the convenience of having either their comp made up car serviced etc because its easier takes less time and leaves them time to to other things. If I could afford it id get a custom rig built by Kustom every year with all the bling :) and a new car with a warranty , leave me more time to post in here :)
My first was pre-built,then i "got in to" pc's and realised i could probably build one so i did.It was easy enough wouldnt buy a pre-built again now.
Everyone was a noob at some point.
Viral
the_leander
24-05-2005, 19:08
Comming from the Amiga Scene, I had to learn how to do some pretty drastic mods to my computers in order to keep them going, that helped me greatly when it came to go over to PC's, all that being said however, I am finding since the birth of my son a year ago, the idea of building new systems has become far less of a pleasure then it once was.
I suspect my soon to be current system will probably be the last one I build myself, either I'll get someone I know to build one for me and pay them, or look damned hard and the specs for "professionally" pre built PC's in the future. I just don't have either the time, patience or inclination to carry on building machine after machine.
Comming from the Amiga Scene, I had to learn how to do some pretty drastic mods to my computers in order to keep them going, that helped me greatly when it came to go over to PC's, all that being said however, I am finding since the birth of my son a year ago, the idea of building new systems has become far less of a pleasure then it once was.
I suspect my soon to be current system will probably be the last one I build myself, either I'll get someone I know to build one for me and pay them, or look damned hard and the specs for "professionally" pre built PC's in the future. I just don't have either the time, patience or inclination to carry on building machine after machine.
Just think of the fun you'll have when your son asks for his own computer
;)
the_leander
01-06-2005, 01:33
Just think of the fun you'll have when your son asks for his own computer
;)
Heh, tbh I can well see the day that I will get him a mac mini or something similar - something small, not overly powerful but with enough grunt to do the basics without too much hassle...
I've always built my own PCs and PCs for friends up until recently.
HOWEVER... things have changed a lot in my opinion, with the crazy speed of change with drivers and so forth, spyware/malware etc..
I refuse to build a PC for anyone now as the amount of grief and comebacks drives me mad! Never underestimate the ingenuity of idiots!
I'm also of the opinion that my next PC will be a prebuilt one from this site (although to my spec). It's just a lot better having a setup where if something explodes, you can phone up and get a replacement quickly. I've reached the point where I begrudge opening my PC case up for any reason whatsoever.
I vote for custompcs... thought there are a majority of people who have limited or no knowledge of computers whats-so-ever so they go out buying the most expensive bundle thinking its really good. They don't seem to care what it is. For example, they may be dumb enough to find a say.. x800 128mb graphics and see the price at £375 or something ridiculous... then buy it not knowing that the card at that price is a rip off.
On other cases people tend to think some deals are good.. like... an athlon xp2800, 512mb ram, 9600pro 128mb graphics card, 40gb hdd and a 15"tft for say... £700... and then the deal will say... "This also comes with a free printer and Scanner Ooooo"
shifty.ricky
16-06-2005, 20:35
I've always built my own PCs and PCs for friends up until recently.
HOWEVER... things have changed a lot in my opinion, with the crazy speed of change with drivers and so forth, spyware/malware etc..
I refuse to build a PC for anyone now as the amount of grief and comebacks drives me mad! Never underestimate the ingenuity of idiots!
I'm also of the opinion that my next PC will be a prebuilt one from this site (although to my spec). It's just a lot better having a setup where if something explodes, you can phone up and get a replacement quickly. I've reached the point where I begrudge opening my PC case up for any reason whatsoever.
Bang On!
To be honest I've realised that PCs are too much hassle. When I was at Uni I could spend all day looking at it however now I'm working the last thing I want to do is investigate random crashes and such like.
six5tring
16-06-2005, 20:51
Although I have to mainly agree I like the simplicity of my main PC's just working.
I do enjoy building custom projects that you couldn't get anywhere. But these never become main pc's until fully stable.
six
TriggerHappy
14-11-2005, 03:47
cool dude m8 dont know how you can call alain ware good pc builders have u seen the prices :eek: :eek: 3grand ish for a pc that can be built for 800 or so wtf ttal rip off. and serioulsly who needs 800Gb of hard disk dont give me all this cr ap about videos and downloads everythings in nice small mp3 or mp4 now IMHO the very very most u need is 300gb thats still bit more than u need though. yes i run 160gb and will never use it got it becuse it was cheaper that the 100gb one and i have no idea why. but its ATA so ill be able to use it and things grow in size as the constantly are remember just a few years ago when 10gb was the normal i get 1 or 2 games on there now if u play the sims 2 (zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz) with the expasion packs it 8GB :eek:
think 3 grands expensive.. have you been living under the hood? Savrow systems are selling a *custom built* PC for 25 grand.. called the Savrow Diamond. You can understand the price from the title
Fireblade
14-11-2005, 14:04
@ TriggerHappy:
Building a system on a lesser budget than somebody else, doesn't make you a better system builder :confused:
And just coz you can manage with what HDD space you've got... doesn't mean the same goes for everybody! There are quite a few members on here who have 1TB+ of HDD space in their systems... much of it already used up :rolleyes:
There are quite a few members on here who have 1TB+ of HDD space in their systems... much of it already used up :rolleyes:
The solution is easy:
rm -Rf ~/pr0n
Suprising how much free space that'll create on most people's disks.
Fireblade
14-11-2005, 19:37
The solution is easy:
rm -Rf ~/pr0n
Suprising how much free space that'll create on most people's disks.
:eek: Steady on! Some maybe... but I wouldn't go as far as to say "most"? Some of us have other... less unscrupulous pastimes :D
He doth protest too much? :D
TriggerHappy
16-11-2005, 03:15
ima aware that pcs can get expemsive but tha dosent mean you should get ripped off!!
Oh and where have i said that im a better sysem builder please!! i havent made that claim your making it sound like im bragging when i couldny becuse most people on here can do the same Plese explain your post!
TriggerHappy
16-11-2005, 03:23
double post
TriggerHappy
16-11-2005, 03:23
@ TriggerHappy:
Building a system on a lesser budget than somebody else, doesn't make you a better system builder :confused:
And just coz you can manage with what HDD space you've got... doesn't mean the same goes for everybody! There are quite a few members on here who have 1TB+ of HDD space in their systems... much of it already used up :rolleyes:
im sure that there servers somehow, and alianwear aregameing pcs not servers
Fireblade
16-11-2005, 11:39
Oh and where have i said that im a better sysem builder please!! i havent made that claim your making it sound like im bragging when i couldny becuse most people on here can do the same Plese explain your post!
Assuming you're speaking to me TriggerHappy(?)... you've taken that comment completely out of context :rolleyes:
The "you" I refer to in regard to system building was not you personally/as an individual... but rather you/me/anybody else.
In light of that, read what I've said again, and may I suggest that... in fiuture... you don't instinctively assume that I (or anyone else for that matter) am having a dig at you, personally ;)
I personally havn't built my own PC from scratch before, I'm 18 now and at uni. My family got its first pc, a 486, 7 years ago free from my dads work. After that we got it basically completely rebuilt by a private PC shop who custom built PCs for people. Now I have a packard bell I got from PC world in the sales, I know its PC world...I've been looking to build my own from scratch for years now but my dad wasn't willing to pay for me to make it :(
I will hopefuly be making my first rig sometime soon (depends on how long I can resist the student loan :p ) I figured I may as well build something powerful and expensive, I guess if I spend £1k now I could save myself a bundle later on, the problem is I would really be ****ed off if I spent £1k for parts I couldn't get working :confused:
When I buy a PC I like to know whats exactly in it which is why I would really like to make my own. Short of that I would rather have someone custom build one for me.
Someone posted above that people buy PCs like dells because of the software packages that come with them...thats possibly what I hate the most about these pre-built PCs. I like a fresh clean install of Windows and then I can add whatever programs I do need, not what some guy in an office thinks I need because they can get paid to put a trial on there.
TriggerHappy
17-11-2005, 02:36
firstly good luck on building your own rig hope u get round to it :)
if your worried about it not working perhaps take the cover off your current pc ahve a snoop around see what gos where and familarise yoursekf with the hardware. Maybe this wont help for you but the way i learned was takeing them apart tahen putibng the nack together. Yes buiding your first pc is quite worrying all that money tied up in it.
The solution is easy:
rm -Rf ~/pr0n
Suprising how much free space that'll create on most people's disks.
wouldn't remove anything on my 3Tb of hard drive space....
some of us store stuff by full titles, not pron... and most people would use the right click / delete option in windows... tis only the elitist linux geeks who think the rm -r command is the only one...
in windows you would use Del /f /s /q <drive letter>:\pron from the command line.
Fireblade
17-11-2005, 14:11
I think Modge's point about spending £1k on parts, and then finding they don't work together, was/is in the sense of incompatibility, rather than his potential inability to put everything together properly?
Whichever... the only real solution to ensuring compatibility between components, is research - i.e checking manufacturers websites for compatibility charts (RAM in particular), and checking forum members signatures to see what hardware/components they're using ;)
Fireblade
17-11-2005, 14:23
And TriggerHappy: I'm perfectly aware Alienware systems are gaming machines, not servers... but I can assure you... there are forum members on here who have TB's of storage space filled up on their personal computers... not just on servers ;)
Finally... if you're gonna slag 'em, at least spell their name right! It's Alienware... not "alianwear" :D
tis only the elitist linux geeks...
That'll be me then ;)
Doesn't windows still come with the deltree command?
I personally havn't built my own PC from scratch before, I'm 18 now and at uni. My family got its first pc, a 486, 7 years ago free from my dads work. After that we got it basically completely rebuilt by a private PC shop who custom built PCs for people. Now I have a packard bell I got from PC world in the sales, I know its PC world...I've been looking to build my own from scratch for years now but my dad wasn't willing to pay for me to make it :(
I will hopefuly be making my first rig sometime soon (depends on how long I can resist the student loan :p ) I figured I may as well build something powerful and expensive, I guess if I spend £1k now I could save myself a bundle later on, the problem is I would really be ****ed off if I spent £1k for parts I couldn't get working :confused:
When I buy a PC I like to know whats exactly in it which is why I would really like to make my own. Short of that I would rather have someone custom build one for me.
Someone posted above that people buy PCs like dells because of the software packages that come with them...thats possibly what I hate the most about these pre-built PCs. I like a fresh clean install of Windows and then I can add whatever programs I do need, not what some guy in an office thinks I need because they can get paid to put a trial on there.
Go on, use your student loan... i fell in the same trap but that doesn't matter since i'm still living at home and don't have to pay rent! :D
Worth it building my system.. just gotta save up more money to buy extra parts then finito :)
That'll be me then ;)
Doesn't windows still come with the deltree command?
not in xp...
TriggerHappy
19-11-2005, 02:00
hope u dont mine me asking slamdog but how do use 3TBs of space do you do videos ect.
Cosmo_1847
19-11-2005, 23:33
i gave my friend a list, P4 3Ghz+, 512mb RAM, 120gb+ hard drive. he went out and got his PC custom build from a local company. thats how the world is meant to be :D
He ended up with 512mb PC3200, P4 3.0ghz, Nvidia FX 5200 or something and 200gb SATA. he got a good case too, as its i like that one i'll have that as my case.
Custom PC, i perfer to build them (i never has but i plan to next year) or get a local company to build it for you.
shifty.ricky
20-11-2005, 00:01
I now refuse to build PCs for anyone other than direct family (mum, dad, sister) as I had too much hassle with people breaking it and expecting 24/7 computer support. I now throw a dell advert at them.
Euphoria
20-11-2005, 01:05
I now refuse to build PCs for anyone other than direct family (mum, dad, sister) as I had too much hassle with people breaking it and expecting 24/7 computer support. I now throw a dell advert at them.
Thats the problem with doing it for friends. I built one for a friend who gave it to her dad in exchange for a new laptop. He couldn't get the modem working and decided to give me a call! Cost him £20 to plug the phone lead in the other slot :p
Cod Ball
20-11-2005, 20:54
I should be getting another half a TB for xmas if family wana buy me some :) i have plenty to fill that with.
jacobzcoool
26-11-2005, 18:39
Stock PCs are nearly always ripoffs
eg. no FDD, very overpriced, good CPU but cheap motherboard, RAM and HDD, ATi graphics cards, small amounts of RAM, I could go on and on, so I will...
my #1 hate of stock PCs is: Nasty looking and/or cheap generic cases!
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