More computer stuff

[rochvelleth]

So, what do you think of this computerIt has these specifications

Comments

[uisgebeatha]

That looks very bargainous; and I suspect you can probably play some newer games with that kind of spec :P

[rochvelleth]

Thank you! Yay for games :D

[requiem_17_23]

It will do everything you want from it. I won't say you definitely couldn't get that cheaper with an amount of shopping around but the price is approximately right. The monitor's comparable to mine. The graphics card is a budget one, but even a budget card is better than onboard graphics. The processor is mid-range.

I haven't had an Acer PC before, but I can't find anything immediate on the internet complaining about poor build quality, and you probably don't care about things like upgradeability and PSU spec.

So yeah. Not bad.

(Five minutes of poking websites says I can't find any of the usual places I look selling what you want any cheaper than this.)

[pjc50]

Acer are a fairly standard Taiwanese box-assembler, more known for their laptops; build quality should be fine, the only company I disreccomend on those grounds is Packard Bell.

Googling for "Acer x3400" produces a lot of hits with lower prices, BUT lacking the uprated graphics card and monitor. Argos seem competitive once you add those back in. I think the DVD drive is capable of writing DVDs but can't definitively confirm it from the argos page.

Consider adding an external USB hard drive for backup.

[rochvelleth]

Thank you!

That's a good idea about the external harddrive too. Incidentally, Argos have a 500GB one that comes with a free 2GB memory stick - for £49.99 :)

[epea_pteroenta]

External hard drives are wonderful things and not at all heavy!

[theinquisitor]

Drives that read DVDs and write CDs (but do not write DVDs) are common, so do not assume that.

[rochvelleth]

Right, thanks! Argos do a thing where you can look at it before you buy it, so I might make them get all the booklets out so I can check.

[hagsrus]

From recent experience setting up a new PC:

Does it have a wireless card, or whatever you'll need to get online?

Do you have any old peripherals like a parallel port printer? If so you'll probably need a parallel to USB adapter.

Does it have a dial-up modem in the event you might need that? (We added a USB Zoom modem which works nicely for backup if wireless goes down and for one IRC program that doesn't like broadband for some reason.)

[rochvelleth]

Thank you, these are good questions! I'll have to look into the answers.

Well, I know the answer to 2, which is that my printer is quite new and uses USB, so that's OK. The others need work.

[ex_robhu]

Good luck with your new shiny computer :-)