Comments | wildcat88: In need of advice

wildcat88

In need of advice

Mar 20, 2013 10:58

So, I bring you my first world problems: I need a new computer. The one I have is ancient (in tech life) - somewhere close to 10 years old. Opening iTunes brings the CPU to 100% capacity. Ancient, I tell you ( Read more... )

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Comments 8

leesa_perrie March 20 2013, 16:34:18 UTC

Can't answer most of the questions, but sounds like if you go for a PC, you need one with as big a memory as you can afford - we have a terabyte (sp?), which should last us several years (we hope!) and we take hundreds of photos a year (and I take lots of vids with my camera now as well). You'll also need good memory, but I don't think you'll need an expensive graphic card for photos and vids, they're more for games I think. If I remember I'll ask hubby for advice tomorrow (he won't have time tonight, it's basically 'home, food, out' as he's playing in a bridge match tonight). He has a mini-iPad, which he loves as he can do stuff without leaving the sofa, but it does have some limits of course.

wildcat88 March 21 2013, 13:11:37 UTC

Thanks! Let me know if your hubby has any advice.

leesa_perrie March 21 2013, 20:36:03 UTC

Hubby agrees that a tablet isn't what you need, a PC is much better for your needs (though if you can afford both, go for it! He loves his mini-iPad for reading, playing games and surfing the net).

This is his suggestion (a UK company, but I'm sure you could find this or something similar in the US):
http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/hp-pavilion-p6-2371ea-desktop-pc-20042565-pdt.html

You need at least 1TB if you want it to last years, 2TB would be even better.

Intel® Core™ i5-2310 processor is good - we have the i3 version. If you do a lot of video editing and heavy photo editing then i5 is better, otherwise i3 is fine if that's all your budget runs to (i3 is more economical to run than i5, if that's a consideration). In fact, Intel processors are more economical than the AMD processors to run and tend to be more powerful - hubby highly recs the Intel if you can afford it. Especially as Intel, being more powerful, will be ( ... )

karri_kln1671 March 21 2013, 12:14:00 UTC

It's hard to make recommendations for other people, cause people's needs are different. That said, I'll try ( ... )

wildcat88 March 21 2013, 13:16:34 UTC

Great advice. Thanks! I knew tablets were limited. I was hoping for a laptop/tablet combo, but I'm a little ahead of the curve. Microsoft just came out with one (Surface Pro) but the battery life is almost non-existent. Maybe one day. :)

A passport for storage... good idea. I'll look into that.

I've got a huge TV (50" plasma) along with a DVR and cable so that's not something I need from my computer, etc. The exception to that is the ability to download a movie and watch it later (like on a plane) or to watch Hulu or something when I'm out and about - waiting rooms, lunch breaks, etc. Hence the tablet.

This helps. Thanks so much!

leesa_perrie March 21 2013, 20:42:17 UTC

I was hoping for a laptop/tablet combo, but I'm a little ahead of the curve.

Butting in to say that hubby suggests take a look at the Asus Transformer:
http://www.asus.com/Tablets_Mobile/Eee_Pad_Transformer_TF101/

Still thinks you should get a PC though for the HD space if nothing else!

jackfan2 March 21 2013, 18:57:25 UTC

I agree with Kerri... there are limitations to tablets and ipads that will make that photo storage harder. I'm looking at an Asus tablet but will keep my laptop for other purposes that need programs and I hook an HDMI cable to it to watch shows on my tv ( ... )

karri_kln1671 March 22 2013, 01:09:46 UTC

I use SugarSync and much prefer it over Carbonite. I very much recommend them for online storage!