Hardware & Technical What kind of hardware would you recommend for a home PC? Details inside.

  • Thread starter Deleted member 110222
  • Start date

Deleted member 110222

D
So, my mum's boyfriend today tried to use his Vista-powered PC for the first time in years. Yes, in 2018.

Fortunately, after my mum joined the discussion it seems they are considering getting a new system.

I was just wondering a couple of things.

First, as all they want the computer for is basic tasks like word-processing and web-browsing, is there really any need to splash out, relatively speaking, on a CPU? I was thinking that a Pentium would be all they need?

Secondly, I'm well aware of the existence of the GT 1030. It's a pretty affordable GPU, and was wondering, might it benefit a system that might be used as a media centre? Or perhaps, might it have an impact on browser performance? No idea if GPU is important for image-heavy web pages... Or may they as well just stick to integrated?

TIA
 

Caramel Clown

Caramel Clown
Stick to integrated IMO. GT 1030 is a pile of....something unpleasant :) Could look at something like Ryzen 5 2600e with integrated graphics, or countless Intel CPUs.

Edit. Here's a good choice for what you describe IMO. Pentium g5600. 4 threads, decent base clock, on-board graphics.

Edit. Edit. Okay, last edit. i3-8100.
 
Last edited:

Deleted member 110222

D
Caramel Clown said:
Stick to integrated IMO. GT 1030 is a pile of....something unpleasant :) Could look at something like Ryzen 5 2600e with integrated graphics, or countless Intel CPUs.

Edit. Here's a good choice for what you describe IMO. Pentium g5600. 4 threads, decent base clock, on-board graphics.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I wasn't too sure on the GT 1030. Having started with a 960 as my first GPU, well... The 1030 is something I never needed to care about.

Pentium is a CPU I'm fond of. I've had a couple of basic laptops with variations of them.

Handled my writing just fine, and web pages were a breeze anyway.
 

Shadowdancer

Shadowdancer
If it's really only for desktop use, Ryzen 3 2200G with the necessary surroundings, even on an A320 chipset mainboard, will be fine. Stick in 8GB RAM and a decent 250-ish GB SSD and put that in a nice little case with the smallest quality power supply you can find :p (Or come to think of it, something that came with Vista will probably have a PSU with suitable connectors, so you just rip out anything that's not power or case and put in your new single-board computer.)
 

The Chairmaker

The Chairmaker
how about AMD Ryzen 2200G. or 2400g

4 core chip, integrated graphics good enough to play games at 1080p at low or medium detail. Around 1030 performance. Big advantage is the Motherboard though. It uses standard AM4 boards, so if in the future they decide they want something faster, they just take the APU out and fit something like a ryzen 2600 with a discrete graphics card. Only downside is the memory speed matters so that can bump up price a bit depending on the current market prices for memory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBEJoAoW944


For none game, production stuff and also more gaming benches


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FntY5rYR4cE
 
Last edited:

Bill Clement

Bill Clement
:S Um, what's actually wrong with the Vista machine? If all they're interested in is word processing and surfing the web, just strip out any other software on it, remove all non essential desktop clutter and defrag the spinner. Should be just fine after that...

I still have an old laptop running XP. Great for emergency use, even plays older games when I feel like going retro.
 

Deleted member 110222

D
Bill Clement said:
:S Um, what's actually wrong with the Vista machine? If all they're interested in is word processing and surfing the web, just strip out any other software on it, remove all non essential desktop clutter and defrag the spinner. Should be just fine after that...

I still have an old laptop running XP. Great for emergency use, even plays older games when I feel like going retro.
Click to expand...

Hey it's their money. They've half convinced themselves they'd like something new. I can't control what they buy, but I can give advice if they decide they must spend, hence this thread.

Believe me, they're stubborn. :p
 

GJ51

GJ51
Refurbished laptop under $500

I do a lot of OS and configuration testing. If you really want a desktop config, I see Lenovo refurbs with Core i5 4gb Win 10 boxes all the time under $200 all the time.

I currently own 5 and never had a problem with any of them.

They make the perfect PFSense box if you add a dual port Intel NIC.
 

Broon

Broon
Bill Clement said:
:S Um, what's actually wrong with the Vista machine? If all they're interested in is word processing and surfing the web, just strip out any other software on it, remove all non essential desktop clutter and defrag the spinner. Should be just fine after that...

I still have an old laptop running XP. Great for emergency use, even plays older games when I feel like going retro.
Click to expand...


For real this is a good answer. ^^^^

Who's to say there isn't already a Pentium dual core CPU in there? And if they are going to do a build they would need a new OS right? Why not Install said OS on to the old machine and see how it runs, short of letting it register itself to the board. If the machine runs well enough it could save the folks a bit of change.

Windows 10 (uggh....shiver) will easily run on an older machine. A quick search showed me that.

https://www.pcworld.com/article/295...-windows-10-the-answer-will-surprise-you.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/i...smooth-intel-pentium-dual-core-g2030-ram.html
 

GJ51

GJ51
You can get a refurb with onboard graphics, Win 10 Pro, a Core i5 CPU, and 4gb of ram for less than $200. I've seen Core i3 boxes for $139.

It's like buying Win 10 and getting the hardware for free

Includes kybd and mouse - just plug in a monitor to either dp or vga port

Install Open Office

Best cheap solution available. You can find similar deals on Dell and HP refurbs.

I occasionally find them with an 128 Sandisk SSD installed - boots from cold in 7 seconds

No need to open the box to swap hardware, just plug into a decent monitor and your're online.
 
Last edited:

Hell Razor5543

H
I was asked, a couple of years ago, about what type of laptop should a friend buy for their daughter (she was starting out at university). I suggested they sit down and work out three lists of needs They are as follows;

1, Must have (100%). The system under consideration MUST completely meet the items on this list. 9/10 is not good enough.
2, Really useful to have (75%). The system under consideration needs to get 7/10 or better.
3, Nice to have (50%). The system under consideration needs to tick 5/10 boxes or better in this list.

The lists need to be realistic. When he and his daughter did this, they then went to a lasrg IT store who had numerous systems to choose from. However, only three systems made it to the short list (and none of these were the most expensive options). The salesman actually commented on how useful it was for customers to be so well prepared.

What you and your family need to do is basically work out your needs, and make these lists. Then you should be able to narrow down the various choices to a few suitable systems.
 
Last edited:

Siobhan

Siobhan
My two options...

(a) The cheapest choice: Stick linux on it. It will probably run a lot quicker, do everything you need, but obviously is a big change so they may not want it.
(b) The simplest choice: Get a Chromebook/Netbook.
 

MickyG1982

M
Well, a pc capable of running vista should be able to run Windows 10 too, in fact the only pc I've ever had issues getting it to run on was a 2003 Toshiba satellite. Heck it even ran OK on an elderly netbook I just happened to have lying around (remember those, horribly underpowered atom based netbooks?).

Up until recently I'd have suggested just upping the systems ram to its max and installing windows 10, but over the years Microsoft has bloated it horribly. Now, just like Siobhan even I would recommend a Linux distro if all they want to do is surf the Web and type up a few letters / spreadsheets. Specifically, I'd go for ZorinOS, it's UI is very familiar to Windows users and would be very easy to get into, at least in my opinion.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom