Need new desktops- expert help appreciated

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Guantanamo

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So here is the deal, I have to desktops at home, one running intel celereon:sick: and the other pentium 4:wtf: and as with all machines their time has come to go to the big scrapheap in the sky. Their performance is sluggish if not unresponsive and they make running even the simplest things a complete mission.

I have been given permission by the central bank(father) to look into some new hardware and have hit a bit of a blank. There is too much out there and frankly a lot of it is way over priced. He would like to get at least one new PC for under R5000 but we dont need a new monitor at this time. Since my knowledge of pretty much anything to do with hardware is severely limited, heres where you come in, I would like to get your guys opinion.

I would probably get something with say an i5 processor ( is i3 good enough) and at least 4 gigs Ram. other than that I don't know whats potting. If you need any other information dont hesitate to ask.

PS. Chances are it will be running a 32bit OS.
PPS Does the R13 000 iMac have good specs compared to what i would be getting for my R5000?
 
Guantanamo said:
PPS Does the R13 000 iMac have good specs compared to what i would be getting for my R5000?
Click to expand...

No, those iMac specs are mediocre at best.

What are you going to use the PC for most of the time?

Where are you located more or less incase we want to refer you to a brick & mortar store?
 
Im in Joburg. Well mainly email, browsing, downloading, watching movies etc, projects, I use sketchup and google earth is one of my dads favorites, also some light gaming but nothing that I would need a great graphics card for. It will be the general use computer for the family but it needs to be fast enough to open applications as you click them, my current pc takes a minute to get iTunes open.
 
Ya look at pcint
For your needs I'd go with:

Core i5-650 Dual Core LGA1156 3.2GHz 4Mb Cache R 1,600
P7H55-M ASUS Intel H55, LGA1156, 4xDual DDR3 2200(O.C), Graphics on CPU (HDMI, VGA), 1xPCI-x16, 2xPCI-x1, 1xPCI, 6xSATA, 1xATA133, Gbe Lan, 8ch-Sound HD, Max 12xUSB, microATX R 1,100
2 x 2GB DDRIII-1333 Kingston R 511 incl. x2 = R1022
500GB-7200RPM 16MB Cache SATA II (Seagate) R 427
DVD Writer 22/12x DL SATA R 169
Coolermaster Elite Cool Case - ATX - 350W PSU R 424 incl.
Total R4742
 
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What about the software ? .... will it be part of the R5000?

Software is almost the most expensive component with an upgrade as big as yours.
I take it you've run XP on those machines, but with an new i5, you'd definitely want Win7 :) 64bit even better.

Basic OS + office can but you back an extra +/- R1800 :(
 
4gb ram and an i5 for no gaming is a bit overkill if u ask me!
 
I do agree, but 4GB now is always nice so you dont need extra later. And you could always cut costs and get an i3 530 @ R1,000 +-
 
my nvidia 8600gt vga broke today :( but as i was planning to upgrade my pc in a few months time i can buy the vga now, What do you guys recommend for +- R1000 at first i was leaning towards a nvidia gt 250 but now it seems that its better to get an ATI? What do you guys rate, the vga must have an HDMI output.
 
COMPUTEK said:
What about the software ? .... will it be part of the R5000?

Software is almost the most expensive component with an upgrade as big as yours.
I take it you've run XP on those machines, but with an new i5, you'd definitely want Win7 :) 64bit even better.

Basic OS + office can but you back an extra +/- R1800 :(
Click to expand...

I think I'm leaning towards a hackintosh as I already have snow leopard and iWork.

Thanks peanut for those specs but how would i go about getting it built. With regards to the i3 vs i5 how big of a difference will it actually make without over clocking it?
 
Can build it yourself. Very simple.. All components are marked and have manuals for installation... And most things only fit one way.. So very hard to mess up.
If you need help or detailed explanation i'll gladly help. Some online stores will even build it for you.
If you feel uncomfortable about building it yourself, have a look at these: http://www.pc-direct.co.za/c499/PC-Direct-Systems.aspx and maybe go for the AOPEN-G518-H55-PC | PC Direct Core i3 System and ask for an extra 2GB ram if you want.

Well the i5 650 is about 5-10% better than the i3 530 in a variety of benchmarks: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/118?vs=144 Doubt you'll notice it though.
The i5 is only really clocked differently (higher speed)to the i3's and going the i3 route you will get similar performance for alot less cash.
 
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Well for that money vs performance its probably best to go with the i3 an a self build. If i ordered everything which site would you recommend I use, are pcint's prices usually good? or am I looking at rands and cents difference.
 
Ya they have the lowest price mostly but if you built a system with them or say rebeltech you might only see a saving of R100 just depends... I'd recommend "build" the system on www.rebeltech.co.za or www.prophecy.co.za since they have a bigger selection of items and nice pictures (nice for choosing a case) and easy to see the general price. Although prophecy is a little more expensive they have really good support and i can give you a voucher for R100 off when ordering with them plus you'll get free delivery (if your order is over R1500 which it will be).

Also look at their complete systems from pcint http://www.pcint.co.za/pcs.php the Power Pro IV @ R 4331 INC. VAT is what you need :)
 
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Now I have the problem of choosing which one to go for. The special at zone.co.za looked good pity it ended 2 days ago. Im leaning toward the pcint unit(pro power IV) or the AOPEN-G518-H55 and getting an extra 2 gigs ram for both. Are they both compatible with OSX as it seems most likely that I am going to run it?

If yes, does anyone have a coin. Both units are basically identical in my eyes. Are there any major differences that would make me choose one over the other?
 
the one at zones will probably be the same this week, they run very similar if not the same specials every week. just give them a call
 
Guantanamo said:
Now I have the problem of choosing which one to go for. The special at zone.co.za looked good pity it ended 2 days ago. Im leaning toward the pcint unit(pro power IV) or the AOPEN-G518-H55 and getting an extra 2 gigs ram for both. Are they both compatible with OSX as it seems most likely that I am going to run it?

If yes, does anyone have a coin. Both units are basically identical in my eyes. Are there any major differences that would make me choose one over the other?
Click to expand...
Firstly, if you want to run OS X on your PC, check everything at the insanelymac forums and osx86 wiki for compatibility first. Not all motherboards, graphics cards and things work. In fact most don't.

2nd, the iMac is expensive, but it has an awesome IPS screen, which would normally cost about R6000 at least on it's own. This, it's unique design and the fact that it runs OS X is what makes it so expensive. It will also repay your investment with a good resale value and low power consumption and noise.
 
that mobo wouldnt work in that case nakedpeanut... you have a microATX motherboard but an ATX case
 
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