Thinkin' of getting a new computer!

[watermelon man]

What's the haps my computer chums!

So dig this: I want to get a new computer! Not a really fancy beast one that can run Crysis or anything, just one that is not so cluttered as this one I'm using, not being old and overheating whenever I try to run photoshop would be nice too!

Here are some things I'm looking for:

Windows Vista preferably
Able to play some PC games like Spore or something, I'd like to get into the PC gaming world!
Nice relatively large screen
Able to have multiple applications open without slowing down too much

The last one is a biggie! On this current computer I will have AIM, Firefox, Thunderbird, MSN, and Skype running normally, which I don't think are really heavy-duty programs. But when I open photoshop, the thing just starts grinding! Like just switching between windows takes forever!

Anyways, I don't know a whole lot about brands or what are good ones or what I'd want for all of this and not end up paying more than I have to! I'd like the price to be pretty low, but hey if it starts getting too much I can use a student discount or whatever!

Any suggestions guys?

 

[Zorak]

If your buying pre-built, any of the big 8,9,10 or however many there are of the big computer manafacturers are fine. I even include Dell in that.

What you need are specs, if you really want vista, you are obviously thinking of future proofing yourself, and as such I would make the following requirements to any new PC:

Dual core, 64bit CPU
4gig Ram
at least a 512mb video card.

This current setup would actually lend you a moderatley high-end PC right now, and one that is well prepared for many years to come, especially if you incorperate the 64bit version of windows vista in there.

 

[watermelon man]

Awesome!

How much would a PC like that run me (I'm looking for a desktop, not a laptop)?

 

[Zorak]

I'm presuming your from the states (apologise if your not) so I can't really provide you much help I'm afraid, I am no longer aware of the exchange rates and how the price of electronics varies between our countries.

Hopefully someone here with more knowledge of good sites across the atlantic can provide you with some good deals

 

[centamtom]

For the stuff you're gonna be running, anything with a fast processor and big hard drive. Thats all you need really, just get the highest processor you can and the rest is basically all the same for every brand. Personally, i prefer toshiba

 

[bass_man1989]

Some company is putting out what they call "The Crysis PC" for $699. As for a monitor my friend got an HP that looks pretty good and a pretty reasonable price.

EA's Crysis Warhead PC can, uh, play Crysis - Engadget

HP - 19" Widescreen Flat-Panel TFT-LCD Monitor - w1907

It might be a bit overkill for what you're wanting to do, but the price is right.

 

[watermelon man]

Thanks all!

That Crysis PC does sound a bit like overkill though, but I won't write it off completely!

What does the processor do exactly?

 

[bass_man1989]

The processor pretty much does everything.

 

[watermelon man]

That doesn't really tell me much since I pretty much just think "hey the tower does everything, the monitor just shows the stuff".

Can you be more specific? It'd help a lot!

 

[bass_man1989]

It executes programs, in a sense, it does everything. You can skim through this if you really want...

Central processing unit - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[watermelon man]

So guys I saw a really sexy-looking Sceptre monitor at the store for $300, and it was like 22 inches or something and had 1080p stuff.

I've never heard of the brand though, can anyone say anything good/bad about Sceptre?

 

[bass_man1989]

I haven't heard of it, but if it looks good, chances are you can't go wrong for that price. I'd check TigerDirect reviews to see about reliability though.

 

[watermelon man]

I like the look of these two laptops

Dell Inspiron 1525 Laptop Product Details

Dell Studio 15 Laptop Details

The second one looks nicer and has a nifty fingerprint scanner, but tech-wise, is it worth the extra $100?

 

[bass_man1989]

Oh, I didn't know you were looking for a laptop. I saw someone with that second one at school (18" version), looked pretty nice.