Computer Equipment Recommendation

[slotplayer]

Been a while since I bought a new computer but its time. I usually get a desktop tower.

Anyone have any recommendations I can checkout? Dell, HP? Others? All-in-One's?

I prefer Intel processors over AMD processors.

For the most part I'll only be editing images but usually have FF and Chrome browsers open and several tabs/windows open on each as well as a couple spreadsheets.

Money is not really and issue but would prefer keeping it under $1300.

Thanks

 

[edgarf76]

I would go with a laptop and get the wire to link it to your smart TV and a wireless keyboard. I bought a Dell at Best Buy for a pretty decent price. It is a 17 or 19 inch touch screen, 1 Terabite, 8 Gigs of Ram (Was Going To Do More But It Got Expensive) and I7 Processor. I do not like HP because I have had problems with their printers.

 

[slotplayer]

I have a smart tv, that might be a route as I want to watch you tube videos on it.
Someone mentioned to me they had an HP so I figured I'd ask opinions about them.

 

[AussieDave]

Purchased a Toshiba i7 laptop (17.3" screen) full HD. It came with 8gig ram but upgraded it to 16gig. Originally the idea was to use it when I was out and about or away. But... Did a relocate last year, and for a time my desktop etc was in storage.

So... bought a 27" monitor. Hooked up the laptop via a hdmi cable, and added a wireless keyboard and mouse. The laptop sat on a table (lid closed), and I was able to work, just as I would on my desktop. Albeit not as gutzy as the desktop but still had grunt. Depending on what type of Smart TV you have, you maybe able to connect the laptop via WiFi.

I've since bought the wife an Acer i5 (Win10), and that serves her purposes well. (email, watching YT, FB etc., etc.)

My desktop, I got a custom rig. Play games etc. But now thinking about an udpate for that. My thoughts are leaning towards the high end Alienware. This baby is looking good right now: http://www.dell.com/au/p/alienware-17-laptop/pd?oc=z5197a4au&model_id=alienware-17-laptop

But if your not a gamer, then you don't need ALL that grunt.

@slotplayer - so in answer to your question, I'd highly recommend a Toshiba laptop. Mine was AU$1,900, which is around US$1,400.

 

[RyanWeb]

If you can build yourself you can save yourself a great deal of money and get a much more powerful computer for the price. I have an I7 with an Asus z170 Deluxe board ($270 for the board, about $300 for the processor). Towers are super cheap ($30-50 online) Power supply, memory (32 gigs, cheap now $150) SSD drive $100 and a video card (from $20 to $200)

Putting the thing together is like Legos, they just snap together.. Or pay someone $30 then buy windows 10

If you want to copy me I can give you a full list. I think I paid close to 1k but could have paid a little less if I got everything online.

 

[NDG]

I would go with a laptop that you can connect to the TV via the HDMI port. If I am at home, I have it connected to a TV
and use it like a desktop, and if I'm traveling somewhere, I just unplug it from the TV and take the laptop with me.

 

[slotplayer]

@Dave, I've had Toshiba and Samsung stuff that lasted years. Panasonic audio stuff was good to me as well.

@Ryan, I've built a few PC's back in the 1990's. That was common back then.

@NDG, Good idea, I'd much rather sit on the couch with a big screen since I'll be doing some coding and watch a lot of how to videos. Its a Samsung Smart TV.

I just upgraded my router and speed to 75/75 last week.

 

[edgarf76]

I have a smart tv, that might be a route as I want to watch you tube videos on it.
Someone mentioned to me they had an HP so I figured I'd ask opinions about them.

I found a great deal with a hi sense smart tv. The picture is just as clear as sony or samsung.

 

[slotplayer]

I found a great deal with a hi sense smart tv. The picture is just as clear as sony or samsung.

My smart tv is a samsung. More of panic buy than anything as the Sony Bravia died over the 4th of July weekend. Just bought a DVM, (Digital Volt Meter) to see if I can fix it. Although the error code is 6 blinking lights, (all that indicates according to the error code chart is it could be one of three circuit boards, big help that is. two blinks would be the power supply).

If it's a backlight issue then it's toast, not worth repairing. It has audio so that tells me at least the power supply is working. Still could be missing one of the voltages though.

 

[Frank]

If you do a lot of web work, creating pages etc then desktop... even the most powerful laptop runs slow compared to most budget desktops.. I have a laptop, and plenty of tablets and yoga's for surfing when not working. Best value for spec seem to be Lenovo or Asus on laptop or desktop if you work a lot of images then I personally would suggest a desktop with 4k 28" monitor setup

 

[AussieDave]

@slotplayer - Got a LG 65" smart TV in the lounge. Haven't had any probs with it. Hookup the laptop and the XB1, all good
Same goes for the Samsung (50") in the bedroom.

I personally would suggest a desktop with 4k 28" monitor setup

Agreed, but you need GPU capable of delivering 4K res, otherwise it's a waste.

 

[TheGooner]

I got an HP last year running Win 8 which upgraded to Win 10.

It's OK - very fast - but a bit buggy from time to time.
Improving as Win 10 fixes come out.

A couple of key things to think about as you will be editing images and so want processing speed to work quickly :
1/ Get a solid state drive for your C: drive - it speeds up start-up and general processing immensely.
2/ Get as much RAM as you can afford - at least 16GB

This meant it was a "custom" build, but that just means discussing with the retailer and they sort it all out.
Unfortunately, you will probably need to do a bit of reading first to understand your needs, and find a retailer than can talk tech and do more than source off the shelf gear.
I don't think that any PC brand has any great advantage over the others so find one that gives speed and suits your pocket.

The cost here was around NZD$2,500 for the PC plus a very good Samsung 27 inch monitor ..
In the US it's probably half that price now (we pay over the top for tech down here).

 

[slotplayer]

I got an HP last year running Win 8 which upgraded to Win 10.

It's OK - very fast - but a bit buggy from time to time.
Improving as Win 10 fixes come out.

A couple of key things to think about as you will be editing images and so want processing speed to work quickly :
1/ Get a solid state drive for your C: drive - it speeds up start-up and general processing immensely.
2/ Get as much RAM as you can afford - at least 16GB

This meant it was a "custom" build, but that just means discussing with the retailer and they sort it all out.
Unfortunately, you will probably need to do a bit of reading first to understand your needs, and find a retailer than can talk tech and do more than source off the shelf gear.
I don't think that any PC brand has any great advantage over the others so find one that gives speed and suits your pocket.

The cost here was around NZD$2,500 for the PC plus a very good Samsung 27 inch monitor ..
In the US it's probably half that price now (we pay over the top for tech down here).

Thanks G, Everyone,

I'm looking at the Lenovo for $849.00 (second from left, scroll down to models. Part Number: 90FB0009US).

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/desktops/ideacentre/710/#90FB000AUS

Has everything I want, although the SSD is a little small.

Never heard much about this Lenovo other than they bought out IBM's personal computer division. A quick review of tech-based forums didn't have anything negative.

Gonna check out the Amazon reviews on it.

 

[Guard Dog]

Lenovo is a good brand and reasonably priced. Looks good spec-wise, but I wouldn't go with less than the $850 model because you will want 16GB memory, minimum (IMO).. and the 1TB drive.

 

[slotplayer]

Lenovo is a good brand and reasonably priced. Looks good spec-wise, but I wouldn't go with less than the $850 model because you will want 16GB memory, minimum (IMO).. and the 1TB drive.

Thanks, no I wouldn't. The difference between the $1k and the $850 machine is the generation of the Graphics Card. (GeForce 750Ti) vs. GeForce 960) and the OS. The $850 has Win 10 Pro while the $1k has Win 10 home. Pro is better.

The other thing is it has an Intel 6700 vs. the 6700k processor. I can live with the 6700 though.

 

[jiriprochazka]

I have a normal HP laptop with I3 Intel + 4 GB RAM + Intel HD graphics 4600. I spend for this PC about $600 + SSD ($100), at the beginning, the PC wasn't really was so I bought and SSD hard disk drive and now load speed of everything is maybe 6x faster. I can mostly do whatever I want. I can have opened like 40 tabs in google chrome etc... That SSD is super fast, I'm really satisfied with it.

 

[baldidiot]

Initially I used a desktop but switched to a laptop as I like the mobility. For a while had both but only ever used the laptop so now my desktop is sitting in a cupboard somewhere.

Also my wife and I sit opposite each other in the (home) office and it means we can actually talk to each other without having to lean around a monitor.

The past 3 have been Toshiba Tecras with upgraded RAM. Work like a charm. We also have a mandatory 'replace after 2 years' policy even if everything seems to be working fine.

 

[Guard Dog]

Wow... I think I would go crazy if my wife were in the same office as me And I would probably put a 50" flatscreen between us. lol

 

[Guard Dog]

Here is what I have:

* 2 Mounted 23" monitors
* 1 USB 15" monitor
* Bluetooth mouse, keyboard, speakers
* Dell XPS 13 - 9350, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD

However - most of my stuff is remote:

* Dell PowerEdge C1100 Server, 72GB RAM, Quad XEON X5560, VMWare ESXI 6, 4 SATA drives with a total of 8TB storage

This is my Virtual Server, which runs quite a few virtual machines for me. It also has quite a bit of horsepower, so even if the laptop were not enough - it would be.

I've also set up a VPN so that I can get into my network and my virtual machines when I am on the road.


I know that is more than you were thinking... but it is an alternate way to do things

 

[slotplayer]

Bought the machine yesterday, paid with PP. I like paying with PP as it consolidates the bookkeeping.