Need suggestions on building/buying a PC

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1

Hello all. I am trying to help my mom on getting a pc. This PC's purpose would be internet browsing, storage, and very light photo editing. Take into account the only reusable thing I have is a mouse so I would have to buy the case, cpu, mobo, ram, hdd, psu, windows os, keyboard, wifi adapter, and a monitor. My moms budget is around 500$ I wanted to know if with how low end this PC is it would be worth it to go desktop or go laptop. Her only requirements are if its a laptop for it to be lightweight and fairly small and if its a desktop to be in the form of a HTPC and have a wifi adapter

 

Any suggestions?

 

Currently i have this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xQVbyc

 

I have yet to decide on a keyboard and a monitor. I have absolutely 0 knowledge on wifi adapters but one requirement would be that its PCI compared to USB

2

This is the best that I could do.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/sFYRnQ

3

Oh yeah i should also add that a wifi adapter is needed

4

I tried to find a comparable laptop (money wise) to the PC and got this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834259318

 

I have yet to take into account the price of the monitor with the desktop build but just looking at those 2 spec to spec would the desktop be significantly better?

5

Not sure about that CPU, as I'm not the best with mobile chips.

However, there should be a pretty significant downgrade on the monitor.  The one I put together has a very nice Dell IPS monitor which is pretty popular.  I'm sure this lower resolution 1366x768 display at this price would be a TN panel.

6

Here is one with a little more horse power ... I usually don't recommend these cheap cases with built in PSUs .. but on this budget and requiring all the perfs. and your mothers preferences ... it leaves few choices.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/RYpFCJ

  • CPU: AMD A8-6600K 3.9GHz Quad-Core Processor .... ($89.99 Amazon)
  • Mobo: Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-HD3 Micro ATX FM2+ ($55.18 @ Newegg) 
  • Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 ($72.00 @ Newegg) 
  • Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM  Hard Drive ...$58.98
  • Case: Xion XON-720P_BK MicroATX Slim Case w/300W ($29.99 @ Newegg) 
  • Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($12.99 @ Newegg) 
  • OS: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($102.98 @ Newegg) 
  • Monitor: Gateway KX2153 Abd 60Hz 21.5" 1080p ($89.99 @ Newegg) 
  • TP-Link TL-WN725N 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($8.88 @ Amazon) 
  • Logitech MK120 Wired Slim Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($13.98 @ OutletPC) 
  • Total: $516.96

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

  • Sorry I went over a few $$$ but this is a great PC ... even better than my mom's. 
7

You would have to add 4GB of ram or it would make crazy  ...waiting  ... waiting .... waiting .... still waiting

And to answer your question  ... most definitely the desktop has better performance ... add another $60 to the budget and add an SSD and it would be a very decent everyday user ... down right snappy even.

(It will not play modern games without a low profile GPU like GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card added ... $150)

8

well this isent a gaming rig in the slightest. This is a internet browsing/storage for pictures and the like along with some light photo editing.

9

Good build. I would switch the 8gb ram out for 4g 2x2. 8gb is absolutly not necessary for this build. This would get the price closer to $500.