Building a new PC for my mother-in-law to replace her dying 8+ year old Acer desktop unit. This is NOT a gaming build. All she needs it for is browsing, email, word processing and just overall basic use. No peripherals or monitor needed.
So, I've come up with two builds for $400 (OS included), one AMD and one Intel based. The parts I chose are based on the best prices of what is currently in stock at our local Canada Computers and NCIX stores. The two builds have all the same components except for the CPU and motherboard. Her old PC has a 120GB HDD and she's only used about 20GB of that in the 8-9 years she's had it, so more storage is not necessary.
Yes, I could build something cheaper and yes I could find pre-built PCs with comparable specs and windows for a comparable price. But the problem with pre-built PCs is you don't know what motherboard or PSU you're getting, they come in some cheap case with little to no air flow and you don't get an SSD. Thus, all the parts I chose are with quality, longevity and performance/dollar in mind. All I ask from you guys is your opinions on which you think is best for the intended usage and WHY you think it's best.
*Edit* - What the heck is wrong with this forum? It won't let me properly type in and space out the links below for some reason. I have it all spaced out but when I try to post it just puts everything on one line at the bottom. Kind of annoying...
I'd probably go with the Intel, I wouldn't want a single module amd chip. Plus since it won't be used for gaming, I don't think the APU gpu is necessary
It's hard to know what you want. I would take as many parts from the old build she has got, as possible. For instant the case can't be that bad. For safety purposes I would get a new PSU. The CPU, the motherboard and the RAM need a upgrade. If the data on the HD is not important, then you can even still use the HD (only if it's SATA)
When you say that the PC is 8-9 years old I suppose it has Win XP on it. This has to be upgraded.
Maybe you need a CD drive?(or can take the old one)
In my build I upgraded the CPU and as this CPU comes without a APU I had to add a GPU. I could downgrade the Ram as the whole GUI will run over your GPU with 1GB of VRAM. I also changed the SSD with a 7200 HD. At this price point I don't think SSD is the way to go. I changed the case as I believe this case has god airflow too but it's cheaper and you can't benefit from the USB 3.0 header on the Cooler Master anyway.
I know what needs to be upgraded (pretty much everything except the optical drive) and there are some specific reasons behind my choice of parts that would take a while to explain...
The SSD I chose instead of a cheaper, larger HDD for several reasons:
1. As I mentioned, she doesn't need anything bigger than 120GB - she's only accumulated 20GB's worth of storage over 8 years.
2. They only cost $10 more than a 1TB HDD and for the extra $10 it's worth it for a better, faster end-user experience instead of a mountain of storage she'll never use and a slower computer. It's not always about the numbers. ;)
Optical drive is being re-used from her old PC.
She has two dogs, so there's a lot of dust in the air. Her old case had next to no airflow and no fans other than the CPU cooler and PSU fan. Needless to say, with no proper flow, dust build-up was an issue and has messed up the CPU fan bearings. I chose the CM N200 chassis because it comes with two case fans (int and ex), intake filtration and a PSU intake filter on the bottom. It also has decent build quality, decent cable management options and is only a few dollars more than the cheaper cases that don't have proper filtration.
Decided to go Intel and made a couple changes since making the OP. Freed up $100 by going with Windows 10 tech preview instead of Windows 8.1 (it's free for now and works well - been using it on my HTPC for a while now, plus MS hasn't said anything yet on how it will price Windows 10) and swapped the CPU for the G3258. I would normally pick the G3420 because she won't be over clocking, but it's the same price and I figure it's better to have that option in a few years if a little boost in performance is needed. The iGPU on the G3258 will be more than enough for her usage, so a discreet GPU isn't necessary.
That looks like a nice family pc. You may want to see if she can put the computer about 6" or so off the ground so that the amount of dust is significantly reduced.
Thanks. Yeah, that makes a huge difference in dust accumulation. We have 4 (small) dogs and just moving my Node 304 from the floor to up on a folding table was night and day. Used to have to clean the filters every two weeks. now there's barely anything on it after 3 weeks.
I'd go with am AMD APU. Intel is better in this case for tasks requiring better single core performance however with multi threaded performance you can't beat an A8-7600 at that price.
I'd recommend the Intel build because more likely than not all she's going to be doing with the build is web browsing and email, so I'd take the better single core performance for those kind of tasks.
That is true, the filters aren't quite as fine. However at least they are there. Most other cases around the same price or less don't have any such filters, less efficient airflow and only come with one or no fan at all.
It is indeed a nice case. ;) It's one you can use for the long-haul and has some nice extra features other don't for around the same price.
Uh, I can't actually open the AMD build for whatever reason, but whatever. The Intel build looks solid but if she's not really using it for a whole lot, perhaps a mITX build would save on space using the CoolerMaster Elite 110 and the Asrock H81M-ITX. It's more expensive by like 30USD but if she wants something smaller, it's an option.