System build for my parents

Haven't built a system since the original Athlon XP days (~8 years ago). Not sure if my parents will like Windows 8, so I'm thinking of building them a A8/A10 based system with WIndows 7. They just do email, web browsing and look at photos, don't need anything high end. My budget is ~$500.

OS - Win 7 Home premium http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116986
CPU/APU - AMD A8-5500 (currently out of stock) or A10-5700
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819113289
Mobo - Biostar Hi-Fi A85W FM2 AMD A85X http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138366
RAM - Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820104173
DVD - SAMSUNG SH-224BB/RSBS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827151257
Storage - Plextor M5S Series PX-128M5S 2.5" 128GB SATA III http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820249024
-or- Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148840

Case - either a cheap/decent case from the local mom & pop store, or I could reuse one of my cases I have sitting around. Question is are these mobos still ATX, that is open from the left side of the case?

Since this will/should last them ~5 years, should I get an SSD or HD? They usually leave their computer on 24/7, so don't know if they will notice the extra speed from an SSD.

I don't think building the system yourself is really worth it in this case. You can get a decent Dell OptiPlex desktop for $500, or the cheapest Mac Mini is $599.

I was thinking of just buying them this HP:
http://www.staples.com/HP-Pavilion-p...nalize=certona

Nearly the same specs minus the SSD, and has windows 8.

Regardless of whether you go with Dell/HP/Lenovo/etc I'd recommend getting a business machine instead of a consumer one. You'll end up with slightly slower specs for the money (not really a big deal in this case), but in exchange you get better reliability.

I would recommend you go with DELL for versatility and IBM for reliability (of hardware). I'd try to stay away from anything else. Dell's support sucks (I ended up teaching those fools how to trouble shoot) but what they allow you to customize for the build is awesome. IBM's computer quality is good but they limit what you can modify with your order.

I didn't know IBM still made desktops. I thought Lenovo manufactures them now.
I could order a Vostro from Dell small business (you can still get Windows 7), but are they really any better than an Inspiron?

I bought an HP desktop about 2 years ago, its been fine and suits my needs. I'm sure the HP I linked above would also be more than enough for my parents. The problem is, like most new desktops, it has Windows 8. Their multifunction printer isn't fully supported in Windows 8.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by yngwie98

I didn't know IBM still made desktops. I thought Lenovo manufactures them now.
I could order a Vostro from Dell small business (you can still get Windows 7), but are they really any better than an Inspiron?

I bought an HP desktop about 2 years ago, its been fine and suits my needs. I'm sure the HP I linked above would also be more than enough for my parents. The problem is, like most new desktops, it has Windows 8. Their multifunction printer isn't fully supported in Windows 8.

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Well Levno is IBM. I still refer to it as IBM. Also you should be able to get them installed with Windows 7. I know that Dell allows you to buy a custom desktop with Windows 7 Home Premium 64.

How is Gateway's reliablity these days? Found a couple systems at Microcenter.
http://www.microcenter.com/product/4...sktop_Computer
http://www.microcenter.com/product/4...sktop_Computer

Quote:

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Originally Posted by yngwie98

How is Gateway's reliablity these days? Found a couple systems at Microcenter.
http://www.microcenter.com/product/4...sktop_Computer
http://www.microcenter.com/product/4...sktop_Computer

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I still don't like them. Personally I feel that they are just expensive paperweights.

I bought them this HP.
http://www.microcenter.com/product/4...sktop_Computer
Should be enough for their needs.

Well if all they do is email, web browsing and look at photos that will be fine, BUTTT I say this is the better purchase...

http://www.microcenter.com/product/3...sktop_Computer

Passmark scores

Intel i3-2120 - 4,004
AMD A6-3620 - 3,037

CPU world: AMD A6-3620 vs Intel Core i3-2120

Not sure if they'd notice the differnce between the 2 CPUs. Nor do they multitask enough to really need a quad core CPU. My rig is about 2 years old, has an Athlon II X4 635 (passmark score 3,297) and it's plenty fast enough for me.
I like the case of the one I bought better than the case the cheaper system has. It's a newer version of the case I have, it adds USB 3.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SpywareDr

Passmark scores

Intel i3-2120 - 4,004
AMD A6-3620 - 3,037

CPU world: AMD A6-3620 vs Intel Core i3-2120

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Screw passmark.... How about GPU performance...

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Originally Posted by richardginn

Screw passmark.... How about GPU performance...

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For:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by richardginn

... email, web browsing and look at photos ...

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?


Of course if that's all that's required, even a tablet would work. :)

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Originally Posted by SpywareDr

For:



?




Of course if that's all that's required, even a tablet would work. :)

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Moving watching would be better on the AMD GPU though...

Movie watching would be better on a 110-inch 4K LED TV. :)

for my parents, i think i would rather just get something like this and swap in a 120gb SSD: http://www.amazon.com/HP-Pavilion-23...6645114&sr=8-4

-no wires to fuss around with
-low heat and power usage
-no chassis fan to get clogged up
-tech support provided
-good enough performance for 99% of home tasks

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kpxgq

for my parents, i think i would rather just get something like this and swap in a 120gb SSD: http://www.amazon.com/HP-Pavilion-23...6645114&sr=8-4

-no wires to fuss around with
-low heat and power usage
-no chassis fan to get clogged up
-tech support provided
-good enough performance for 99% of home tasks

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WELLL the video card inside of the machine is a horrible piece of crap.... The CPU is only dual core as well, but not super powerful.

I see you so called 599 price and Raise you 0 bucks before shipping on this....

http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/hom...One-Desktop-PC

Yes you loose two gig of ram for this price, BUTTT you do gain a much better video card and also get a 800MGz gain on the CPU...

For 30 bucks more they will DOUBLE the HDD space to 1TB and add in two more gigs of ram.. The CPU upgrade price though is outrageous though...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SpywareDr

Movie watching would be better on a 110-inch 4K LED TV. :)

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We bought them a 52" Sharp HDTV for christmas a couple years ago. Movies & TV look pretty good on it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by richardginn

http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/hom...One-Desktop-PC

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That comes with Windows 8. Their printer/copier/scanner isn't fully compatible with Windows 8, so to avoid having to buy them a new printer I bought them something with Windows 7. Also the screen they have is fine. I did all the Windows updates and installed Firefox before I gave it to them. It was fast enough for me and way better than their old computer. The built in USB 3 ports on the front are nice. Had to buy a USB 3 PCIe card for my computer after seeing how much faster it is than USB 2.

From the limited playing around with Windows 8 I've done on store demo computers, it looks great for a tablet or touchscreen laptop, but I don't see any reason to "upgrade" from Windows 7.