I need a new computer

Jon · Apr 30, 2016

If you are slightly adventurous and want a desktop here is a fantastic resource. My son and I built a gaming rig for his 11th birthday using this, I lent a hand but he did most of the work. For ~$400 he has a screaming machine that can easily outperform an Xbox1 or PS4,

for ~ $900 you could build an insanely fast machine, in fact if you aren't doing hardcore gaming it will probably be far, far more machine than you need

https://www.reddit.com/r/PCMasterRace/wiki/builds

Catfish · Apr 30, 2016

As far as Brands go, I've got two Lenovo laptops and Mrs. Catfish has a Lenovo desktop. We've been really happy with them. She has an HP for work and has had some problems. Nothing major, but irritating.

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

Jon said:
If you are slightly adventurous and want a desktop here is a fantastic resource. My son and I built a gaming rig for his 11th birthday using this, I lent a hand but he did most of the work. For ~$400 he has a screaming machine that can easily outperform an Xbox1 or PS4,

for ~ $900 you could build an insanely fast machine, in fact if you aren't doing hardcore gaming it will probably be far, far more machine than you need

https://www.reddit.com/r/PCMasterRace/wiki/builds

I agree. For what he's wanting, I think desktop is the better route. For one thing, as an architect, needing design capability, he's going to want a larger monitor than any laptop can have. I know he can plug into a laptop - and I've done it. It may not be a trait he has, but I like fiddling with the desktops. I'm always adding a larger secondary HDD or a better GPU or sound card. All of that is far harder with a laptop, except for the HDD. Also, I absolutely hate a laptop keyboard, so I always end up plugging in an auxiliary...

crimsonaudio · Apr 30, 2016

TIDE-HSV said:
Sorry, but I don't buy your guy's story at all. Any component, other than an inadequate CPU is upgradable from 7 to 10 with no problem.

Does Win10 not require different drivers than Win7? If so, I've seen lots of laptops left in the dust as proprietary drivers weren't updated for the new OS.

I don't know, just asking - I'm not running Win10 here at all.

Jon · Apr 30, 2016

TIDE-HSV said:
I agree. For what he's wanting, I think desktop is the better route. For one thing, as an architect, needing design capability, he's going to want a larger monitor than any laptop can have. I know he can plug into a laptop - and I've done it. It may not be a trait he has, but I like fiddling with the desktops. I'm always adding a larger secondary HDD or a better GPU or sound card. All of that is far harder with a laptop, except for the HDD. Also, I absolutely hate a laptop keyboard, so I always end up plugging in an auxiliary...

me too

I use a 10 inch ChromeBook plugged into a 24" Monitor with a full size mechanical keyboard a good mouse and external speakers. I love it cause I can unplug and take it with me whenever I need

Catfish · Apr 30, 2016

TIDE-HSV said:
I agree. For what he's wanting, I think desktop is the better route. For one thing, as an architect, needing design capability, he's going to want a larger monitor than any laptop can have. I know he can plug into a laptop - and I've done it. It may not be a trait he has, but I like fiddling with the desktops. I'm always adding a larger secondary HDD or a better GPU or sound card. All of that is far harder with a laptop, except for the HDD. Also, I absolutely hate a laptop keyboard, so I always end up plugging in an auxiliary...

And probably multiple monitors. I couldn't live with just one monitor, especially for work. Get a laptop with a dock and two (or more) monitors. That's the main reason I got a Lenovo for my personal computer. It's just like the one work provided and I can dock either at home or at work with no problem. I was lucky in that it turned out Lenovo makes great machines.

I have two monitors, but I visited our company's office in Mississippi about two years ago. There was a guy there who had EIGHT. I had serious monitor envy. I might lose my mind trying to keep track of that many screens, but I've seriously considered adding a third at work that would be dedicated for Outlook.

DzynKingRTR · Apr 30, 2016

For the record my previous computer was an acer. It is small and weak. I have no idea what it's specs are as it was a gift that the previous owner was going to throw away. I have been meaning to upgrade, the death of this thing is just forcing me to upgrade earlier than expected.

Jon · Apr 30, 2016

Catfish said:
And probably multiple monitors. I couldn't live with just one monitor, especially for work. Get a laptop with a dock and two (or more) monitors. That's the main reason I got a Lenovo for my personal computer. It's just like the one work provided and I can dock either at home or at work with no problem. I was lucky in that it turned out Lenovo makes great machines.

I have two monitors, but I visited our company's office in Mississippi about two years ago. There was a guy there who had EIGHT. I had serious monitor envy. I might lose my mind trying to keep track of that many screens, but I've seriously considered adding a third at work that would be dedicated for Outlook.

the problem with Lenovo of course is that they have been caught more than once pre-installing spyware on their machines.

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

crimsonaudio said:
Does Win10 not require different drivers than Win7? If so, I've seen lots of laptops left in the dust as proprietary drivers weren't updated for the new OS.

I don't know, just asking - I'm not running Win10 here at all.

As with any new OS, there was an interval when there was a lag with drivers. As I posted above, my wife's computer is about six years old now and it's merrily running 10 and running it better than it ever ran with the miserable Vista it shipped with or the miserable 8 which replaced it. Unless you have some really, really old legacy hardware, drivers are not a problem with 10...

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

Jon said:
the problem with Lenovo of course is that they have been caught more than once pre-installing spyware on their machines.

This is true. It's a fairly recent problem. I've followed it, because I'm posting from a Lenovo desktop. It's a gaming machine, although I'm not a gamer...

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

DzynKingRTR said:
For the record my previous computer was an acer. It is small and weak. I have no idea what it's specs are as it was a gift that the previous owner was going to throw away. I have been meaning to upgrade, the death of this thing is just forcing me to upgrade earlier than expected.

You will have a better life, no matter in which direction you head...

Catfish · Apr 30, 2016

Jon said:
the problem with Lenovo of course is that they have been caught more than once pre-installing spyware on their machines.

"We have never found a single thing that the Russians have successfully hidden from us." :wink:

crimsonaudio · Apr 30, 2016

TIDE-HSV said:
As with any new OS, there was an interval when there was a lag with drivers. As I posted above, my wife's computer is about six years old now and it's merrily running 10 and running it better than it ever ran with the miserable Vista it shipped with or the miserable 8 which replaced it. Unless you have some really, really old legacy hardware, drivers are not a problem with 10...

I just know with laptops it's a crapshoot - a lot of times the drivers are model specific, so after just a couple of years support for new OS's goes away. Now if Win10 can use Win7 drivers, then it's a no-brainer, but it could be that the computer in questions wasn't supported.

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

crimsonaudio said:
I just know with laptops it's a crapshoot - a lot of times the drivers are model specific, so after just a couple of years support for new OS's goes away. Now if Win10 can use Win7 drivers, then it's a no-brainer, but it could be that the computer in questions wasn't supported.

My wife's computer works just fine with Win 10 and Vista drivers...

DzynKingRTR · Apr 30, 2016

I have never used windows 10. I use Windows7 at work. We have some people on 8 and the hate it. Is 10 any good?

Bama Reb · Apr 30, 2016

DzynKingRTR said:
I have never used windows 10. I use Windows7 at work. We have some people on 8 and the hate it. Is 10 any good?

Yes. It's a lot more stable. It doesn't crash all the time like Win8.

seebell · Apr 30, 2016

Win 10 is good. About the same to use as Win7.

$1000 will get you a screamer. Can you build your own? Was the Acer a desktop?

TIDE-HSV · Apr 30, 2016

DzynKingRTR said:
I have never used windows 10. I use Windows7 at work. We have some people on 8 and the hate it. Is 10 any good?

BR is correct. 10 is very much like 7, but better and more stable. Everyone sane hated 8...

uafan4life · Apr 30, 2016

As a current software developer / sysadmin as well as a former I.T. / networking guy, the only brand I ever recommend is Asus. There's a reason that every super high-end gaming and overclocking rig designed to break some world record which isn't being sponsored by a competitor is built using Asus motherboards.

I'm currently using an Asus laptop as my primary work system; a triple monitor "desktop" setup at home that I can just pick up and take with me when needed.

And, if you end up going with a laptop, I'd recommend getting one with a dedicated graphics card for multiple reasons.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S5 using Tapatalk

DzynKingRTR · Apr 30, 2016

seebell said:
Win 10 is good. About the same to use as Win7.

$1000 will get you a screamer. Can you build your own? Was the Acer a desktop?

The acer was a very tiny laptop

I need a new computer

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