Birthday Computer

[Spikes]

Bad idea.
Go Newegg over worsttbuy

Just show em the price difference. That should convince the buget-ers

I only use Bestbuy as a Convienience store. When I absolutely want/need something RIGHT NOW.

If I'm willing to wait a day or two. I get it somewhere else.

Exactly! NewEgg is great with it's 3 day shipping...usually get it next day if I order it early enough, since NJ to CNY is a short hop.

[DREDIOCK]

If the have same item best buy will price match to most online retailers.  saves shipping charges.


Semp

They wont match Newegg prices. I've tried.
Least not any of the three near me.

[guncrasher]

They wont match Newegg prices. I've tried.
Least not any of the three near me.

weird they matched their price on vc, cpu fan and 23 in monitor.  then again i live in ca and newegg is just around the corner from me.  but its their policy to match prices.

semp

[Enker]

One last question, how would I know what to look for in a DVD drive if I use Spikes' recommendations? Meaning, is there some special sort of connector that I would need to have, or a particular plug type for the mother board? SATA/ATA/IDE? Or should I just use the drive in Gyrene's post?

[Getback]

Newegg is the way to go. You may save a little by going to pricewatch.com.

http://www.pricewatch.com/

Sometimes Newegg.com will have a lower price there because of competitors.

[Spikes]

One last question, how would I know what to look for in a DVD drive if I use Spikes' recommendations? Meaning, is there some special sort of connector that I would need to have, or a particular plug type for the mother board? SATA/ATA/IDE? Or should I just use the drive in Gyrene's post?

gyrene's link to the drive is fine. You'll want a SATA drive for sure. Not too smart on burn speeds or anything but it is up to you if you want a DVD burner, or just a DVD player.

Edit: SATA's will look like this:

Or they will have that red cable and a 4 pin molex connector for power.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Molex_female_connector.jpg

[DREDIOCK]

weird they matched their price on vc, cpu fan and 23 in monitor.  then again i live in ca and newegg is just around the corner from me.  but its their policy to match prices.

semp

Maybe they've changed policies. Its been a  good long while since I even bothered asking.

I'll keep it in mind the next time I need something though.

[gyrene81]

weird they matched their price on vc, cpu fan and 23 in monitor.  then again i live in ca and newegg is just around the corner from me.  but its their policy to match prices.

semp

Bestbuy will only match local competitor pricing...nothing from the net. I've never seen a local newegg retail outlet but I wish I had one nearby.

[guncrasher]

lol this is the only adavantage of living in ca (los angeles to be exact)  I live right next to newegg. nzxt, ch, fys.  and bestbuy will match their prices.  but the cons is I gotta pay taxes on all of them and they up to 12% in some places.

semp

[mtn-paradoc]

 

thanks guys.....I too am planning to spend xmas bonus on a new( better) puter....I currently am running a 7 year old dell 8300.
    And altho money is tight....this 500 ( or so) set up is doable. Altho.....id like to run ah with  all graphics on high...so any input is greatly appreciated!

[Spikes]

Well, you are REALLY stretching it with 500 and high graphics in the same sentence. My new comp was about 750 but I also got a higher-then needed GFX card. Yyou'd be better off spending 6-7.

[Enker]

Welp, we brought the budget into the 650 range. Unfortunately, Windows 7 busts that budget with the version that contains XP mode. That I need because we are NOT shelling out for Office '07 or '10 when we have a perfectly good '03. When looking for the DVD-RW drive, what kind of connection do I need to have for it to work with Spikes' system?

[Spikes]

You'll want Sata, You can go with IDE but that's old technology nowadays...and you can pickup a sata drive for the same price as an IDE on newegg.

[mtn-paradoc]

thanks! The 600-700 range is totally doable! ( yah xmas bonus!) too far above 7 incures wife ack!
   Ive heard that anything "dell" is dell only and cannot be reused....true?   Is the tower reusable? Is anything besides the 19" crt?

Im a f/f paramedic so a patient with his organs in the wrong places? not a problem....open a computer tower...."stranger in a strange land"!

[gyrene81]

You can reuse almost anything but don't re-use the mobo or PSU, wouldn't try to re-use the case unless you have the tools to mod it, probably would not want to re-use the cpu and memory since they are old tech and you want new tech. If you want to keep the hard drive as a secondary for file storage, it will work as long as the new system has an IDE interface on it...the CD/DVD drive as well.