Looking for a new computers. What baseline specs?

[Quasqueton]

I'm about to get a new computer (current one is over 5 years old). I've gone by Office Depot and got the specs for several of their computers and prices, just to get a feel for what is out there.

For general purposes, and of course for playing the current games, what are the baseline specs I should be looking for? What mistakes should I avoid. What is the latest, good version of Windows?

I am pretty familiar with computers, but my knowledge is not up to date.

Thanks.

Quasqueton

 

[WingOver]

Windows XP is great. Personally I use XP Pro at home.

I'd pay attention to your video card options. PCI Express is the newest card slot technology replacing AGP. I believe high-end cards from ATI and NVidia are just now being released.

Any computer that has a PCI Express slot will most likely support Serial ATA (SATA). This connector is for new hard drives and its much thinner than the older ATA ribbon cables.

3D games like DOOM 3 and half-life 2 are going to need some impressive hardware, so be sure your video card can handle it. At minimum try to get a PC that has a PCI Express slot in it so you can upgrade the video later.

 

[Psionicist]

There are currently no motherboard available with PCI Express, and the newest video cards (Nvidia 6800 and ATi X800) are AGP. In todays news: http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=16377

A few questions:

What's your budget?

What's the purpose of your new computer? Regular work? Computer games? Etc..

 

[Hand of Evil]

Always get the best graphics card possible
Always get the most memory possible - add more - 512 is the low end!
60 Gig Hard drive is standard
DVD/CD Read/write is standard

 

[Quasqueton]

What's your budget?

What's the purpose of your new computer? Regular work? Computer games? Etc..

I'd prefer to keep the cost to under $1,000. I've got a 19" monitor, printer, cable modem, etc. I just need the box.

It is my home computer -- surfing the Net, word processing, and games.

Quasqueton

 

[Psionicist]

I'd prefer to keep the cost to under $1,000. I've got a 19" monitor, printer, cable modem, etc. I just need the box.

It is my home computer -- surfing the Net, word processing, and games.

Quasqueton

< $1000 is no problem these days.

Have you considered building the computer from scratch, or do you prefer them pre-buildt?

 

[WingOver]

There are currently no motherboard available with PCI Express, and the newest video cards (Nvidia 6800 and ATi X800) are AGP. In todays news: http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=16377

Any idea when PCI Express will be available? My current PC has a Radeon 9700 which has held up surpringly well. I planned on upgrading sometime after PCI Express was widely available.

As for Quasqeton, I hate to see someone buy a new rig just before new technology is released that displaces it. Ok, maybe not displace, but it's always a good idea to plan ahead when buying computers.

 

[Quasqueton]

Have you considered building the computer from scratch, or do you prefer them pre-buildt?

I want to take it out of the box and plug it in and go. I just don't have time these days to put much effort into building a computer.

Quasqueton

 

[WingOver]

Just a quick note about my experience with Dell tech support.

My dad's computer got zapped by lightning a few days ago. I called tech support for him (since I was the one who actually bought it) and they arranged to have a tech come by my house the next day. He showed up early, swapped out the motherboard, and had it up and running in an hour. And that was with the standard 1 year warranty. (I didn't tell them it was struck by lightning.) I was really impressed at home quickly they resolved it.

 

[KenM]

If your OS is Win XP, make sure you download service pack 1 for it, it fixes alot of problems XP had with running games.