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Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 05:00 PM

My computer died today (RIP).

So I need a new one. I want one that will run SL ok. Oh and I'm proper skint so I need one fairly cheap, as in under £300..

Can anyone with a bit of know-how see one from this list that will be half decent?

PC_World - Desktop PC Base Units

Ta!

Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 07:02 PM

*sly look left and right* ahem.... bump!

I'm going to the PC World of doom tomorrow!

Ran Garrigus · 10-03-2008, 07:06 PM

Are you going to salvage parts from your previous PC? If so, what sort of graphics card did it have?

Depending on the answer:

1) Not salvaging a card from the old PC: you're going to have to get one, and the XFX 8400 GS from the site you've linked looks like your best shot. That'll take £25 from your budget. Try the Compaq SR5522 and pick up the XFX with it.

2) Salvaging a decent card: The Inspiron 530/2583 is the best system for under £300 at that site, hands down.

Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ran Garrigus

Are you going to salvage parts from your previous PC? If so, what sort of graphics card did it have?

Depending on the answer:

1) Not salvaging a card from the old PC: you're going to have to get one, and the XFX 8400 GS from the site you've linked looks like your best shot. That'll take £25 from your budget. Try the Compaq SR5522 and pick up the XFX with it.

2) Salvaging a decent card: The Inspiron 530/2583 is the best system for under £300 at that site, hands down.

Nice one, thanks. The old graphics card is below the minimum requirements anyway so I reckon I'll just dump it.

Walker Moore · 10-03-2008, 07:15 PM

It's so hard to recommend a PC for SL with that price cap. You want to go for one with an NVidia graphics card because they're more suitable (for SL) than Intel graphics. The best I could see was an NVidia GeForce 7050 (in three or four of those PCs)... which isn't terribly fast but should at least work OK.

It's a pity you don't have longer to shop around really because PC World don't have that much choice really... and they aren't the cheapest.

Walker Moore · 10-03-2008, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alfie Demonia

Nice one, thanks. The old graphics card is below the minimum requirements anyway so I reckon I'll just dump it.

Just bear in mind that you will have to be a separate NVidia graphics card if you buy either of those PCs.

Ran Garrigus · 10-03-2008, 07:21 PM

If you can stretch your budget to get the Inspiron and the XFX card, I'd highly recommend it. Good luck with your new system.

Re: 7050, on-board graphics are just never very inspiring. I checked benchmarks on the 7050 and .... yeah, not inspiring.

A dedicated graphics card is really important when you're looking at a low-end system, because SL's CPU usage can be rather high, from my experience, and it gets compounded if it's struggling with graphics overhead and fighting for RAM.

Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walker Moore

It's a pity you don't have longer to shop around really because PC World don't have that much choice really... and they aren't the cheapest.

Yeah it's such a pain but I really need it for uni stuff and I hate PC World with a passion but it's the closest big computer place to me..

bloody computers, the bane of my life!

Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 07:28 PM

So what's better for SL - a NVidia or XFX graphics card?

Ran Garrigus · 10-03-2008, 07:35 PM

The XFX card is an Nvidia 8400 GS.

XFX is the maker, and they're using Nvidia's chipset and specs.

Walker Moore · 10-03-2008, 07:39 PM

I have an XFX NVidia GeForce 7950 GT. Best graphics card I've ever owned... and I'm not just talking in terms of speed. XFX are a brilliant manufacturer.

Anyway, mine is a bit long in the tooth now. I just wanted to second Ran's brand recommendation.

Alfie Demonia · 10-03-2008, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ran Garrigus

The XFX card is an Nvidia 8400 GS.

XFX is the maker, and they're using Nvidia's chipset and specs.

Oh

good job you told me that before I embarassed myself in front of the PC World gurus/nazis!

Walker Moore · 10-03-2008, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alfie Demonia

Oh

good job you told me that before I embarassed myself in front of the PC World gurus/nazis!

When you go to PC World, don't be surprised if they haven't got the computer you chose in stock. It happens a lot.

If that does happen, the salesperson who helped with your enquiry will shadow you and try to sell you a completely different PC before you leave the store. According to him or her, this PC is SO MUCH better than the one you had in mind ("omg, what were you thinking?", followed by a giggle and an over-familiar backslap), but upon getting it home you may find that it's inferior in many ways.

So be careful!

Oh yeah, and tell him to shove his extended warranty up his

.

Ran Garrigus · 10-03-2008, 08:27 PM

Just to add, the XFX card is a "web exclusive" price of £25, in store it's apparently £50. So order it on-line before you go, and then collect it at the store (apparently, they don't actually deliver them -- you have to do store pickup).

Sobriquet Kryakutnoy · 10-03-2008, 09:49 PM

I can't really contribute more that hasn't been pointed out above. I would definitely go for the Dell + XFX card if your budget is at all elastic. My laptop has an NVidia 8600 GT chipset in it than handles SL great, and while the 8400 is clocked somewhat lower, it's still going to be leaps and bounds ahead of an intel graphics chipset.

*sigh* I remember back in the day when my ATI Radeon 9600 ran SL flawlessly.

Sobriquet Kryakutnoy · 10-03-2008, 10:11 PM

Oh, also, if you buy that XFX card, remember to make sure the PC you buy has a PCI Expressx16 slot in it. Most should, and from what I can dig up on the Dell it does. But checking is better than getting home and finding there isn't one

10-03-2008, 07:06 PM	#3 (permalink)
Ran Garrigus Weirdo in a Weird Land Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 220	Are you going to salvage parts from your previous PC? If so, what sort of graphics card did it have? Depending on the answer: 1) Not salvaging a card from the old PC: you're going to have to get one, and the XFX 8400 GS from the site you've linked looks like your best shot. That'll take £25 from your budget. Try the Compaq SR5522 and pick up the XFX with it. 2) Salvaging a decent card: The Inspiron 530/2583 is the best system for under £300 at that site, hands down. __________________ Old Fashioned -- Occasional SL fashion reviews.

10-03-2008, 07:15 PM	#5 (permalink)
Walker Moore The Son of Avatar Hiding Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 8,105 Doom Rider Champion! My Mood:	It's so hard to recommend a PC for SL with that price cap. You want to go for one with an NVidia graphics card because they're more suitable (for SL) than Intel graphics. The best I could see was an NVidia GeForce 7050 (in three or four of those PCs)... which isn't terribly fast but should at least work OK. It's a pity you don't have longer to shop around really because PC World don't have that much choice really... and they aren't the cheapest. __________________ twitter \| last.fm \| flickr

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10-03-2008, 07:02 PM	#2 (permalink)
Alfie Demonia Hoxton Hero A fan of a good cardigan Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: UK Posts: 1,877 My Mood:	sly look left and right ahem.... bump! I'm going to the PC World of doom tomorrow!

10-03-2008, 07:21 PM	#7 (permalink)
Ran Garrigus Weirdo in a Weird Land Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 220	If you can stretch your budget to get the Inspiron and the XFX card, I'd highly recommend it. Good luck with your new system. Re: 7050, on-board graphics are just never very inspiring. I checked benchmarks on the 7050 and .... yeah, not inspiring. A dedicated graphics card is really important when you're looking at a low-end system, because SL's CPU usage can be rather high, from my experience, and it gets compounded if it's struggling with graphics overhead and fighting for RAM.

10-03-2008, 07:28 PM	#9 (permalink)
Alfie Demonia Hoxton Hero A fan of a good cardigan Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: UK Posts: 1,877 My Mood:	So what's better for SL - a NVidia or XFX graphics card?

10-03-2008, 07:35 PM	#10 (permalink)
Ran Garrigus Weirdo in a Weird Land Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 220	The XFX card is an Nvidia 8400 GS. XFX is the maker, and they're using Nvidia's chipset and specs.

10-03-2008, 07:39 PM	#11 (permalink)
Walker Moore The Son of Avatar Hiding Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 8,105 Doom Rider Champion! My Mood:	I have an XFX NVidia GeForce 7950 GT. Best graphics card I've ever owned... and I'm not just talking in terms of speed. XFX are a brilliant manufacturer. Anyway, mine is a bit long in the tooth now. I just wanted to second Ran's brand recommendation.

10-03-2008, 08:27 PM	#14 (permalink)
Ran Garrigus Weirdo in a Weird Land Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 220	Just to add, the XFX card is a "web exclusive" price of £25, in store it's apparently £50. So order it on-line before you go, and then collect it at the store (apparently, they don't actually deliver them -- you have to do store pickup).

10-03-2008, 10:11 PM	#16 (permalink)
Sobriquet Kryakutnoy Foul Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Ohio Posts: 3,074 Business: I Go Chop Your Dollar My Mood: Awards: 1	Oh, also, if you buy that XFX card, remember to make sure the PC you buy has a PCI Expressx16 slot in it. Most should, and from what I can dig up on the Dell it does. But checking is better than getting home and finding there isn't one