Quote:
Originally Posted by gordon g
Thanks for all the advice everyone. It looks as though I should get a desktop rather than a laptop, for value for money, with as fast a dual processor as I can afford, 2Gb RAM and a big hard disc. SCREENS ... hmmm. A bit more research needed there.
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Gordon,
Your plan of action given above seems sound. Re: Screens, it depends what the primary purpose/use of the machine is going to be. Whilst I much prefer photo editing on the CRT, I find myself doing more and more "office" type work on the PC with the flat panel, despite it being a slower machine. The VP930 flat panel is very nice for text based viewing, but can't cut it for colours. If you want really good colours for photo editing then I think you are looking at £500 plus £100 for a calibrator. You may find it beneficial to stick with your existing CRT (assuming that's what you have).
If you, or anyone else who's going to use the machine isn't into high-end gaming, then you could do a lot worse than buy from the Dell Factory Outlet here:
http://outlet.dell.com/Emea_Dfo/EuDi...constraint=DIM
Previously I have always built my own PCs from components, having lurked on the Dell outlet site for a while, I came to the conclusion it wasn't worth it. I could buy a complete box with software for less cost than just buying the bits I needed to upgrade my original PC.
I recently bought a Dimension 9200
Pentium Core2 Duo E6300
2GB RAM
2x250GB HDDs (RAID)
DVD-ROM
DVD-RW
nVidia 7900GS graphics card
CF/SD/MS/etc card reader built in
TV Tuner card
Integrated sound and network, 8x USB2
Vista Home Premium
KB, mouse and speakers - no screen
Total cost £438 (after £40 refund for delayed delivery)
There's some deals to be had, but you may have to lurk for a while before a real bargain pops up.
Regards,
Duncan