New computer

I am getting a new computer this year. Just want to get an opinion on E-machines as compared to regular machines. Are they as reliable or is there a whole lot of difference? Thanks for your opinion.

 

If I have tried to help out someone with a problem with their e-machine I have used this site:
http://www.e4allinc.info/
There is probably more information here about e-machines than the e-machines website itself. That might tell you something.

If you want to purchase an OEM/Proprietry brand, you will probably find that there will be little or no updates to drivers or the BIOS. If you get "recovery disks" with the machine instead of a full version of Windows, you will only be able to upgrade/change the OS by purchasing new recovery disks.

These are some of the areas you should be aware of.

Let us know if you want any suggestions on building your own PC (or what you might want to look for in a "pre-built" one).

Matt

 

Thanks for the info mattman and Steve R Jones
I use my computer for regular home computing (email, web search, genealogy, word processing) and I also have a home business doing Income Tax with e-file for 3 months of the year.
This is sort of what I had in mind:

-AMD Athlon XP 3200
-512 MB Ram
-160 GB HD
-DVD RW Dual Layer
-CD ROM RW
I have never had a lot to do with hardware other than installing CD drives, and modems years ago. I can get around fair good in software. I don't use my computer for gaming but I do have music on it that I listen to. What would you suggest I have in a Computer? I am trying to keep the price down as I don't have a lot of income, being retired. Is it very compicated to build your own for a novice?

 

Rogi, sorry I haven't gotten back to yet.

One or two comments on your planned specs. A DVD-RW will do everything that a CD-RW will do. I have a DVD-RW coupled with a CDrom from my old computer, the CDrom does all the basic CD reading, DVD-RW everything else. You may be able to save a little by running your old CDrom.

A 3.2 Ghz processor is very quick. A processor not quite so large should cover your applications quite adequately (unless that e-file program requires a lot of processing power).

Think about these points, I will post back later today.

Matt

 

Rogi, I am not greatly familiar with the US retailers (I take it you live in the US), so I looked through some of MOBO's suggestions in the sticky at the start of this forum. Have a look at www.directron.com, they make pre-built systems and you can also customise if you want. I saw a few "possibles" for you in the Budget section, example http://www.directron.com/amd64pcen7250.html , almost your planned specs, but remember this is only the "box ", no monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc.

I profess to build a system on a decent motherboard. If you get a reasonable motherboard, at least you know you will get support if problems occur in the future or if you want to upgrade. OEM manufacturers don't seem to support upgrading, I think you are supposed to throw it away when it gets out of date. The motherboard on my (this) computer has seen just about all components upgraded over time (virtually a new computer?) done at my own pace, when I required the updated hardware.

You can look at building your own. An Asus motherboard manual is quite good at leading you through it. (By the way...download and have a look at prospective motherboard manuals before you decide on a system, the more information, the better off you will be in the future (see my first post). You may need to research a little if you are not sure. (some of those little bolts can be hard to handle, especially with clumsy fingers like me )

Think about it. Have a look around some of the hardware sites. I don't want to tell you to get something specific, just point out the alternatives. Let us know what you think.

Personal comment...I would choose a Dell over an e-machine.

Matt

 

Thanks mattman
With the info you gave me I'm sure I'll be able to find a computer that will serve me for a few years. I sure appreciate the help from Windows BBS.