(3.0GHz, 2X1MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
Intel(R) 945P Chipset
Integrated Gigabit Ethernet
2GB (4X512) NECC Dual Channel DDR2 533MHz SDRAM Memory
256MB PCIe(TM) x16 nVidia(R) GeForce(TM) 6800 w/TV-Out, VGA and DVI
13-in-1 USB 2.0 Hi-Speed Media Card Reader
Dell(TM) Wireless Keyboard and Optical Mouse
19" UltraSharp(TM) Flat Panel LCD Monitor (Analog & DVI)
250GB SATA 3.0Gb/s with Native Command Queuing
Genuine Windows(R) XP Professional(English)
Genuine Windows(R) XP Professional SP2 Edition (English) CD Media
Microsoft(R) Works 7.0 - OEM version
16X Max DVD-ROM Drive
16X DVD+/-RW with Dual Layer Write Capabilities
Integrated 7.1 Audio
Dell(TM) A525 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer (ANZ)
56K PCI Data/Fax Modem
N840160 - Dell(TM) 810 Colour Inkjet Printer
Dell(TM) 725/810 Colour Ink Cartridge

I look forward to people telling me I'm a fewl for buying Dell.

You're a fewl for many reasons...

1) Dell lol
2) Intel lol these days
3) 6800 lol why so old

hahah
intel and dell

u sux mantra

Dell - No hassles with PC support. Well built. Good quality bits.
Intel - Dell don't do AMD. the difference isn't that spectacular.
6800 - I'm not spending $600 extra on a video card (that was for a 7800GTX).. also I play WoW, and maybe some BF2 & Oblivion when I get this, so I think I'll be fine. I've been looking into video cards recently, and they're changing so friggin often it's ridiculous. If I encounter something that needs a new vid card, I'll get one and put this one in my old PC.

So nyer

if you have to go intel which you do since dell dont do AMd then get a dual core..i have read good things in recent times about them.

also just curious how much is that costing you?

last edited by TufNuT at 13:54:15 25/Apr/06

Just over $2600

They had a deal with a free wireless keyboard & Mouse, 160gig HDD to 250gig HDD, 512mb to 1gig RAM ( I added another gig), printer (I upgraded to the one with the scanner for $40) and $300 off.

Oh and it is a dual core...


last edited by Mantra at 13:58:23 25/Apr/06

last edited by Mantra at 13:59:40 25/Apr/06

heh, my brother wants a PC - I am telling him to get a Dell. I can't be f***ed running around getting all the bits and putting them together, to only have bits fail and having to go back to various shops to get it replaced/fixed.

Dell or hardley normal type pc setups ftw :)

With the ram can you still do dual channel with 4 sticks?

It pains me to say this but this is better than the surpass pc you came up with a few weeks ago.

Are you asking for advice or just waving your epenis?

You're obviously a fool for getting a prebuilt machine (intel and a dell, no less).

I'm not spending $600 extra on a video card (that was for a 7800GTX).. also I play WoW, and maybe some BF2 & Oblivion when I get this, so I think I'll be fine.

Seems like you're overspending just to play games like these.

Yeah, I've had enough putting PCs together and fixing them when they break. I've already got 3 PCs that I need to look after, I don't want to have to look after this one as well. I also got an extended warranty on my laptop so I don't need to worry about that either.

I used to enjoy putting things together and tweaking and fooling around with configs, but now I just want the thing to work.

you must have money to burn mantra

It pains me to say this but this is better than the surpass pc you came up with a few weeks ago.

That's what I thought, although I don't know why it pains you to say it?

Are you asking for advice or just waving your epenis?

You're obviously a fool for getting a prebuilt machine (intel and a dell, no less).

I'm not spending $600 extra on a video card (that was for a 7800GTX).. also I play WoW, and maybe some BF2 & Oblivion when I get this, so I think I'll be fine.

Seems like you're overspending just to play games like these.

You're a very angry young man aren't you? Why am I fool for buying a pre built system? Because I don't want to play techy anymore? I probably am over spending, but I wanted it to be at least a bit future proof. I've already paid for it, so I guess I am waving my epenis, although I thought it might be interesting to talk about on an internet forum.

With the ram can you still do dual channel with 4 sticks?

Apparently so!

you must have money to burn mantra

I actually thought it was pretty reasonable.

You're a very angry young man aren't you? Why am I fool for buying a pre built system? Because I don't want to play techy anymore?

Sorry, how was that angry? You made a bad decision because you essentially paid through the teeth to save an hour or two of building and setting up the PC, with the (small) possibility of having to exchange a few parts from the store you bought them. My friend's Dell PC he bought a year back's windows install was filled to the brim with dell-branded crap, like IE mods and handy things like program launchers and online support 'tools'. I don't know what they're like now, but I hope the time spent pruning that crap (every time you want to format if its all on your XP disc like HP used to do) and dealing with warranty bulls***tery doesn't exceed the time you paid to save.

It is a s***loads better puchase than that system you were considering a week or so back though, hardware-wise.

ith the (small) possibility of having to exchange a few parts from the store you bought them

i dont know hashy, i have had to build a alot of systems for myself and other over time, had have found its not as small risk as you think, more pritty likly i hate to say it cause i also hate buying pre-built systems but the head ake of going back and forwards from store to store and the fule it costs just isnt worth it these days.

Are you asking for advice or just waving your epenis?

That there seems like a bit of a confrontational thing to say to someone you don't know wouldn't you say? Also, the last thread included something similar. Maybe it's a habit you've got or something.

As far as I can see, I didn't actually "pay through the teeth". I paid a bit more than if I put it together myself, but that's ok. My experience in "exhanging" parts is that they'll send it away for 4 weeks and then send you back a new one, or you fight with them for 4 weeks trying to prove that you didn't mour coffee into the HDD or whatever. This one, if it breaks, a dude comes out and replaces stuff on the spot, and even puts it in for me if I want him to.

The branding stuff isn't as bad as it used to be. A bloke at work recently bought one and he said it was barely noticable. I assume there is some stuff in there that says "dell" on it, but that's ok. Also, I've asked them to put a restore partition on there, so that's nice, I don't have to do that.

That there seems like a bit of a confrontational thing to say to someone you don't know wouldn't you say?

The angle was it's a pretty useless thread, and if you straight-out said "hey guys check out this pc I just bought its cool right" instead of letting people think you were asking for assistance the thread would be lock worthy. There's not much room for input here, you already bought the thing.

Good to hear dell changed their ways.

The angle was it's a pretty useless thread, and if you straight-out said "hey guys check out this pc I just bought its cool right" instead of letting people think you were asking for assistance the thread would be lock worthy. There's not much room for input here, you already bought the thing.

I disagree, fo one thing the thread title is "I'm getting a new PC thread" which sort of indicates that I'm already getting it. But that could be misconstrued, so that's ok.

As for lock worthy, I don't think I'd lock a thread like this, and I doubt any of the other admins would either. Hacing said that, Jim or Reso are probably going to come along and lock it just to prove me wrong :P

Mantrap, that's because 1) reso is gay and 2) jim is "jim is
conceited and extremely narcissistic"

Should I go in before the lock?

I'm using a Dell right now that my family bought a few years ago. Yes, I got laughed at for having a Dell when I went to LANs but my computer never broke down at a Lan or at home for that matter like other people's did.

Also whenever I want to open it up, I sure like having a screwless plastic case. None of those yucky srews or sharp edges to cut yourself on. So as far as this thread goes, good on Mantra for making the purhcase. For the reasons already cited by him he made the right choice.

last edited by Triamks at 16:15:43 25/Apr/06

I'm not going to comment on the computer because people already have... but for f***s sake. The printer?

You do know that lexmark make dell's printers right?

What you might not be aware of is that they also make the cartridges, but dell get them to put different lids onto them so that a regular lexmark cartridge won't fit into a dell printer.

If its free with the pc, then I guess thats ok.

We (officeworks) can't really match anything like that for 2 reasons.

1) We can't customise, so basically whatever HP/Compaq/Acer sell is what we sell.
2) Being officeworks, we mainly target business/basic use pc's that don't have discrete video cards or at the very best, have something like an x600 in them.

Always consult here first you stupid f*** Mantra :)

Also whenever I want to open it up, I sure like having a screwless plastic case. None of those yucky srews or sharp edges to cut yourself on.

You have got to be f***ing kidding... dell/hp have got to be the most f***** cases to work on in the existence of mankind! All these stupid proprietry clip on panels and sliding bits to get things in and out. Perhaps once you figure it out for yourself thats okay, however I'd much rather whip out a few screws than f*** around for 5 mins figuring out how 5 s*** panels unclip.

Plus I did an upgrade on one the other day, the cpu socket was non-industry standard so the new retail heatsink (which was much better) would not fit, had to reuse the old lump of s***... if they have heat issues, oh well too bad so sad nothing else will fit!

The only other thing I can think of is the cases are generally small and all packed in there. Trying to run any half decent system in there you are going to have major heat dramas.

last edited by rubba-chikin at 17:54:40 25/Apr/06

i saw a HP machine once

it was easily the worst pc ive ever seen

Dell PCs are good for businesses and for people who just not looking to tweak and upgrade thier PC (simply because they're a pain due to custom case designs etc - specically for cheap desktop / server). I'd say it's a pretty good machine Mantra for what it is - not drool worthly but a good solid work machine.

wow, impressive array of c***munted responses to this thread

pretty decent machine/package. I can understand the wanting to buy brand-name-with-warranty thing, I often entertain the same idea myself cos I'm mostly over the stupid process of trying to get dodgy components replaced when you buy the bits and build it yourself year after year

I don't reckon you'll be disappointed with that purchase anytime soon

If its free with the pc, then I guess thats ok.

It was free, although I paid $40 more for the one with the scanner. I already have an Epson multi-function thingy, but this one is going to be upstairs, so I thought for $40, we can have one upstairs too.

c***munted

Where do you get these words from Jim?!

The only other thing I can think of is the cases are generally small and all packed in there.

I was a bit worried about that considering the ones at work are tiny, but this one seems plenty big enough.

from your momma lol

roffle

Not a bad machine, and I can understand not wanting to f*** around with replacements etc.

Still, I used to have a Dell and the upgradeability and crappy case design gave me the s***s. Although they have been getting better about both of these points.

i bought a set of components
p4 3.0ghz
1gb ddr400 ram
radeon 9800
edit: for nitpickers the motherboard was also included in that price

them being the main items 2 years ago this month in japan for ~$1000, since then technology obviously hasnt increased much if all that constitutes a $2600 pc is an extra cache on the cpu, double the ram, and a next gen video card. moores law must be failing

last edited by cainer at 20:17:41 25/Apr/06

Well the graphics cards now are more than twice as fast as your 9800, and the cpus have dual core and are faster... sounds like mores law is working out fine?

p4 3.0ghz -> (3.0GHz, 2X1MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB) dual core (hence the extra cache) - So two 3ghz processors on the same die, so essentially two of what you bought. That's like.... double!
1gb ddr400 ram -> 2GB (4X512) NECC Dual Channel DDR2 533MHz SDRAM Memory - twice the memory, dual channel at 533mhz.... that's like... double!!
radeon 9800 P4 -> Video cards are klazy atm. The 6800 seems like a decent mid range one. 1 year ago, that was a pretty kick ass card wasn't it?

Also, considering it comes with everything you need to have a fully functioning system (and then some), I think it's pretty reasonable.

I like your machine too.

But if I was buying a dell I'd be buying it 'Resealed' (must have warranty) from graysonline. Man there are some cheap toys on that site.

Anyone bought a PC from the Discshop? Reason I'm asking is that I have only basic PC knowledge (dont work in IT) and I'd prefer to have a custom build. The Discshop are pretty cheap and only charge $100 for labour.

Also we have HP puters at work and you can almost set your calender to the day that they will f*** up and die ( about 3yrs).

My P3 is 5yrs old, Ive beaten the s*** out of it and its still going. Believe it or not I bought it at Sunrit.

The Discshop are pretty cheap

No they're not.

Let's look at a couple of typical parts someone might buy today:

-AMD 3800+ X2-
Umart: $455 (in stock)
Gamedude: $469
Discshop: $575 (custom orders)

-XFX 6600GT 128MB PCIe-
Umart: $199
Gamedude: $245
Discshop: $285

-WD 74 GB Raptor-
Umart: $249
Gamedude: $245
Discshop: $295

The disc shop used to be great a few years back, but they are almost irrelevent these days. Just one look at the small range of stock they have should show you. They don't even sell branded memory .. all OEM garbage. Their PSU range is almost non-existent. They really don't have much to offer.

Cheers Para,

I did try to goto Umart a few months ago but I couldnt even get served. Gamedude is to far away and Kat used to work there ;)

I did try to goto Umart a few months ago but I couldnt even get served

Yeah, that happens at the Milton store when you go at a bad time. Best time is before 11am.

The 8 Mile Plains store on the other hand ... I've rarely seen customers in there, hence it would be a good place to go for quick service. There might be a delay of 1 day for your components as some of their components have to be driven in from the Milton store. Their online catalog will let you know which stores have stock :)

I recommend Computer Alliance if you're looking to have a system built. I've bought a number of systems from there down the years and can't recommend them enough. As for Dell, I have 2 pc's and 2 laptops from them and I can't complain about them, although my 2 Dell pc's aren’t used for gaming, only work stuff or watching movies. The laptops on the other hand kick arse all over the place.

Seriously Mantra... You'll be ordering ink for your $40 printer from dell, and they'll have to send it to you. I wouldn't be buying it for anything other than just a one-set-of-inks toy.

Despite the fact I work at CA, another thing to factor in is the warranty side of things. I beleive we are the only store to honour full manufacturers warranty (I was not aware of this before I started working there).

So that CPU, RAM and Mobo you might buy is covered for the full 3 years if it dies. Umart last I checked offer only 1 year on anything so if it dies after 12 months too bad. Gamedude according to their site offer 12 months only also.

If an extra 2 years warranty matters to you then that extra $10-20 for a component might seem worth it now.

i live 50 metres away from umart, twice ive been there i reckon i couldve put my name and order number down, gone home for a nap and come back and be ready to be served

but on the other hand, the prices are good for single one off components.

The Eight Mile Plains Umart store is normally empty.

rubba-chikin the company i work for bought a server from you guys the other day was an "emergency" thing, i have to admit you guys did an awsome job in getting it ready for us in the same day. although it arrived on site with a few dints..stupid qantas

last edited by TufNuT at 09:42:08 26/Apr/06

I was just going to buy a notebook hdd off you guys rubba, but they wont deliver to me while I am at work, because of fraud / names on credit cards...

Bit of a pain in the ass, because I obviously can't be at home to sign for it if I am here, and if I was at home, I'd just go get it...

Seriously Mantra... You'll be ordering ink for your $40 printer from dell, and they'll have to send it to you. I wouldn't be buying it for anything other than just a one-set-of-inks toy.

Ummm.. what's wrong with them sending me ink? I just checked, and it's only $35, which is almost half the price of my epson colour ink, and $20 less than the black ink.

If the printer is crap, I won't use it, and just use it for a scanner *shrug*

wait, are you shrugging at the guy you quoted, or at everyone!??!

wait, are you shrugging at the guy you quoted, or at everyone!??!

What if he is shruggin at you Jim?

if he is, I'm going to ask him why

I'm shrugging at Mongie.

How do I indicate a generic shrug to all, or a specfically aimed shrug? Buggered if I know... *shrug*

omg now who are you shrugging at?!?@!#