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>>> Official Black Friday DESKTOP Discussion Thread <<<

Brad

By Brad
in 2006

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T0mmy

T0mmy

Posted
Posted

Looking for aNew Desk top for me....right now i have a 6yr old Dell something or other( lol)

we bought it brand new , and it has never really worked right, we actually had to have some work done on it about 2yrs after we bought it...so now i want to know what is the best PC For things like Online Money Management( banking) surfing emailing, and your general computer things and Digital Pictures im not big into games, my husband has a gaming computer for that...

so im looking for a bundle i imagine, IM not to computer savy i know how to get on it , Surf and Fix a few problems here and there...

but as for all the other stuff ie..GB, Hard Drive, mhz processores i have no clue...

any help in the right direction would be appreciated...

thanks

The $189 eMachine at Best Buy is plenty PC for 90% of the people here. It'll handle all basic video games, and any regular applications just fine. I think you'd be happy with that.

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Ferg1221

Ferg1221

Posted
Posted

MCE is Windows XP Media Center Edition. It's basically the same as windows XP, except it's set up with a "front end" (graphic interface that looks purty) that's easy for watching TV (if you have a TV tuner in the PC) and for watching movies, listening to music, viewing pictures, etc, etc. It's just Win XP that's more media friendly. The big thing about it for me is that right now, a Win XP home PC gets a free upgrade to Win Vista Home Basic. Win XP MCE upgrades to Win Vista Home Premium that has quite a bit more features.

Thank you!

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IceQueen

IceQueen

Posted
Posted

who makes the emachine?..I have never heard of them until this yr

Don't know if it's still the case (Experts help! :D ) but Emachines was a subsidiary of Gateway. Kind of the whole cheaper cousin thing.

 

I had one once at one of my jobs and it wasn't a bad computer. At that price I would get it, but still debating standing out there for it. Lucky for us, there's another BB around here, over at the huge mall (Galleria) so since that one has the mall, WM and Target in a neat little triangle, hopefully that will mean that our BB will be thinned out this year.

 

We'll see.

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bottlerocket

bottlerocket

Posted
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Don't know if it's still the case (Experts help! :D ) but Emachines was a subsidiary of Gateway. Kind of the whole cheaper cousin thing.

 

I had one once at one of my jobs and it wasn't a bad computer. At that price I would get it, but still debating standing out there for it. Lucky for us, there's another BB around here, over at the huge mall (Galleria) so since that one has the mall, WM and Target in a neat little triangle, hopefully that will mean that our BB will be thinned out this year.

 

We'll see.

I'm no expert, but I know Gateway somewhat recently bought eMachines (2004). Before that, eMachines was a stand-alone company. The computers they make are cheaper because they use cheaper, non-name brand parts, but that's not an issue for something like the computer BB is selling. Now, if you tried to upgrade an eMachine with new parts that were power-intensive, then you might run into trouble. (cheap power supply + new parts = :yuck: )

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kaox0018

kaox0018

Posted
Posted

So I'm planning on helping my gf find a good computer for the next few years.

 

She mainly uses it for school, surfing and watching videos.

I know a low-end computer would be fine for her but I'd rather just get a mid-grade so she won't have to worry about upgrading (she's not too computer savvy) for a long time.

(I also wouldn't mind playing some games on it too).

 

Should I just get one of the $399-499 range or should I just get a budget computer and buy some memory?

 

Who has the best budget computer and who has the best mid-grade (under $550)?

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bottlerocket

bottlerocket

Posted
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The $400 Compaq at Best Buy sounds good for you. It's in your price range, and it definitely has enough power for a bit of gaming on the side, too. If you're into more graphics-intensive games, you might want to get a cheap PCI-e graphics card to put in it for better performance.

 

One of the cheaper desktops honestly might have enough power for awhile, but the problem with that lies in fighting the rabid hordes of BF shoppers. I can't say I'm too up to snuff on the lower-end desktops, so I'll leave that to the pros.

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odum92

odum92

Posted
Posted

Hi,

 

We are looking at buying a desktop for Christmas this year. It will be mainly use for email, photos, and internet (ebay, etc), maybe some games. Which desktop would be best? BEST BUY $ 189? or somewhere else that might be coming out later for BF?

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Cwilliams

Cwilliams

Posted
Posted
Do you think we could upgrade the power supply in the E-Machine? I was thinking of getting it for my wife and replacing the PS with a good one and also getting the 99.00 pci vid card along with some decent ram. then she can quit complaing that its slow when she plays sims
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kimbrown27

kimbrown27

Posted
Posted
Ok so this migh be a repeat but here it goes. I went to the BB web site and looked at the flyer for firday and put in my zip code and looked at the flyer for my region, and it does not have the 189.00 emachines computer. So I got to checking arround in other zip codes and for another state next to mine they have it but not in my state they only have the 15.00 gift card for ever 100.00 spent. SO I remember this happened last year that some stores for BB were doing the gift card and others were doing the sales. WATCH out cuz you might not be in a area with the sales you are looking for !:( GO AND CHECK IT OUT!
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Cwilliams

Cwilliams

Posted
Posted

I had a chat with E-Machines tech live chat and got the official specs of the 189.00 computer.

 

Ryan_GWER4776 says: Okay please hold i check on my resources about your question thank you

 

Ryan_GWER4776 says: I am still researching your issue at this time. I apologize for the wait.

 

Ryan_GWER4776 says: Do you want me to give you the full specifications of the system?

 

Ryan_GWER4776 says: Processor Intel® Celeron® D 355 64-Bit Technology, EM64T 3.33 GHz 533 MHz FSB 256 KB L2 cache

 

21 Nov 2006 08:44:30 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Memory 512 MB DDR2 (1 - 512 MB module), 533 MHz (PC4200) SDRAM Expandable to 2 GB

 

21 Nov 2006 08:44:37 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Hard Drive 100 GB 7200 RPM Ultra ATA

 

21 Nov 2006 08:44:44 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Optical Drive CD-RW/DVD combo drive 48x max write (48 x 32 x 48 x 16)

 

21 Nov 2006 08:44:51 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Audio 6-Channel (5.1) High Definition Audio

 

21 Nov 2006 08:44:58 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Video Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 (GMA900) Up to 224MB Shared Video Memory PCI-Expess slot available for upgrade

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:05 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Modem 56 K ITU V.92 ready fax/modem

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:13 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Network 10/100 Mbps integrated Ethernet LAN

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:25 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Interfaces Six USB 2.0 ports (two in the front, and four at rear of the case) One VGA port One serial port One parallel port Two PS/2 ports (keyboard and mouse) One RJ-45 port Five audio jacks (two in front and three in rear)

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:33 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Add-In Card Slots One PCI-E ×16 One PCI-E ×1 Two PCI conventional

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:42 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Bays External: Two 3.5-inch Two 5.25-inch Internal: Two 3.5-inch hard drive bays

 

21 Nov 2006 08:45:55 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Input Devices Standard multifunction keyboard Two-button wheel mouse

 

21 Nov 2006 08:46:04 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Speakers Amplified USB powered stereo speakers

 

21 Nov 2006 08:46:08 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Dimensions(H × W × D) 14.25 × 7.25 × 16.00 inches

 

21 Nov 2006 08:46:13 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: Weight 22.5 lbs (computer only, no packaging)

 

21 Nov 2006 08:46:39 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: You can save this specifications by saving chatlog

 

21 Nov 2006 08:46:57 AM Ryan_GWER4776 says: To save your chat log, please click on the "View Live Log" button at the bottom right side of the chat window. It will open a chat log window. Please use the option to "Save log to disk".

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T0mmy

T0mmy

Posted
Posted
No AGP slots? I have a nice ATI AIW 2006 edition that I was going to throw in there for both better graphics and TV tuning. I'll have to look into this, because that's not the processor they list in the ad. The ad says Celeron D 352.
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jenna8110

jenna8110

Posted
Posted

Does anyone have a opinion on which is better,

the HP at BB for $699 or the HP at Staples for $699?

The only difference so far that I've seen is that the

BB one has a Core Duo 2 and the Staples has a

AMD Athelon. I'd rather have the Intel but Staples

is right down the street and BB is 30 min away and

will probebly be more crazy! Is the Intel worth the

30 min drive? Also the on at BB isn't a door buster

so could I go later in the morning? Thanks!

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bottlerocket

bottlerocket

Posted
Posted

Does anyone have a opinion on which is better,

the HP at BB for $699 or the HP at Staples for $699?

The only difference so far that I've seen is that the

BB one has a Core Duo 2 and the Staples has a

AMD Athelon. I'd rather have the Intel but Staples

is right down the street and BB is 30 min away and

will probebly be more crazy! Is the Intel worth the

30 min drive? Also the on at BB isn't a door buster

so could I go later in the morning? Thanks!

The Core Duo 2 is a better processor than the X2 4200+, especially if you want to overclock it. The main advantage for the one at Staples is its bigger screen. If you need the extra processing power, go for the one at BB. If not, Staples.

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ButterBee

ButterBee

Posted
Posted

OK I admit it, I am confused. :confused:

There are a lot of choices out there. Over the weekend I bought ds11 a Compaq Presario Note Book C302NR with HP printer for $349 (after $200 rebate on PC and $70 on printer) at Office Depot.

Now I am wondering if the $399 Compaq at Staples on BF would be a better deal.He would mainly use it for homework, surfing and email.

Without recommending BB $379 HP (lines here at BB are unbelievable on BF), can anyone offer advice? Did I get a decent deal, or could I do better?

Thanks

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stationchief

stationchief

Posted
Posted

Anyone know the specs on the $149 computer from Walmart? It is one of the secret specials. It doesnt come with a monitor but I figure I can pick one up fairly cheap.

It says the specific model may vary between stores, but I'm 99.9% positive it's their cheap eMachines desktop with a celeron processor (the one they offer for about $398-498 everyday).

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stationchief

stationchief

Posted
Posted

This thread is so long, I definitely don;t have time to read thru the whole thing :(

 

What will Best Buy have that can run Vista?

Either of those HP/Compaq ones, except for the $200 eMachines, can run either version of Vista. Just maybe need to upgrade the graphics card to install all that fancy eye candy stuff. The $200 eMachines might run Vista without the extra goodies, but it'll need more upgrading.

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stationchief

stationchief

Posted
Posted

Just to remind everyone, 'ya don't have much time to come up with your final desktop choice decisions. So ask away now while 'ya still can! And don't forget the comparison chart is here to help 'ya out every step of the way.

 

BF 2006 Desktop Comparison Chart

 

As for myself, I'll be online all night long starting a lil' bit later, so if anyone needs some advice or wants to ask questions 1-on-1 you can PM me here or catch me on AIM: chfbehring.

 

G'luck y'all! ;)

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stationchief

stationchief

Posted
Posted

Has anyone at the computer office max is offering HP desktop for $799. 19 inch monitor, amd athlon 64x2 dual core processor, 2 gb ddr2 memory, 300 gb hard drive. What do you think of this deal?

Not bad at all except for all that integrated stuff. But, then again, what do ya expect? It's an HP! If you can afford upgrading the graphics to a PCI-E card, then that'd make a nice deal.

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stationchief

stationchief

Posted
Posted

This thread is so long, I definitely don;t have time to read thru the whole thing :(

 

What will Best Buy have that can run Vista?

Just about anything that's got a decent 64-bit processor (that doesn't include the Celeron D's :yuck: ) and at least 512MB memory or perhaps if you can upgrade that yourself. If you're gonna be installing all those Vista user-friendly stuff like effects and eye candy then get one with a good graphics card or at least an internal slot to upgrade the graphics card yourself.

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