Should I buy a refurbished system from Dell?

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True Colors

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Oct 27, 2009
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Hello. Could you please give me your opinion on something.

I am going to purchase a desktop PC.

My budget range is approximately $1,300.

Most of the things that I do on a computer are lightweight(web browsing, emails, listening to music, etc.). I do not play any video games.

However, one thing for me does need some real firepower...... I do edit a lot of high definition videos files(approx 20 gig+ in size).

I want a bluray burner because I need to offload some of my video files onto a physical media.

Dell Makes a system called the XPS8500. The configurations are generally similar to this:

12 gigs of DDR3 ram
BR burner
i7 intell processor
windows 8 installed
AMD radeon HD7570 video card
2 TB hard drive(7200 rpm)

Dell does not offer the option of a Solid State hard drive for the XPS8500. So I am thinking of replacing the 2TB drive with a SSD drive. My reason for doing this is to get a faster boot time with the windows operating system, and possibly better performance in other areas as well.

Soooooo....... having said all that......

Do you think that I should buy a brand new Dell system? Or should I purchase a refurb? The refurb is approximately $200 less.

Thanks!

TC
 
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DarkSable

DarkSable

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Sep 27, 2012
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Why would you replace the 2TB drive with an SSD? Just ADD the ssd and use the 2TB drive for data storage.

As for the rest, I think purchasing a prebuilt, especially from Dell, is a bad idea. You don't need to spend nearly that much money, and can get more power for less by building a computer yourself. (And it's actually very easy - about as hard as LEGOs were when you were a kid.)

Look at what you can get - a far more powerful, far more reliable computer, for less money. (Every part in here is more reliable, especially the case and power supply - this computer will be completely silent and won't be anywhere NEAR as likely to just up and die on you because of cheaping out on bad parts.)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($154.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($104.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7750 2GB Video Card ($88.48 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: BitFenix Ghost (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($98.98 @ Outlet PC)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MK III 400W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($53.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($16.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $988.33
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-04-10 21:16 EDT-0400)
 
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edogawa

edogawa

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Jan 4, 2012
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You're better off building your own system. This build I will post below will have higher quality stuff then the dell and should cost less, this is after taxes and shipping below.

Install windows onto SSD and store data on black drive, you can always get a blue or green drive which is a bit cheaper too, but I will leave that up to you.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($109.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($153.30 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($67.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 Professional Full (64-bit) ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1285.20
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-04-10 21:22 EDT-0400)
 
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T

True Colors

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I have done a fair number of PC repairs and upgrades over the years. So I am somewhat knowledgeable about computers.

However, there are 2 main reasons that I hesitate to build my own system.....

1) I have never installed a motherboard before(I have swapped out just about every other type of internal device that I can think of, but have never installed or replaced a motherboard)

2) if the windows OS gets corrupted, then it is very easy with Dell. Just use any Dell reinstall disk and that is it........ so how would a windows re-install work on a home built PC?

Thanks,

TC

p.s...... I am still interested to hear if anyone has ever bought any refurbished Dell computers before, and if so, what type of luck did you have with that?
 
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DarkSable

DarkSable

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Sep 27, 2012
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1) Installing a motherboard is quite simple - you plunk it in there and put in 6 screws to hold it in place. It's considerably easier than installing a CPU, which it sounds like you've done.

2) If the windows OS gets corrupted with a prebuilt, you use your windows 7 disk and reinstall it - or your dell disk, but that will also install all the useless bloatware that comes with a dell computer - or you install it from a USB flash drive... It's insanely easy.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
Mar 16, 2013
171,442
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184,590
$1,300 will easily buy a better stack of components than a Dell, new or refurb. I've had no probs buying Dell refurbs in the past, but today, I'd rather build it myself.

It is actually quite easy.
The last PC I 'built' was a Cyrix 686 (Pentium 1 equiv). A Dell refurb, upgrades, a few laptops in between....fast forward to last summer.
I built 3 new machines, from scratch, for the house. Wife's, HTPC, and my new semi-killer box. $1,900 total.

Try it...you'll like it.
 
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edogawa

edogawa

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Jan 4, 2012
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As he said...it's extremely easy, I couldn't agree more with him.

Windows can be reinstalled with disc within 10 minutes on a SSD.

Data is stored on the secondary mechanical drive while Windows is installed on the SSD so you won't have to worry about data loss very much if windows gets messed up.

It's really just adult lego's and a ton of fun.

Dells are not bad, but used hardware is a big no in my book for higher end stuff.

Also consider all the components you buy will come with a warranty and you will have the know how to fix things in a snap.
 
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