Reliable work computer, 400 dollar budget

In3rt1a · Jul 28, 2013

Hey guys. A friend of mine needs a new pc, so I am building one for him. I have a parts list put together, and I'd just like to see what you all think. It'll be used for stuff like quicken, text-editing, internet, videos, easy stuff like that. He wants the pc to be quick, quiet, and reliable. I already have a 1tb hdd for the box, so storage is covered. However, he also wants a boot drive and internal sd card reader. This is the build I'm thinking of:

Cpu: i3 3245 ($140)
Mobo: MSI b75a-g43 ($60)
PSU: antec earthwatts green ea-380w
Memory: corsair vengeance 2x2 ($50)
Boot drive: Samsung 840 120gb ($90)
Optical drive: asus 24x dvd burner ($20)
Case: Corsair carbide 200r ($50)

This amounts to $405, which is doable. We still need an internal sd card reader if you guys could recommend one, and any thoughts or suggestions on the build would be appreciated.

Maxime506 · Jul 28, 2013

For Speed I would like to recommend A8-5600K, quad-core and higher clock freq than i3-3220, and...$40 cheaper.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($92.23 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A85XM-HD3 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Gamma Classic (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $353.18
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-28 19:26 EDT-0400)

Unfortunately I have no idea of SD reader, I would leave some $40 space for configuration of the reader.

In3rt1a · Jul 28, 2013

Maxime506 :

For Speed I would like to recommend A8-5600K, quad-core and higher clock freq than i3-3220, and...$40 cheaper.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lItK/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($92.23 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A85XM-HD3 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Gamma Classic (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $353.18
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-28 19:26 EDT-0400)

Unfortunately I have no idea of SD reader, I would leave some $40 space for configuration of the reader.

I know that AMD chips would most likely fit the budget better, but my friend wants to stick with intel.

Michael Zhang · Jul 28, 2013

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lIGF

This build is $65 cheaper and should be faster. Use an AMD A Series processor if you're not getting a discrete GPU

Edit: If you have to use Intel you can do this. That's a pretty good deal for an HD7770

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lINO

In3rt1a · Jul 28, 2013

Michael Zhang :

He's not a gamer, and there is no ssd in either of those builds... I don't see how either of them would run faster?

Maxime506 · Jul 28, 2013

I don't think your friend is thinking good. Budget builds AMD is always the best choice.

So here it is:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lKXV
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lKXV/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1lKXV/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i3-3210 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.10 @ TigerDirect)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.28 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($14.94 @ Newegg)
Total: $398.28
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-28 21:24 EDT-0400)

Corsair PSU has better quality.

Better use Gigabyte mobo to ensure quality.

Pentium G2120 is also a good choice but if your friend surf Internet much and open up a great bunch of webpages, i3-3220 can handle more

In3rt1a · Jul 28, 2013

Thanks everyone for your replies. I'm gonna do blend of Maxime's and my build.

Maxime506 · Jul 29, 2013

About the SD stuff. I wanna tell ya that your cellphone and laptop has SD readers. So there is no need to search another one to put into your newly built PC.

In3rt1a · Jul 29, 2013

Maxime506 :

You have no idea how old my laptop is then

.

Maxime506 · Jul 29, 2013

All right, I am erroneous on your situation. Though I am becoming obsolete but except me shouldn't anyone equipped a modern, up-to-date smartphone (which includes SD readers)?

In3rt1a · Jul 29, 2013

Maxime506 :

Nope. My friend is unfortunately equipped with a dumb phone.

Maxime506 · Jul 29, 2013

Eh... U surprise me again and again... But there is no reason to cost respectively on SD reader, it just don't worth it. Get the nowadays cheapest laptop or smartphone should it has a SD reader...

If u insists...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171541
(Sandisk 3-in-1 USB card reader, this should satisfy ya.)

In3rt1a · Jul 29, 2013

Thanks for the recommendation Maxime

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