Basic low-end system for Grandpa

nincomp · Jan 12, 2014

It has been a number of years since I have built a system (that's my Son's job now). I want to build (or, "shudder", buy) a system for a senior citizen who mainly reads emails and watches some online videos and movies.* I want to make the system future-proof for 5-years or so. I already know that "ClassicShell" will be needed.

One of my big concerns is that there may be some cpu/gpu-heavy changes to "basic" software on the horizon. Former examples include Youtube videos and Netflix (sliverlight), which ran fine on his previous system until their software was "upgraded."

Would something along the lines of an AMD A4-series do the job, or should I step up to to something more powerful.

Thanks

* I doubt that he will play any online games unless there is one called "Find My Teeth"

ps. Some of you might find this entertaining: I built my first system in 1996 using recommendations from this site. I used a Cyrix 200+ and a Monster 3D video card, since Tom said something like "You don't need above 30 fps anyway."

peanutreaper486 · Jan 12, 2014

I recently put together a rig for my Grandfather, as storage for pictures as he enjoys photography as a hobby, and to the basics that you have already mentioned.

I put together a simple build for him:

Motherboard: MSI FM2-A75MA-E35
CPU: A6-5400k APU.
RAM: (I actually used a stick of 4GB DDR3 that I had laying around, G.Skill's 1x4GB 1333mhz)
HDD: Western Digital WD AV-GP WD10EURX 1TB
PSU: Rosewill Stallion RD400-2-SB 400W.

This was around the holidays so all together the build was about $200, and works well enough for him.

geofelt · Jan 12, 2014

For a basic low cost pc, it is hard to beat an entry level prebuilt from Lenovo or similar.
They will all come with windows 8 if that is what you mean by "classic shell"

Today's integrated graphics are sufficient to view HD movies. More is really not needed.

I will not build today without a SSD for the "C" drive. It makes everything so much quicker.
Even with a low capability cpu.
I would splurge on a 120gb ssd.

Since fast action is not required, the superior graphics capability of amd chips is not worth much to you.
I would use an inexpensive Intel G3220 cpu.

quilciri · Jan 12, 2014

You might consider a hybrid drive in place of an SSD here. I put one in the system I recently built for my grandparents, and I'd suggest it from a longevity standpoint. A 1TB SSHD costs the same as a upper-end 120gb SSD such as the samsung 840 pro and the hybrids read speeds are nearly as snappy as an ssd (90% of what a consumer drive does) - It's a little weird watching a drive get quicker over time, but in a good way.

My grandparents take pictures of *everything*, as well as saving every single picture any relative sends them. They are already well past the capacity a 120gb SSD could provide >.<

quilciri · Jan 12, 2014

With an eye for longevity, not including OS/monitor/mouse/keyboard

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3240 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($119.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock B75M-DGS R2.0 Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: GeIL EVO Leggara Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($63.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($98.72 @ OutletPC)
Case: Rosewill FBM-02 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($24.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Microcenter)

Total: $397.66
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

quilciri · Jan 12, 2014

This is what I built for my grandparents. Was about $20 cheaper when I built it - memory, case and APU were cheaper.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A6-3500 2.1GHz Triple-Core Processor ($59.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI A55M-P33 Micro ATX FM1 Motherboard ($38.00 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($98.72 @ OutletPC)
Case: Rosewill FBM-02 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($24.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Microcenter)

Total: $296.67
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

nincomp · Jan 12, 2014

Thanks for the responses.
My original plan was to build an A6 system very similar the the one spec'd by Quilciri. I actually purchased a motherboard and processor (and cannibalized other parts from my son's old gaming PC). After a small puff of blue smoke - well, you know the rest of the story.

As for a pre-built system, I got to look inside one of the Dells at Best Buy. This system is virtually the same as Quilciri's Intel system except for a smaller power supply and cheap case ( I sliced my finger on it). I was surprised to find that the motherboard has a PCIe slot.
I will be hard-pressed to build a system like this, with Win 8.1 for an "open box" price of under $400. The do-it-yourself part of me is very annoyed!

Now another Old-Fart question: Can Dell motherboards safely use standard power supplies? When I last worked on Dells (roughly 10 years ago) they used proprietary power supplies. The power connectors were the same shape, but they were wired differently.

Thanks

quilciri · Jan 13, 2014

If you do buy a pre-built system, try to stay away from Dell. I think they'll eventually get better now that michael dell has conroll of the company again, but for the last 10 years or so, they've been producing terrible motherboards. In the 3 years I worked in the PC labs at SIU, we had to replace approx. 1/4 of our motherboards due to component failure (3 different models of Dell Desktops, about 200 PC's)

quilciri · Jan 13, 2014

nincomp :

I imagine the Dell system also lacks a hybrid HDD (as well as having cheaply made memory). After a quality PSU and motherboard, a hybrid drive (if not an SSD) is what I recommend most in new, general purpose systems. The speed of mechanical drives is the major bottleneck in modern systems, which is greatly alleviated with a hybrid drive or SSD; having one makes your whole system feel faster.

nincomp · Jan 14, 2014

quilciri :

Thanks for the heads up. I suspected that Dell quality had dropped when they started to compete with other low-end systems. I had hoped that the 660-series was far enough up the product line to be decent. Oh well. I knew to stay away from the cheapest systems, especially when I discovered thet the the annual extended warranty cost would be about one third the original system price!

Thanks to you and the others for recommending the hybrid drives. I was not aware that they made such a difference. Then again, the last time I saw a big storage-related increase in PC performance was when we installed one of them super-duper 20mb Seagate hard drives in a single-floppy IBM XT. Egads, was that system fast (for the mid-80's, that is).

For you young'ns, watch the movie WarGames. That kid had high-end stuff for the early 1980's. Before then, we had to carve our computer cards out of solid rock ... and watch out for saber-tooth tigers and rabid wooly mammoths ..... Ah, those were the days.

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