All in one PC vs building

MalcolmWoodchop · Jun 23, 2014

My friend believes that buying a pre-built PC is cheaper then building it. Just to prove it to him. How much would it cost to build this PC:

http://www.costco.com/HP-ENVY-Recline-27-All-in-One-Desktop-%7c-Intel-Core-i7.product.100121999.html

What are all the parts that are in it because some of them are laptop parts and I don't know their PC equivalents.

g-unit1111 · Jun 23, 2014

Well your friend is definitely wrong. All in one PCs use the same hardware as your laptop. They are not the same as building your own PC.

This is $1400 and will completely destroy any all in one PC in terms of performance:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9B SE2 37.9 CFM CPU Cooler ($37.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 EXTREME4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial M550 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.92 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card ($474.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout with Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($23.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($94.99 @ Best Buy)
Total: $1408.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

bdiddytampa · Jun 23, 2014

Yeah Gunit nailed it. That all in one only has a mobile i7 so it only runs 4 threads at 2 Ghz. A desktop i5 will double that easily. The GPU in that all in one is a laptop GTX 730, even the lower end desktop GPUs will smoke that thing. The rest is pretty standard but anything you get desktop wise will be able to run cooler and perform better. You could build a better performing gaming desktop for half the price of what your friend is looking at. All in one PCs will never be able to game as well as a similarly priced desktop, and even if you don't game, getting a non gaming desktop for a fraction of that price would be easy.

There are certain OEMs that can and do sell complete desktops for less than you can build them yourself, HP is not one of them. iBuypower and CyberpowerPC both run deals sometimes that cost less than getting them yourself because they buy their parts in bulk, but they usually aren't on the high end performance wise.

jg900ss · Jun 23, 2014

g-unit1111 has a great response, showing that it can be quite easy to build a better machine. In fact you could save even more by being more modest with parts, and deciding what to do with the savings. For instance (prices from Newegg):
$200 27" AOC e2752She monitor (not touch enabled)
$190 Intel i5 3470 processor (quad core, MUCH faster than i7 series in the HP)
$048 MSI H61M-P31/W8 motherboard
$075 8GB (2 x 4GB) Avexir AVD3U1600 RAM (12 GB is not necessary for almost anything that HP would do)
$085 1TB Seagate Hybrid ST1000DX001 harddrive
$100 Win 8.1 -64bit
$014 TPLink TL-WN722N USB WiFi dongle with antenna
$023 Logitech combo keyboard & mouse, wireless, MK270
$120 EVGA GeForce GTX750 (512 desktop cores vs. 384 laptop cores on HP) 01G-P4-2751-KR. WAY FASTER.

$855 Total (savings to be used to by case of choice to create small form-factor, tower, HTPC, mini-PC)

Also, for a small sum ($80) one could add an SSD to this rig, with much faster boot times and better performance overall. Now building it should be done by someone with some experience but its not that difficult, and there can be much satisfaction in building it oneself and understanding what goes into it. This rig would also allow for some upgrades in RAM, and in graphics cards, offering more growth than the all-in-one.

In short, with the right help and guidance, you can do much better, but it means you are the warrantor of the build, and you need to be involved in its maintenance and operation.

JG

g-unit1111 · Jun 23, 2014

tea urchin :

Yeah and it's a complete waste of money on a gaming PC. It's not something you're going to need and I personally don't advocate purchasing items like that when you don't need them.

Yeah Gunit nailed it. That all in one only has a mobile i7 so it only runs 4 threads at 2 Ghz. A desktop i5 will double that easily. The GPU in that all in one is a laptop GTX 730, even the lower end desktop GPUs will smoke that thing. The rest is pretty standard but anything you get desktop wise will be able to run cooler and perform better. You could build a better performing gaming desktop for half the price of what your friend is looking at. All in one PCs will never be able to game as well as a similarly priced desktop, and even if you don't game, getting a non gaming desktop for a fraction of that price would be easy.

Yeah a mobile i7 is about equivalent to a desktop i3 or AMD A10. They're not super powerful processors as they're made for small form factors and low power requirements but they get the job done.

g-unit1111 has a great response, showing that it can be quite easy to build a better machine. In fact you could save even more by being more modest with parts, and deciding what to do with the savings. For instance (prices from Newegg):

Well depends on what the system is going to be used for - gaming you definitely want overclocking and a solid GPU, I wouldn't advise a downgrade there.

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