Super budget build for my mom

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
C

CTrap33

Honorable
Apr 16, 2013
122
0
10,680
So I'm looking to build a super cheap rig for my mom. She is using a slow pos from 2004 with windows vista, and even at a $350 budget it will be absolutely blown away. A couple questions for consideration I have are:

1. Is the graphics card necessary? This build will be for general use. She generally surfs the web, views photos and occasionally streams HD video. Is the integrated intel graphics enough? This could save me $50 which would be great and I could throw towards a better cpu or an ssd.

2. Are there any quality mobo's out there for under $30? I have no problem waiting for a deal. I'm hesitant to purchase any component from pcpartpicker that isn't rated at 4 stars or above and the MSI mobo was the cheapest one I could find.

3. I would have to look at how much storage she actually needs, but I am considering scrapping the HDD and going for a 250GB SSD for about $100. Any thoughts? Would this be a speed boost worth the extra $50 since she only needs a general use computer?

4. Lastly, is 8 gigs of ram too much? If so, should I run 2x2gb dual channel or 1x4gb? If not, should I run 2x4gb or 1x8gb?

Thanks everyone. The list is below.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4XJhFT
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4XJhFT/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($48.38 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($75.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GT 630 2GB Video Card ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $356.30
 
Solution
tiny voices
Yes it did. It clearly says it needs a BIOS update at the bottom of the screen.

It will not boot. I promise you. You NEED an h97 board.

Also, the whole point of that Pentium is overclocking. You are losing ALOT of performance by not overclocking it.

Just keep the h81 motherboard but change the CPU to an i3 4130 and call it a day. It will be much better for your mom.
Sort by date Sort by votes
tiny voices

tiny voices

Titan
Sep 6, 2012
34,175
5
99,965
That computer won't boot up. The motherboard needs a BIOS update to see the CPU. YOu need an h97 motherboard for that build which is unfortunately WAY more expensive.

I would get an i3 4130 and use the same board you have and call it a day.

Ditch the GPU for sure. It is not even better than the integrated GPU on the i3 I recommended.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
drkatz42

drkatz42

Honorable
Apr 5, 2014
1,882
2
12,460
4 gigs of ram is perfect for this rig and it's intended uses. Perhaps a small SSD for Windows and most programs she uses coupled with the larger storage drive.(my mom would have no idea how to save files to another drive so I went in and changed the targets of "my pictures, my downloads etc" to the storage drive) She definitely might appreciate how everything snaps open with an SSD.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

CTrap33

Honorable
Apr 16, 2013
122
0
10,680


How do you figure the mobo will need an update? PCpartpicker didn't flag it as an incompatibility, not doubting you but I would think that would be flagged
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
tiny voices

tiny voices

Titan
Sep 6, 2012
34,175
5
99,965
Yes it did. It clearly says it needs a BIOS update at the bottom of the screen.

It will not boot. I promise you. You NEED an h97 board.

Also, the whole point of that Pentium is overclocking. You are losing ALOT of performance by not overclocking it.

Just keep the h81 motherboard but change the CPU to an i3 4130 and call it a day. It will be much better for your mom.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
C

CTrap33

Honorable
Apr 16, 2013
122
0
10,680


Ah, I see. Thanks for pointing that out. Could have been a disaster if I had missed it.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

CTrap33

Honorable
Apr 16, 2013
122
0
10,680
So, is there really no other option as far as mobo's go? If there is a way to keep the CPU I have chosen with a mobo under $50-60, I would prefer that before spending more on an i3. Like I said this thing is going to be lightning fast relative to what my mom uses now. I would upgrade to an i3 (and better) if this were for myself obviously
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom