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Building my mom a budget pc for her birthday. Opinions?

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September 16, 2014 12:22:05 PM

Building my mom a budget PC for her birthday was hoping to get some Input. Here is a link to what I have so far.
Birthday Gift

More about : building mom budget birthday opinions

September 16, 2014 12:36:30 PM

What kind of activities is your mother usually doing with a computer? If it's for internet browsing, e-mail checking, etc. I'd go with the new Pentium G3240 because it's a great cpu for that purpose and has intel HD integrated graphics which is great for tasks like those mentioned above (it can even work out little gaming). Try something like this : http://pcpartpicker.com/p/BGCtkL
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September 16, 2014 12:41:49 PM

For general stuff, I usually just go store bought.

Why an overclocking chip?

500GB drives are a waste of money. for $10 more you can get 1TB, for another $20 2TB.
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September 16, 2014 12:42:38 PM

williamcummins said:
What kind of activities is your mother usually doing with a computer? If it's for internet browsing, e-mail checking, etc. I'd go with the new Pentium G3240 because it's a great cpu for that purpose and has intel HD integrated graphics which is great for tasks like those mentioned above (it can even work out little gaming). Try something like this : http://pcpartpicker.com/p/BGCtkL


Yep, that would do it.
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September 16, 2014 12:46:06 PM


Snag an AMD Kabini Athlon, and pair it with an SSD and ITX case ...

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September 16, 2014 12:47:51 PM

Let me assume that mom is mostly interested in email and web browsing.

For that integrated graphics and a low cost intel duo like a G1850@$50 would suffice.

The key to me for performance is a ssd for the "C" drive 120gb is ok if large files such as video's will not be stored.

I like small cases, your mom may too.
Look for a ITX motherboard.
Look at the lian li Q02 case, it is tiny(5.87" x 9.06" x 7.87"). The Q07 is not much larger.
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September 16, 2014 12:48:53 PM

Depending on how easily you can get to your mom, a store bought with an 800 number might be worth the cost. If you decide to build it yourself, then pre-install something which will let you do remote admin and diagnostics -- Teamviewer gets good reviews.
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September 16, 2014 12:50:32 PM

She basically is going to be internet browsing and playing her Flash games. Im looking to get a smaller case to save on desk space. I suppose the Integrated graphics would help with that. I also really need a decent pci/pci-ex wifi card as the computer will be on the other side of the house.
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September 16, 2014 12:52:57 PM

ooserioussamoo said:
She basically is going to be internet browsing and playing her Flash games. Im looking to get a smaller case to save on desk space. I suppose the Integrated graphics would help with that. I also really need a decent pci/pci-ex wifi card as the computer will be on the other side of the house.


I like the Zotac mini PCs. You can get them with or without hard drive and RAM. Most have WIFI built in. Hard to get smaller than some of them.
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September 16, 2014 1:28:39 PM

geofelt said:
Let me assume that mom is mostly interested in email and web browsing.

For that integrated graphics and a low cost intel duo like a G1850@$50 would suffice.

The key to me for performance is a ssd for the "C" drive 120gb is ok if large files such as video's will not be stored.

I like small cases, your mom may too.
Look for a ITX motherboard.
Look at the lian li Q02 case, it is tiny(5.87" x 9.06" x 7.87"). The Q07 is not much larger.


I like the Idea here. The only problems are going to be her video storage and getting a wifi card . I would rather have it Internal so she won't have to mess with it
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September 16, 2014 2:04:54 PM

Taking what has been said into Consideration... What do you all think about an All-In-One solution?
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September 16, 2014 2:34:11 PM

You can buy a ITX motherboard with included wifi.
The antenna will attach to the back panel.
Here is one example: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
Video files are large, and not suitable for a ssd.
It might be best to include a storage hard drive.
The Q02 includes a psu, and space for two 2.5" drives(or one 3.5" drive)
The Q07 uses a atx psu and has room for both a 3.5" drive and a 2.5" drive.
Google to see some reviews of builds using these cases too see what is involved.
I have used both in several builds.

I am a bit dubious about the all in one. It is not clear to me what kind of storage is possible.
The antec isk 110 has a vesa mount, but would need 2.5" drives only.
2.5" hard drives are fine for storage, but not for a "C" drive unless it is a ssd.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
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September 16, 2014 2:40:37 PM

All in one is pretty good. Not as serviceable, but disk and memory upgrades are easy enough.
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