New build for a friend

[callousdigits]

Hi all,

I'm building a new computer for a friend who's given me a budget of 500-650. He's unlikely to do a ton of gaming, but wanted the ability to try some things to see if he likes it. I'm considering the following:


SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model SH-S222A - OEM $30.99

Antec Sonata III 500 Black 0.8mm cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply $109.99

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM $69.99

PNY XLR8 VCG98GTEE5XEB GeForce 9800 GT EE 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP $99.99 ($20 rebate)

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-4GBHK $84.99

GIGABYTE GA-P55-UD3R LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $139

Intel Core I5 $170

The CPU is from microcenter.com, everything else from Newegg. Total system cost is $658 with shipping. My other thought was to build basically the same system but with a phenom II X3, and save him $150 or so. Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[Outlander_04]

samsung F3 500 gig is around $50 and faster than the WD black

a radeon 4850 is better value than the 9800gt ... same price but more grunt

 

[Niklas_13]

Can you read this and post back ? http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

People will need some more info to better help you.

He would like the abilty to try games, ok but what rez is the monitor ?

What else does he want to do ?

My 486 and AOL can run the internet

 

[callousdigits]

His monitor is a 21" LCD, and I doubt he'll ever switch to anything gigantic.

The majority of his use will likely be web, internet, and data processing for work. I imagine he'll morph into using his computer as a media center as well, so there may be a bit of recoding, etc. I doubt he'll ever tax his computer heavily, but he does want it to be something that would be considered mainstream for a few years at least.

He won't be overclocking his system, although I may give him a very modest overclock if I end up going for the Phenom II system instead of the I5, especially since it will be IN a desk and not have a lot of airflow.

I'd like it to be a quiet, reliable system, since he won't want to tinker with it much.

Thanks again!

 

[lowpine]

do you have a link for the i5, I can't seem to find it. that's a good price

thanks

 

[callousdigits]

http://microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0317379

I know, it's a pretty killer price. Frankly, it's the whole reason I'm thinking about building him an I5 system, which is probably overkill for his needs. I happen to be in Boston, so can just pick it up -- don't know if it's the same price at all microcenters, or if it's the same if it's internet only.

 

[Niklas_13]

How about this build




SAMSUNG DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S223L LightScribe Support - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151188
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Protect Your Investment (expand for options)

$32.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151188



Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129042
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
-$15.00 Instant $69.95
$54.95 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042



SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822152181
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Protect Your Investment (expand for options)

-$5.00 Instant $54.99
$49.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181



SAPPHIRE 100258-1GHDMI Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814102837
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy
Protect Your Investment (expand for options)

$124.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102837



G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-4GBHK - Retail
Item #: N82E16820231189
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy
$84.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231189




AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor Model HDZ720WFGIBOX - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103649
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
GIGABYTE GA-MA770T-UD3P AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813128392
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Protect Your Investment (expand for options)

-$10.99 Instant
-$20.00 Combo
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$209.98
$178.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.259850


PSU OCZ http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10009795&prodlist=froogle 71.99

Subtotal: $598.90

I think this would be a better suited PC for him

(Note) your systems @ 705 not 658

 

[lowpine]

http://microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0317379

I know, it's a pretty killer price. Frankly, it's the whole reason I'm thinking about building him an I5 system, which is probably overkill for his needs. I happen to be in Boston, so can just pick it up -- don't know if it's the same price at all microcenters, or if it's the same if it's internet only.

thanks! the price is actually $159 now!!!

 

[lowpine]

uhgg, i did'nt realize they don't ship, dang. I'm not driving 2 hours to save $30 bucks. oh well, that's a killer deal. thanks