Cheapest Computer Build for Windows 7? Like about $200?

RedAwsomeness · Mar 20, 2011

Hey guys, I was just wondering what is the cheapest computer build I could make for my parents just to run Windows 7 and just browse the internet. The parts I currently have are:

GIGABYTE GA-M68MT-S2P AM3 NVIDIA GeForce 7025/nForce 630a chipset Micro ATX AMD Motherboard:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128469

AMD Athlon II X2 250 Regor 3.0GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX250OCGMBOX:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103903

If you could give me the rest, including case, basic dvd drive and a basic media reader that could read sd cards and such, that would be great. All I need this machine to do is run Windows 7 because my parents are very cranky about running XP for some reason, and their computer only has 512 MB of ram and runs it slow as hell so they complain to me about it. So I'm just going to build them a cheap machine so they can run Windows 7.

If you could just use parts from Newegg and make it cheap as possible that would be awesome. Thanks!

Johnny Barber · Mar 20, 2011

-RAM
You don't need much. Everything will run fine with 2 GB memory. Crucial is a solid company.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148149

-HARD DRIVE(S)
They won't need much capacity, perhaps only family pictures and maybe video? You'd probably be fine with just one, unless it's important that the data never get erased, in which case buy two.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136113

-COMPUTER CASE
I bet it would be nicer if the case weren't large at all. It's hard to find a balance of cost and size as cases get smaller, but I this one is pretty solid for your needs.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147098

-POWER SUPPLY
Comes included with case. 300 Watts, is more than enough.

-VIDEO CARD
Are they using a square monitor or widescreen? By the looks of your integrated video, it would look terrible on a wide screen. It's worth putting forth the money for a cheap video card. What I use is probably good for what you need. Pretty cheap, and good enough for everything they'll ever do. Can't beat it. Also, has a nice rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121377

-DISC DRIVE
Something simple and cheap. NOT a burner. Saves you five dollars or so.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121377

-MEDIA READER
Not much choice, but this seems to be a fair option. If you want you could invest in external, up to you:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820223103

Otherwise...just the OS which will set you back the most, and a mouse and keyboard. Everything else is up to you. It's pretty expensive to build a computer for your projected budget. If you don't like the options here pricewise, just buy something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883220066
It won't be able to do HD videos but otherwise for productivity and internet, it's perfect. Hope this all helps.

RedAwsomeness · Mar 21, 2011

Johnny Barber :

-RAM
You don't need much. Everything will run fine with 2 GB memory. Crucial is a solid company.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148149

-HARD DRIVE(S)
They won't need much capacity, perhaps only family pictures and maybe video? You'd probably be fine with just one, unless it's important that the data never get erased, in which case buy two.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136113

-COMPUTER CASE
I bet it would be nicer if the case weren't large at all. It's hard to find a balance of cost and size as cases get smaller, but I this one is pretty solid for your needs.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147098

-POWER SUPPLY
Comes included with case. 300 Watts, is more than enough.

-VIDEO CARD
Are they using a square monitor or widescreen? By the looks of your integrated video, it would look terrible on a wide screen. It's worth putting forth the money for a cheap video card. What I use is probably good for what you need. Pretty cheap, and good enough for everything they'll ever do. Can't beat it. Also, has a nice rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121377

-DISC DRIVE
Something simple and cheap. NOT a burner. Saves you five dollars or so.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121377

-MEDIA READER
Not much choice, but this seems to be a fair option. If you want you could invest in external, up to you:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820223103

Otherwise...just the OS which will set you back the most, and a mouse and keyboard. Everything else is up to you. It's pretty expensive to build a computer for your projected budget. If you don't like the options here pricewise, just buy something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883220066
It won't be able to do HD videos but otherwise for productivity and internet, it's perfect. Hope this all helps.

Thanks! They already have everything else set up, they have a 1440 x 900 monitor. Plus they are using my copy of Windows 7 currently, which I will just use again on the new machine.

Also what motherboard would you recommend using then, if the current integrated graphics on that are just not enough?

Ten98 · Mar 21, 2011

Don't bother with integrated graphics, like he says get a cheap video card. Even the worst add-in video card is better than the best integrated graphics.

RedAwsomeness · Mar 21, 2011

Ten98 :

No, I meant what motherboard should I be using with the add-on graphics card.

cadder · Mar 21, 2011

There shouldn't be a problem adding a video card to the motherboard that you already have, but you might have to disable the onboard graphics in the BIOS. I'm not sure I understand why integrated graphics would not be sufficient for their needs, since you already have it you could try it first.

At the low end of the price ranges the parts can all be somewhat questionable. I always study the user ratings on newegg and look for the best parts in my price range. Sometimes there can be a big difference even at similar prices.

Johnny Barber · Mar 21, 2011

There seems to be some misunderstanding. I meant that the integrated graphics on the motherboard he picked out are not good enough. Just that one specifically. I haven't had luck with boards that don't have DVI out, or HDMI. Given that, I'd say look for a board with a DVI out built in:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157199
It seems a fair price and the rating are fair. You don't need a video Card with this.

RedAwsomeness · Mar 21, 2011

Thanks!

I decided to take out the media reader and this is the current build with price including shipping price.

Rosewill R379-M Black/ Silver 0.8mm SGCC Steel Slim MicroATX Computer Case with ATX12V Flex 300W Power Supply:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147098

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD2500AAJS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136113

ASRock 880GM-LE AM3 AMD 880G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157199

AMD Athlon II X2 250 Regor 3.0GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX250OCGMBOX:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103903

ASUS DVD-E818A4/BLK/B/GEN Black 18X IDE DVD-ROM Drive - Bulk:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135201

Price in Total with shipping (idk about tax though): $233.81

Am I missing anything or is this just perfect?

From_Canada · Mar 21, 2011

was just browsing and noticed that your DVD drive uses an IDE interface and your motherboard doesn't support IDE.

Johnny Barber · Mar 21, 2011

EDIT:
SEE NEXT POST.

Johnny Barber · Mar 21, 2011

RedAwsomeness :

Looks like you still need RAM. Otherwise you look like you're set to go. I'm pretty tired by now, but I'm sure. Also, sorry about the disc drive. Other guy pointed out it was IDE, and you need SATA, so here's the right thing:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
my bad, I was moving pretty quick ^^

cin19 · Mar 21, 2011

here is the deal

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.610997

$198.99 + $11.92 shipping.

ASUS DVD-RW $17.99 free shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

Total $228.9

RedAwsomeness · Mar 22, 2011

cin19 :

That actually would probably do me perfect, saves me about $10 i think compared to the last build.

Johnny Barber · Mar 22, 2011

Yeah, take the deal. The motherboard has fair ratings and would do what you need.

EDIT
@ next post: Don't worry about it :]

RedAwsomeness · Mar 22, 2011

Alright thanks for all the help guys. I don't mean to be annoying, just trying to get into building computers thats all.

RedAwsomeness · Apr 9, 2011

Best answer selected by RedAwsomeness.

mrmath130 · May 18, 2012

The hardware looks good, but as for the software? Win7? For office productivity?

You kidding me?

Use Ubuntu or a similar Linux distro and save yourself $100.

Ubuntu can use Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, plus it needs about half the system specs (1GB RAM and 1Ghz processor), AND its free.
You can get your build down to about $190 if you go for a cheaper processor and less RAM.

Cheapest Computer Build for Windows 7? Like about $200?

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