Help on cheapest build possible

[mikerockett]

Hi all.

Many thanks in advance for any help received.

I need to build a computer for a relative. She will only be using it for email, surfing and stuff like office, paint etc. Hardly any requirements at all. The only requirement is that it must be as cheap as possible.

So, id like suggestions for the cheapest build possible thats happy running office, email, internet, music etc

Everything will be required.

Thanks

 

[Wolfshadw]

Unless you really enjoy building yourself, just buy one off the shelf. There's no way to match the price of any in-store, low end system.

-Wolf sends

 

[sadams04]

Would have to agree with Wolfshadw. Check the build below for a "cheap" build. At $400 you can do something similar retail with no hassles and some type of warranty.

MB - GIGABYTE GA-A55M-DS2 A55 - $60
CPU - AMD A4-3300 w/ HD 6410D - $65
MEM - Corsair XMS3 4GB DDR3-1600 CL9 - $20 after MIR
HD - Hitachi 500GB - $80
OPTICAL - 24x DVD-RW - $18
PSU - CORSAIR CX430 - $25 after MIR
CASE - Cooler Master Elite 430 - $40 after MIR
OS - Windows 7 Home Premium x64 - $100

$408

 

[SingingThroughTheStorm]

It is hard to really compete with a low end computer in stores.
I was barely able to match a Lenovo at Staples at $450, but I did.
My parts are higher quality than the Lenovo, and when I decided to install a video card, I will then save money over the Lenovo. But I still kick myself because Dell had a special for an i3 machine for $280 brand new.


See, unless you really enjoy building computers, and find it worthwhile to spend more money on a PC then a big box vendor, it just isn't worth it.

 

[mikerockett]

Not sure if it makes too much difference but im in the UK and i think looking at it our suppliers are obviously a lot more expensive than yours.

The cheapest Dell i3 in the UK is £399 which is $633.

I have the below from ebuyer that comes to around £180. Would these components work together? Am i missing anything?

Case
Mobo
CPU
RAM (2 sticks)
HDD
Optical

So with consideration to the prices in the UK, do you still hold your opinion about buying from a store?

 

[morgoth780]

Not sure if it makes too much difference but im in the UK and i think looking at it our suppliers are obviously a lot more expensive than yours.

The cheapest Dell i3 in the UK is £399 which is $633.

I have the below from ebuyer that comes to around £180. Would these components work together? Am i missing anything?

Case
Mobo
CPU
RAM (2 sticks)
HDD
Optical

So with consideration to the prices in the UK, do you still hold your opinion about buying from a store?

do you need a copy of windows 7? cause thats the only thing i see that you're missing

 

[Tavo_Nova]

Processor: 63.99$ (combo saving w/DVD Burner)
Intel Pentium E5700 3.0Ghz Dual Core
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116381

Mother Board: 42.99$
ASRock G31M-S R2.0
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157173

Video Card: 29.99$
ASUS 8400GS Geforce 512MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121483

Memory: 14.99$
Crucial 1GB DDR2 800Mhz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148166

Hard Disk Drive: 79.99$
Seagate Barracuda 250GB 7200RPM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148765

Optical Drive: 12.99$
SAMSUNG Black 16x
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151250

Power Supply: 14.99$
Diablotek DA 350W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817822007

Chassis: 19.99$
APEX SK-39- ATX Mid Tower
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811154109


for a total of 279.92$ USD

of course you need a monitor/mouse/keyboard/speaker too or headset will do well

 

[Tavo_Nova]

the one i posted above is based on this
" She will only be using it for email, surfing and stuff like office, paint etc"

you just needed some 800x600 or those 1024x displays and some nice copy of windows XP 32bit, oh you can add in more ram if you want get those dual channel ones which is cheaper than buying 2 single rams, for the reason i chose this psu as it will perform well as i doubt she would be going hard core on gaming so that psu is more than enough to power it up, but if you got more budget go for more reliable brands but i believe this will be the cheapest you can go, and i went with an asus gpu as it's quite cheap and can give a little eye candy too

 

[Wolfshadw]

@MikeRocket -

If that is the cheapest complete system you can find over there, then it would probably be better to go ahead and build yourself. The only gotcha that I saw from your list of components is the power supply in that case. Specs say that it only has 1 SATA power connection. You'll need a molex to SATA cable adapter to power both your hard drive and optical drive.

Add in this monitor and Windows 7 SP1 and you're up to about 315 GBP.

or you could look at this system

-Wolf sends

 

[Onus]

Also realize that the case contains a PSU-shaped object that is probably not good for anywhere near its rated wattage.
Tavo_Nova, the OP is in the UK so Newegg prices will not be relevant.

 

[maxinexus]

buy her a laptop don't bother with a built because it is going to be worst than diarrhea

 

[viva_ron_paul]

I don't think anybody was really listening to the guy here. He said the system needs very little in the way of capacity and needs to be cheap. We must step outside the box here.

OK, ARE YOU READY?! This is it!. Hold on, and yes, all parts are compatible. Best build at a low budget and will not not slow down or clog up. If you want to go cheaper just scour the local ads for used broken pcs and build it from there.

Mobo, comes with 1.8 Ghz dual core Intel and on board video card. $74.99.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121442

Kingston memory compatible with board, 2 GB stick. $14.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820139220

Pc case, with power supply, one external bay and one internal. $49.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144255

Sony DVD/CD player, $23.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118031

That one complete functioning computer for $163.96 SHIPPED! or £103.61

Hey! What about the operating system. You can do Window7 for $99 at the same website if you like. I scoured around and xp is just a few bucks cheaper. But if you're reeeeeeally looking at keeping cost down . . . how's about $0.0 for a full operating system? Comes with word processing software, paint, and other goodies. It's called UBUNTU, download it for free onto a cd and add it on. Voila.

Now peripherals.

Monitor.

LED backlit 18". $89.99 + $8.99 shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254061

Keyboard, $5.99.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823201029

Mouse, $4.99.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826193041


Peripheral $109.96 or £69.17

Grand total for one complete pc is

$273.92 or £172.30

Now all that said. I still say, going for an already build unit is better. You may get better performance pound per pound and there's always that warranty. If you're going new it's good to have. But if you're really, really, really on a budget. Dude! Just get a used pc. Pound per pound it'll beat all the above options. Hope this helps.

 

[viva_ron_paul]

OOPS, Hard drive. 320 GB Maxtor $31.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822144522

New total $305.91 or £192.41

 

[bliq]

my suggestion is to buy a used laptop. my 7 year old daughter basically has the same requirements as your friend (that plus play flash games from Nick Jr). I bought her a Dell D630 laptop for $50 that had a C2D 1.83 dual core. works perfectly fine.

 

[xtremegamer2da-max]

buy one from dell or walmart

 

[Tavo_Nova]

yeah hes in uk so i was only giving some idea about which part to choose from, it should help him out a bit.

 

[mikerockett]

Ok thanks for some great responses guys. I have an old 15" monitor and copies of windows so thats not a problem.

Viva ron Paul, thats a good set up there and perfect for what she needs. If i can find it similarly priced in the UK i think i may have the parts im looking for.

Also, good shout on Ubuntu, but I gotta give the old dear a break, it was long enough getting her to grips with Windows lol.

 

[mikerockett]

Best answer selected by mikerockett.

 

[mikerockett]

Couldnt find all the parts you listed Viva.

I can get the parts you listed for £140 but i had to change the case as i cant find it in the UK. Do you think this would be a suitable replacement.