leader :
Hello,
Questions:
1) How do I know what CPU and how much RAM he needs?
2) Do all Blu-Ray drives burn DVD DL media?
3) Should he buy the system with the monitor included or without?
1. CPU - note that all of your sysems come with the same powerful CPU and a weak graphics card. Do you intend to upgrade the graphics card or buy a replacement? Note that the best deal usually comes from getting a sysem with a cheap graphics card and replacing yourself as Dell charges a lot for the upgrade. Does Costco have alternatives with a better card?
If his budget is constrained to the amount of the systems shown? If so, you could easily increase gaming power by 4 to 10 times faster by getting a system with a less expensive CPU and faster graphics card - although the tradeoff is that video editing might be a little slower.
If you have not addressed this issue yet then you have narrowed your search too quickly before addressing the bigger issues.
Perhaps your friend should look at the THG CPU charts related to friend's application and decide the level with the best performance/price ratio for him. Note that video editing is the most CPU intensive single activity on his list so I would check this first, then see if that CPU fit will support his desired level of gaming - most likely it will. Then you just need to read a few reviews on multi-tasking to see if he is covered there. For instance, this recent THG article on multicores has some good info:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cpu-cores-performance,2373.html
I would suggest sticking with a 3 or 4 core CPU - with a preference for the 4 for future proofing.
An alternative or complementary approach would be to specifically identify video editing task software and specifically inquire about CPU size from users of that specific or similar applications - from the appropriate THG software forum or maybe from one on the software vendor's site.
Keep in mind that software requirements - and the benefit of larger CPU size a likely to increase over time - but whether he can affort to build in headroom is a personal budget decision he has to make - and also depends on how long he anticpates using the computer and whether he plans to upgrade later and if there is a good, likely upgrade path. If he posts on a software forum, he might indicate how important these considerations are.
1. RMA - the good news is that compared to the CPU decision, RAM is easy - 4 GB. With todays prices, no reason to buy less. That few of todays applications use more (most barely use up to 3 GB and will not likely use the last GB except maybe when multi-tasking):
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/memory-module-upgrade,2264.html
Get a mobo with at least 4 RAM slots. Buy 2 x 2GB now, or if you stick with the i7 which has triple channel memory, then 3 x 2Gb. If he ever needs to increase RAM, buy another 2 or 3 x 2GB.
2. I have not the foggiest idea. But it should be easy look at the specifications for a few to find out. Or you could select the drive that most interests you otherwise then confirm if it does burn DVD DL memory. Can you call Costco to get more info on their models?
3. This is a personal decision - one strongly influenced by personal choice and budget considerations. A packaged system with a monitor is most likely to get you the best deal - but give you a poor quality monitor. You can either start with the packaged systems and google for reviews on the monitors, or start by looking at recommended monitors (google gain) and selecting the one that meets your performance/price preference and compare it to the package deals offered to see which way to go. There are a wide range of variable here - size, panel type, color quality vs. latency, quality, style, features, etc. Color quality vs. latency alone is a major issue since his applications have competing requirements - for instance gaming wants the faster panel (slower latency) - while with video editing - or even just watching video favors color quality. There is a tradeoff between the two. And finally, how much time is he willing to invest to make a good decsion that optimizes his choice? He might just read a few recommendations and reviews and go with that or could spend hours trying to understand the variables and how to select before starting to review recommendations and reviews. Again depends on his preference - and budget.
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