eMachine computer a good bet?

[ME]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
Pentium 3 unit

Im looking at this eMachine model

see link

http://tinyurl.com/44ulm

Ant one out there own this unit and have advice or
feedback?

Ive always bought Dell in the past..... but what does
everyone think of this emachine model?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

looks like a decent daily driver ... dont expect it to game very well with
the onboard Intel video. The specifications tab does not lead me to believe
that you have much expansion or upgradeabililty.

- NuTs

<me@privacy.net> wrote in message
news:spinu09e7n1qjvjabthrii7jlbf8mjm8hm@4ax.com...
> Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
> Pentium 3 unit
>
> Im looking at this eMachine model
>
> see link
>
> http://tinyurl.com/44ulm
>
> Ant one out there own this unit and have advice or
> feedback?
>
> Ive always bought Dell in the past..... but what does
> everyone think of this emachine model?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

<me@privacy.net> wrote in message
news:spinu09e7n1qjvjabthrii7jlbf8mjm8hm@4ax.com...
> Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
> Pentium 3 unit
>
> Im looking at this eMachine model
>
> see link
>
> http://tinyurl.com/44ulm
>
> Ant one out there own this unit and have advice or
> feedback?
>
> Ive always bought Dell in the past..... but what does
> everyone think of this emachine model?


Looks essentially like a Dimension 4600 spec'd machine (533mhz FSB, dual
channel up to 4gb of RAM, Intel 865 chipset) with 1 more USB port and
firewire ports the 4600 doesn't have.

The specs don't mention an AGP slot (if you wish to add a video card) or the
default eMachines warranty.

Customer reviews look good other than for the mouse and speakers.

Not sure of the hardware quality first-hand. I know the one older
(PIII-era) eMachines system I worked with had generic or largely branded
hardware I wasn't familiar with. ( It was a victim of near-miss lightning
strike).

Not sure what to tell you. A comparably spec'd Dimension 4700 with that
hard drive and opticals would cost more, I'm sure, but it would also have an
800mhz FSB and dual-channel DDR2.....


Stew

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

A benchmark for any system. Does the manufacturer provide
comprehensive diagnostics for your machine and its
configuration? Many vendors do not. One must wonder why
since either they don't test those machines OR they cannot
even be bothered to provide for free on their website what
costs them nothing. Either way, you then discover later the
many other 'shortcuts' they also took. That missing benchmark
only means more problems and more time for you.

me@privacy.net wrote:
> Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
> Pentium 3 unit
>
> Im looking at this eMachine model
>
> see link
>
> http://tinyurl.com/44ulm
>
> Ant one out there own this unit and have advice or
> feedback?
>
> Ive always bought Dell in the past..... but what does
> everyone think of this emachine model?

 

[ME]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

>Looks essentially like a Dimension 4600 spec'd machine (533mhz FSB, dual
>channel up to 4gb of RAM, Intel 865 chipset) with 1 more USB port and
>firewire ports the 4600 doesn't have.

Agree

But it appears that the eMachine has a DVD burner as
well. Correct?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

On Mon, 17 Jan 2005 08:28:39 -0600, me wrote:

> Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
> Pentium 3 unit
>
> Im looking at this eMachine model
>
I wouldn't buy one.

 

[ME]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

>I wouldn't buy one.

Why?

What would you buy? Stay with Dell?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Hardware-wise, eMachines and Dell are very competitive and very similar.

Support-satisfaction wise, eMachines beats Dell handily - their focus is
on the consumer market, and Dell's is on the business market.



me@privacy.net wrote:
>>I wouldn't buy one.
>
>
> Why?
>
> What would you buy? Stay with Dell?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"Edward J. Neth" <ejn63@netscape.net> wrote in message
news:3539m6F4h2mpiU1@individual.net...
> Hardware-wise, eMachines and Dell are very competitive and very similar.
>
> Support-satisfaction wise, eMachines beats Dell handily - their focus is
> on the consumer market, and Dell's is on the business market.
>
>
>


So what's changed over the last 2-5 years?

Dell support has gone down while eMachine has improved with the Gateway
influence? Has eMachine brought their hw quality up or has Dell lowered
their hardware standards......in your opinion.

I'm a bit surprised to see this opinion posted from your perspective.


Stew

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

<me@privacy.net> wrote in message
news:bfoou0do9g4ep9fom27llj6ap6f6298ir1@4ax.com...
> >I wouldn't buy one.
>
> Why?

I wouldn't buy one because of who owns the company. My experience with
Gateway has not been good.

>
> What would you buy? Stay with Dell?

Sure as heck would!!

Tom J

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"S.Lewis" wrote:
> So what's changed over the last 2-5 years?
>
> Dell support has gone down while eMachine has improved
> with the Gateway influence? Has eMachine brought their
> hw quality up or has Dell lowered their hardware standards...
>...in your opinion.
>
> I'm a bit surprised to see this opinion posted from your
> perspective.


Check out the Reliability & Service reviews in the January '05
issue of PCWorld, ppg. 101-104. EMachines topped the lists
for both Desktops and Notebooks in both reliability and service
satisfaction. Significantly, it out-scored Dell.

In Desktops, eMachines out-scored:
Apple, Alenware, Dell, IBM, Gateway, HP,
Compaq - you name it.

In Notebooks, eMachines out-scored
IBM, Apple, Dell, Acer, Toshiba, Gateway, HP,
Compaq, and Sony.

In short, eMachines has the best-satisfied owners
of all the rated manufacturers.

*TimD*

 

[steve]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"Edward J. Neth" <ejn63@netscape.net> wrote in message
news:3539m6F4h2mpiU1@individual.net...
> Hardware-wise, eMachines and Dell are very competitive and very similar.
>
> Support-satisfaction wise, eMachines beats Dell handily - their focus is
> on the consumer market, and Dell's is on the business market.
>
>
>
> me@privacy.net wrote:
>>>I wouldn't buy one.
>>
>>
>> Why?
>>
>> What would you buy? Stay with Dell?

eMachines vs. Dell
http://www.geek.com/news/geeknews/2003Jul/bch20030711020792.htm

Steve

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

> me@privacy.net wrote:
> > Im in market for a new PC.... having just sold my old
> > Pentium 3 unit
> >
> > Im looking at this eMachine model
> >
> > .. (link to emachines T5026)...

"w_tom" <w_tom1@hotmail.com> wrote:
> A benchmark for any system. Does the manufacturer provide
> comprehensive diagnostics for your machine and its
> configuration? Many vendors do not. One must wonder why
> since either they don't test those machines OR they cannot
> even be bothered to provide for free on their website what
> costs them nothing. Either way, you then discover later the
> many other 'shortcuts' they also took. That missing benchmark
> only means more problems and more time for you.

I don't know that particular model, but I've bought emachines desktops in
the past and they've generally been decent, low-cost machines--not great,
but reasonable for what you pay.

Just don't plan to upgrade them.

w_tom's point is a good one to consider, and I'd add one more: how
comprehensive is the driver support on the manufacturer's website? Trying
to upgrade the OS on some of my old desktops was futile because drivers
(chipset/sound/video/etc) were difficult or impossible to find. (Hint: see
if you can find anything about T5026 drivers on the emachines website. I
couldn't.)

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

My experience with Gateway has repeatedly been about as bad
as it could be. For example, the computer needs a memory
upgrade. Which size SIMMs does the machine support? Turns
out it will support an 8 chip SIMM but does not even
understand the 2 chip SIMM of same size. Try to get an answer
from their Tech Support. Tech support does not even know the
difference. Instead they keep asking why I did not buy memory
from them.

Ran the program to see what drivers need be updated. List
of drivers, in some cases, are not even valid for that machine
and would probably cause system problems. Their program tells
me the BIOS should be upgraded. But the upgrade BIOS is same
as was already in the machine. Every attempt to get support
from this company would have or did create more problems -
except where I knew they were wrong.

Never once had such problems with Dell. Again - does the
manufacturer provide free, comprehensive diagnostics for the
machine? This is a damn accurate benchmark. If not, then
expect to find many other future problems. Furthermore, the
questionable manufacturer has been eliminating more
information on their web site. Information I once knew was
there for this machine is no longer available. This
diagnostic benchmark has been accurate for most every computer
manufacturer. Does eMachine provide diagnostics? That says
how reliable and responsive the company really is. If they
cannot even provide diagnostics, that is but the tip of an
iceberg.

Those who claim they had good service - I don't believe it.
Their support could not have been worse. Tech support guys
even lied to me when they could not answer the question. One
even hung up leaving me to again wait 45 minutes for another
tech support person. No diagnostics - then expect things bad.

Tom J wrote:
> I wouldn't buy one because of who owns the company. My experience with
> Gateway has not been good.
>
>> What would you buy? Stay with Dell?
>
> Sure as heck would!!
>
> Tom J

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

It's unclear whether all your comments areall about Gateway
or whether they include the current eMachines. The bottom
line is that the thousands of respondees to PCWorld's
survey gave eMachines (the new company) the highest
ratings. There apparently has been some major changes
to the company that used be called "Gateway", especially
since the ratings exceeded those of Dell.

In the case of my own recent experiences with Dell (who I
used consider exemplary), Dell's foreign outsourced
customer service is kept so far out of the loop that they
are pretty much worthless. Dell has changed.

*TomDan*

"w_tom" wrote:
> My experience with Gateway has repeatedly been about
> as bad as it could be. For example, the computer needs
> a memory upgrade. Which size SIMMs does the machine
> support? [............]
> Every attempt to get support from this company would have
> or did create more problems - except where I knew they
> were wrong.
>
> Never once had such problems with Dell. Again - does the
> manufacturer provide free, comprehensive diagnostics for the
> machine? This is a damn accurate benchmark. If not, then
> expect to find many other future problems. Furthermore, the
> questionable manufacturer has been eliminating more
> information on their web site. Information I once knew was
> there for this machine is no longer available. This diagnostic
> benchmark has been accurate for most every computer
> manufacturer. Does eMachine provide diagnostics? That
> says how reliable and responsive the company really is. If
> they cannot even provide diagnostics, that is but the tip of an
> iceberg.
>
> Those who claim they had good service - I don't believe it.
> Their support could not have been worse. Tech support guys
> even lied to me when they could not answer the question. One
> even hung up leaving me to again wait 45 minutes for another
> tech support person. No diagnostics - then expect things bad.
>
> Tom J wrote:
>> I wouldn't buy one because of who owns the company. My
>> experience with Gateway has not been good.
>>
>>> What would you buy? Stay with Dell?
>>
>> Sure as heck would!!

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

I really never had to call Dell tech support. Their web
site constantly has all the information I needed - even
exploded diagrams. I had to call Gateway and eMachines tech
support because they provide no useful web information. It is
short on facts, devoid of accuracy, and complicated even by a
BIOS that did not support all versions of same size memory.

But again, how to determine the quality of that company. Do
they provide comprehensive diagnostics for free on their web
site. This benchmark has worked for me for over almost 20
years in PCs. Compaq (before it was swallowed by HP) was also
that good. Have not done enough with Compaq recently to say
whether Compaq does have good web site support. But calling
tech support is a last thing one need do. Both eMachines and
Gateway require extensive tech support because - well where
are the comprehensive diagnostics provided free on their web
site? It is a damning benchmark.

Timothy Daniels wrote:
> It's unclear whether all your comments areall about Gateway
> or whether they include the current eMachines. The bottom
> line is that the thousands of respondees to PCWorld's
> survey gave eMachines (the new company) the highest
> ratings. There apparently has been some major changes
> to the company that used be called "Gateway", especially
> since the ratings exceeded those of Dell.
>
> In the case of my own recent experiences with Dell (who I
> used consider exemplary), Dell's foreign outsourced
> customer service is kept so far out of the loop that they
> are pretty much worthless. Dell has changed.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"w_tom" <w_tom1@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:41EDBAD2.7572CFAD@hotmail.com...
> I really never had to call Dell tech support. Their web
> site constantly has all the information I needed - even
> exploded diagrams. I had to call Gateway and eMachines tech
> support because they provide no useful web information. It is
> short on facts, devoid of accuracy, and complicated even by a
> BIOS that did not support all versions of same size memory.
>
> But again, how to determine the quality of that company. Do
> they provide comprehensive diagnostics for free on their web
> site. This benchmark has worked for me for over almost 20
> years in PCs. Compaq (before it was swallowed by HP) was also
> that good. Have not done enough with Compaq recently to say
> whether Compaq does have good web site support. But calling
> tech support is a last thing one need do. Both eMachines and
> Gateway require extensive tech support because - well where
> are the comprehensive diagnostics provided free on their web
> site? It is a damning benchmark.
>


As I learned all too painfully recently with the GW 500S and Service Pack 2
compatibility. The GW support site states merely that "if Windows Update
shows SP2 as being available for your system, then (paraphrase) your system
is compatible."

No, that system is not. Or at least the two 500S systems I've seen are
not - along with a 3rd 500S from a user in the GW ng. What are the chances
of that.

That user called Gateway, Microsoft, then back again - pushing up to L2
support in both and beyond, and he's *still* stuck at SP1 and will be.

I find it odd that GW hasn't posted a workaround in conjunction with MS.

Those two machines are the only two I've personally installed that won't
take SP2 - and that includes a lot of older Dell, HP, and Compaq systems.


Stew