DanG
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2001
- Posts
- 4,796
- Likes
- 10
My almost-3-year-old Dell Inspiron 9300 is getting a bit old and I want to buy something newer and snazzier. I'm particularly tired of how loud it is and its loud noises have me hearing "send me to a PC retirement home!"
I was wondering if you guys have any suggestions? Here's what I'm looking for:
1. I'm willing to spend around $1000... maybe a bit more if I'm convinced it's worth it.
2. 15.4" widescreen monitor, preferably with a built-in webcam.
3. I don't want a Mac and I won't buy Compaq or Gateway computers.
4. I'd want a hard drive that's at least 120GB, probably, at 7200RPM.
5. I'm not sure which OS I'd like... I'm still unsure about whether to get a 64-bit Vista or XP Pro again.
6. It needs to be QUIET! I've read that there are programs that will keep the fan off unless the HDD reaches a
certain temperature... I'd be willing to use one of those if you guys think it's not dangerous.
7. I have an external DVD burner and use it rarely, so I just need a drive that plays DVDs and writes CDs.
8. Preferably at least 4 USB2 ports. I don't need Firewire.
9. Decent graphics -- mostly for watching movies, but I do play a few games (right now it's Civilization 4, but I'll
probably buy Starcraft2 when it comes out and maybe some other games).
10. I don't need a lot of RAM as I'd probably just buy and install it myself.
11. Internal speakers that can get fairly loud (preferably).
12. Something reliable, of course.
13. Overall, I want something that I can continue to use for at least 2 years without really needing to upgrade.
Last question: how likely is it that we'll start seeing reasonably priced computers with 128GB solid-state drives in the next several months? I'm planning on buying within the next month or two but I might hold out longer and pay a little more if I could get a solid-state drive. My understanding is that read times should drop drastically with them and that they should run cooler and quieter.
I know it's a long post with a lot of things I'm looking for, but I would appreciate any suggestions you might have!
I was wondering if you guys have any suggestions? Here's what I'm looking for:
1. I'm willing to spend around $1000... maybe a bit more if I'm convinced it's worth it.
2. 15.4" widescreen monitor, preferably with a built-in webcam.
3. I don't want a Mac and I won't buy Compaq or Gateway computers.
4. I'd want a hard drive that's at least 120GB, probably, at 7200RPM.
5. I'm not sure which OS I'd like... I'm still unsure about whether to get a 64-bit Vista or XP Pro again.
6. It needs to be QUIET! I've read that there are programs that will keep the fan off unless the HDD reaches a
certain temperature... I'd be willing to use one of those if you guys think it's not dangerous.
7. I have an external DVD burner and use it rarely, so I just need a drive that plays DVDs and writes CDs.
8. Preferably at least 4 USB2 ports. I don't need Firewire.
9. Decent graphics -- mostly for watching movies, but I do play a few games (right now it's Civilization 4, but I'll
probably buy Starcraft2 when it comes out and maybe some other games).
10. I don't need a lot of RAM as I'd probably just buy and install it myself.
11. Internal speakers that can get fairly loud (preferably).
12. Something reliable, of course.
13. Overall, I want something that I can continue to use for at least 2 years without really needing to upgrade.
Last question: how likely is it that we'll start seeing reasonably priced computers with 128GB solid-state drives in the next several months? I'm planning on buying within the next month or two but I might hold out longer and pay a little more if I could get a solid-state drive. My understanding is that read times should drop drastically with them and that they should run cooler and quieter.
I know it's a long post with a lot of things I'm looking for, but I would appreciate any suggestions you might have!