best desktop system -- Dell, Compaq, or HP?
 

Hey folks -- any feedback on what the best/most reliable system is out of these 3? There's one linked here that has everything I want/need for about 600 bucks:

bestbuy.com/detail.asp?e=11203790&m=488&cat=490&scat=491

Mostly for word processing, writing, fast web surfing, etc.

I've also heard Athlon and Pentium processors are the best and fastest and to avoid Celeron. I'm looking for speed (esp. when using multiple apps) and not really a used system. Gotta have something to work and surf porn at the same time. Any feedback?

Thanks,
David

:feels-hot

Sorry -- the above link is fucked. Here is full description:


Compaq Presario Desktop with AMD Athlon? XP Processor 2000+
Model: 6410NX

Truly a well-rounded machine, with an AMD Athlon? XP processor 2000+ and 256MB DDR SDRAM for the practical side, and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive and 6 handy USB 2.0 ports for culture.

Monitor sold separately.

$589.99

PRODUCT FEATURES
AMD Athlon? XP processor 2000+ with QuantiSpeed? architecture*
*QuantiSpeed? architecture operates at 1.67GHz

128KB L1 + 256KB L2 cache memory for efficient processing

256MB DDR SDRAM for multitasking power, expandable to 1.0GB

60.0GB Ultra DMA hard drive

DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive (12x DVD-ROM, 32x10x40 CD-RW speeds)

Integrated ProSavageDDR KM266 graphics, with up to 32MB shared video memory; integrated AC '97 audio

10/100Base-T Fast Ethernet networking card; V.90 high-speed modem

6 high-speed USB 2.0 ports (2 front, 4 back); 1 each parallel, serial and game ports; 1 AGP and 2 PCI slots open for expansion; 2 open drive bays

Scroll mouse; Compaq Internet keyboard with 1-touch access to e-mail and Internet destinations

Generous software package, including InterVideo WinDVD SE, RecordNow for CDs, RealNetworks RealOne Player, Coloreal Color Management and more

Windows XP Home Edition operating system preinstalled

AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, AMD Athlon, QuantiSpeed and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.


PRODUCT DETAILS
6410NX

Processor Brand
AMD Athlon? XP 2000+

Processor Speed
1.67GHz

System Bus
266MHz

Cache Memory
128KB L1 cache + 256KB L2 on-chip cache

System Memory (RAM)
256MB

System Memory (RAM) Expandable To
1.0GB

Type of Memory (RAM)
PC2100 DDR SDRAM

Hard Drive Type
Ultra DMA

Hard Drive Size
60.0GB

Video Memory
32MB shared

Graphics
Integrated ProSavageDDR KM266 graphics

MPEG
Yes

Audio
Integrated AC '97 audio

Speakers
Not included

Modem
56 Kbps* ITU V.90 *Capable of receiving 56 Kbps downloads. However, current regulations limit download speed to 53 Kbps.

Network Card
10/100Base-T Fast Ethernet

CD-ROM Drive
Shared

Maximum CD-ROM Drive Speed
40x

CD-RW Drive
Shared

CD-RW Drive Speeds
32x10x40

DVD-ROM Drive
Shared

Maximum DVD-ROM Drive Speed
12x

DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive
Yes

DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive Speeds
12x max. DVD-ROM; 32x10x40 CD-RW

DVD-RW Drive
No

DVD-RW Drive Speeds
No DVD-RW drive

Removable Storage
None

Diskette Drive
Yes

Diskette Drive Type
3.5" 1.44MB

Total Expansion Bays
External: 1 (3.5"), 2 (5.25"); Internal: 2 (3.5")

Available Expansion Bays
External: 1 (5.25"); Internal: 1 (3.5")

Total Expansion Slots
3 PCI, 1 AGP

Available Expansion Slots
2 PCI, 1 AGP

USB Ports
6 USB 2.0 (2 front, 4 back)

Parallel Ports
1

IEEE 1394 Ports
0

Serial Ports
1

Game Ports
1

Keyboard Description
Presario Internet keyboard

Other Control Devices (mouse, etc.)
Presario scroller mouse

Operating System
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition

Software Included
Microsoft Works 7.0, Money 2002, Encarta Encyclopedia Deluxe Online (1-yr. subscription); Quicken Financial Center/New Users Edition 2003; RealOne Player; Veritas RecordNow; InterVideo WinDVD SE; Adobe Acrobat Reader; Norton AntiVirus + more

Product Height
16.55"

Product Width
6.88"

Product Depth
14.5"

Product Weight
23.8 lbs.

Manuals Included
User's guide, Microsoft Windows XP manual

Warranty Term ? Parts
1-year limited

Warranty Term ? Labor
1-year limited

<font size="4" face="verdana,arial" color="#ffff00"><strong>DO NOT BUY A COMPAQ</strong></font>

I had one and they SUCK. Trust me. You buy a Compaq desktop, you will be sorry.

Dude, get a Dell. Compaq used to rule, but Dell is currently the biggest PC manufacturer in the US. New systems i'm buying are only Dells - good warranty, reliable, competitive price.

I've had a lot of trouble w/ my Compaq laptop - 3rd hard drive, plus it generates a lot of heat.

A client of mine bought a pair of HP Pavillions, and they're junk.

I have a Dell, works great and haven't had any problems

**NEWS FLASH***


NONE OF THEM! BUILD YOUR OWN SYSTEM. :321GFY

I've heard that on many boards. As far as HP I've got 2 of them sitting at my work station waiting for parts...enough said. As for Dell I've heard mixed reviews, some swore by them other don't. I know it's not a very good post, but it's what I've heard.

Dell foo

second that

Third it.

My new computer was built by me (well, I watched my brother build it, but I paid for the parts dammit), and it rocks.

I will never buy a prebuilt system again.

Best Buy Sucks... good luck if you ever need to return anything to them.

Check out Tiger Direct

We use Macs and PCs....

Almost everyone in our office likes the Apple products the best.

OSX smokes XP and Apple's hardware is second to none.

Mitch

Get a Dell.

Best support, hands down.

... But I still recommend building your own computer, it'll save you a couple hundred. :thumbsup

not these days. You save more buying a dell.

I've owned all 3 brands.
I'd take my Dell over and over again!
The worst out of the 3 for me was the Compaq.

My :2 cents:

I'll fourth that...have one built. Upgrading a prebuilt system can be a nightmare. They make it all but impossible to upgrade hardware without taking it to a service center.

Until a couple of years ago, this was true. The only advantage for building your own now is if you want to customize every high-end component for a desktop.

But these days, any system you buy is going to be powerful enough to fuck around on the net, get email, do web dev. Add processor, memory, and HDD to taste. Plus you have one vendor to bitch at in case of failure

If you're a gamer, or a PC Ricer, then fine, build your own.

:2 cents:

Upgrading a prebuilt is almost the same as upgrading a built one lol. You must have a 486 prebuilt or something to make it sound that dramatic.

Buy a Mac... it's worth the money.

i abandoned tiger a long time ago. good prices but their PR is lacking.


dave, save yourself a bit, buy a custom. if you want a quote, hit me up on icq.

I've got 4 dells..no problems..but i'm building my next one

dell is shit if you ask me... ran me around their "customer non-service" center for months until the return policy expired

i also hear michael dell eats a ton of dick... its gross

www.apple.com/switch

I have had them all, sold thousands of Compaq and Dell computers to corporations and schools.

If you must by a WinTel computer I recommend Dell best consumer support an value.

If you want the best computer by an Apple with OSX . The magic is the OS OSX is an Apple GUI on a BSD OS. Rock solid Unix on great hardware with a GUI.

DELL IS THE DEVIL! And 99% of their so-called Customer Service reps can hardly speak English or just don't know shit about computers...this makes it nearly impossible to troubleshoot (or even communicate) over the phone. They USED to have stellar customer support, but no longer. Just my :2 cents:

Cassie

I agree 100%

Mitch

I had a computer shop custom build me one and it was the biggest hunk of junk EVER. It crashed every hour and I had to reboot it, sometimes erasing data, It couldn't play games, I couldn't listen to audio CDs. The people who built it didn't know how to fix it. It made loud noises and clicking and all that shit.
The computer shop wouldn't give me a refund for it. So finally it got jacked in a robbery, thank you robber!

So now I got a phat dell. :thumbsup

jim, whoever they were they were morons most definately.

i so fucking agree, factory made pc's are junk. Youc an save yourself a few hundred bucks building your own. And you know you are getting what you wanted. No last minute hardware changes they "forgot" to tell you about.

Hey, guys, Compaq and HP are now one and the same company.

I have an HP laptop and love it. I bought my helper an HP desktop machine that supposedly has a 1.6 GHz processor, but it is SO SLOOOWWWW. It's unbelievable. My put-together-from-parts desktop machine with its 1.4 GHz processor makes the HP look like a slug. My desktop has much more memory, but even on applications where you'd think memory has little to do with it, my desktop machine kicks the HP's butt.

But, like I said, my HP laptop is a gem.

The One I Built!

dude, get a laptop.

Bro, if you want the absolute best desktop, go here http://www.alienware.com

http://www.alienware.com/main/config...s/case_red.jpg

i had to laff at that guy on apple.com/switch in the customer comments section that was bragging about doing photoshop and playing music at same time. WTF. show me a pc over 500 mhz that CAN'T do that! Sure apple has it's place and good stuff but ppl fail to realize that a properly configured pc can do justa s much is not more.

My litle 1.3 gig AMD box takes a beating, I have UT laoded in background paused with 40 bots and 60 "addon" monsters... BIG resource hog.... an mp3 playlist running at all time, 12 brousers open for a week..... an irc session thats taking up 100 megs of log in active windows.... outlook running in background... abode photoshop... icq...MANY system tray shit running, such as speedfan, MBM5 etc etc and Im still able to do something in photoshop with no lag while this is all going on..... not to mention update my site(s) and run freetgpsubmitter 24/7

No...there are still companies like Compaq that use proprietary parts.

My compaq's AGP slot was installed the opposite way anyother mb would have been..so when I put the AGP in I actually lost a pci slot.

Totally fucked with my head for about an hour until I spoke with someone compaq and he explained it to me...lol


Edited to add: And as soon as you pop the top on all prebuilts/manufactured you violate the warranty...unless you are of course an "authorized" service technician.