New Hardware Budget Gaming Rig (if even possible)

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MacArther said:
With the holiday season and deals right around the corner, I thought I'd revisit this thread and ask if there are any ammendments / overall agreed upon builds?

Also, found out that my old copy of Windows 7 on disk is broken (like, physically somehow the disk got cracked, inside the heavy plastic case), so I guess I'm sinking money into the non-subscription Windows 10 along with the build.
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Same price of $600ish?
 
There's no 365 version :unsure:

Office 365 is an addon if that's what you mean

They're also like 4$ on ebay which is a bit cheaper than the french website
 
There's not normally a need to buy a key, just make the installation disk or drive on a genuine pc. You might also be able to use your old key as long as it's still Win 10
 
That only applies if the key is tied to the same microsoft account and the hardware doesn't substantially change, which is definitely is.

He could use his old key, but again if it's tied to a micosoft account he'll have to call to get it reset for that computer.

Overall I would just recommend the 2-3$ for an OEM pro key and you get more features and don't have to wait in an hour cue for a robot from microsoft to help you.
 
pillar said:
Hey MacArther MacArther if you are able to invest a little more $, Newegg just put this sweet m.2 ssd on sale & I think I ordered the same thing earlier this year for maybe $10 more, so itll kick more butt than the one Buster just posted. Bare in mind that its a 24 hour flash sale, so best to jump on it asap: https://www.newegg.com/western-digi...x-_-InternalSSDs-_-20250109-S4A1C&ignorebbr=1
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Cool!

The other option that just became available (because my parents are EXTREMELY hesitant to let me build my own PC): An Alienware m17 R3 Gaming laptop with the 1TB SSD and GeForce RTX 2070 super, or the same brand m15 R3 with the RTX 2070.
In either case, they are willing to meet me half way on pricing. The 1st is running $1,899.99 (the m17 R3), the 2nd is $1,749.99 (so approx $949.50 and $874.99 respectively on my end, before tax).

Any word on the "street" if going from a 2070 to a 2070 SUPER is that big of a deal? I've been out of the "which video card does what" run after I got a Nvidia 6800 back in the day to put into our Gateway tower in order to run CoD2 and similar when they 1st came out (yes, I feel old now).

I'll be arguing my case, but I wanted to see if the Alienware was viable to all you gurus in case I get shut down by the parents

.Also, thank you EVERYONE, even if I have not addressed you directly at this point, for all of the amazing suggestions and work you've put in! Can I get you all to autograph whichever computer ends up becoming the winner? :)
 
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MacArther said:
Cool!

The other option that just became available (because my parents are EXTREMELY hesitant to let me build my own PC): An Alienware m17 R3 Gaming laptop with the 1TB SSD and GeForce RTX 2070 super, or the same brand m15 R3 with the RTX 2070.
In either case, they are willing to meet me half way on pricing. The 1st is running $1,899.99 (the m17 R3), the 2nd is $1,749.99 (so approx $949.50 and $874.99 respectively on my end, before tax).

Any word on the "street" if going from a 2070 to a 2070 SUPER is that big of a deal? I've been out of the "which video card does what" run after I got a Nvidia 6800 back in the day to put into our Gateway tower in order to run CoD2 and similar when they 1st came out (yes, I feel old now).

I'll be arguing my case, but I wanted to see if the Alienware was viable to all you gurus in case I get shut down by the parents

.Also, thank you EVERYONE, even if I have not addressed you directly at this point, for all of the amazing suggestions and work you've put in! Can I get you all to autograph whichever computer ends up becoming the winner? :)
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If the $950 one has more storage and the better card id say go for it.
 
Buster said:
If the $950 one has more storage and the better card id say go for it.
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the ~ $950 (at half and half) has a 1 TB SSD hard drive and a GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER with 16GB Memory, FHD 144Hz display 10th Gen i7 processor. The other one has the same specs for SSD hard drive and memory, but has a "regular" Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 and a FHD 300Hz Display.
 
MacArther said:
the ~ $950 (at half and half) has a 1 TB SSD hard drive and a GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER with 16GB Memory, FHD 144Hz display 10th Gen i7 processor. The other one has the same specs for SSD hard drive and memory, but has a "regular" Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 and a FHD 300Hz Display.
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Id say go the cheaper one then, the super wont make that much of an impact especially on a laptop platform.
 
Maserati said:
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypo...4gb-240gb-ssd-1tb-hdd/6436829.p?skuId=6436829

Maybe that and then just upgrade the video card down the line? It's $579
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A lot of these prebuilt rigs from companies like that often contain off-brand PSU's that just barely meet the power requirements, and sometimes have some funky motherboards. I'd be very hesitant to buy this without getting full specs on what's inside of it and brand names attached.

In turn, means upgrading can sometimes be tricky.

Granted, I haven't looked at these things in a few years... but it was a rampant issue for quite some time.

Also still cannot believe someone actually named their company "IBuyPower" lol.
 
baloo said:
It's a french website, but every time I had to buy a windows key, that's where I've gone:
https://www.cdiscount.com/informati...625862687720.html?idOffre=515426598#mpos=0|mp

$3 for a windows 10 family (you get the key via email ~30minutes after you buy it).
$2 for a windows 10 pro ... https://www.cdiscount.com/informati...625867728657.html?idOffre=664905453#mpos=0|mp

(you download windows from microsoft itself, that's just the key)
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is this actually legit??
windows 10 pro copies are 100 fkn dollars and you can get 1 for 2$?!?!?!?!
 
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dank.meme said:
is this actually legit??
windows 10 pro copies are 100 fkn dollars and you can get 1 for 2$?!?!?!?!
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Well, "legit" is a loose word for it, but yes, you can get it for that price. It's people using volume licensing, MSDN keys, or just straight up they're pirated generated keys. So effectively abusing the system or just being fully shady.

It's been known that sometimes these keys end up getting disabled months later. Not that often, but it happens from time to time. You wake up one day and find out your $2 Windows is deactivated. Then you spend $2 more again.

Not that it matters much on Windows 10 anymore... installing it without a key just leaves a slight watermark on the desktop and the only real limitation is not being able to set a wallpaper (Which you can circumvent by doing it from a browser or the photos program).
 
Simon said:
Well, "legit" is a loose word for it, but yes, you can get it for that price. It's people using volume licensing, MSDN keys, or just straight up they're pirated generated keys. So effectively abusing the system or just being fully shady.

It's been known that sometimes these keys end up getting disabled months later. Not that often, but it happens from time to time. You wake up one day and find out your $2 Windows is deactivated. Then you spend $2 more again.

Not that it matters much on Windows 10 anymore... installing it without a key just leaves a slight watermark on the desktop and the only real limitation is not being able to set a wallpaper (Which you can circumvent by doing it from a browser or the photos program).
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oh okay. I mainly just proceed with no key as it barely effects me and I’m fine with the watermark.
Wouldn’t want to put Credit Card info on random websites for a cheaper key either lol.
 
dank.meme said:
oh okay. I mainly just proceed with no key as it barely effects me and I’m fine with the watermark.
Wouldn’t want to put Credit Card info on random websites for a cheaper key either lol.
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The sites handling the sites are legitimate (like eBay) or key resellers like Kinguin or whatever is popular these days for that stuff. Card info isn’t going to random sketchy people.
 
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