my family needs a new computer

stewie574

stewie574

EGO Zealot
Joined
May 5, 2010
Messages
1,755
i need some input. my family needs a new desktop computer, one that can play source games and cod4. it can't be too pricy, somewhere around $600-$800 is preferable. lastly, let me know if a Galaxy GeForce GT 520 video card would be a better video card than the one in the new computer.

any input is greatly appreciated!

-stewie574
 
Do you have any preference in brand? Also, would you rather it came from a more mainstream company like dell or hp, or a place like IBUYPOWER?
 
to be honest stewie, the 520 cards are not made for cod4 or any AAA title. you would have to get a card that is x50 series or higher (x50-x90). for example 450-490, 550-590, etc. if you still wanna get 1 of those low-grade cards, i would recommend this in order to get a decent gaming experience from cod4: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102934

however, this suggestion will have to wait until we get a better idea of what direction you're wanting to go.
 
to answer your question, chili, i wanted something like an hp, and if i understood your other question, we would get it from bestbuy.

as your your response, pillar, i played cod4 with the 520, and it ran fine. i have no intention in playing games like skyrim or bf3.
 
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GT_520/9.html

What resolution did you play cod4 in? Are you playing at the lowest possible settings to get playable framerates? For an $800 system, I would expect more in such a weak title. That is why I agree with pillar in getting a different card unless you are fine with the performance and graphics. While cod4 is not bf3, the gt520 is still a low end card that struggles in old games like cod4 at decent settings.

Something like one of these would be better buys:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229284
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227408
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227392
 
chili dude96 said:
Do you have any preference in brand? Also, would you rather it came from a more mainstream company like dell or hp, or a place like IBUYPOWER?
Click to expand...
I'd advise against buying from IBUYPOWER. I bought a gaming PC from them once and they put in a cheap power supply and didn't even secure the hard drive. It was broken when it finally arrived like a month later.
 
Fraurrix said:
I'd advise against buying from IBUYPOWER. I bought a gaming PC from them once and they put in a cheap power supply and didn't even secure the hard drive. It was broken when it finally arrived like a month later.
Click to expand...

One broken computer does not make a bad company. While their backwater PSUs and HDDs may be crap, IBUYPOWER are reputable for a reason and are fairly decent, albeit pricey (but what custom PC company isn't?). Dell, CyberPower, etc. are all notorious for putting in shoddy power supplies and HDDs if you don't specifically select the right one.

@the OP: Let us know where you're buying from and we can put together some suggestions for a rockin' rig. $600 is nothing to sneeze at in the computer world, especially for what you're asking to play.
 
runo said:
One broken computer does not make a bad company. While their backwater PSUs and HDDs may be crap, IBUYPOWER are reputable for a reason and are fairly decent, albeit pricey (but what custom PC company isn't?). Dell, CyberPower, etc. are all notorious for putting in shoddy power supplies and HDDs if you don't specifically select the right one.

@the OP: Let us know where you're buying from and we can put together some suggestions for a rockin' rig. $600 is nothing to sneeze at in the computer world, especially for what you're asking to play.
Click to expand...
I understand this. But it was just so terrible that I'll never order from them again. How the hell do you forget to secure a hard drive? The thing bounced around the case during the whole trip. I also forgot to mention that the power supply wires were just a big mess and they forgot to hook the front of the computer up.

I dunno what they smoked before putting it together, but it was the sloppiest computer work I've ever seen or heard of.
 
Last edited:
Shipping computers is not the easiest and best way for transporting them. This is bound to happen. Not only to ibuypower though. While you had a bad experience, there are probably 10+ others who had a good one. You are just more likely to post if you had a bad experience. Which is good to know, just doesn't necessarily reflect every shipment from them.

I would probably prefer the OP build it himself, but savings wise would not be that great. Still a great learning experience though and easier than it sounds.
 
I'm your huckleberry said:
Shipping computers is not the easiest and best way for transporting them. This is bound to happen. Not only to ibuypower though. While you had a bad experience, there are probably 10+ others who had a good one. You are just more likely to post if you had a bad experience. Which is good to know, just doesn't necessarily reflect every shipment from them.

I would probably prefer the OP build it himself, but savings wise would not be that great. Still a great learning experience though and easier than it sounds.
Click to expand...
Building your own is totally the way to go. If OP could get a bigger budget to buy some of the better hardware, it would pay off in the long run.
 
Fraurrix said:
Building your own is totally the way to go. If OP could get a bigger budget to buy some of the better hardware, it would pay off in the long run.
Click to expand...

i hope to one day build my own computer, but as it stands for now, i have to get one from bestbuy. i found this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+De...rive/4706887.p?id=1218511831978&skuId=4706887

thoughts? would the video card be able to perform source games and cod4? i'm aware that minecraft requires a lot of cpu to run, so would this be able to that as well?
 
Last edited:
stewie574 said:
i hope to one day build my own computer, but as it stands for now, i have to get one from bestbuy. i found this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+De...rive/4706887.p?id=1218511831978&skuId=4706887

thoughts? would the video card be able to perform source games and cod4? i'm aware that minecraft requires a lot of cpu to run, so would this be able to that as well?
Click to expand...
I'm able to run Source games and Minecraft on highest settings on my $500 laptop. The same probably goes for CoD4. I don't think you'll have any issues.
 
I think that comp would do fine. The A8 series is pretty awesome, in my opinion.
 
Congratulations on the new rig!

I'm admittedly kind of surprised you didn't go for the prebuilt with the A8 and 6550, but that's still not necessarily a bad buy. It's not a substantial difference or anything. Grats again!
 
runo said:
Congratulations on the new rig!

I'm admittedly kind of surprised you didn't go for the prebuilt with the A8 and 6550, but that's still not necessarily a bad buy. It's not a substantial difference or anything. Grats again!
Click to expand...

the reason we didn't go with the other setup is because:

1. they didn't have it at bestbuy
2. we didn't want to order it online
3. i would have cost us $100 more than we would have wanted to spend (we spent around $800)

but, for all intents and purposes, this computer is great.
 
oh god did you buy one of their monitor printer deals to get it up another 300?
 
Huh? The online store says it should have been $600 for the better computer. I'm a bit confused as to how you paid $800 for the one that cost about $500...

If they charged you $800, you should get a refund as they'd have to give you the price on their own website.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top