Computer troubles

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My nine-year-old iMac is dying by inches. I will need to get a new computer soon.

I'm thinking of moving away from Mac, even though I love them.

My brother is looking for a desktop computer that will be good for my purposes and not break my budget, but suggestions are welcome. I already have a good PC laptop which I'm going to spend today setting up as backup for Daisy here.

Hugs,
Erin

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what compter to buy?

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what compter to buy?
A lot depends on what you are doing with the PC. PC built for video edit or games tend to be the most expensive. Office work PCs tend to be cheaper.
Before buying a PC you need to decide what you want to use it for.
video editing and game PC require expensive graphics cards. Text editing does not.
Larger pc cases are easier to maintain than slim line cases.

Mac tends to be more expressive and less flexible.
PC in general built by big companies are not well built or balanced.
The best PC are custom builds. in the US micro centre is a good place to look.
https://www.microcenter.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TqLNkLdpGY&t=336s
Long-term custom PC is easier to maintain and use stand-off-the-shelf parts. Big companies often use non-standard parts you can only buy for the company that built them and at much higher prices.
I have been building PC since the mid-1990s and have worked in tech support in the past.

https://mewswithaview.wordpress.com/

Good advice

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erin's picture

I'm doing research today.

Hugs,
Erin

= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.

budget build 1000 dollars

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$1000 Budget pc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubb0PChInMM
should be able to cheaper for a non-game video editing PC.
$500 Budget Gaming PC
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuiAJFf0EJI

you could skip the graphic card a use one built into the CPU like
AMD Ryzen™ 5 5600G
you could consider using Linux as an operating system instead of windows
https://www.makeuseof.com/best-linux-distros-for-windows-users/
I use Linux mint.

https://mewswithaview.wordpress.com/

Never liked Macs. In the UK

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leeanna19's picture

Never liked Macs. In the UK Windows PCs are way more popular than Macs. I used to build PCs. The fact that you could mix and match parts made them much cheaper. Macs tend to be used for design and publishing.

The love of Apple products seems almost like a religion to me sometimes. Not to say that the quality isn't excellent.

I love experimenting with versions of Linux. You can get a 5 year old machine doing virtually everything you want with a decent version of Linux.

I have not used a desktop PC for 10 years now. I don't play demanding games, so laptops work fine for me.

cs7.jpg
Leeanna

Power supply

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If you're building the PC yourself, don't buy the ceapest one. The low quality usually comes back and bites you in the ass. After all, the power supply has to be able to supply the CPU (optionally GPU), HDs and the rest of the compoments with clean, correct and stable power. Especially at peak computer performance. Try to find power supply tests on the internet.
If you don't want to ever use the PC as gaming PC then a power supply output of 300 w - 500 w should be sufficient.

New computer

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erin's picture

I bought a new computer. It will be delivered Monday. It cost about $1700 and I will need a monitor.

Hugs,
Erin

= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.

New computer

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For $1700 you should get a very nice computer, especially if you didn't go for a high-end video card for gaming.

Spec

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erin's picture

M1 CPU, 16 gig ram, 2 TB SSD

Hugs,
Erin

= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.

Not bad

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It sounds like you got the new Mac Mini then? The Mac Studio is far pricier the the M1 Max or Ultra it has.

Unfortunately they don't allow beyond 16GB of ram for that.

That should keep you going for a good long time.

So it sounds like a non-gaming monitor is sufficient. If you are going to do any creator type stuff a slower color accurate monitor is sufficient.

That's it

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erin's picture

I may look further at a Mac Studio, maybe in a couple of years, but right now it was too pricey for me.

Hugs,
Erin

= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.

IMO don't be mac loyal

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shadowsblade's picture

IMO don't be mac loyal....In my mind all apple builds are double the price for half the tech
twice the cost all for a 'brand name' that is hard to up grade!

Proud member of the Whateley Academy Drow clan/collective

I'm normally pretty anti-Mac myself

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But given the situation, and Erin's use case(s,) I feel she made the right decision.

Given how important it is that a lot of elements of her routine not be interrupted by having to adapt to an unfamiliar system (or at least a less familiar one,) and how reliability of her hardware is integral to her job(s) here on the site... sticking with Mac was the right call... for now.

I and others talked to her -- in some cases extensively -- about her choices before she made her decision. And I've got plans to help set her up with an alternative non-Mac rig here in a couple years so she can increase her familiarity there, and have an even more open palette of options next time she needs to update :)

Melanie E.

Core i5 32" Curved Screen Envy HP

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My computer is an all in one and is at least 6 years old. It seems to work OK. I spend over 10 hours a day on it. No gaming. Just Text and things like CNN, and BBC. It seems pretty good for a non-geek.

And here I have three

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And here I have three macbooks sitting on a shelf. With two newer ones waiting for me to try to find parts. (One may only need a new battery, the other needs at least a screen)

I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.

good luck

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shadowsblade's picture

one reason why I HATE apple all apple products is they don't sell the smallest parts and try to RAM you into buying 100% new no matter if the a real world repair would be 100$ tops!

Proud member of the Whateley Academy Drow clan/collective

Eh, the chinese companies

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Eh, the chinese companies that make their batteries have NO problems selling them aftermarket, and as for the screen, I just need to find someone who spilled their overly expensive caffafrappuchocochino on their keyboard, and buy the carcass.

I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.

In my travels I have seen

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shadowsblade's picture

In my travels I have seen those apple screens and all they have need is one 5$ ribbon connector BUT apple only sells the the whole screen as a unit for hundreds VS a few buck for a small part that should have been designed better in the first place

Proud member of the Whateley Academy Drow clan/collective

I replaced the ribbon

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I replaced the ribbon connector - you're right, it's badly designed. Screen still nuts. Doesn't appear to be the machine itself.

I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.

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