Asus Desktop CM1831?

[Shhh]

I have looked at the threads about buying a computer, but don't understand them at all :blink: I am looking for the best desktop for school work and The Sims 3 that I can buy . My highest price is £600...I found this desktop (http://uk.asus.com/Desktop/Entertainment/CM1831/#specifications) that seems ok to me. Now I'll me told it's terrible :D Any help? And kust to let you know, I'm moving off a Dell Inspiron 1545, terrible, I know.

[ellacharmed]

I always say - if have limited budget do a self-build. There's nothing in the market that fits both budget and requirements than a self-build system to a "T".

Also, not the first time you've asked about purchasing PCs. If you look at the SysReq wiki, what colors do the graphic cards have? Do you want to settle for cards of that caliber and deal with troubleshooting more than playing?
And which model comes with which parts exactly? The CPUs are kinda last generations' models (probably as much as 2 or 3 generations older than current 3rd generation Intel Core i5s/i7s Ivy Bridge).
- http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,673578/AMD-760G-New-entry-level-chipset-for-AMD2-motherboards/News/
- http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/chipsets/7-series-integrated/pages/amd-760g-chipset.aspx

Plus, if you get the one PC that has Windows® 7 Home Basic 64bit instead of the regular one, then all bets is out the window. "Basic" OS won't run Sims. Not even Sims 2.

In other words, all the advise in your older thread about getting a Dell still applies for Asus. Changing brands does not change the crappiness of the offerings, if they both offer low-end/entry-level parts for the entry-level PCs. ;)

Oh! I just found this new handy website and been having fun with it all week.
http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/parts/partlist/

If you're willing to do the research and work with me so I don't make the decisions blindly on my own, I can put together a shopping list for you. But I need to know if the budget of £600 (@ US$950 (http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert/?Amount=600&From=GBP&To=USD)) is just for the tower? Or do you need monitor, OS, Keyboard+Mouse, Internet (wired/wireless (?)).

[Shhh]

It's for everything. I might be able to stretch to £700 though :)

[shady180]

You'll get far more for your money if you DIY, and honestly, it's quite easy.

Here's a quick reference for building comps at or under your price mark. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2394156,00.asp

[ellacharmed]

All those items plus an OS, then? For £700?

What size monitor? Any particular brand?
How do you hook up to the Internet? Phone line or Cable TV? Wirelessly, or wired?

[Shhh]

About 22" size monitor. Any brand but now Dell :( Phone line and wirelessly.

Any views on this one? Here (http://www.equanet.co.uk/catalogue/item/it-equipment/Computers/Computer-Workstations/HP-Workstation-Z220/WM473ET%23ABU/A022434A)

[ellacharmed]

Is it configurable?
You checked the specs right? It has "Graphics Controller Intel HD Graphics P4000" which is onboard graphics.

[Shhh]

Er... Here (http://www.hp.com/united-states/campaigns/workstations/z220_features.html) are the specs and stuff, I'm not to sure what you mean :faceslap:

Also these:

Here (http://h20386.www2.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=B7J12EA&opt=ABU&sel=PCDT&lay=uk) and here. (http://h20386.www2.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=H0C52EA&opt=ABU&sel=PCDT&lay=uk)

[ellacharmed]

Don't get workstations. Their graphic cards are normally not supported for Sims. And the CPU is most times, too much power to just do homework on - a waste of money. Plus the one model that fits your budget, again only has an onboard graphics.

I mean, whenever you visit a PC page with intention to purchase it, you do click on tab or link that says "Specifications" or "Tech Specifications", yes? Then compare the 3 components - CPU, RAM, GPU - with our SysReq Wiki page?
By configurable, is it possible to choose different parts at checkout - like the CPU, GPU models? Or is the parts configuration set in stone, you get what you see (and don't see), flaws and all?
And read the user reviews? Do users have good experiences or bad experiences with it? Do the users expectations match yours, I mean, they might be happy with it if they just use it to surf the web, right? They don't play games or things more intensive?

All the links you provided thus far has onboard graphics models. And when they have onboard graphics, their power supply is of low wattage and you need to replace the PSU (Power Supply Unit) together with getting a dedicated graphics card, which means you're way over-budget, just to get the PC "Sims-ready".

The last one has potential with the HD 6850 dedicated graphics. But it shows as having a "Microtower" which means the casing is the thin, narrow one. This seriously limits your upgrading-power in the future. Because there's no space for the more common PSU sizes and the better GPU options when you want to replace them. It's RAM config is also wonky (2GB + 4GB). If RAMs are not of equal "caliber", then it throws off the "dual-channel" mode that it got going. The self-build PC below has 8GB RAM.

I put together a part list where you can get somebody to build for you, or you can look for a local shop that can put this build together for you for a nominal fee. Though, most shops offer the build for free if you buy ALL the parts from them in one go (at least where I am). It is equal to the £800 price (well, +£5) of the last HP model you posted, with the HD 6850. But with the assurance that you get a nice casing, a good PSU that is Bronze-certified for power efficiency, and match all the other components in the HP model. If you really want to meet the £600 budget take out the SSD, and get a different PSU model with lower wattage and no certification.

PCPartPicker part list (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/p/evEf) / Price breakdown by merchant (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/p/evEf/by_merchant/) / Benchmarks (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/p/evEf/benchmarks/)

CPU: Intel Core i5-2400 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/intel-cpu-bx80623i52400) (£145.92 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/asus-motherboard-p8h77v) (£83.99 @ Dabs)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/gskill-memory-f310666cl9d8gbrl) (£37.43 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 2 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/ocz-internal-hard-drive-oczssd22vtxe120g) (£101.98 @ Dabs)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 1.5TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/western-digital-internal-hard-drive-wd15earx) (£75.98 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 6850 1GB Video Card (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/xfx-video-card-hd685xzdfc) (£120.58 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/cooler-master-case-rc430kwn1) (£38.38 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/seasonic-power-supply-m12ii620bronze) (£85.42 @ Amazon UK)
Optical Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B DVD/CD Writer (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/sony-optical-drive-ad7280s0b) (£13.03 @ CCL Computers)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/microsoft-os-gfc02050) (£70.34 @ CCL Computers)
Keyboard: Gigabyte KM7580 Wireless Slim Keyboard w/Optical Mouse (http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/part/gigabyte-keyboard-gkkm7580) (£18.99 @ Amazon UK)
Other: TP LINK 300Mbps Wireless N PCI Adapter (http://www.dabs.com/products/tp-link-300mbps-wireless-n-pci-adapter-86TH.html?refs=50060000-4294946755&src=3) (£11.98 @ Dabs)
Total: £804.02
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-08-13 06:08 BST+0100)

[Shhh]

Thank you. I'm saving up the money :)