Mine is my employment company HP. I talked to some people at HP and they said it would be great to up an advertisement on a minor site like e621. (Major sites being Facebook, Youtube, Google, etc.) We encourage minor sites to expand and create a greater web.

Hell, we've done everything from Booru to deviantart. What do you think of a Corporations ad on e621? What product would you want it for? Hey it's your web not ours! :)

Back to the question at hand, what's your favorite Computer Brand and if you like HP, what's your favorite model? Why do you like that brand or model? How do you think said model performs on E621?

And one last thing, anyone have any creative ideas for models at HP? We had a little deal with Hasbro, but we're hesitating on whether to create MLP:Fim cases, and let alone netbook models. You guys have any creative ideas for me i can draw up and try to build? It can be anything you want, from popular cartoons and games to your favorite hobby, and for the tech savvy person what kind of hardware specs?

Just to clarify, I am doing this to get some of your opinions (I'm just that way) HP did not order me to do this. Thanks a bunch :)

HP, the model is Pavilion dv6, with google chrome its works well, i've had since last christmas, and i still have not had a single virus

~~~i love it <3

check it out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_8IY9MX7Js

Toshiba Satellite L305d. I love this thing.

Also, do your bosses know this place is a porn site? I doubt they'd want to up ads here.

My favorite computer brand is whatever is most reliable and cost-effective. Hence I like the idea of a Toshiba desktop, although they don't make those anymore IIRC.

My favorite is Mac OS X.

dell. don't judge me. as for ads...I think we should stick with furry based ads due to the site's being a furry image board and all. so ads are fine as is.

cookiekangaroo said:
dell. don't judge me. as for ads...I think we should stick with furry based ads due to the site's being a furry image board and all. so ads are fine as is.

The only brand of computer I've ever owned and used extensively is Dell; they don't seem to get a lot of praise. But if you know enough about how to properly use a computer you can make any machine work.

Toshiba Qosmio X505-Q892. 18.4 inch screen, 'nuff said.

KloH0und said:
The only brand of computer I've ever owned and used extensively is Dell; they don't seem to get a lot of praise. But if you know enough about how to properly use a computer you can make any machine work.

The reason most people hate dell is their technical support. {Which isn't a problem for any "Good" Computer user} I can't stand Toshiba, E-Machines, or Gateways. Shittiest computers on the market.

I've never had trouble with a dell, but I always have trouble with toshiba.

cookiekangaroo said:
I've never had trouble with a dell, but I always have trouble with toshiba.

It's funny, I've had the opposite. My Dell basically had a parts failure every week for three months.

i love hp. around a year or two ago, a power surge fried my power supply. i called hp and they sent me a new power supply for free, and my warranty expired like a year before the power surge even happened. i just thought that was pretty cool.

For desktops, I never buy brand computers. Building your own machine is pretty much always cheaper and allows you to get exactly what you need, not what some company thinks people like you need. Maybe I'm underestimating how difficult it is to build a PC for some people since I've been doing it for years, but still.

That said, my current laptop is an Asus (N71J) and I'm very happy with that one, unlike the POS Compaq I had before this (don't remember what model it was). It's a bit big for a 'portable' computer and it's disappointing how little volume its speakers have despite the good sound quality (for a laptop, natch), but other than that it's great (and it's powerful enough to let me play video games when I'm not at home, which is a nice bonus).

As for ads, I don't really care what kind of ads are used. However, I kinda doubt HP would want their ads to be displayed on a furry porn site (yes, I know e621 isn't just for furry porn, but that's how most people are going to see it). Similar sites have had a lot of trouble getting ad deals because their content wasn't 'safe' enough.

0904255 said:
HP, the model is Pavilion dv6, with google chrome its works well, i've had since last christmas, and i still have not had a single virus

~~~i love it <3

check it out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_8IY9MX7Js

Yes, i know what you are talking about without the video, i use the Machine personally, and i was on the development team for the model. One of my all time favorites, thanks for choosing us !

ExplosiveBlaziken said:
Toshiba Satellite L305d. I love this thing.

Also, do your bosses know this place is a porn site? I doubt they'd want to up ads here.

Yes, my advisers did do a little background check on e621, and they do know of its... "artistic" attributes. But, like i said, we have upped ads on sites like e621, containing adult material. The way they see it, and i quote:

"Mr. So and So, you have my permission to upload an advertisement on the website of e621, but this ad will not be directly sponsored by the HP Corporation. I do know that e621 does contain adult material, but according to the HP way, everyone, no matter what their interests."

In plain english, e621 is NOT being officially supported by the HP Corporation, and even though their is adult material ranging from "regular porn" to straight up furry porn, our founders believed everyone was entitled to a good piece of technology. The breakfast there isn't that bad either ;)

cookiekangaroo said:
dell. don't judge me. as for ads...I think we should stick with furry based ads due to the site's being a furry image board and all. so ads are fine as is.

Oh no, i won't judge. That's the whole reason i upped this forum, to get your opinion. Dell is a good manufacturer, and I got one of my nephews a Dell for gaming. Sounds strange, but HP knows a little bit about every website and server, so a pornographic and even besatiality board are not an unusual sight. As for ads, thanks for telling me as i told the other person, uploading the ad is specifically on my shoulders, and my option. Not the companies.

I just had to double check with my co supervisor, ensuring that i could use the HP logo and Specific Models names and such. Thanks for telling ME!

Ultima_Weapon said:
Toshiba Qosmio X505-Q892. 18.4 inch screen, 'nuff said.

Yep, i know what model your talking about exactly. Gave our Envy 17's a LOT of hell marketwise, but we can always keep trying. :)

Princess_Celestia said:
The reason most people hate dell is their technical support. {Which isn't a problem for any "Good" Computer user} I can't stand Toshiba, E-Machines, or Gateways. Shittiest computers on the market.

True, they all resorted to using, excuse my choice of words, Indians as their main source of customer support. Yes, HP does have a diverse mix of Customer Service Reps, but they MUST be a legal citizen of the united states for no less than five years, they MUST not have any criminal offenses, they MUST be able to speak english fluently and clearly, up to the point to where those with hearing problems can hear them.

But, I am with you on Toshiba, Gateway, and Emachines. All are somewhat (in my opinion) simply thrown together, and not built to last. Friend has a Toshiba, only had it for a few months and the keys are already popping off.

luvdaporn said:
i love hp. around a year or two ago, a power surge fried my power supply. i called hp and they sent me a new power supply for free, and my warranty expired like a year before the power surge even happened. i just thought that was pretty cool.

Thanks so much for the Support! Have you ever heard of the HP Way, every employee gets to see a massive digital display of it in the main lobby.

Here they are:

1.We have trust and Respect for individuals
2.We focus on a high level of achievement and contribution
3.We Conduct our business with uncompromising integrity
4.We Achieve our common objectives through teamwork
5.We encourage flexibility and innovation

We do whatever we can to make sure that you are as happy as can be friend. As stated by Ideal 1, if you tell us, we believe you. Thank for choosing HP again!

Wahai said:
For desktops, I never buy brand computers. Building your own machine is pretty much always cheaper and allows you to get exactly what you need, not what some company thinks people like you need. Maybe I'm underestimating how difficult it is to build a PC for some people since I've been doing it for years, but still.

That said, my current laptop is an Asus (N71J) and I'm very happy with that one, unlike the POS Compaq I had before this (don't remember what model it was). It's a bit big for a 'portable' computer and it's disappointing how little volume its speakers have despite the good sound quality (for a laptop, natch), but other than that it's great (and it's powerful enough to let me play video games when I'm not at home, which is a nice bonus).

As for ads, I don't really care what kind of ads are used. However, I kinda doubt HP would want their ads to be displayed on a furry porn site (yes, I know e621 isn't just for furry porn, but that's how most people are going to see it). Similar sites have had a lot of trouble getting ad deals because their content wasn't 'safe' enough.

Well, we encourage you to build your own! It means that if a shortage ever comes around, you could be a potential Choice! HP is always hiring for all branches.

Asus are some good guys. We butted heads with them with our Envy models, and i believe the beats edition Envy was released to combat a gaming model, and as far as i know sales are almost neck in neck with the two.

As i stated a few times ago, HP knows a little about every website in some way, (thanks to our little friendship with you guessed it google), and sometimes, our ads wander onto websites containing adult content, but as we see it, thats good! Online porn is a massive industry, and you can see HP's google text ads when searching for it, and occasionally on the site itself.

In most circumstances, we remove the ad if it is believed it will hurt the company's reputation. But hey, if the way we see it, you need something for watching that porn right? Might as well do it on an HP the way i understand it.

We look at everything during marketing meetings, from the popularity of cartoons and toys by brand name manufacturers, to the ratings of Pornographic websites, which are always high, (no material is shown, and we do have filters, but only ratings are shown based on site name.)Our way of being a family company and a personal company.

Thanks for responding!

Thank you all for answering and voicing your opinions! While i didn't get any ideas for a model, i am always glad to hear your opinions! If the admins don't mind, i may post another forum asking about your favorite tablet or phone.

My opinion is "Stop making a separate post for every single reply!"
You can quote multiple times in a post.

ya know.. I'd like a pinkie pie laptop.. but then again.. I want a computer at least as powerful as my current.. and that'll cost a small fortune. (3000 dollars at least).. my experience with HP (Read: Compaq) is very bad.. I owned a laptop that was in repairs longer than it worked.. eventually the free warantee expired and pretty soon the laptop broke again (cracked screen) and then of course that computer became a desktop very fast)

Now you can post make new topics if you want. but my opinion is the following on phone and tablet..

android browser is <3 HP needs to do more with them.

Aurali said:
ya know.. I'd like a pinkie pie laptop.. but then again.. I want a computer at least as powerful as my current.. and that'll cost a small fortune. (3000 dollars at least).. my experience with HP (Read: Compaq) is very bad.. I owned a laptop that was in repairs longer than it worked.. eventually the free warantee expired and pretty soon the laptop broke again (cracked screen) and then of course that computer became a desktop very fast)

Now you can post make new topics if you want. but my opinion is the following on phone and tablet..

android browser is <3 HP needs to do more with them.

Heh, sounds like your experience with your Compaq laptop is pretty much the same as mine.

But... $3000 for a desktop? Wow, you must have a really impressive setup on your hands. I've never spent more than $1000 on a computer myself, and still end up with a better-than-average system every time.

Wahai said:
But... $3000 for a desktop? Wow, you must have a really impressive setup on your hands.

I suspect she was refering to laptops. she wants a laptop as powerful as her current desktop. XD

SnowWolf said:
I suspect she was refering to laptops. she wants a laptop as powerful as her current desktop. XD

No I want a laptop as powerful as my current laptop.

Top of the line Gaming/Modeling graphics card.
High def 17 inch screen
10 gigs of ram, 2 1-tera harddrive.
intel quad processor (or better) with high FSB for running multiple operating systems at once.
full sized light up keyboard
high qual speaks with an array microphone.
2 12 cell batteries
and of course n wifi, bluetooth.. all that.

yeah.. 3k laptop.

well I was closer then a 3K desktop XD

Wahai said:
Heh, sounds like your experience with your Compaq laptop is pretty much the same as mine.

But... $3000 for a desktop? Wow, you must have a really impressive setup on your hands. I've never spent more than $1000 on a computer myself, and still end up with a better-than-average system every time.

The last desktop I built was $2.5k. Pretty much the only thing that wasn't top-of-the-line and completely decked out were the hard drives... I settled for a terabyte of high-end 10k RPM drives in RAID 0, rather than a RAID 0 of SSDs.

Back then, I would only have been able to max out with a half terabyte in SSDs, and I would have needed 4 of them to do that, and SSD failure rates were sufficiently high back then that I probably would have lost the cluster at least twice by now and been replacing drives, and even the initial cost of that storage would have been more than the rest of the computer combined. So... it seemed like SSDs weren't quite ready back then.

Today, I'd very strongly consider a single half-TB SSD. But even today, that runs you a good $800 on Newegg, with the 256GBs running around $400 apiece, which is the same price per unit storage. I don't know if I trust SSDs enough yet to put even a pair of them in RAID 0, and getting more than a half TB on a single drive seems to start costing seriously more money per unit storage. I think I'd rather manage what software is installed on my PC, assuming that would really be an issue since I'm still using less than half a TB on the machine. (But then, I don't pirate and I keep a separate 1.5TB fileserver as well.)

Don't SSDs fail after like five thousand read/writes or something? I <b>think</b> that's why I never replaced mine with a SSD.

Well, there are a maximum number of writes to each sector before they wear out. The trick is, a great many files are write-once, read-many, and reads don't wear out the storage. The drives can also intelligently cycle through sectors to evenly distribute wear as much as possible. So in the average use case, they're supposed to be able to exceed spinning platters in lifetime.

At that point, it seems like the problem lies with manufacturing quality. But even that seems to be less of an issue today than with earlier models. Experimentation is starting to show that SSDs are, on average, more reliable than HDDs. I don't recall where I found the latest chart, and I can't seem to find it right now, but if memory serves it seems like SSDs fail more often up-front, but fail less often over prolonged use. That's very recently, however, so older models may still have failure issues.

One thing that seems to be unambiguous right now is that if you buy an SSD, buy Intel. They make the fastest, most reliable SSDs on the market right now, even though it costs a premium for them.

I should add that, technically, spinning platters can also wear out after enough writes, but you're more likely to wear out mechanical parts first. RAID setups can be especially bad at wearing out mechanical drives so evenly that even high-redundancy systems can fail because each drive in the cluster fails at about the same time, before new drives can be imaged. IT people who are savvy to this tend to enact policies like varying drive manufactures within a RAID array since the drives will respond differently to patterns of wear, or even doing pre-emptive replacements on a staggered schedule, to minimize the risk of drive wear causing a multiple-disk failure within a short span of time.

Aurali said:
ya know.. I'd like a pinkie pie laptop.. but then again.. I want a computer at least as powerful as my current.. and that'll cost a small fortune. (3000 dollars at least).. my experience with HP (Read: Compaq) is very bad.. I owned a laptop that was in repairs longer than it worked.. eventually the free warantee expired and pretty soon the laptop broke again (cracked screen) and then of course that computer became a desktop very fast)

Now you can post make new topics if you want. but my opinion is the following on phone and tablet..

android browser is <3 HP needs to do more with them.

Well, I'm sorry to hear that. :( Some people have better experience with our machines than others, oh well thanks for trying it.

As for the phones and tablet, we have a few ideas. (Reps would kill me but here's a hint) It has a 4.3 inch screen, SRS mobile, Nvidia mobile graphics, and (still in debate) a slide out QWERTY keyboard.

Aurali said:
ya know.. I'd like a pinkie pie laptop.. but then again.. I want a computer at least as powerful as my current.. and that'll cost a small fortune. (3000 dollars at least).. my experience with HP (Read: Compaq) is very bad.. I owned a laptop that was in repairs longer than it worked.. eventually the free warantee expired and pretty soon the laptop broke again (cracked screen) and then of course that computer became a desktop very fast)

Now you can post make new topics if you want. but my opinion is the following on phone and tablet..

android browser is <3 HP needs to do more with them.

Oh, and i forgot to mention about that Pinkie Pie laptop, it would only have the specs designed to support basic day to day needs, like Children and Family activities anyway here were (are) the specs:

13-15in Screen
Basic Intel Celeron Processor
2GB Hard Drive
120GB Memory
SRS Premium Sound
Various USB Ports (nothing much for HDMI and external display)

Here are the appearance specs (we have in development Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack) themed PCs, these are expected to increase when season two comes with new characters like Luna (it all depends on the characters popularity)

Anyway, the Pinkie Model is our example

Pink Finish
Balloon Cutie Mark in place of ALL HP logos
Palm Rests have images of Pinkie Pie standing in a happy/greeting mood
Case has My Little Pony: FIM logo and all characters under it (themed pony center of the group, differs per pony)
Bottom Pink like the rest, but containing all hardware docks

AS I said, we are hesitating on using models supporting My Little Pony, if the plan does go through, an extremely limited amount will be produced (probably under 1000). Hasbro is in full swing of the idea, but we question on how popular it will be. My Little Pony is at the top of the most popular cartoons for Hasbro, but still. We need to consider if Families will buy this.

Well, we'll see how things smooth out. Thanks for your response!

>2 gb hard drive
>120 gb memory

...wat.

ExplosiveBlaziken said:
>2 gb hard drive
>120 gb memory

...wat.

As in 2gb RAM and 120GB HDD. Sorry, had my damn cans all wrong

Once again thank to everyone who responded. If you want to ask a question or something, just either post it here, or mail me. If you want some help choosing a new Pc, im also good for that.

Thank all! :)

Princess_Celestia said:
The reason most people hate dell is their technical support. {Which isn't a problem for any "Good" Computer user} I can't stand Toshiba, E-Machines, or Gateways. Shittiest computers on the market.

Well, not to mention the bastards at Dell are Fucking liars.

Bought a Dell XPS for a member of my family, and it fucked up after awhile, and i called them to see if the warranty was still good. After going through a load of questions, the guy on the other end said No, the warranty was expired.

I found the receipt, and saw we still had 18 months on the warranty! The bastards still didn't want to fix it, so i just got the parts from our warehouse and did it myself.

Yeah, Dell lies a lot- it's not just the HP guy saying it to turn away possible customers, lol. Hate them so much.

That said: It'd be nice to see a powerful but SIMPLE computer come out. All the gadgets are cool and all, but a baseline powerhouse with minimalistic addons as a low (for the general pricing) cost package would be heavenly.

I.. I don't know much about computers. I really don't. I place myself as a mid level user and I don't know much about hardware at all except what I pick up via osmosis with my husband who would happily build computers for a living if he could. So pardon me if this is a silly question..

What quantifies a "gadget" or "addon" for a computer? o.o

SnowWolf said:
I.. I don't know much about computers. I really don't. I place myself as a mid level user and I don't know much about hardware at all except what I pick up via osmosis with my husband who would happily build computers for a living if he could. So pardon me if this is a silly question..

What quantifies a "gadget" or "addon" for a computer? o.o

Newest line of DVD-RW drives with lightScribe is an example. It's neat and all that you can burn DVDs, and that a prog comes with it for it- But... it's just so much extra stuff that not everyone wants/will use.

Another example would be dhown here: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9130538/Dreaming_of_a_PC_with_192GB_of_RAM_Dell_makes_it_reality 192 GB of RAM? REALLY?! It's just not necessary!

123easy said:
Newest line of DVD-RW drives with lightScribe is an example. It's neat and all that you can burn DVDs, and that a prog comes with it for it- But... it's just so much extra stuff that not everyone wants/will use.

Light Scribe... isn't exactly a new technology. I could actually go buy a lite scribe enabled drive right now for under 20$. Is it needed? no. But when you can get one that does it for about the same price as you can get one that doesn't... Why bother with the one that doesn't?

Now, I do think manufactured PC's do come with an awful lot of SOFTWARE installed already, and that most of it is junk that people don't actually need...

Another example would be dhown here: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9130538/Dreaming_of_a_PC_with_192GB_of_RAM_Dell_makes_it_reality 192 GB of RAM? REALLY?! It's just not necessary!

F..for you maybe, but as it says in the article "Not a high-end gamer PC, the Precision T7500 workstation (which starts at $1,800) is aimed at video game designers, engineers and digital animators."

and they DO need massive amounts of RAM. o.o You are not the target consumer group <3

123easy said:
It'd be nice to see a powerful but SIMPLE computer come out. All the gadgets are cool and all, but a baseline powerhouse with minimalistic addons as a low (for the general pricing) cost package would be heavenly.

You can do this, if you want to. For just a few hundred, one can assemble a decent machine that, with an OS installed, will word-process and do your taxes without complaining. Will it play the latest games? Nope. But do you need it to? This is an example: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.679860

I don't really want to spend more than a thousand dollars building an all-purpose desktop that CAN play relatively recent games. I don't need (for example) the latest, hottest CPU. I don't need a terabyte of storage space or a 10krpm drive (or even an SSD) when a pair of 500GB 7200rpm drives in RAID 0 will give me all the space I need (given that I have a small collection of hard drives already for portable backup). And I don't need a $300 graphics card. Other than games like World of Tanks or Starcraft II, in fact, integrated graphics would give me everything I needed.

I slapped together a system sketch that cost about $800 without an OS. It would do everything I needed it to, and then some.

Thou_Dog said:
You can do this, if you want to. For just a few hundred, one can assemble a decent machine that, with an OS installed, will word-process and do your taxes without complaining. Will it play the latest games? Nope. But do you need it to? This is an example: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.679860

I don't really want to spend more than a thousand dollars building an all-purpose desktop that CAN play relatively recent games. I don't need (for example) the latest, hottest CPU. I don't need a terabyte of storage space or a 10krpm drive (or even an SSD) when a pair of 500GB 7200rpm drives in RAID 0 will give me all the space I need (given that I have a small collection of hard drives already for portable backup). And I don't need a $300 graphics card. Other than games like World of Tanks or Starcraft II, in fact, integrated graphics would give me everything I needed.

I slapped together a system sketch that cost about $800 without an OS. It would do everything I needed it to, and then some.

But the given example is actually exactly my problem. You can go to a "build-a-computer" type site, or a parts site, and get all the parts and assemble it yourself... But you don't see models like this actually for sale by any computer company normally. And that's what needs to be fixed.

SnowWolf: The Light Scribe example was an example of a gadget/addon, regardless of whether it costs the same or not. It was early as hell when i wrote that reply, and honestly it was the only thing I could think of staring stupidly at my computer for what felt like ages trying to poke the sludge that was my brain into thinking.

problem with offering out of the box basic pc's is that peopel will buy them, then get upset when it doesn't come with all the belsl and whistles they're used to. for every comp savy person out there... there are 10 people like my dad who goes "oh.. I got a virus.. I cna't get my computer to start up.. time to get a new computer." (ASJDIHOIUFWNFUOEWNRAAAAAAAAAGE) and need the defaut norton virus swuite and stuff. And if you offer "the same" PC but without clutter for the cheaper price,, people will buy that.

I dunno. sleepy.

123easy said:
SnowWolf: The Light Scribe example was an example of a gadget/addon, regardless of whether it costs the same or not. It was early as hell when i wrote that reply, and honestly it was the only thing I could think of staring stupidly at my computer for what felt like ages trying to poke the sludge that was my brain into thinking.

fair enough XD I have times like that too ;) *pokes your sludge helpfully*

123easy said:
You can go to a "build-a-computer" type site, or a parts site, and get all the parts and assemble it yourself... But you don't see models like this actually for sale by any computer company normally.

Sure you do. Here's four no-frills options from big name retailers for $400 or less:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/eMachines-EL1850G-42w-Desktop-PC-with-18.5-Monitor-Intel-Celeron-E3400-Processor-and-Windows-7-Home-Premium-64-bit-Black/16683079
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Compaq+Presario+CQ5814+Desktop%2C+20%22+LCD+Monitor+%26+Inkjet+Printer+Package/9999162300050000.p?id=pcmprd162200050000&skuId=9999162300050000
http://www.target.com/Lenovo-IdeaCentre-Desktop-77521RU-Processor/dp/B00519AP6E/ref=br_1_2?ie=UTF8&node=12614161&searchSize=30&searchView=list&searchPage=1&sr=1-2&qid=1313674097&rh=&searchBinNameList=target_com_brand-bin%2Cprice%2Cdisplay_size_derived%2Coperating_system-bin%2Ccapacity_name-bin%2Cram_memory_maximum_size_derived&searchRank=price&frombrowse=1
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=desktops&a1=Category&v1=Everyday+computing&series_name=p7m_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/desktops/Everyday_computing/p7m_series

You just haven't been shopping for PCs, have you? Or do you consider PCs' cases to be a gimmick that you can do without as well?

I mean, find a bottom-rung PC from Dell, HP, Sony, or anyone, and tell us what parts you think are unnecessary. I'll bet you save yourself approximately $0 by deleting these "frills", or you're looking for PC hardware that's so low-end that your only real hope is to scavenge garage sales.

No, I consider shitty numbers to be not worth the while of paying attention to them. 2 GB memory and 360 GB HD for Windows 7 E-Machines? 500 GB HD and 3 GB memory for Windows 7 Compaq? Another 500 GB/4GB Windows 7 from Lenovo- These aren't "no bells and whistles", these are 'bargain bin" computers. Cheap piles of crap with no real value other than "Yeah, it stores data and goes on the internet". The sorta hardware that fits your "so low-end that your only real hope is to scavenge garage sales" line. "No gadgets and addons" doesn't mean "shitty storage/speed/memory/video" (individually or all together).

Stop being an ass.

123easy said:
No, I consider shitty numbers to be not worth the while of paying attention to them. 2 GB memory and 360 GB HD for Windows 7 E-Machines? 500 GB HD and 3 GB memory for Windows 7 Compaq? Another 500 GB/4GB Windows 7 from Lenovo- These aren't "no bells and whistles", these are 'bargain bin" computers. Cheap piles of crap with no real value other than "Yeah, it stores data and goes on the internet". The sorta hardware that fits your "so low-end that your only real hope is to scavenge garage sales" line. "No gadgets and addons" doesn't mean "shitty storage/speed/memory/video" (individually or all together).

Stop being an ass.

I don´t really see your problem here. If you want a top-end computer, the "gadgets and add-ons" represent but a fraction of the price, and you won´t really save a thing by leaving them out.

Perhaps you could post an example of an offer that has too many bells and whistles but otherwise fits your high demands? It´d be useful if you could illustrate the problem so it becomes clear to those trying to help you, rather than just tell them they´re wrong and insult them.

Agreed with Wahai... so far all we know is that 500gb/4GB windows 7 (*covers her computer's ears*) isn't good enough, and that lightscribe is bad ;) (I know, tha'ts nto a good example, but that IS the only example you've offered)... doesn't let us get a very good picture <3

SnowWolf said:
Agreed with Wahai... so far all we know is that 500gb/4GB windows 7 (*covers her computer's ears*) isn't good enough, and that lightscribe is bad ;) (I know, tha'ts nto a good example, but that IS the only example you've offered)... doesn't let us get a very good picture <3

True, lightscribe is nothing more than bloatware.

123easy said:
Yeah, Dell lies a lot- it's not just the HP guy saying it to turn away possible customers, lol. Hate them so much.

That said: It'd be nice to see a powerful but SIMPLE computer come out. All the gadgets are cool and all, but a baseline powerhouse with minimalistic addons as a low (for the general pricing) cost package would be heavenly.

So your saying like a 15.6in screen and maxed out specs 1TB Hard Drive, 750GB RAM?

By addons you mean like fingerprint sensors and things like that? Because that's not a bad idea.

Oh no. fingerprint sensors (I've only seen them on laptops, but a desktop with them would be interesting) are the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I'd never cast any dispersions on it's usefulness. It's one of the few gadgets that I can see and not wish it wasn't added, in both physical setup and price.

TCP: 750 GB RAM? Jesus, and I thought 128 was a lot... :P Guessing you mistyped the numbers there. But something like that, aye. Not "here's a really good single piece of hardware surrounded by decent/mediocre stuff with a ton of small things that add up in cost but don't really give a lot of benefit to your average user" like you get with Dells- Use this one for example. http://www.dell.com/ca/p/inspiron-560/pd?oc=di560_f_1e&model_id=inspiron-560 2-3 gigs of RAM with Windows 7. 2-3 gigs barely runs Windows alone properly, let alone anything you want to run ON it. Celeron 450 processor- Single core processor that came out in '08 with a measely 512 KB L2 cache. About the only semi-saving grace to it is the GMA X4500 integrated graphics which, being integrated, is worse than an actual card- but at least supports shader 4.0, 1080p, and DirectX 10 (even if Windows 7 comes with DirectX 11 and you can't downgrade, meaning it won't even run DirectX properly....) which is more fitting for an end-line XP or opening/mid line ista computer, not a Windows 7.

These machines are slapped together out of whatever end-date parts they have sitting around in their warehouses, just trying to make a quick buck off someone in desperate need for some sort of functioning internet accessiblity so you can check your email and... that's about it.

To get any sort of hardware that actually freaking supports the level of software that you have available at current day, you have to get something more like this: http://www.dell.com/ca/p/xps-8300/pd?oc=dxps8300_f_2e&model_id=xps-8300& which has DDR3 SDRAM that was released almost four years ago now (Can't find the initial price, sorry), a $55 (on release) video card that at least supports current level software, an (on release) $399 1 TB harddrive, and a (on release) $300 quad-core processor. That's what a basic computer should have to start with... And they're selling it for $800. The 1 Tb harddrive sells for 59 bucks today. the graphics card is 49 bucks. RAM costs 51 bucks. The processor still costs the same (surprisingly) and (at least at Newegg) comes with the CD-RW burner. >_>; 459 for the parts, 20 bucks more for a cheapy but decent case. That's a $320 markup for assembly and profit.

But wait, there's more. Here's some of those addons and gadget crap that I was talking about. Windows 7 Home edition is base, but 100 bucks more for professional (actual price difference: 75 bucks)! Mc-Afee Security center is default, there is NO "No I don't want this shitty program", it's just automatically worked into the price (And we don't even know how much). Next, Microsoft® Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word & Excel w/ ads. No PowerPoint or Outlook. Worked into price. REDUCED FUNCTIONALITY WORD AND EXCEL WITH ADS. We used to get that shit free not "worked into the price", and it was completely ad free. What the fuck?! Base RAM is included in the price- or upgrade to 12 GB dual channel for 126 bucks- which is the cost of the damn 12 GB RAM itself and then some, without even getting the already-added-price of the old RAM removed. No monitor- that's fine, at least we have the choice. But a 21.5 inch costs 210 bucks? The eMachines E210HVB Black 21.5" Full HD WideScreen LCD Monitor costs 90.

In short, you don't actually get what you were trying to actually pay for even with the what-should-be bare minimum comps that are touted as great-top quality. It's disgusting.

123easy said:
459 for the parts, 20 bucks more for a cheapy but decent case. That's a $320 markup for assembly and profit.

Couple of omissions:
Motherboard (tack on ~$100)
Your "cheapy but decent" case doesn't come with a PSU, so add about $40 if you follow the power recommendations from ATI's website.
Newegg warranties their products for 90 days, the Dell comes with a year warranty.

So that's $180 markup for assembly and profit, plus 275 additional days of warranty.

123easy said:
But wait, there's more. Windows 7 Home edition is base, but 100 bucks more for professional (actual price difference: 75 bucks)!

Your OS cost comparison was between _upgrade_ versions of Windows 7, the full _retail_ versions that you'd need to actually install the OS on your system have a $100 price difference.

123easy said:
Mc-Afee Security center is default

Cheapest version is $50. So $130 markup, assembly and profit. My job runs McAfee, so I can't imagine they're so horrible as to be unworthy of consideration, and certainly any anti-virus is better than none.

123easy said:
Microsoft® Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word & Excel w/ ads. We used to get that shit free [...] and it was completely ad free.

I'll give this to you. The ads negate its value to me, too, though Dell seems to value it at $30 based on the cost of upgrading to Office Home & Student.

123easy said:
But a 21.5 inch costs 210 bucks? The eMachines E210HVB Black 21.5" Full HD WideScreen LCD Monitor costs 90.

You mean $99, at least on Newegg. The cheapest Dell monitor I could find on there in the same size was $175. Here's how they differ (eMachines vs Dell):
Viewing Angle: 90°(H)/65°(V) vs 170°(H)/160°(V)
Brightness: 200 cd/m2 vs 250 cd/m2
Power Consumption: 50W Max, 35W On, 2W Stand By, 1W Off vs 20W(typical)/28W(maximum)
Contrast Ratio : DC 5,000:1 (600:1) vs 1000:1 (The eMachines has a dynamic contrast ratio of 5000:1 meaning it can theoretically display a 5000:1 brightness difference from an all-black screen to an all-white one, but if given a black-and-white checkboard pattern would only reach 600:1)

Newegg has a somewhat more expensive Dell monitor of the same size, as well, with several more bells and whistles. I'd imagine the display you get from Dell's website is somewhere between the Newegg model I used in comparison and the bells-and-whistles model, and would have better power consumption habits, a wider viewing angle, better max brightness, and better average contrast ratio. I don't think Dell is gouging terribly with the display.

Still, $130 markup, assembly, and added warranty sounds surprisingly reasonable to me. Oh, and a basic keyboard & laser mouse for $20, so $110 markup. I'm sure there are other gotchas, as well, but I haven't personally built a machine in a few years (for the past several desktops I've purchased, I've been ordering components out of a local computer store and having them do the installation and configuration).

Now, you have a point about the memory upgrades. Wtf. That's quite the premium for swapping the memory out.

Added caveat: The "system builder" OEM versions of Windows 7 have a $30 price difference between Home Premium and Professional, but Newegg's OS section wasn't working for me, so I can't tell you whether Newegg sells them, and if you go elsewhere then you're stuck buying the retail versions because retailers are contractually obligated to only sell the OEM versions with full system builds.

The OEM version of Windows 7 Home Premium is $110, so that's...

...wait for it...

...wtf, $0 markup on the base unit? ZOMGWTFBBQhowdotheymakemoney...

Of course, they make money because they get this stuff for less than retail cost. I'm just saying, though, that asides from some questionable upgrade costs, the value isn't that bad.

I'll agree I got lazy with the monitor and motherboard points, but it was really fucking early in the morning and I just wanted to finish the post.

Price comparison on Windows 7 Was cost comparison of Windows 7 professional retail over what they offer in upgrade, whether it be an upgrade version or a fresh install (which considering windows 7 is preferable by FAR since upgrading causes so much bullshit)

Any antivirus better than none- I would rather not have an AV installed than McAfee. Especially when it costs me 50 bucks jus so that when i get the computer I can uninstall it and put on Avast or AVG.

When I viewed the monitors, it had a discount attached that dropped it to 90. Still, ig ot lazy with the monitor selection. Even then- if you have an HDTV, just use that for a monitor (What i'm doing right now) as well as an actual TV.

I got my keyboard and mouse free with my comp, as in not included in the base price, just free. Even then, when i asked about pricing, it was 5 bucks each for the basic laser mouse and USB keyboards available. I'll admit that newegg probably isn't the best place to get them simply for shipping and the like. Even then, you have a point that I did neglect to add the cost to my original points (I stand by my defense of I was really freaking tired). That said, it's still cheaper than the most basic mouse and keyboard package from Dell that costs 68 bucks and tax (mouse individually are minimum 35 bucks).

For the case, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811164060 has the power supply required and is only 30 bucks. Not bad, and not near your +40 bucks required. :P

For the monitor: This... is just fucking sad. The customize option that gives you the monitor is 210 bucks. Buying it separately? http://accessories.dell.com/sna/products/Monitors_Flat_Panel_Widescreen/productdetail.aspx?c=ca&l=en&s=dhs&cs=cadhs1&sku=320-1629&baynote_bnrank=0&baynote_irrank=0&~ck=baynoteSearch 139.99 right now. It's cheaper to buy the monitor separately than it is to buy it with the computer package wtf?! That said, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009261&cm_sp=Pers_StoreMostWishedMore-_-24-009-261_1_CWsh_-_-1_19___ looks to me like a better monitor and cheaper still, though not as cheap as the e-machines monitor. it also comes with a 3 year limited warranty base.

The warranty just covers "send it in, in four weeks you'll get a dinged up comp back that may or may not be fixed. We think. it might get lost in the mail, but that's not our problem. Even if it just never got shipped". Dells are also notorious for needing said warranty because they break down so easily. -.-; And if you don't have the warranty it costs 295 on average to fix it. Not including shipping/handling. It'd be cheaper to just buy a part and replace it yourself! It also doesn't cover accidents like coffee spills (Fine with that), power surges, or if the comp gets dropped (and that applies to shipping, natch... So if it doesn't work when you get it? your fault. -.-).

Looking further into the Mobo, the XPS 8300 uses the micro ATX motherboard, but specifically it's a 4-slot capacity for RAM (they do 4x 2 GB sticks), and it uses DDR3 not DDR2, and the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131623 seems to be the cheapest available with that capability. There's also this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138296

EDIT: This seems even cheaper while meeting the RAM capacity. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157211 dunno about the rest of it, though. I'll freely admit mobos are the one this I know absolutely nothing about when i'm shopping for them. However, it looks damn fine to me.

Something else I want to address: Your comparing of warranties. Newegg itself only guarantees things for 90 days so if it ships in and it's busted, they'll replace it. Or if the component was defective or whatever- They'll ship out a replacement to you or whatever to fix their goof. If after 90 days is up you have an issue, the manufacturer's warranties are still in effect for between one to three years. Check the details on the various components and you'll see they have manufacturer's warranties. So, that's definitely a wash.

123easy said:
I'll agree I got lazy with the monitor and motherboard points, but it was really fucking early in the morning and I just wanted to finish the post.

Price comparison on Windows 7 Was cost comparison of Windows 7 professional retail over what they offer in upgrade, whether it be an upgrade version or a fresh install (which considering windows 7 is preferable by FAR since upgrading causes so much bullshit)

Any antivirus better than none- I would rather not have an AV installed than McAfee. Especially when it costs me 50 bucks jus so that when i get the computer I can uninstall it and put on Avast or AVG.

When I viewed the monitors, it had a discount attached that dropped it to 90. Still, ig ot lazy with the monitor selection. Even then- if you have an HDTV, just use that for a monitor (What i'm doing right now) as well as an actual TV.

I got my keyboard and mouse free with my comp, as in not included in the base price, just free. Even then, when i asked about pricing, it was 5 bucks each for the basic laser mouse and USB keyboards available. I'll admit that newegg probably isn't the best place to get them simply for shipping and the like. Even then, you have a point that I did neglect to add the cost to my original points (I stand by my defense of I was really freaking tired). That said, it's still cheaper than the most basic mouse and keyboard package from Dell that costs 68 bucks and tax (mouse individually are minimum 35 bucks).

For the case, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811164060 has the power supply required and is only 30 bucks. Not bad, and not near your +40 bucks required. :P

For the monitor: This... is just fucking sad. The customize option that gives you the monitor is 210 bucks. Buying it separately? http://accessories.dell.com/sna/products/Monitors_Flat_Panel_Widescreen/productdetail.aspx?c=ca&l=en&s=dhs&cs=cadhs1&sku=320-1629&baynote_bnrank=0&baynote_irrank=0&~ck=baynoteSearch 139.99 right now. It's cheaper to buy the monitor separately than it is to buy it with the computer package wtf?! That said, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009261&cm_sp=Pers_StoreMostWishedMore-_-24-009-261_1_CWsh_-_-1_19___ looks to me like a better monitor and cheaper still, though not as cheap as the e-machines monitor. it also comes with a 3 year limited warranty base.

The warranty just covers "send it in, in four weeks you'll get a dinged up comp back that may or may not be fixed. We think. it might get lost in the mail, but that's not our problem. Even if it just never got shipped". Dells are also notorious for needing said warranty because they break down so easily. -.-; And if you don't have the warranty it costs 295 on average to fix it. Not including shipping/handling. It'd be cheaper to just buy a part and replace it yourself! It also doesn't cover accidents like coffee spills (Fine with that), power surges, or if the comp gets dropped (and that applies to shipping, natch... So if it doesn't work when you get it? your fault. -.-).

Looking further into the Mobo, the XPS 8300 uses the micro ATX motherboard, but specifically it's a 4-slot capacity for RAM (they do 4x 2 GB sticks), and it uses DDR3 not DDR2, and the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131623 seems to be the cheapest available with that capability. There's also this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138296

EDIT: This seems even cheaper while meeting the RAM capacity. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157211 dunno about the rest of it, though. I'll freely admit mobos are the one this I know absolutely nothing about when i'm shopping for them. However, it looks damn fine to me.

Something else I want to address: Your comparing of warranties. Newegg itself only guarantees things for 90 days so if it ships in and it's busted, they'll replace it. Or if the component was defective or whatever- They'll ship out a replacement to you or whatever to fix their goof. If after 90 days is up you have an issue, the manufacturer's warranties are still in effect for between one to three years. Check the details on the various components and you'll see they have manufacturer's warranties. So, that's definitely a wash.

I think avast is a pretty good antivirus. I agree with you on the HDTV, I just went to the store and got me a ten foot HDMI for my laptop.

Dells are all fine and dandy... If you want to store hours and hours of pornography on it. And have the Indian Bastards on the other end lie. The Dell I had to fix because the fuckers said the warrant wasn't good, has the body of a Dell, but the Hardware of an HP.

Newegg is a good site. I get alot of my spare parts from there.

Packard Bell owns all.

Well, antivirus is a preference thing. At my job we have McAfee. I've personally run Symantec/Norton, Webroot, Kaspersky, Avast, and vanilla Windows Defender. Believe it or not, the only AV of that list that hasn't let a virus through (that I know of) was Windows Defender. Although, my browsing habits are not what they once were, either, so that's doubtlessly a factor.

The virus McAfee let through at work was kind of funny. One of my coworkers had brought a work laptop with them to China. Unfortunately, the hard disk crapped out while he was there, and he had to buy a new one. Poor guy didn't think to reformat it when he re-installed Windows on it, and brought a virus back with him that shut down the office for a day and a half after he reconnected it to the local network. We happen to have some talented folks who captured and disassembled the bugger, learning that it was compiled with Chinese unicode and built to scan for stored Lineage passwords. Clever bug, just found itself on the wrong continent. With how quickly the thing took over our office's network, we're just glad it didn't spread to corporate, or it's likely that every location would have been shut down while everything was scrubbed or restored from backup.

But if there's a point to that anecdote, it's that virus makers are always moving, antivirus makers are always behind by varying degrees, and my experience is that if you stumble across a recent virus, you're hosed no matter what you run. That's why I run Defender - it's "free" (with Windows), is recognized by Windows' security center, and has been completely unobtrusive except for a false positive from one of the map files for the Final Fantasy XIV beta.

Acer definitely makes good monitors. I have 2 Acers and a KDS at home, and I'm happy with both Acers asides from wishing I'd bought bigger ones. The KDS, however, eventually developed vertical lines, though they're less visible when the monitor is on.

The standard Windows virus scanner sometimes gets a bad rap purely because it's the standard Windows virus scanner.

In fact, all of the "Windows Security Essentials" are good, and if you apply a bit of common sense to your surfing and downloading (which you should do anyway, no matter what antivirus you use) it's all you'll ever need. Plus, it's noticeably more user-friendly than some of the alternatives.

I've been running the Windows Defender for awhile now as a test, and honestly I have to agree. it's been working surprisingly well, even when I test known virus'd sites. My point still stands though- I'd rather have nothing aforced on me and choose my package later.