Where can I buy affordable built PCs?

[vern]

Where can I find affordable PCs that are already assembled? I haven't had a desktop in a long time and would like to get one. I do not want to build my own. I've been there, done that. I've been looking at www.ibuypower.com, but I'm guessing there must be other places to look into.

 

[madmatt]

vern, my favorite site to buy OEM's is Dell. Best prices in my opinion. And now Dell has style.

 

[omg its nlm]

Once in a while www.ibuypower.com have some good setups, other wise I would also say dell.

 

[Not Bman]

I would also have to go with dell, still need to have money, but it's one of the cheaper places.

 

[jan]

I use Cheap Guys.

http://cheapguys.com/

 

[LeeJend]

Before you buy off the shelf remember the pricing is better than build your own but if you want to upgrade later you will likely have problems.

I'd go for Dell. I have no idea how they price a solid quality, basic system as low as they do. If you are looking for a high performance or gaming machine then watch out for the prices on the extras and upgrades, they tend to be overpriced. Go for the basic system in the performance range you want.

Avoid Gateway. Quality has been questionable and they have one foot in the bankruptcy grave.

HP/Compaq doesn't have their act together on price and upgrading may be an issue down the line. Quality is average.

IBM is now Lenovo which means cheaper pricing but quality reviews on the early product have been poor.

Forget emachines. Poor quality, low performance and every corner cut that can be found.

That covers the major brands. If you have a Best Buy or compusa you may be able to find a deal on their "house brand". Quality could be a concern with house brands though. You don't knwo where they come from.

 

[madmatt]

eMachines is Gateway now.

 

[Grandmaster]

I also give the nod to Dell.

 

[kcnychief]

Dell is the best option atm because of the overall value of the product. They are second to none in customer service and support, and the quality of their machines has drastically improved to how it was a few years ago.

If you are going to buy pre-built, go with dell

 

[Steevo]

I can build them, or Dell.


Are you looking for so many that you cannot build in a given timeframe, or just want cheaper than what you can build for, uncaring about upgrades or lifecycle?

 

[Sazar]

www.osnn.net

OSNN makes the best systems in the world.

 

[vern]

Thanks for the ideas everyone. The reason I wanted a prebuilt computer was because I haven't been into gaming and hardware for months and months now and didn't want to spend a few weeks researching hardware. X2, Dual Core, the newer video cards are all new to me now. I also know that bigger manufacturers like Dell although can offer very low prices on lower end mass produced parts, they charge a premium on systems that have higher end parts.

For now I'm looking into buying barebones parts from http://www.monarchcomputer.com/. They offer combos on CPU/Motherboard/ memory. That takes a lot of thinking on my part since I can now just choose and click based on price while still being guaranteed that three core parts work together. I will buy a video card, keyboard, mouse, and hard drive from newegg.com. I already have a 27inch LCD, so that is taken care of.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and opinions. If anyone else would like to chime in, please do so.

 

[kcnychief]

Monarch is actually really good. I haven't ordered myself to confirm, but I believe they also test your parts before sending. For example, they hook up your mobo/CPU/RAM and make sure the parts are functional before shipping to you. I can't recall if that's included in the price or not, but that is good for piece of mind, especially if you would rather just not deal with it

Post your goodies once you have them picked out in the new system builds forum

 

[Agurri]

www.tigerdirect.com is not bad at all.

 

[technokid88]

try checking out pricewatch.com .. they have some good deals..

 

[Steevo]

Tigerdirect sucks it IMHO, I did thousands of dollars a year in sales with them, to recieve chump treatment on a couple returns and discounts.

I like newegg, and zipzoomfly, bought my camera from zipzoomfly plus a few other items, good service, great price, and free shipping on alot. Newegg sucks on failure-refunds. Just did one today, that after the freight back, and restock fee it wasn't worth doing a return. other than that great prices, huge selection, and fast shipping.

 

[kcnychief]

I thing NewEgg is awesome, although I've been slowly changing to ZipZoomFly because they have free 2nd day shipping on most lighter products. Only downside is Newegg has a MUCH bigger selection, and their website is much easier to search/navigate vs ZipZoomFly

I second the notion that Tiger Direct :down:

 

[LeeJend]

On a basic system, not top end gaming:

If you are going to need a monitor and copy of windows compare whatever you end up with against a Dell system. You may save some money with the Dell. If you need a printer too the Dell will win on price.

LAst time I ran a Dell vs roll your own comparison adding things like upgrades to XP Pro and high performance video cards or "any video upgrade" started eating into the Dell price advantage.

Sazar - speaking of High end Dell's any truth to the rumor they were buying Alienware? Or are we going to get another "I can neither confirm nor deny that rumor".