Assistance needed please !

[steveinspain]

I have never even considered a small pc in the past as space was not an issue - however, the idea of a small and maybe even pretty case is starting to appeal - I do like the bright colours of the prodigy cases but something even smaller might appeal too !
My old Antec P182 is just big, boxy and fine hidden away but no-one would call it pretty !

So, where do I start - my computing needs are basic - currently my Asus P5 pro/E8400 is doing just fine but I am thinking of upgrading - I would like to keep costs down, so want to keep my Corsair TX650 (non modular) PSU which may limit me in terms of size of case.
I don't own a graphics card as I don't play games but do have a few Noctua 120mm fans to keep thing cool. Budget is limited but open to suggestion - basic photoshop is likely to be the most demanding thing I do so nothing fancy is needed and cooling should not be a problem, so a small case could be ideal.
I have an SSD and will want one or maybe two HD's plus an optical drive.

So, what cases are worth looking at that will accommodate my PSU and come in some funky colours and if anyone has any suggestions as to mobo and processor that would be much appreciated too !

 

[steveinspain]

Thanks for the help Doomedspeed - much appreciated !
Having always had intel I am slightly torn towards the i3 chip, but you say the upgrade path is good - tell me more please as I am amazed at how cheap this is looking so far and want to get a real upgrade. You may be able to tell by my current system that I don't do this too often !!!

How is Loughborough these days - my inlaws live there, so I have not visited recently - can you guess why ???

 

[steveinspain]

Anytime,

The 1155 Socket has the i5 and i7 (both sandy and Ivy) as options, this is the upgrade path.. Though they are beyond what you'd need. As your just using basic programs the i3 would fulfil that and much more..

If you did want to spend a bit more id invest in a Second hand GPU, as you don't need a lot of horse power.

The GTX 460 would be ideal, i had one until recently and it was ace, they go for around £60 in the MM..

I can guess why? Been out in Spain a while.. a lot better than this place, i must say.

More questions - what difference would I see if I were to go for an i5 or i7 in terms of every day use ?
I just took a look at the AnandTech comparison and there seems to be a big difference in the results, but how does that translate in real world use ?

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/56?vs=701

Also, I was under the impression that a GPU wasn't needed unless playing games - what would it do for photo editing for example ?
Again, thanks for any help !