Spec my friend
- Thread starter ishamy
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 26 Apr 2004
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- 9,779
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- Milton Keynes
He should be fine with most specs as he's got a modest budget. If he goes on the Dell Outlet he might get something more powerful, but honestly, if all he wants is a bit of music and DVDs, get him anything with at least 2-3GB of RAM, say 250GB+ HDD, and any modern processor that isn't Atom. Obviously getting a slightly faster CPU would boost his browsing speed, but really he's not after anything too demanding.
Generally, Intel's CPU offerings are better atm; but as an example there are some N15R N5010 Inspirons on the Dell Outlet atm with a 5650 GPU, 3-4GB RAM, and an i3 processor for about 400 inc VAT, some less (http://outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/InventorySearch.aspx?brandId=7&c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh). These should do him fine. (When I search on there, the only filter I use is setting the graphics option to 512MB or more, as this weedles out all the intel onboard jobbies)
It's only if you're more demanding that extra speed/power/graphics comes in handy
If he'll only buy new, rather than refurb (although still full warranty) there are still PLENTY of other choices, just if you get a good deal on the outlet they're cheap as chips per rata to what you get, some machines around the cash are massively faster than others on there too so be careful! (Oh and also buy quickly if you see a machine you like there and are happy with the specs- the machines there are returns/refurbs and the like, which means if someone else grabs an entry, then it's gone. They do tend to top up each day with some more though, although you never know what spec/cost/models will go on)
Examples on there ATM:
Inspiron 15R - N5010
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
•One Intel Core i3-380M (2.53Ghz,3M,Dual Core)
•320 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
•3 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (2 DIMMs)
•Optical Drive : 8X DVD+/-RW Drive
•Display 15.6in HD (1366X768) WLED with TrueLife
•ATI Mobility Radeon HD5650, 128-Bit, 1GB, DDR3 64Mx16x8pcs
•6 Cell Primary Battery, 48W
•LCD Back Cover : Mars Black
•Wireless : Europe Dell Bluetooth 365 Card
•Wireless : Dell Wireless 1501 (802.11 b/g/n 1x1) Mini PCI Card
•Back Up Media Not Included
OR
Inspiron 15R - N5110
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
•Processor: Intel Core i3-2310M (3M Cache, 2.10 GHz)
•Hard Drive : 500GB Serial ATA (5400RPM)
•4 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (1 DIMMs)
•8X DVD+/- RW Drive
•Display: 15.6in High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife
•Graphics : 512MB AMD Radeon HD 6470M
•6 Cell Primary Battery, 48W
•Black
•Wireless: Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1030 (1x2 b/g/n+ Bluetooth Combo Card)
•Back Up Media Not Included
Would probably suit him fine for example, both running in the £400 or less inc region
Be aware the newer intel chips are the ones that say i*-2*** so the top one is a first gen I3, this bottom one has the newer Sandybridge I3 (slightly faster clock for clock etc), even though the top CPU looks faster, it's probably about even! Top one does have a faster graphics chip though (and is cheaper because of the rest of the spec)
Seriously though, as long as you don't buy really old kit, or a really bad deal, you'll be fine. As a rule (because of the age), don't buy Intel T**** or P**** CPU machine, as they're a few gens old and will be slower clock for clock; they'll do what he wants, but will be slower and they probably won't be MUCH cheaper.
Generally, Intel's CPU offerings are better atm; but as an example there are some N15R N5010 Inspirons on the Dell Outlet atm with a 5650 GPU, 3-4GB RAM, and an i3 processor for about 400 inc VAT, some less (http://outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/InventorySearch.aspx?brandId=7&c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh). These should do him fine. (When I search on there, the only filter I use is setting the graphics option to 512MB or more, as this weedles out all the intel onboard jobbies)
It's only if you're more demanding that extra speed/power/graphics comes in handy
If he'll only buy new, rather than refurb (although still full warranty) there are still PLENTY of other choices, just if you get a good deal on the outlet they're cheap as chips per rata to what you get, some machines around the cash are massively faster than others on there too so be careful! (Oh and also buy quickly if you see a machine you like there and are happy with the specs- the machines there are returns/refurbs and the like, which means if someone else grabs an entry, then it's gone. They do tend to top up each day with some more though, although you never know what spec/cost/models will go on)
Examples on there ATM:
Inspiron 15R - N5010
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
•One Intel Core i3-380M (2.53Ghz,3M,Dual Core)
•320 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
•3 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (2 DIMMs)
•Optical Drive : 8X DVD+/-RW Drive
•Display 15.6in HD (1366X768) WLED with TrueLife
•ATI Mobility Radeon HD5650, 128-Bit, 1GB, DDR3 64Mx16x8pcs
•6 Cell Primary Battery, 48W
•LCD Back Cover : Mars Black
•Wireless : Europe Dell Bluetooth 365 Card
•Wireless : Dell Wireless 1501 (802.11 b/g/n 1x1) Mini PCI Card
•Back Up Media Not Included
OR
Inspiron 15R - N5110
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
•Processor: Intel Core i3-2310M (3M Cache, 2.10 GHz)
•Hard Drive : 500GB Serial ATA (5400RPM)
•4 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (1 DIMMs)
•8X DVD+/- RW Drive
•Display: 15.6in High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife
•Graphics : 512MB AMD Radeon HD 6470M
•6 Cell Primary Battery, 48W
•Black
•Wireless: Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1030 (1x2 b/g/n+ Bluetooth Combo Card)
•Back Up Media Not Included
Would probably suit him fine for example, both running in the £400 or less inc region
Be aware the newer intel chips are the ones that say i*-2*** so the top one is a first gen I3, this bottom one has the newer Sandybridge I3 (slightly faster clock for clock etc), even though the top CPU looks faster, it's probably about even! Top one does have a faster graphics chip though (and is cheaper because of the rest of the spec)
Seriously though, as long as you don't buy really old kit, or a really bad deal, you'll be fine. As a rule (because of the age), don't buy Intel T**** or P**** CPU machine, as they're a few gens old and will be slower clock for clock; they'll do what he wants, but will be slower and they probably won't be MUCH cheaper.
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