Laptop and desktop?

amciw
Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:14:21 +0000

Yes, I do know how to build a desktop. It was, in fact, the topic of my main Common App essay.

I was definitely going for a Core i7 in order to future proof - I may not need the power now (although I might for the reduced gaming I plan on doing), but it will make the computer last for 4 - 6 years, the last of which my parents would use it for their rather undemanding tasks.

My only issue with buying a prebuilt system is that the motherboard, HDD, RAM, and especially PSU are inferior to anything I’d select off of Newegg when piecing together a system. I’ve seen my friend’s Gateway which was exactly as you described - good with everything except the GPU (Q6600/2GB RAM in September 2007), but the motherboard was propietary, the RAM off-brand, and the PSU a joke (I’m honestly surprised he got his upgrade 8800 GT to work properly). Since I’d like stability, the quality of those matters to the point where I’d be willing to pay a bit more for them. And, I really do enjoy building them.

Additionally, while I am now 95-97% sold on the desktop idea, you are still going to have to sell me on the netbook rather than cheap laptop idea. After going to Best Buy today, I’ve decided I really dislike the keyboard size and screen size of a netbook, reinforcing earlier notions, and that a 14.1 screen size laptop would be much preferable.