Wanted: desktop computer or advice on one

[alanc]

My desktop computer still works but it's now 12 years old with Vista as its OS but there will probably come the time (sooner rather than later I suspect) when it finally keels over. As some people may now be ditching one in favour of laptops or such like, I wonder if anyone now has no use for theirs. I don't really use it that much (mainly updating my Ipod, copying the odd CD, a bit of office work and listening to Spotify now and again) so it seems pointless getting an expensive one capable of all the things I don't need. I realize it's a long shot but you never know (incidentally I'm not asking for one for nothing!). Alternatively has anyone got a good recommendation for a new or refurbished one? By the way I have my own copy of Microsoft Word 2007 and I've read that it should work with later operating systems Thanks in advance. I'm located in Eastbourne.
Regards
Alan

[struth]

Should be able to pick up a second hand job on ebay. Depends on your price of course but some good pcs for under 200. Last one i bought was originally about 1500 and got it for 400. Great little thing.
One before that was 40 quid.
Look for a lot of ram, and decent processor.
4gb bare min, but better with a bit more.

Also 64 bit with a pro windows licence are better than 32bit home versions

[Yatsushiro]

This is a good source of fairly recent desktop PC's, normally ex bank or financial institutions:

https://www.pyramid.co.uk/desktops/

Good prices, a guarantee and good aftersales support; I've bought from them for my work and some charities.

[nutteronthebus]

It depends on what you are doing I have just updated an old PC that took 10 mins to boot with win 7 to a win 10 ( using the same keycode ) by changing the HD to a SSD one 120Gb £16 . It now boots in <1 min and loads pages quite fast ( dual core 3.4Mhz with 4GB ram )

[karma67]

It depends on what you are doing I have just updated an old PC that took 10 mins to boot with win 7 to a win 10 ( using the same keycode ) by changing the HD to a SSD one 120Gb £16 . It now boots in <1 min and loads pages quite fast ( dual core 3.4Mhz with 4GB ram )

im thinking of going ssd,do you have a link for where you got yours?

[Shovel_Knight]

I would get an HP Elite PC on eBay... Something like HP Elite 8300 or a similar model.

Really well made, reliable, very inexpensive 2nd hand.

[alanc]

Many thanks for all your suggestions so far - a bit of a minefield out there for someone as inexperienced as I am but I’m getting the general idea about the way forward. But looking at some of the refurbished ones on Amazon for example it seems that you need a bit of luck to get a good one - quite a few are put together with insufficient care and some arrive damaged.

[Light Dependant Resistor]

Many thanks for all your suggestions so far - a bit of a minefield out there for someone as inexperienced as I am but I’m getting the general idea about the way forward. But looking at some of the refurbished ones on Amazon for example it seems that you need a bit of luck to get a good one - quite a few are put together with insufficient care and some arrive damaged.

Hi
Firstly have a look at modern proper software for early computers that remains supported. As example https://www.linuxmint.com/
Without such software you are always tied to either redundant operating systems, or forced to buy the latest hardware at enormous cost
Worse you are tied to heavily proprietary software that dictates terms, rather than the freedom to use the computer as you wish.
The video here explains why proprietary software should not exist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJi2rkHiNqg

To load Linux Mint on any computer download the iso image from Linux mint's site to a USB, or purchase a DVD from
https://distrowatch.com To change the drive the computer reads first press F2 as it is booting - this can with some
brands be only 1 or 2 seconds. choose the USB drive or DVD if that is what you have to boot from then press F10 to save those changes

From there you can then choose earlier excellent computers, often brand new, discarded by people who fail to understand the possibilities.

I hope that helps

[nutteronthebus]

HI I got it from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B019W9C0AW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 he only needed it for web surfing and e-mail so a large HD not req

Dave

[Yomanze]

There’s a lot of life left in now dirt-cheap processors such as the Intel Core i5 2500 (quad core, 3.3ghz). I bought one recently for £30. It has a soldered IHS, so no thermal compound issues as with later generations.

If you do a search on eBay for core 2500 PC, loads pop up for under £200.

I’d suggest at least 8GB RAM, and use of an SSD.

Here’s an example: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F 292798732996

[alphaGT]

You didn’t mention what kind of processor your computer has? But I’m guessing it’s something less than an Intel i7? If this computer is doing what you need, perhaps an OS upgrade and a stick of RAM would make it acceptable? Since you aren’t looking to spend a lot, patching this unit up may be the ticket?

If I had a desktop, with a universal sized case, I’d upgrade the entire thing. A new ASUS motherboard with i5, or i7 processor, these motherboards have a fast front end bus, and can accommodate a lot of fast RAM. And SSD, solid state drives are expensive, but are definitely fast! Many opt for both, a smaller SSD with the operating system on it, and a larger HDD, or hard disc drive, for the bulk of data storage. This will give a lot more space for less money. And any standard video card these days is stellar compared to what you’re used to. But, I’m guessing you really don’t want to get your hands that dirty? It can be intimidating. If it’s something you may consider, check out some YouTube videos on the subject, it’s not as bad as all that.

Bargain computers from the department store can seem like great deals! They brag on big numbers, big processors, but they cheat on the small things, the front side bus is slow and they use slow memory, cheap 2nd grade hard drives, etc. I ordered a computer from Dell, and they were fairly decent, they didn’t cut corners on their main line of desktops, of course their budget computers are cheap like everyone else’s. But, by the time you get the memory upgrade, the SSD upgrade, and the extended warranty, the price can go up!

Like most things, you get what you pay for. But from what it sounds like, you’re not asking a lot from your computer. An i5 with 8gigs of RAM, and a TB of HDD, and Windows 10, should do everything you need for a long while.

It’s been a few years, but I worked with computers for 12 years, there have been a few advancements, but surprisingly little has changed.
Russell

[dave2010]

if you look for Dell Optiplex on the Amazon UK site you should find some refurbished models. One of those might do. I found an i5 model for under £100, but it was only Win 7. I think £150 gets a Win 10 i3 based model. Would any of those do?

[alanc]

if you look for Dell Optiplex on the Amazon UK site you should find some refurbished models. One of those might do. I found an i5 model for under £100, but it was only Win 7. I think £150 gets a Win 10 i3 based model. Would any of those do?

I’ve had some great advice and it looks as if £200 or less should get me a good desktop. There’s someone in Eastbourne who deals with refurbished computers so I’ll see if he can match the specs of the ones on EBay or Amazon. If so, there will be the added advantage that there will be help on hand if I run into difficulties (my computer skills are rather basic and there’s no one I could turn to).