To Build or Buy, That is the Question

Mid-Range

	Dell Dimension 4700	Gateway 5200X
Price	$1,246 – $150mir = $1,196	$1,174.98
Processor	Pentium 4 530 – 3 GHZ	Pentium 4 530 – 3 GHZ
RAM	512 MB Dual Channel DDR400	512 MB Dual Channel DDR400
OS	Microsoft Windows XP Pro	Microsoft Windows XP Pro
Optical 1	16x DVD +/- RW	16x DVD +/- RW
Optical 2	16x DVD-Rom	16x DVD-Rom
Hard Drive 1	160 GB SATA (7,200 RPM)	200 GB SATA (7,200 RPM)
Floppy Drive	Yes	Yes
Front Panel	USB 2.0	8-1 Media Card Reader
Monitor	15 inch LCD	15 inch LCD
Video Card	ATI Radeon X300SE 128 MB	ATI Radeon X300SE 128 MB
Sound Card	Integrated	Integrated
Keyboard / Mouse	Standard	Standard
Case	Standard	Standard

	HP A850Y	Build
Price	$1,258.98 – $100mir = $1,158.98	$1,235
Processor	Pentium 4 540 – 3.2 GHZ	Pentium 4 540 – 3.2 GHZ
RAM	512 MB Dual Channel DDR400	512 MB Dual Channel DDR400
OS	Microsoft Windows XP Pro	Microsoft Windows XP Pro
Optical 1	16x DVD +/- RW	16x DVD +/- RW
Optical 2	16x DVD-Rom	16x DVD-Rom
Hard Drive 1	200 GB SATA (7,200 RPM)	200 GB SATA (7,200 RPM)
Floppy Drive	Yes	Yes
Front Panel	2 USB – 1 Firewire	2 USB
Monitor	17 inch LCD	17 inch LCD
Video Card	ATI Radeon X300SE 128 MB	ATI Radeon X300SE 128 MB
Sound Card	Integrated	Integrated
Keyboard / Mouse	Standard	Standard
Case	Standard	Enlight / 350 watt

Link to wish list: http://secure.newegg.com/app/WishR.asp?ID=1321168

Comparison

With this system, it is cheaper to build before rebates, but after rebates it is no longer any cheaper to build than to go out to the store to buy. These systems are great for those who multitask and do some gaming. It will run almost any game on the market currently, but it will not have quite as much power as the first build. The Dell is somewhat over priced for what you get, and the Gateway has the best price for what you get (before rebates). You would get the most with the HP and the custom build, but you would have to be willing to pay a little extra. If you decided to go with a CRT monitor, you could save a lot more on a custom build, but for comparison purposes, an LCD was used and priced in the configuration.

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http://www.thewinerypost.com Thomas Leonard
You don’t address the issue of build or buy!
Which makes your article “JUNK”.
As a owner of multiple HP products and having to deal with their customer support more than once and one of those times it was a over 5 hours that their tech person helped me.
One of the times it was help for a computer that was 2+ years out of warranty.
NOW Whether to build or buy,
THAT IS STILL THE QUESTION THAT WAS NEVER ANSWERED.

http://menga.net Rich Menga
Congratulations, you just commented on a five-year-old article.
Go buy a Mac. Apple people love it WHEN YOU TALK IN ALL CAPS LIKE A BLITHERING IDIOT. You’ll fit right in.