Good or Bad?

[+69+]

I was thinking about getting a dell e521 and was wondering if anyone knows what they are like.
I'm just looking for speed and movie watching, and moderate gaming.

[Mr.Ferrari]

If your getting a new one, it depends on how you plan to equip it. Its AMD AM2 based. But the videocard choices are really limited.

Moderate gaming would not be its forte.

[chuck4456]

Another thing to keep in mind is that DELL will not back their warranty unless you order your replacement parts and upgrades exclusively from them. That can be expensive.

[+69+]

well i was going to get it with
5200+ X2
Vista home premium
7300le 256mb
17 lcd
1 gb mem
250gb HD

[LeftyAce]

The processor is killer, but that video card won't do anything but the most "moderate" gaming. Do they have the option of at least a 7600 video card?

[glc]

Nope - only that or a X1300 Pro. That's not a great gamer either. Same deal with the E520 Core 2 Duo. You have to get a XPS 410 to get a decent video card option, you can get a 7900GS. You are looking in the $1300's for one of those with a E6300, 2 gigs of ram, DVD burner, and a 19 inch flat panel.

The limitation in the E-series is the power supply.

[+69+]

So if i buy a power supply and a new graphics then it would be pretty decent.

[newbuilder14]

Have you considered just building your own to meet your needs?

[+69+]

yes but it would cost more for less

[flanzig1]

The base Dell set-up with your specs come to $1689 and you want to get a medium gaming card and new PSU. For quality parts, that would add about another $200 to $250. So now your at almost $1900 for a Dell.
I'm sure a home-built could be speced out for $1900 that would run circles around the Dell.

[+69+]

flanzig1 you just made that number up because for me it only came up to $873.02+$48 shipping

[Mr.Ferrari]

With what specs?

[stevek11290]

Originally Posted by +69+ flanzig1 you just made that number up because for me it only came up to $873.02+$48 shipping

Came out to $1094 + shipping for me.

Just my $.02

[+69+]

sorry i forgot i entered the 25% off coupon so 1094 sounds about right

[doubledragon5]

For that kind of money you can buil a better one than what dell will sell ya.. Also keep in mind to get a good 2,3,4 yr warranty your looking at another $200-400....

[flanzig1]

Sorry, picked the high end E521 to start. The next one down with your specs, I come up with $958. Basicly, you have a high powered office computer.

[bd1886]

Build it! Don't know what parts the Dell would have to warrant that outlay to performance ratio! Truly decent gaming set-ups with decent motherboard,cpu,video card,ram and psu run in that price range and you will be able maintain and configure the thing as needed (w/no proprietory restrictions). Balanced high quality too!(" Build it... And Know it Grasshopper"... Hmmmm....)

[LeftyAce]

I second that. The comp I built for a little over $1000 this summer could be upgraded to C2D (new mobo, ram and cpu) right now for $400.....in a year, even less. A self built comp is a good investment.

[+69+]

you guys make good points but i don't need the best puter out there. I'm just looking for a computer to do some mild gaming and watch and burn movies, and surfing the web.
My current puter is a dell 4550 with a pentium 4 without HT 512 ram and 64mb geforce4 AGP,windows xp home and it plays COD2 and COD1 and doom 3 and HL:2 and unreal 2004 and gta:san andres and some others with fine looking graphics. don't you think that this dell e521 would be a pretty big up grade.

[newbuilder14]

That depends on what your current computer is. A 7300LE or similar will play those games, but that's about it, don't expect anything fabulous/high settings. Your best bet would to opt for a higher model that allows you to get a better video card, or to build your own, it's a great experience, and I think it can be done with your budget.

[doubledragon5]

Originally Posted by +69+ you guys make good points but i don't need the best puter out there. I'm just looking for a computer to do some mild gaming and watch and burn movies, and surfing the web. My current puter is a dell 4550 with a pentium 4 without HT 512 ram and 64mb geforce4 AGP,windows xp home and it plays COD2 and COD1 and doom 3 and HL:2 and unreal 2004 and gta:san andres and some others with fine looking graphics. don't you think that this dell e521 would be a pretty big up grade.

Even a basic setup will still cost you less than the Dell, and you get a better warratny from the manufactures.. Besides you can pick and choose which parts to buy and install...

[+69+]

i don't see how you think that it is cheaper.
1gb-$130
250gb-$75
5200+ X2-$240
win vista-$120
power supply-$60
dvd burner - $50
13 in one card reader- $20
graphics- $150
17inch LCD - $185
sound- $30

that so far is $1060

case-$50+
keyboard -$20
mouse-$20
speakers-$20

yeah i might have a better graphics card and psu but i really don't need that yet, which leads me back to the very first question i asked which is ....would the dell e521 be a good enough puter to fit my needs.

[glc]

Not with a 7300LE Turbocache - it *might* be with a X1300 Pro but there's no later upgrading. I'd personally get a E520 if you are not going to get the XPS so I could have a E6xxx series Core 2 Duo. It's a better processor than any AMD right now and the Intel chipset motherboard is better than the Nvidia board in the E521.

[bd1886]

Don't know where your lookin' @ prices but a BFG 7600 GT(93.00), Viewsonic 19" monitor (160.00) @ Newegg. Other stuff you need for that build is less too. Using Conroe/Allendale cpu's is another area that is top top stuff w/ savings. If all you want to do is what you stated you don't even have to get the Dell's your lookin' at. You could actually stay below a grand and still have something that'll be impressive for your needs. Build or buy... we are just talking quality for what you get and it's ability to grow as your needs do. (Just today I seen adds for a decent prebuilt w/ a 19 inch widescreen, dvd burner, Intel 925 D and 2 gig memory for 659.00.) It's easy to paint yourself into a corner (for upgrading) with those is all. But heck...at that price... Whatever you do, just know what you have and appreciate it.

[+69+]

so far i have decided no on the e521 and i'am now looking at the xps 410 which i can get wihout a monitor for about the same price

[+69+]

so is the xps 410 with a e6400 without a monitor going to be faster than if i were to go with the e521 with a monitor and a 5200+ X2?

[glc]

The E6400 and 5200+ bench right around the same area. Upgrading to a E6600 would be a BIG jump, it even surpasses the FX-62.

[Jester]

E6400 Dell XPS 410 $1052 based on your specs. 1152 with the significantly better E6600

Now if you build...

Case - 30
Mobo (built in sound) - 124
Ram - 112
HDD- 75
PSU - 80
CPU E6600 - 316
Vid Card (7900GS same as dell)- 170
DVD-Burner - 32
Card Reader - 12
Win Vista - 95
Speakers - 20
Keyboard - 10
Mouse - 20

Total - 1096 throw in a 17" LCD and its 1250 only 100 bucks more expensive than the xps 410 E6600 w/o the monitor. W/ moderate gaming as your goal you can bump that card down to something like a 6800GT that will run the games you mentioned for a little cheaper. The 7900GS was the only card upgrade worth moderate gaming in the upgrade section. the 7300 is trash.

As everyone has been saying you will come out on top if you build. The warrenties are better and you will be more familiar with your system. In this case the price differences speak for themselves and the parts are better quality. Just food for thought. Course if you don't want to build that is an entirely different story.