Does anybody have a good suggestion on what brand of computer to buy ? I have heard alot of bad about Dell, poor quality and poor customer service.
I have dell dont like it at all. There Cs is fine though. I say get a sony viao those are great. If you can build it yourself, or have an indepent shop build you one you can get a faster cheaper pc than one of the bigger chains
Sterling Computers!! You need to call Justin Deverse at Sterlingcomputers.net... Justin built me two computers and they are NOT junk. This guy is as honest as they come and only uses good components and believe me, he knows his stuff. He will save you alot of monmey too! He's about 30 years old and can build it for you and then send it out to wherever you request. He's a quiet, respectful guy and I have sent many people to him. He was recommended to me about 4 years ago. Eric / Gresham. Oregon
i built mine. at one time i was pretty interested in computers in general and used to know quite a bit about the latest go fast stuff. but i have lagged a bit. this machine i am on now is an FIC MB with an AMD 400mghz[!!!] proc, and 256mgs of ram. a real rocket when i built it back in '98 :Comp: but to show you what dependable is, this old machine has been pretty much bullet proof from day 1. read a few magazines about what you need in a computer, and do a little research on what the GOOD components are. most corperate machines are built of the least expensive parts they can get by with and are pretty much designed to go obsolite inside of a year so you can go out and buy the next new cool thing. :spank:
My dell is ok, but it has it's quarks. It(my dell) is better than some past off brand computers that I have had in the past though. I have heard that Gateways are a nice quality computer. I built my dell with lots of good options, and it is nice, but I wish didn't have to pay the full price for what I got. :Comp:
Been using Dell desktop systems both at home and at work for 10 years, have not had to place a single CS call in all that time. Don't know about their laptops. Dell has been one of the top rated computer makers for a long time, doesn't mean they are perfect, none of them are. I won't shop anywhere else.
If Dell was bad as some say, they would not be #1 for PC sales. I just bought one and have not had any problems. LCD screen is awesome and well worth a few extra $$$ over the old CRT sets. When I buy another one for my business, you can count on it being a Dell. I did some searching, you can not beat Dell's prices because of their direct sales model (wiped out IBM, Gateway and many other pc makers). Just some info for your consideration.
Don't be stuck in that box. Don't buy anything without first looking into a Mac. OSX Tiger is probably the most stable OS there is. And the Mac is by far the easiest computer to use. I use both PC's and Macs here at work, and the Macs are far superior. And you will be able to sit back and not worry about viruses. Though, I still run an anti-virus program on my Mac at home just to be extra confident. You can pick up a decent Mac for under a grand. If you can wait, Apple is going to start using intel chips in their computers. And even though they are denying it, Odds are they will be configured to run software programs for both PC and Mac platforms. :Brow: Heck, the guy that owns Dell says he would switch to the Mac OS in the computers Dell builds if he could.
I built my computer a few years back and continue to juke it a few times a year to keep it up to date. I don't really recommend doing it anymore though. The prices of computers have come down so much now, it's not really worth building your own if you're starting from scratch. People will always have their own opinions about a Dell, but reality is, you're not going to get as much for your $$ anywhere else. Right now, Dell is the hot ticket. Spend a little extra cash, upgrade it good and get a good amount of memory. As for Gateway - great units, buy pricey. And for what you can get for the same cash with Dell - there's no comparison. As for Mac - unless you're doing graphics, web design, or the like, it's not the way to go. Do yourself a favor and just stick with a conventional PC. Just my $0.02.
If you just want to buy it, use it and not worry about it, get a dell with a nice long warranty. Gateway's support=BIG P.I.T.A. I've probably logged at least 6 hours of on the phone "diagnosis" with them and they were all indian (not that there's anything wrong with that but it helps to speak the language of the person you're helping) every time. It took 40 minutes just to get the damn address of where I could send the computer to get it fixed once and for all. We actually gave up on it while it was under warranty still and bought a dell. The gateway went into the closet until one day I checked the warranty on it and found that it still had a couple weeks left so it went in and came back a new machine. Gateway has had the motherboard, power supply, memory, video card, sound card, and processor replaced under warranty, the dell hasn't had a problem yet.
My last computer was a Dell - purchased in 07/1999 and I just replaced it this past December with...you guessed it...another Dell. The reason for the replacement? My old PC was outdated with today's softeware. The reason for choosing Dell again? I had ZERO problems in 5.5 years (just keep your anti-virus/firewall software up-to-date). I love my current Dell. Customer service? My DVD-ROM took a dump after 3 months and THE NEXT DAY, I had one in my hands to replace it (I did it myself), along with a pre-paid postage box to send the bad one back. Dell gets my vote. Check here for deals... http://www.gotapex.com Good luck Tim :beer
The company I work for buys HP Computers and ViewSonic Monitors, probably 20 new ones every month, the GIS people here buy Dell for their homes, I bought a Dell Laptop for my wife but our desk top is HP. They both work great. I have had HP and Dell in the past and always liked them. Dean
I sure appreciate all of the feedback so far. It will probably be a few weeks before I do anything, but I'm sure tired of this antique I currently have - still running Windows 95 :laugh: It's getting so slow and screwed up, all it does is runs all the time and doesn't get anywhere. I can hardly get it to bring up an auction on e-bay, and if I click "back" while on there, I almost may as well forget it. :error: Thanks, Tim
The key thing is, they all churn out a lemon every once in a while. We use Dell servers at work, extensively. We've had orders where half the machines had dead power supplies upon arrival, and others blow theres a couple weeks after getting them. Then again, others have been rock solid. It's really hit or miss with any manufacturer. As far as support/customer care, they are all pretty crappy.
I use a Dell at home (Im a network administrator - beyond sick of building computers) and its fine, its more about the operating system installed on it, especially when you get into the bigger names that are using intel boards with intel chipsets and intel processors - all are meant to work together and have (potentially) less to conflict. We used VAIO laptops at my previous job, and although there was a lot of DUMB stuff they did, they were ok other than the keyboards shorting out and screen cables getting brittle and breaking. Not a huge fan of 3rd party (non major computer manufacturers) electronics makers trying to throw together a computer, but thats just my opinion. On the other hand, building your own or getting one built by a local (or even non local) shop isnt a bad idea. Supporting local (even if it isnt local to you) companies is always nice. The big guys will always have a market and support tends to be better at these places.
I've been using Dell's at work for the last 5yrs.... Not 1 problem, and they are used 12hrs a day and never turned off...LOL. I purchased a new Dell for my house about a year ago, and have had no problems with it.... thier Tech support was great (had to call for a software issue, that wasn't even theirs :bglasses: ). Only advice I'd be able to give is don't go with a cheap one.... we spent the extra for a nicer model (faster processor, more memory). Good Luck.
Like Madcat says, buy the good one, by the time you get it home it is outdated but at least you had the good one when you stepped out the door. Dean
The Dell desktop I've had since 2000 has worked great. The only issue I had with it was the power source went bad right away after a few weeks. This was mainly due to the fact it was one of the first Pentium 4 processors to hit the market. I've had 2 Gateways and we have one at our shop at work. They seem to have software issues when it comes to drivers conflicting with third-party applications. In May, I purchased my first Mac. I got an I-Book G4 and I love the thing. My next desktop purchase will definately be a Mac also. That's just my experience with computers so far. Hope it helps.
I would buy a Sony Vaio. That is what I have. I have had the computer I have now since December, 2003. The only problems that I have had are with windows software!!!!!!!! Good Luck, Bob
