Finally got a new computer...

[Chad]

I got 7 years out of my last computer. It was a Dell XPS 600mz. It was still working fine, but was really showing its age. Its age (and slowness) has created frustration in many areas, but recently when I couldn't play a movie trailer that required software that only works with XP (it had Win98SE), I decided it was time to start looking seriously at new computers.

I had been looking at Dell computers pretty seriously, but was holding off. Then I got an email coupon for 35% off, so I pulled the trigger. I cannot believe how much computer I got for $950 plus tax (free shipping)! I was considering building a computer, but I shopped the major components at places like Newegg.com and that was exceeding the cost of the Dell by a decent amount of $$. Plus, I would've had to invest time in the build process and warranties would have been different for nearly every component.

Anyway, I'm pretty excited. I just don't hardly understand how Dell made much money on this computer. I'll post the specs in a separate post. This system should be fine for everything except intense gaming and I don't even play games, so hopefully I'm set for another 7 years!

All has arrived except the widescreen 20" monitor, so I'm currently running it through my existing 17" CRT....and it's working like a charm. Can't wait to get the monitor, though.

[Chad]

Dimension E510 - Pentium(r) D Processor 930 with Dual Core Technology (3.0GHz, 800FSB)

Genuine Windows(r) XP Media Center Edition 2005

Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz (2x512M)

Keyboard: Dell USB Keyboard

Monitor: 20 inch UltraSharpTM 2007FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel

Video Card: 256MB PCI ExpressTM x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon X600 SE HyperMemory

Hard Drive: 160GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/ 8MB cache

Floppy Drive and Media Reader: 13 in 1 Media Card Reader

Operating System: Genuine Windows(r) XP Media Center Edition 2005

Mouse: Dell Optical USB Mouse

Network Card: Integrated Intel(r) PRO 10/100 Ethernet

CD or DVD Drive: Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability

Sound: Integrated Sound Blaster(r)AudigyTM HD Software Edition

Speakers: Dell A525 30 Watt 2.1 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer

Corel WordPerfect(r) word processor

Hardware Warranty: 1Yr Ltd Warranty, 1Yr At-Home Service, and 1Yr HW Warranty Support

Operating System Re-Installation CD: Genuine Windows(r) XP Media Center 2005 Edition re-installation CD

[RacerX]

Dells rock!

[rjohnstone]

My brother-in-law got almsot the exact same system. Only difference is his has the Pentium-D 920, but he got an nVidia 512MB video card... games.
Nice system!

[Chad]

The price I got on this system ($950) blows me away! The monitor itself sells for $400-ish, so I got everything else for around $550. A cutting edge system like this would have been $3,000 10 years ago. And in 1999 when I bought my other system it probably would have cost $2,000.

Everybody complains about everything going up....but electronics are definitely an exception.

[hgsmith]

Well, i bought a mac

[semagic]

i'm waiting for dell to put out the "athlon amd processors" probably will get a notebook from dell outlet.

[Chad]

I read somewhere that they have started using AMD a little bit on the business side.

BTW, I just got an email from TigerDirect minutes ago talking about a new Intel "Conroe" dual core processor, which is supposed to outperform AMD. Sounds like it is something brand new....maybe that's why I got such a good deal. ha!

[Chad]

By the way, I ran the tracking number on my monitor and it appeared to just be sitting in TN. I contacted Dell via the "chat" part of their website. Turns out something got messed up and they are resending another monitor. I'm glad I contacted them. BTW, that was the first time I've ever done the live chat thing for tech support. A little weird, but it worked fine.