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There's been some price cuts on AMD 780G motherboards recently, which has made room in the budget for a larger 500GB hard drive, and a nicer Antec 1650B case with included PSU... PCSTATS ShoppingList is a guide to help you get good PC gear, because it's filled with suggestions we'd actually buy ourselves.
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PCSTATS
December 2008 ShoppingList Assistance |
Picking the right components for a new computer system
or upgrade can be a daunting task. The PCSTATS
ShoppingList
is a guide to help you get good PC gear, because it's filled
with suggestions we'd actually buy ourselves. Below you'll find three ShoppingList's which you can use
as a general set of guidelines for what to get, or where to start looking.
PCSTATS covers the basic components needed to assemble a full PC system
and lists the average $USD price each part retails for. Use the ShoppingList as a
guide to build a better "white box" system, or follow our recommendations to the
letter - it's totally up to you.
The ShoppingList is updated on the 1st of each month so as prices
drop and new computer hardware is released it reflects the changes. However, just
because something newer and faster has come to market, it doesn't mean it's worth getting
right away! Be sure to read the "Notes" section for a brief explanation of
why some hardware made it onto the list, and why other gear didn't.
$449 Budget PC System
$999 Mainstream PC System
$2000 High-End Performance/Gaming System
The PCSTATS ShoppingList covers three different types of
desktop computers to reflect differing consumer budgets, and requirements. Each
system contains a full list of the most important hardware you'll need which is
widely available in stores, or online. If you've every wanted to ask "what
should I get", then the PCSTATS ShoppingList is your answer. Each list contains
recommended hardware that we would actually consider getting ourselves. When
we've reviewed the hardware in question, we'll also include a link so you can
get an in-depth perspective.
| PCSTATS
Shopping List Assistance | |
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$500
Budget System Parts List |
December
2008 | |
|
Avg. Price* |
Description / Model No. |
 |
Review |
|
$92 |
AMD Athlon64 X2 5400+ Processor |
Get $ Price |
- |
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$92 |
Asus - M3A78-EM-HDMI Motherboard |
Get $ Price |
- |
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- |
On Board Video |
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$21 |
A-Data DDR2 800 240pin 1GB Memory |
Get $ Price |
- |
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$71 |
Seagate 500GB 7200.11 |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$20 |
Lite-On 20x DVD+/-RW LH-20A1P-185 Burner |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$41 |
Antec SLK1650B |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$153.82 |
Acer X193WB Black 19IN Widescreen Monitor |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
($112) |
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Operating System OEM |
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- |
Also Consider: Keyboard, Mouse, 3.5" Floppy Drive, 56K Modem,
Speakers. |
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$492 |
Estimated Overall Price |
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| * All prices are
approximations and are listed in $USD for simplicity. |
|
Notes: There's been some price cuts on AMD 780G
motherboards recently, which has made room in the budget for a larger
500GB hard drive, and a nicer Antec 1650B case with included
PSU. |
| PCSTATS
Shopping List Assistance | |
|
$999
Mainstream Parts List |
December
2008 | |
|
Avg. Price* |
Description / Model No. |
|
Review |
|
$215 |
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Processor |
Get $
Price |
Here |
|
$110 |
MSI P45 Neo-F Socket 775 Intel P45 Motherboard |
Get
$ Price |
- |
|
$56 |
A-Data DDR2 800 240pin 4GB Memory |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$200 |
Diamond Radeon HD 4850 Graphics Card |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$71 |
Seagate Barracuda (ST3500320AS) 7200.11 500GB Hard Drive |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$33 |
Pioneer DVR-216D(Black) SATA 20x DVD-Writer |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$123 |
Antec NSK6580B Mid Tower w/PSU Case |
Get $ Price |
- |
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$190 |
Acer X223WBD Black 22IN Monitor |
Get $ Price |
- |
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($112.99) |
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Operating System OEM |
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|
- |
Also Consider: Keyboard, Mouse, 3.5" Floppy Drive, 56K Modem,
Speakers. |
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$999 |
Estimated Overall Price |
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| * All prices are
approximations and are listed in $USD for simplicity. |
|
Notes: A month brings the faster intel E8400 processor
in place of the E8200 from November. The MSI P45 Neo-F is also a new
addition, it's a P45-Express chipset motherboard, which makes it an idea
overclocking companion for that E8400. |
| PCSTATS
Shopping List Assistance | |
|
$2000
High-End Performance Parts List |
December
2008 | |
|
Avg. Price* |
Description / Model No. |
|
Review |
|
$378 |
Intel Core i7 920 Quad-Core Socket LGA1366, 2.66Ghz Processor |
Get $ Price
| |
|
$373 |
Asus P6T Deluxe Socket 1366 Intel X58 Motherboard |
Get $ Price
| - |
|
$156 |
OCZ (OCZ3G1333LV3GK) DDR3 PC3-10666 1333 MHz 3GB Kit |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$320 |
EVGA GeForce Superclocked GTX 260 896MB Videocard |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$203
|
G.SKILL FM-25S2S-64GB 64GB 2.5IN SATA2 Solid State Disk |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$71
|
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 500GB SATA Hard Drive |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$35 |
Pioneer DVR-216D(Black) SATA 20x DVD-Writer |
Get $ Price |
|
|
$91 |
Enermax Uber Chakra ECA5000B Black Case |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
$90 |
Xigmatek NRP-MC651 650W Power Supply |
Get $ Price |
|
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$299 |
Acer X243WBD Black 24IN Widescreen |
Get $ Price |
- |
|
($199) |
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate Operating System OEM |
|
|
|
- |
Also Consider: Operating System, Keyboard, Mouse, 3.5" Floppy
Drive, 56K Modem, Speakers. |
|
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$2016 |
Estimated Overall Price |
|
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| * All prices are
approximations and are listed in $USD for simplicity. |
| Notes: What would a
high-end rig be without a Core i7 processor? The high-end rig has switched
to socket LGA1366, so it's now got 3GB of triple channel DDR3 memory as
well. Users of 64-bit operating systems might want to spring for a
6GB kit, which is roughly double the price. Price cuts to nvidia GTX 260
videocards and increased availability of solid-state drives in retail
stores has also made for some additions that will give this system some
real staying power. |
Operating systems, keyboard / mouse, floppy drives, 56K modem, 10/100 network
cards, and speakers are not listed separately or included in the overall target
budget since they are very common requirements, or may not be
needed.
Contents of Article: PCSTATS
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