Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/03/03/these-two-dell-precision-compu.html
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In November 2016 I bought a refurbished i7 with 8gb of RAM , for $350 Canadian. It seemed to date from 2011. It’s more than I need, but decided to splurge. It even has PS/2, parallel and serial ports. A bit cramped for expansion though.
I should have got something in a bigger case, but the place I bought at had limited selection in full size cases
I’m typing this on a desktop right now.
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But in seriousness, I like my desktop for the joy of wrenching (I have 2x ATSC tuners, a 1TB SSD and a 1TB HDD in hot swap bays I use for dual booting), and as well for the unbridled power of a huge CPU/GPU.
For the cost / performance difference between one of these Dell numbers, I’d much rather get a cheap laptop and spend a little more on a decent docking station. Upgrade options, due to non standard motherboard size and case size are very limited with Dell. Although, they are very well designed for swapping out bad parts for new parts of the exact same type.
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I prefer a desktop, but since I’m space constrained at home I use a laptop.
That said, dual core 3 generations old i3, 8GB RAM, integrated graphics, and 500GB hard drive? That’s … not very awesome.
This is also not really called out in the ad, but this is a small form factor (SFF) box. SFF is half-height, which will severely limit your expansion and upgrade options because you will have to use “shorty” PCI cards which are harder to find and often more expensive.
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I’m using an desktop computer now. I have also a laptop for home use and another at work. You know, adding an hard drive, a sound card or more RAM requires only a simple screwdriver.
And having two 24 inch monitor is nice.
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Since this seems to be the thread to talk about our desktop computers, mine is 20 years old. Well sort of, it’s been upgraded over they years and gone thought many cases, mother boards/CPUs, graphics cards, hard drives and SSDs. But it still has a few bits from the first computer I bought with my own money 20 years ago, mostly a few of the removable media drives.
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Orrr, and just hear me out here… you could get a core i3 6100 with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD from NewEgg for just a bit over half the price. As an added bonus, it’s even a Dell.
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Normally I’d extol the virtues of a factory refurbished machine. But this seems to be from the era when Dell thought it was acceptable to charge the same for a 32GB SSD as a 1TB HDD. Anyway, I’ve been working with a bunch of Lenovo gear recently, and it’s all been pretty good.
I think the oldest parts in my home desktop are only about fifteen years old, and that would probably be limited to some screws,and maybe a cable or two. As far as I’m concerned it’s still the same machine though, because it’s been constantly upgraded since about 2004. Started with (I think) an Athlon64 3200 with about a 1GB of RAM and maybe 400GB of harddrive space running XP, and it’s gone through five OS’s, about 7 CPU’s, and five different cases, but it’s still the same computer damnit!
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A desktop is better for your arms, shoulders and neck. Also most desktop monitors are larger (easier to see) and more adjustable than laptop monitors.
Because the keyboard and monitor are separate from the computer not only are the less likely the cause repetitive stress injuries but you can buy keyboards and mice that are ergonomic.
Also you can change out the computer, monitor, keyboard or mouse that is not working. Mice are much more pleasant to use than track pads.
Rant over…
If you absolutely need the portability, the overwhelming majority of laptops today support external monitor hookups. Some are even explicitly designed to mate with a cradle that stays permanently connected to an external monitor and input devices.
The upgrading of individual components, though, that’s always going to be more of a hassle with a laptop.
Thank you! This is something most people don’t think about. Lugging your desktop computer and monitors around on business trips definitely keeps your arms, back and core muscles well toned and looking great.
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I still use several Dell OptiPlex 9020 desktops at home and at work. Here’s one on Amazon with Core i7, 16GB RAM and 240GB SSD for $320.
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No ssd is a no go.
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I read the post a few times, looking for the punchline… where it is?!
Is it snark? Like, “Ooh check out the olds, they still think they need to SIT DOWN at a DESK and use a KEYBOARD and MOUSE and BIG SCREEN!”? This is weird.
Anyway this is not a good deal on an oldish PC-- weak processor and no SSD huh. Search for refurbs and you’ll find better for less, often with Win10 Pro.
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