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Should I upgrade, buy, or build?

3K views 38 replies 3 participants last post by  caretoexplain 
#1 ·
I'm confused because I want to replace parts on my pc at the same time I don't know which ones would be more suitable or would it be more affordable to replace the pc entirely. My pc is an emachines W3503 with windows xp service pack 3 installed.

For more detail on my pc and the parts inside click on the link below.
bit.ly/1NiCljC

Originally I was only going to purchase an oem copy of windows 7 and buy some ram but my situation got even more complicated because now all of my usb ports plus 1 Ethernet port doesn't work. Below I got pictures of the areas that have the issues.

Fixture Electrical wiring Electricity Gas Technology

Gadget Gas Electronic device Machine Display device

Water Gadget Gas Computer hardware Machine

I even tried doing this



and even restarting it in safe mode it (USB ports) didn't work either. So what should I do? Sell the one I have and buy this instead?

http://ebay.to/1juSESE

or should I build my own? I'm still looking for an affordable gaming build around 150 to 250 bucks.
 
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#2 ·
To be honest, I would recommend building your own, but with the budget you listed, you will never build a computer capable of any serious gaming. Selling a computer such as your broken eMachines, which was a budget machine to begin with isn't going to bring you nearly enough to make a difference. The Dell you found on eBay is not up to gaming either, it is designed for basic Office type Apps, media viewing and web surfing at best.

To help advise what your budget should be and what parts would be appropriate we would need to know what games you have in mind to play and what OS you plan on using.
 
#4 ·
You will need to get a Legitimate OS that is going to take up nearly a third or more of your stated budget. The refurbished Dell from eBay would be a better machine than your eMachines was when it worked and would save you some money. I would say that building a new computer including the new OS would cost well in excess of your stated max budget.
 
#6 ·
I can't tell you if a clean install of Win 10 would work if you do not already have a qualifying copy of windows installed on the computer. If you do decide to get the Refurbished Dell running Win 7 from the seller on eBay it would work provided it is a Valid Genuine copy of Windows it would work. On a new Computer build though you would have to purchase a New Copy of the OS.
 
#7 ·
So definitely to the refurbished when it comes to upgrading but you aren't sure if a burned copy of windows 10 would work on a pc build. Because the disk would than more than likely upgrade the occurring os not install a clean version. Am I right? But if I do get the refurbished pc then what do I do with the old one? Like what are my options?
 
#8 ·
You could give the old one to the Goodwill, or Salvation Army. There are not like to be any parts that would be usable on a new computer build. Keyboard, and Monitor may work with the Refurbed Dell.

The whole deal with the Win 10 Upgrade being free was to install it on computers already running a valid copy of windows 7 and above. For new builds you would either need to install a Legal Copy of Windows first before installing the free upgrade to Windows 10 or purchase a retail copy of Win 10. You can do a clean install of Win 10 from the Free Download providing you have a Legal Windows Product Key for a qualified version of Windows.
 
#9 ·
Ah that makes more sense. So if I wanted to do a clean build couldn't I pay for a product code if I already have a copy burned into a disk? Plus I would save money do that like 40 bucks? Yeah donating might be my best option or craigslist.
 
#10 · (Edited)
I have no idea whether or not you can buy just a product key from Microsoft for Windows 10. I have not researched that avenue. It appears the Price for a Digital Download including a Key would be $119 for Win 10 Home.

If you put the old computer up on Craigslist do not forget to detail the problems with it. As I see it, it is probably not worth much over $50.
 
#12 ·
What are you trying to do a clean install on? The XP Machine Yes you would want to make back ups your photos, music data, files. Then if you still have the capability to restore the XP machine to factory fresh. That way any of your sesnative personal information will be deleted.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Yeah I meant doing a clean install on the xp machine. And if I were to start I would buy the dell before selling the emachines to make the transition as painless as possible. Because the emachines pc is the family computer. I was even thinking about taking out the hard drive (from the emachines) and using a hard drive reader to read the files on the dell. That way I can have more space and I wouldn't have to do a clean install but the downside to that is the price of the emachines gets reduced drastically. Unless I replace the hard drive. But that's a whole nother story.

Another scenario is that I could replace the dell's hard drive with an ssd (later on) and use the other hard drive (inside the dell originally) as a secondary. While previously selling the emachines for 50 bucks on craigslist. I think I prefer this scenario the best but I realized that the os is on the other hard drive. So that wouldn't work too well. Or I could use the ssd as the secondary instead. Problem solved there.

Here's the link for the hard drive reader.
http://amzn.to/1Qa6QgG

And here's the link for the hard drive
http://amzn.to/1ThaGEg
 
#14 ·
Still kind of confusing, by clean install on the XP machine, are you talking a factory restore or attempting a clean install of Win 10 on the xp machine? If the Factory Restore I would Definitely wait until you had the other computer first.

On the Dell from eBay, it looks as though it is a Small Form Factor computer. So you would want to make sure there is a place in the Case for an SSD and a Mechanical Hard drive.
 
#15 ·
Still kind of confusing, by clean install on the XP machine, are you talking a factory restore or attempting a clean install of Win 10 on the xp machine? If the Factory Restore I would Definitely wait until you had the other computer first.

On the Dell from eBay, it looks as though it is a Small Form Factor computer. So you would want to make sure there is a place in the Case for an SSD and a Mechanical Hard drive.
I meant clean installing xp on the xp machine (emachines). I updated the reply above. So check it out.
 
#16 ·
You would have to keep your existing Monitor, Keyboard, and Mouse. The Dell Computer only supports a VGA Monitor, you can still find new LCD Monitors that support VGA input if you wanted to go that way. You can get any Windows style Keyboard if you decided to let the old keyboard go with the XP computer. Same with the mouse.

On selling the old XP computer, I would not get my hopes up too high on that e-Machines computers were never high end brands to begin with. Not too much of a used market for them. then couple that with the problems yours has would make it an even harder sell. Now here is the rub, there is a possibility that after a factory restore the USB problems will go away, though that is a very slim possibility. But there are no drivers listed for you E-Machines computer after Windows Vista Which is also not listed as a qualifying OS for a Win 10 Upgrade.
 
#17 ·
Upgrading my emachines to Windows 10 is the least of my worries plus to upgrade the ram, replace the motherboard, would take a lot of work plus if I were to do any of it. I would like to move it into a new case. Other than that. Just buying the dell and backing up the files and crossing them over would be my best bet. I have a vga lcd dell monitor and my Logitech mouse and Compaq keyboard are ps/2 (keyboard and mouse) ports. I would say that my biggest issue is getting rid of the emachines computer and making any cash out of it but I didn't buy the pc with my own money (my mom brought it from a pawn shop in 2010) so if I were to get it recycled or donated it wouldn't hurt me as much.
 
#18 ·
You can easily Upgrade the new Dell which does list Win 7 Home as the OS to Win 10. You just need to be sure you have the right Bit Rate Version Either 32 bit or 64 Bit. The eBay add doesn't make it real clear if the Win 7 is 64 bit. Though from the Title Bar on it, it appears to be 64 Bit, but you can Download and create the correct Bit Rate Disc from the MCT site.
 
#19 ·
Yep I know and yes picking the right one is important. 32 bit or 64? Based on the specs I would say 32 bit and plus when in doubt 32 bit. Also the iso that I burned on the disk is an 64 bit. Because I own a macbook. But I think it would be a good idea to burn another disk as a 32 bit.
 
#20 ·
I am leaning toward the dell having a 64 bit version on it, but you could make a 32 bit disc as well just in case. Also that computer probably has DDR2 ram in it. With only 4Gb ram if it is a 32 bit version, that is already maxed out, but if it has a 64bit version you might think about bumping that up to 8Gb of ram. That would make a big difference in performance.
 
#21 ·
Really so if it had a 64 bit I can upgrade it? What happens if I upgrade it using a 64 bit? Does it do the same thing? Or would there be compatibility issues? (Like fitting a circle into a square hole). Also I'm pretty sure that it's a ddr3. DDR2's sound ancient. I could upgrade the ram if it is a 32-bit (possibly) but if I do a clean install to a 64-bit on the dell could it make it upgradeable to 8gb or could a upgrade from a 32 bit Windows 7 to 64 bit Windows 10 do the trick?
 
#22 ·
You should ask the seller which model OptiPlex it is. If it is an OptiPlex 380 it uses DDR3, if it is a 360 or lower it uses DDR2. You should also ask if the OS is 64 bit or 32 bit. Actually it I just checked the eBay listing and it is 64 Bit Win 7 Home.
 
#23 ·
I went on the ebay site to look at more detail on the pc. I find to be odd that they would censor the model number of the optiplex. And yes I sent them the message. Now i'm going to wait for a response.
 
#25 ·
Being a 64 bit computer really doesn't mean it has a 64 bit version of windows. A 64 bit system will run either a 64bit or a 32 bit version of windows.
 
#27 ·
That is what we wanted to hear. Has the seller responded to you query about the Ram Increase yet?
 
#32 ·
I went on the ebay site to look at more detail on the pc. I find to be odd that they would censor the model number of the optiplex. And yes I sent them the message. Now i'm going to wait for a response.
They censored it because it could be one of several models, 330, 360, 380, 745 or 755. They listed these in the description.

These models run something like an Intel GMA 3100 as GPU, which is not nearly powerful enough to run GW2. It should run Minecraft OK if you play at low settings however... Maybe... It's old and refurbished so even that is not guaranteed.

You may try to buy a budget GPU, but then you'd have to take the following into account:
- Is there space in that tiny case for it?
- Does the motherboard have a PCI-E slot?
- Can the PSU handle the extra load?
 
#33 ·
I'm pretty confident that its a dual core. Which is the minimum for most games anyway. I helped my sister pick out a desktop pc. It was a dual core, 4 gb and it played minecraft pretty darn well. It doesn't take a lot to run minecraft I know because my nephew plays minecraft and it still manages to work even on a single core pc with 600mb of ram. Hehe and as with guild wars 2 (look below) just set the auto adjust and that's pretty much about it. Plus with 8gb the family could do a lot more things on the pc. The optiplex was meant to be a workstation not consumer-grade build. Sure I won't be able to play in high quality but for what I'm getting I consider it to be an excellent deal. Compared to my emachines phenomenal. When my mom brought the emachines it was in the year 2010 the pc was already 5 years old. And they charged my mom 100 bucks. Most pc's at that time had at least 2gbs of ram with windows vista or 7. So when I look back I considered it to be a ripoff which is why you shouldn't buy a pc at a pawn shop. They'll charge you way more than what's it worth and you'll never know what you'll find.

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