Query to the all-knowing flist - computers!

[castalia]

My mom just asked me what I thought was the best in desktop computers, b/c their family computer died a horrible hardware death (ultimate BSOD, sadly, won't boot up at all even in safe mode) after they've abused it for 5 years or so. Thus, they're in the market for a new one.

I've only ever had laptops, so I have no experience whatsoever in buying desktops and what features to look for there. I know she wants decent storage space for pictures and enough power to use their high-speed DSL comfortably. The last computer was a Dell and seemed to really crawl after a year or so of use (despite all my verbal and even written instructions, they are absolutely rubbish at keeping things updated, running scans, cleaning the drives, etc).

So, any recommendations? Anything to definitely stay away from? They're probably going to be looking at a basic to medium price range.

Comments

[castalianspring.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I haven't used HP but I've been considering them for my next laptop. I've been pretty happy with my current Compaq.

[pyrae.livejournal.com]

Just don't go HP for printers. It's a nightmare.

[castalianspring.livejournal.com]

They have one of those. I hate it. Argh.

[pyrae.livejournal.com]

We bought a fancy HP Laserjet scanner/printer/faxer/younameit to use as a network printer. The software had to be reinstalled every time, and years later I struggled to get bits of that software off my computers. There are still traces of it because it would not uninstall properly. I have a Canon Pixma now, which is a little slow and not as fine, but I can count on it to always work and to have bare-bones software.

As for computer requirements, I agree with what's recced below, except to say I've got a Geforce 7600 that works fine for high-power gaming, so they probably don't need anything much fancier than that. My computer came as a kit, though, and I've been upgrading it by pieces for a few years, so I sadly can't help.

[windrose.livejournal.com]

I have an HP desktop and an HP laptop. I love them both.

[castalianspring.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'll mention HP to them :)

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

Compaq is HP

[castalianspring.livejournal.com]

Sort of. They're getting similar since the merge but they're not quite interchangeable yet. And I usually see HP costing more than Compaq. I used to hear Compaqs were better built, but not sure if that's still the case if it ever was.

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

Put it this way, most HP staff get Compaqs as their work laptop. Embarassingly those of us who work for EDS, an HP company, still get Dells. Mine's a Latitude 610!

[castalianspring.livejournal.com]

Heh, that's amusing. I've really enjoyed my Compaq laptop, but it's three years old now and I'm itching to upgrade. Are the Dell laptops better than their desktops? I wasn't too impressed with the last few Dell desktops they bought, although that might be their choice of the lower end models.

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

I really don't know. My desktop machine is an iMac. I just use the work machine for routine work stuff.