Choosing a PC system
- The size and shape of a PC is more important than it used to be. A mini PC costs more and is less upgradable, but takes up less desk space. If you want a media centre PC, get one that fits in with other electronic equipment in your living room.
- If you are interested in games , upgrade to a decent graphics card. Budget cards with the Radeon HD 4650 graphics processor will cope with this year’s games, but to play next year’s just as smoothly ( and enjoy gorgeous graphics today) it’s worth upgrading to a more card such as Radeon HD 4830. More powerful cards can be fifted into the standard PCI-Express x16 slot, so you can always upgrade later if you have one on your motherboard. SLI and Crossfire systems, with multiple graphics cards, are rarely worth the bother or expense.
- All modern PCs come with dual-core processors, and so are capable of taking on tough tasks. The only exceptions are nettops, see 9. Anyone who regularly undertakes tough tasks, like video editing and encoding, should seriously consider a quad core processor.
- There are plenty of reasons to upgrade the memory or hard disk. If you’ll be using your PC for gaming, video-editing or other demanding tasks then you’ll want both 4gb of RAM and a bigger hard disk, 1TB should more than suffice.
- A quality sound system will enhance all manner of PC activities . To hear the surround soundtrack of a DVD at its best, you’ll need a 5.1 systems. I f you’re not interested in games or DVD’s , go far a stereo pair with a subwoofer to boost the bass. If you want to listen to music or want better-quality sound, you’ll need a dedicated sound card.
- All PCs now with widscreen monitors. As well as being ideal for watching movies, they feel more natural for working on panoramic photos or expansive spreadsheets. A 19in widescreen LCD is now considered basic and has a resolution of 1440x 900 pixels. Larger 20in and 22in LCDs are available from around rm550 and have a higher resolution of 1680×1050. This makes them better bets for people who are looking to work with complex applications. Decide if you want a glossy display or not. Glossy displays improve contrast and make images look brighter , but they reflect overhead lights and sunlight easily , which can be annoying.
- The standard connectors can be improved with extra USB ports, to which most PC gadgets attach, and a FireWire port for gadgets such as digital video cameras. Look for a memory card reader if you have a digital camera and make sure your camera’s memory card is supported.
- Windows Vista Home Premium is preinstalled on most new PCs. Any extra software bundled should be assessed critically. It may be that you’ll never use it. However, you may find a PC that includes software you’d otherwise have paid for, so you’ll save lots of money by having it preloaded.
- I f you only undertake basic tasks then consider a nettop. These low-cost, low-price PCs are ideal for day –to-day computing tasks like web surfing and office application. They use similar components to netbooks and so are very power efficient as well. Some netbooks have optical drives for burning and playing DVDs and CDs. However, the more compact models do not have space for such drives.
Computers For Seniors For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))
