Thank you Cheno. I am leaning toward an HP and don't think there are any other AMD X2 PCs available in a retail store. I have gotten the impression that they are better than the Intel dual cores.

The removeable hard drive is a cute gimmick but I don't think the HPs have any available internal hard drive space for a capture drive.

if you know what you want, why are you going to a retail store. Why not buy online?

None of the newest HP or compaq chassis can accomodate an extra hhd except for the very newest revs of the media center. These have screw holes at the bottom of the chassis for mounting a second drive.

Hp has a larger chassis that supports 3 HDDs but I'm not sure if they're offering it these days. I'm assuming you're needing to walk out of a store with a computer, otherwise you should look online for a business machine that has less "crapware" installed. Anandtech i currently reviewing an HP business machine that might be nice enough.

Hp is probably the only big OEM that offers Ath64 X2 processors.

Rob Mack

I have HP's for editing. I've had one for 3 years and the other for 2 years. No problems.

I see this one at Best Buy, with no monitor, for $899 with the AMD X2

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7439505&type=product&productCategoryId=cat15108&id=1124431815424

The computer industry seems to be alone in the fact that it's products get better and better, but the prices don't go up, in comparison to previous years.

Busterkeaton,

That's the problem, I really don't know what I want but have only a limited amount of funds available - less than $2000 and that includes upgrading to V6.

If you're after a laptop, go to the Dell site and look for their outlet center....they may have outlet desktops also. I got a smoking deal on a laptop!!...its only way I will buy computer in the future.

Well I would say you want a system with an AMD X2 from a reputable builder and you want to keep it under 2 grand.

Are you looking for a prebuilt machine because you don't want to configure online?

I think with your budget you can what you need. Folks on this board can help recommend some builders.

You can definitely configure a powerful HP machine for about $1,500.

If you don’t mind buying on-line, you might want to check out ABS Computers. They are a boutique builder that uses all industry standard parts. This is EXTREMELY important if you plan to upgrade in the future. Dell, HP, Compaq, etc. all use proprietary motherboards and cases (sometimes power supplies too) so upgrading anything more that the memory or hard drives is almost impossible.

ABS Computers can now be purchased from Newegg.com or you can buy direct from ABS. I have no affiliation with them, but I have a cousin who buys all the computers for his business from them and swears by them. The nice thing about a company like ABS is that any parts in the computer can also be bought from Newegg.com so replacing parts is dead simple and they are not overprices like the major manufacturers parts.

~jr

Busterkeaton,

Yes, I would like to find an HP AMD X2 4200 or better already built and I would also like to be able to have another internal HD for the media capture, although I could use some of my existing FW drives. I am currently using a Media Raid 160 GB SCSI drive on my P4 1.7 Windows 2000 PC that I would like to keep with that computer.

I hope to reformat and install XP on that old computer and use it as a backup or use it as my audio PC as I create the CDs my church uses on Sundays and edit the sermons to put on our Internet site. With 2 computers I can be editing audio while rendering video, etc.

I would probably like to have dual monitors but don't know if the AMD X2 4200 HP graphics card supports two monitors, plus that adds to the total cost. Since I have never had two monitors I don't guess I'll miss them.

If someone knows of a builder who knows what they are doing and provides support I would certainly check them out. $1,500 for the hardware would the area I want to be in.

Is getting rid of "crapware" just merely uninstalling programs or is it more involved?

JohnnyRoy,

I went to ABS and configured essentially the same PC as the HP AMD X2 4200 and was several hundred dollars higher. Granted it probably had a better motherboard and other components but am not sure if I can squeeze enough money out of Santa to get it.

If you go with a vendor that custom-builds computer, I think it would be possible to get a system built for about $100 (maybe more) over the price of the base HP system. monarchcomputer.com is one such custom vendor (and their resellerratings.com rating is pretty good; no personal experience with them because I live in Canada.)

As Johnny points out, the OEM computers (dell, HP, etc.) tend to have proprietary parts in them which makes them difficult to upgrade. On the other hand, I find that old computers are rarely worth upgrading- the parts will become obsolete. The best thing to do is to cannibalize the hard drives and the optical drives and whatever else to put into a new system. Or just use the old system as an email / second machine (i.e. for encoding clips to the web or whatever).

2- Watch out for the push on extended warranties at best buy and big chain stores like them. The sales people there have lots of pressure to sell the extended warranties (and they are mostly ripoffs).

Just because I'm taking a break right now....


"ripoffs" may be a bit strong...if you mean you would be buying something you are likely to never use, you're of course right. But it's insurance. You should weigh the cost of the warranty with what it covers (hardware failure, surge/spikes, etc) and if it is replacement or repair coverage.

They are typically very high profit centers for the retailers, so they do push 'em.

I think extended warranties are a bit of a ripoff since:
A- They're like a variation on bait and switch. The stores advertise these low prices hoping you don't actually pay that price for it. They aren't going to be making much money if you walk out of the store without the extended warranty.
B- It encourages their underpaid employees to lie to you and make stuff up.
This is not the same thing, but at Radio Shack (er, The Source) the salesperson there was trying to sell me an extended warranty on a firewire cable with a manufacturer's lifetime warranty. That's dishonest in my opinion.

I once had an employee at Best Buy tell me that if I purchased their extended warranty on a camcorder, I could upgrade to a newer version of the camcorder in 12 months by turning this one in and buying a new one for the difference in cost between the two.

Rather than call the poor kid's manager directly, I simply walked out.

<http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=24763&pfp=121805sale>Comp USAmay be your best bet.

It's configured as a Media PC, but it's probably the only system you'll find with the AMD X2 4200 that's within your budget.