Workstation
Contents |
$350 AMD
Part | Model | Price | Case |
---|---|---|---|
CPU | AMD Sempron 3200+ | 47 | |
Motherboard | Asus M2N8-VMX | 69 | |
RAM | 1GB Corsair DDR2-667 kit | 49 | |
Hard Drive | 80GB SATA HDD | 49 | |
Optical Drive | 18x Pioneer DVR-212D SATA | 46 | |
Graphics Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Sound Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Case | Asus TA-881 | 59 | |
Power Supply | Included with Case | - | |
Cooling | - | - | |
Additional | - | - | |
Total Cost | - | 319 + Postage |
Some people are on a limited budget, and want a nice basic desktop for Internet use and the like. This machine should be fine for basic tasks. This system, a cheap keyboard/mouse, a copy of Vista Basic or XP Home and a secondhand 17" CRT would provide a nice basic machine for just over $500.
The Sempron 3200+ has built-in Cool 'n' Quiet technology, which enables the CPU to lower its clockspeed and fan speed at lower load, which makes the system quieter, and uses less power.
$500 AMD
Part | Model | Price | Case |
---|---|---|---|
CPU | AMD Athlon 64 X2 3600+ EE | 88 | |
Motherboard | MSI K9AGM2-L | 96 | |
RAM | 2GB Kingston DDR2-667 | 90 | |
Hard Drive | 250GB Samsung SP2504C | 82 | |
Optical Drive | 18x Pioneer DVR-212D SATA | 46 | |
Graphics Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Sound Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Case | Asus TA-881 | 59 | |
Power Supply | Included with Case | - | |
Cooling | - | - | |
Additional | - | - | |
Total Cost | - | 461 + Postage |
This is a fairly good base system. The AMD chipset means it has reasonable ATi video. The case isn't too bad, its cheap but not sore on the eyes.
The system might be pushing the budget a little with the 2GB of RAM, but if you're planning to run Windows Vista, it's definitely worth it.
$500 Intel
Part | Model | Price | Case |
---|---|---|---|
CPU | Core 2 Duo E4300 | 155 | |
Motherboard | Gigabyte GA-945GZM-S2 | 77 | |
RAM | 1GB Corsair DDR2-667 kit | 49 | |
Hard Drive | 250GB Samsung SP2504C | 82 | |
Optical Drive | 18x Pioneer DVR-212D SATA | 46 | |
Graphics Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Sound Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Case | Asus TA-881 | 59 | |
Power Supply | Included with Case | - | |
Cooling | - | - | |
Additional | - | - | |
Total Cost | - | 468 + Postage |
$750 Intel
Part | Model | Price | Case |
---|---|---|---|
CPU | Core 2 Duo E6420 | 253 | |
Motherboard | Intel DG965SS | 138 | |
RAM | 2GB Kingston DDR2-667 | 90 | |
Hard Drive | 250GB Samsung SP2504C | 82 | |
Optical Drive | 18x Pioneer DVR-212D SATA | 46 | |
Graphics Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Sound Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Case | Antec SLK1650B | 87 | |
Power Supply | Included With Case | - | |
Cooling | - | - | |
Additional | - | - | |
Total Cost | - | 696 + Postage |
With a Core 2 Duo CPU and 2GB of RAM, this machine is a very quick workstation. Now this system uses an Intel DG965SS motherboard, which uses an Intel 965G chipset, which has superior performance to the 945G chipset (including video, uses the GMA X3000 chipset).
$1000 Intel, CAD Machine
Part | Model | Price | Case |
---|---|---|---|
CPU | Core 2 Duo E6420 | 253 | |
Motherboard | Gigabyte 965P-S3 | 115 | |
RAM | 2GB Kingston DDR2-667 | 90 | |
Hard Drive | 250GB Samsung SP2504C | 82 | |
Optical Drive | 18x Pioneer DVR-212D SATA | 46 | |
Graphics Card | Quadro FX 350 | 275 | |
Sound Card | Onboard from motherboard | - | |
Case | Antec SLK1650B | 87 | |
Power Supply | Included With Case | - | |
Cooling | - | - | |
Additional | - | - | |
Total Cost | - | 948 + Postage |