[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by dragonfire

could use one to watch movies and do some playing around. I would like it to be a mini PC

Now to the questions:

1. Should I look for a prebuilt tower/miniPC or buy the parts and assemble one?

For this usecase, get a pre-built one. Because of component shortage, its cheaper to buy from HP/Dell as compared to buying parts.

Originally Posted by dragonfire

. There are a lot of refurbished minPCs

These are great. Just don't buy from Amazon. When companies upgrade PCs every 4 - 5 years; older ones are sold in lots of 500 to 1000 pieces (HDD / SSD are shredded before that).

Vendors specialising in selling such kits sell for 12 - 18k in Mumbai. Few things to watch out for :

1. Windows + Office is most probably unregistered and will warn / stop after some time
2. You can probably install original Windows from Dell / HP / Lenovo installation Media . Vendors have that.
3. Test the PC in-person and pick after that

[Thad E Ginathom]

Refurbished from Amazon: My only experience was a router.

It was a bait and switch scam: they had even replaced the labels on a much, much cheaper item! Now, this criminal behaviour was probably a rare event, but it did rather put me off the whole idea. By the way, Amazon took it back and refunded with no problem, but I had to pay more for new router which had gone up in price. I was building a mesh --- and could have bought a box of two for much less than the individual two I ended up paying for. Lesson: bargains may not be what they seem!

For a high-tech item which is expected to last several years (what, five at least, if you are not an avid upgrader?) don't bother saving a few thou. Unless you can get the sort of deal Netfreak mentions.

Here's a thought: buying a refurbished hard disk is like buying second-hand brake components!

[CzechItaliaMoto]

The current laptop that I have been using is a refurbished Precision M4800 with 28GB ram and 1TB + 256GB configuration for storage. So far it has been a pretty smooth experience with the only problem cropping up was that old 500GB hdd that stopped working(it came with the laptop). However, this laptop was bought from the US for around 300 dollars, I'm not sure how good refurbished ones are here.

[RiderZone]

Opinions please. I want to buy a low-level desktop PC for my folk in a Himachal village. This will be their first computer, so it doesn't have to be too fancy, will mainly be used by teen kids as a platform to learn on. I've narrowed down to one choice below, would love to hear from people here if this is good enough, or any alternatives would make more sense. I can assemble a PC from individual components, but if possible I'd like to take the easy route with a pre-assembled box.

I've already got a monitor, so only looking for the box, plus mouse/keyboard.

Came upon this piece, and thought it looked alright for the price. Can get it new from Amazon too, for 5k more. Only reason for buying from Amazon are the bank discount offers, 1500 off on Citi card that I have, and the Renewed discount.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by RiderZone

Opinions please. I want to buy a low-level desktop PC for my folk in a Himachal village. This will be their first computer, so it doesn't have to be too fancy, will mainly be used by teen kids as a platform to learn on. I've narrowed down to one choice below, would love to hear from people here if this is good enough, or any alternatives would make more sense. I can assemble a PC from individual components, but if possible I'd like to take the easy route with a pre-assembled box.

I've already got a monitor, so only looking for the box, plus mouse/keyboard.

Came upon this piece, and thought it looked alright for the price. Can get it new from Amazon too, for 5k more. Only reason for buying from Amazon are the bank discount offers, 1500 off on Citi card that I have, and the Renewed discount.

I would strongly desist from buying a refurbished Desktop, mainly due to maintenance problems in remote areas. An assembled PC is a much better choice. While assembling, you can involve a few locals who are interested in repairs, and they can maintain it in future.

[JithinR]

Saw this Victus by HP 15L Gaming Desktop PC with Latest AMD Ryzen 7 5700G Processor (16GB SDRAM/1TB SSD/NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060Ti 8GB Graphics/Win 11/MSO 2021/500 W Power Supply),TG02-0008in pre-built on Amazon. Don't remember seeing this model before in India. Didn't even know that HP had extended the Victus lineup for desktops too.

Does this spec for 1.14L look any good? It was actually available from the same seller for 1.08L yesterday.

[mayukh42]

Originally Posted by JithinR

Victus by HP 15L Gaming Desktop PC with Latest AMD Ryzen 7 5700G Processor (16GB SDRAM/1TB SSD/NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060Ti 8GB Graphics/Win 11/MSO 2021/500 W Power Supply ... Does this spec for 1.14L look any good? It was actually available from the same seller for 1.08L yesterday.

Price break-up of individual components:
CPU: 27k
GPU: 48k
MB (assumed): 9k
RAM: 6k
SSD: 6k
PSU: 4k
Case: 3k

Total: 103k (w/o software). So not too far off IMHO, as branded will always be a little more expensive. Here it is not too much, especially since you get decent all-in-one warranty and software licenses.

But, the "G" CPU is redundant with a dedicated GPU. Choosing 5600 (new release, non-X and non-G) can save 10k.

[bejoy]

I am looking forward to build a development (Android Studio, Visual Studio, etc.) PC for home use. I assembled my last PC in 2000 and I am almost lost in the current scenario. Please help me with these queries:
1. Looking for Intel i5, but nothing against AMD Ryzen, though not sure what is the latest line up now. I have heard earlier AMDs had some issues with Virtualization when running Android VMs.
2. When I look at the latest trends in Desktop, almost all builds I see is with a hugh tower cabinet. I have space limitations at my room/desk, so looking for a smaller cabinet (like one of those newer Dell Optiplex models). Is there a similar size cabinet available for assembling?
3. Is Intel NUC a possible option? I see it uses low power processor models, so wondering if it is fit for a dev machine.

I have all the peripherals- monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. And budget is around 40-50k. Any recommendation on the shops on SP road?

[tbppjpr]

Originally Posted by bejoy

I have space limitations at my room/desk, so looking for a smaller cabinet (like one of those newer Dell Optiplex models). Is there a similar size cabinet available for assembling?

You can also add Asus Mini PCs like PN51-E1 in the list which also comes with the Pro version of the Windows 10 so don't have any feature limitation in the OS.

Intel variants have very low speced CPU like Pentiums or Celerons, if they suite you then can pick either of them. On the other hand AMD variants having Ryzen 5 or 7 are capable of handling more powerful computations. Avoid the Ryzen 3 variant.

I don't use virtualization so can't tell if this is still an issue with newer Ryzen CPUs. Maybe you need to do some research on compatibility of AMD Ryzen CPUs with virtualization and all of your development tools.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by bejoy

I am looking forward to build a development (Android Studio, Visual Studio, etc.) PC for home use. I assembled my last PC in 2000 and I am almost lost in the current scenario. Please help me with these queries:
1. Looking for Intel i5, but nothing against AMD Ryzen, though not sure what is the latest line up now. I have heard earlier AMDs had some issues with Virtualization when running Android VMs.
2. When I look at the latest trends in Desktop, almost all builds I see is with a hugh tower cabinet. I have space limitations at my room/desk, so looking for a smaller cabinet (like one of those newer Dell Optiplex models). Is there a similar size cabinet available for assembling?
3. Is Intel NUC a possible option? I see it uses low power processor models, so wondering if it is fit for a dev machine.

I have all the peripherals- monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. And budget is around 40-50k. Any recommendation on the shops on SP road?

Here is an alternative you can consider.

I have just moved from a dual Xeon desktop - 3 monitors, 6 HDD, DVD etc.

The new configuration is

. Lenovo E14 Ryzen 5500U, 24GB RAM, 512GB SSD, HD screen.
plus
. 1 x 4K, 1 x HD monitor, that makes it 3 screens
. 1 x USB C hub that has USB, HDMI and Card Reader
. 1 x SATA HDD Dock that takes both 3 1/2 and 2 1/2 inch SATA drives
. 1 x external USB DVD writer
. 10+ SATA HDD, that can be used with the dock
. 7 x USB HDD

So how does this compare to a dual XEON Desktop ?

. Cannot compare to a dedicated Workstation, but then we are talking of 2-4L machines.

. Expansion wise - not very different except for 2 RAM slots compared to 16 I had. But with 32GB and 64GB RAM that is not a problem.
. Laptop support 2 SSD, so I can add another 1TB or larger disk on board.
. External disks are quite fast these days, so for keeping data these are fine, but for dedicated data base it is slow.
. Video is limited. I now have HD on laptop, 4K on one monitor and HD on another (though the laptop supports a 4K here too). Desktop I had 2 cards so could have 4 monitors.
. Development work flow is same.

Today with USB-C you can have practically innumerable devices connected to cascading hubs.

The advantages of a laptop are many :
. Not dependent on continuous power (so no UPS needed).
. Portable, so you can work any where (of course if you need the extra screens you have to lug them along).
. As expandable as a normal desktop.
Smaller desktop foot print - most of the space is taken by monitors



Left to Right
Front
. SATA Dock, DVD, USB-C Hub, USB HDD, Laptop
Back
1.5 KVA UPS (kept it for monitors), HD Monitor, 4K Monitor

[reignofchaos]

Originally Posted by bejoy

I am looking forward to build a development (Android Studio, Visual Studio, etc.) PC for home use. I assembled my last PC in 2000 and I am almost lost in the current scenario. Please help me with these queries:
1. Looking for Intel i5, but nothing against AMD Ryzen, though not sure what is the latest line up now. I have heard earlier AMDs had some issues with Virtualization when running Android VMs.
2. When I look at the latest trends in Desktop, almost all builds I see is with a hugh tower cabinet. I have space limitations at my room/desk, so looking for a smaller cabinet (like one of those newer Dell Optiplex models). Is there a similar size cabinet available for assembling?
3. Is Intel NUC a possible option? I see it uses low power processor models, so wondering if it is fit for a dev machine.

I have all the peripherals- monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. And budget is around 40-50k. Any recommendation on the shops on SP road?

Those optiplex and Lenovo small sized models are best fit for a landfill. They have proprietary power supplies and motherboards. Once they die, be prepared to cut your arm and leg to get them fixed.

At your budget, it is best if you find a microatx board and a smaller case based on matx form factor.

If you must have intel, the best option is i5 12400 and an entry level b660 motherboard like the gigabyte b660m gaming. Get at least 32GB or ddr4 3200 memory. You can skip the GPU if you don't do any graphics stuff.

12th gen nucs aren't available in india yet.

[ajayc123]

Originally Posted by bejoy

I am looking forward to build a development (Android Studio, Visual Studio, etc.) PC for home use. I assembled my last PC in 2000 and I am almost lost in the current scenario. Please help me with these queries:
1. Looking for Intel i5, but nothing against AMD Ryzen, though not sure what is the latest line up now. I have heard earlier AMDs had some issues with Virtualization when running Android VMs.
2. When I look at the latest trends in Desktop, almost all builds I see is with a hugh tower cabinet. I have space limitations at my room/desk, so looking for a smaller cabinet (like one of those newer Dell Optiplex models). Is there a similar size cabinet available for assembling?
3. Is Intel NUC a possible option? I see it uses low power processor models, so wondering if it is fit for a dev machine.

I have all the peripherals- monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. And budget is around 40-50k. Any recommendation on the shops on SP road?

I have a a bunch of NUCs ( 7 gen i7, Intel silver cpu) and even a couple of raspberry pi's that I have the option to use as desktops for day to day purposes. However, I always feel constrained on the mobility and power backup aspects.

Unless you have use cases where you really need to use the processing power of the desktop cpu, you should seriously consider a mid range laptop, maybe you can add a bit of RAM and you are good.

I am really impressed by Mr Aroys thoughful arrangement, and that is much better than a desktop, IMO.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by ajayc123

... I am really impressed by Mr Aroys thoughful arrangement, and that is much better than a desktop, IMO.

In what way? Each to their own choice, but mine would never be a laptop over a desktop (or rather, deskunder).

[ajayc123]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

In what way? Each to their own choice, but mine would never be a laptop over a desktop (or rather, deskunder).

Power backup and portability. The standard inverter gives a lower backup vs a laptop battery backup. Laptop gives portability, which is a limitation of desktop. On those two counts, I would prefer a laptop over a desktop, and happily connect it to external monitors, keyboard and mouse to have a desktop like experience.

You can keep a laptop folded under the table, and rest of the stuff like monitor, etc over the desk. If you keep it open, then the multi monitor experience can assist.

Ultimately it depends on one's way of working. For example, one can have the desktop like experience by connecting the laptop to the external monitor, keyboard and mouse when sitting on a table, but have the ability to just continue to work on a sofa, terrace, poolside, during travel wherever you like.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by ajayc123

Power backup and portability...

If portability is required, end of story.

Power backup is moot. True, the laptop just keeps going. But I have just about always been able to use my computer even in times of highly unreliable power and all-day cuts.

The rest has been written many times, and I won't repeat in detail. Capacity, ease of upgrade, ease of repair, general longevity, etc etc.

The oldest component of my PC, the case, is now into its second decade. It has seen two power supplies and various hard disks and memory configurations. It has been entirely reborn with a new motherboard, processor, etc, last year.

Other than portability, laptops loose every argument until one reaches decor and personal preference. Which is fine, but does not equate, in any technical way, to better.