By Adam Dachis How to Craft the Perfect Computer Spec List for Your NeedsWhether you're building or buying, the perfect computer isn't necessarily the product of the most expensive parts. Your perfect spec list makes up the machine that works best for you and your budget. Here's how to put it together. Buying or building a computer used to be a little simpler, since the goal was to get a machine with as much power as you could afford. Nowadays most CPUs are exceptionally fast, and even a low-end processor will still net you a pretty fast machine. Instead, the more important choices you need to make have more to do with every other component. We're going to go over every major component, as it applies to desktops and laptops that you buy or build, to help you figure out your best options for your computing needs. Each section will have a description and an option of LOW END (ultraportables, netbooks, and cheap desktops), MIDDLE OF THE ROAD (average to pretty damn good laptops and desktops), and HIGH PERFORMANCE (gaming rigs, media workstations, and any super-fast computers). Based on your needs, chose the most applicable category in each section (keep track of which you're choosing most) and we'll suggest what machine will likely fit your needs at the end. The ComponentsCase/Enclosure
LOW END Small size is the most important factor in your decision, and you're willing to sacrifice pretty much anything to get it. Motherboard / Ports and Expandability
Consider how many USB peripherals you're going to want to connect, whether or not you're going to need an additional interface (like eSATA or Firewire), and if you're going to need to be able to add additional ports/functionality via PCI Express/ExpressCard/etc. slots. If you're looking for high levels of expandability, lots of ports, or extreme performance, you're automatically ruling out compact and highly portable machines. If you're satisfied with a minimal number of ports and expansion options, however, you may prefer tradeoffs. LOW END You only need a few USB ports and not much else. CPU
We'll get into SSDs more in a little bit, but the important thing to consider here is this: putting money into a high-end CPU is only really well spent if you're going to be squeezing every last ounce of speed out of it. If you're on a limited budget, you may be better off getting a slower CPU and putting the money you save towards an SSD, a better graphics card, or peripherals that will expand the functionality of your machine in more beneficial ways. LOW END You're using your computer primarily for the web and plan to do very little work with rich media, or you're simply more interested in perceived speed rather than actual processor speed. GPU
A discrete card exists outside of the motherboard as a separate component. It'll draw more power but it'll almost always give you significantly better performance. There are so many factors that play into what graphics card to get that it would take to long to get into it all, but generally price and performance go hand in hand. If you need a really high end card, you're going to end up paying quite a bit more for it. This may also be a place where you'll consider upgrades important as graphics cards update and outpace themselves fairly frequently. In addition to raw performance, you may also want to consider additional features the card offers. For example, many graphics cards provide boosts in the encoding and decoding of H.264 video (one of the more popular video-compression types these days). Some GPUs can also be used by Flash, your operating system, and other software (that isn't necessarily graphics-oriented) to accelerate performance. If these sorts of performance boosts are more important to you, you'll definitely want to look for cards that can provide them. Some integrated GPUs have these features as well, so if these features are more important you may be able to save some money by using an integrated option. One last thing to consider in the graphics department is output. If you're building or buying a desktop computer you want to make sure that a) its display connectors match what you need (e.g.: it has HDMI out if you want to connect to an HDTV) and b) it can support the resolution you need. This is less relevant with a laptop, but if you're planning on connecting an external display now and again you want to make sure your laptop's video card has a compatible connector and supports the resolution you need as well. Often times your graphics card will seem like it can support certain resolutions, but it's not always obvious just by looking at it (e.g.: DVI and Dual-Link DVI look pretty much identical but support different maximum resolutions). Just be sure you know what you're getting into before you commit. LOW END Light gaming and graphic work is all you'll really do, so even a low-power (and probably low-performance) GPU will be just fine. You'll take whichever integrated graphics solution best fits your other needs. Audio Card
LOW END Generally you'll just be using my headphones or a pair of computer speakers, and if you need to record any decent audio you're willing to pick up a $50-100 USB condenser microphone. Hard Drives and SSDs
If you need more than 256GB of disk space and don't have an endless supply of money, an SSD is probably not your best option. On the other hand, because SSDs are small you can often build even a compact machine that houses both a 3.5" hard drive with a capacity of your choosing and an SSD as well. The SSD can run the operating system and house your applications and you can relegate a separate, less expensive and capacious HDD to file storage. If you need massive amounts of space, traditional hard drives are going to be inevitable. While they may not provide you with the speed of an SSD, they will save you a bunch of money and offer up several times the storage capacity. As one last compromise, there is now such a thing as a hybrid drive. It's a lot cheaper than an SSD because it is, primarily, a traditional hard drive. What it adds is solid-state flash memory and uses it as an extra large cache for the regular hard drive. While it won't amount to an enormous speed increase, or give you (what we believe to be) the added reliability of a SSD, it's a nice performance boost for a lot less money. LOW END You're fine with the performance of a traditional hard drive and don't necessarily need a lot of space. Optical Drive
LOW END You do not want or need an optical drive. Network Connectivity
LOW END You're happy with just Wi-Fi or just Ethernet, depending on your situation. You don't need both. Card Readers
LOW END You don't need a card reader. The Scorecard
Low-end OptionsThe low-end options vary because you're making the most sacrifices. You're either making sacrifices for portability, to save space at home, or to save money. The Ultraportable Laptop - You're not looking to build a fast computer so much as you're looking for a travel companion. Depending on your budget, you're looking at a netbook or somewhat higher-powered 11 to 12 inch laptop (such as the MacBook Air). The Mini Desktop - If you're looking for a little server, a home theater PC (HTPC), or just a small desktop for work, you have a ton of options for compact desktops. Pretty much every manufacturer makes one, from nettops to the somewhat more powerful (but equally compact) DELL Zino series to higher-powered mini options like Apple's Mac mini or a larger but still mini tower from pretty much any PC manufacturer. If you're building a mini PC, there are several cases you can start with like this LIAN LI PC-Q08B Mini-ITX Tower. Cheap and Bulky - If price is your main consideration and you don't really care about much else, you can pick up or build a bulky but working machine for very little money. Alternatively, you could consider just buying a used machine if you really just need any computer. For People in the MiddleYou're really in the best shape if you fall into the middle because you're getting the best of both worlds. On the other hand, you're not fully satisfying either of the larger desires for portability and performance. These days, however, you're going to end up with a pretty decent machine no matter what and the middle-of-the-road desktops and laptops tend to be nearly as powerful as their high-end counterparts. The Average Laptop - While your standard laptop sizes generally vary from 13" to 17", your middle-of-the-road option is the 15". It's often the perfect compromise. 17" tends to fare better in the higher-end category because there's usually little sense in carrying around a bulky machine if you're not getting a significant performance gain. On the other side, 13" laptops tend to max out at lower performance. A 15" laptop will generally net you the best of both worlds and are generally fairly upgradable (as far as laptops go). The Average Desktop - An average desktop is one that provides an excellent level of performance and can be easily had or built for under $1,000. If you want to check out a really excellent build for around $800 (minus the SSD and extra RAM), our Hackintosh is a great place to start (it's a good build whether you want to install Mac OS X or not). A regular-sized tower can provide you with so much room to expand as well, so if you ever feel the need to move beyond an average desktop (which is often a pretty powerful machine already) your upgrade path is already in place. Going All OutThe high-end is generally for people with money, but that's not always the case. High-end rigs can definitely get pretty pricey, but they don't have to break the bank. The Media Professional - A fast CPU, a decent graphics card, and an SSD will make the performance of this machine. You'll need a fast processor to handle media encoding and other intensive tasks you'll throw at the machine, a decent graphics card to tackle the rendering of large images, and an SSD to keep you working quickly. The Gamer - Gaming PCs are among the most expensive and the most powerful. While you certainly need ample hard disk space to store your games and a fast CPU to keep things moving quickly, your graphics card (or cards) are going to make the biggest difference. This is obvious, but when putting together a gaming rig you should plan for (at least) two things: 1) build a machine that can handle more than the game with the highest system requirements that is currently on the market, and 2) make sure you'll be able to upgrade the machine for several years. Because gaming rigs can get so pricey, you don't want to be buying a new one every time the machine skips a few frames. Cheap But Powerful - Depending on your needs, you don't necessarily need to spend excessively to get a high-end rig. If you need extremely high performance in one area, concentrate your build (or purchase) on that area and cut corners elsewhere. Are you encoding a lot of video? Put all your money into the processor (and any hardware that will accelerate encoding speeds) and spend a lot less money on your other components. If you just need a snappy system with a ton of storage, you can generally get a decent processor, run the OS off an SSD, and use traditional hard drives to handle the bulk of your storage. If you need a powerful machine but your needs lie in a particular area, be creative with your spec list and you can get the power you need without emptying your wallet. What's your ideal desktop or laptop spec list? Post it (and why) in the comments. | November 8th, 2010 Top Stories |
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How to Craft the Perfect Computer Spec List for Your Needs
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