Buyer's Guide - Mid-Range, January 2005
by Jarred Walton on January 21, 2005 11:09 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Miscellaneous Considerations
That takes care of everything needed for a new computer system other than the mouse, keyboard, and operating system. You also need networking, but unless you're planning to use a WiFi network, the integrated LAN ports available on all motherboards will get the job done. For the keyboard and mouse, we're going to stick with our standard suggestion: get what you like. For a mid-range setup, wireless keyboards and mice are a possibility. You can always pick up a cheap keyboard and mouse, but spending a bit more on something that is comfortable isn't a bad idea. Here are our thoughts, but get what you're most comfortable using.
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Keyboard and Mouse Recommendation:
Microsoft or Logitech Keyboard and Optical Mouse Combo PackPrice: $25 to $29 Shipped
For many people, all you really need is a decent keyboard and mouse. If you don't want to invest a lot of money in these items, go with a Logitech or Microsoft combo pack that will get you both for a reduced price. Either one will work quite well. If you want other options, consider the following upgrades (which we list strictly as alternatives, especially in the case of the mouse, as few people would be willing to spend that much money).
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Keyboard Alternative:
Microsoft Natural Multimedia Keyboard PS/2Price: $29 Shipped (OEM)
If you type a lot - as many of us do - getting an ergonomic keyboard is a really good idea. You may not have any symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome right now, but getting old sucks and is unavoidable, and you may find yourself looking back wondering what would have happened if you had switched to an ergonomic keyboard earlier in your life. (Yes, I speak from personal experience. It happened to me and it could happen to you once you turn 30 as well. Better safe than sorry, and now that I've switched to a natural keyboard, using the normal style keyboards definitely increases the discomfort level.) The one issue that is unavoidable with any ergonomic keyboard that we've looked at is a certain amount of time spent retraining your brain. It usually takes a month or so to adapt to the new layout, and difference in the location of such keys as the backslash, home/end/insert/delete, or some other key(s) can be irritating for a while.
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Mouse Alternative:
Logitech MX1000 Laser CordlessPrice: $63 Shipped (Retail)
If you're looking for the latest in mouse technology, this is it. The laser tracking offers improved accuracy relative to optical mice - so says Logitech, as well as many others who have tried this mouse. It's on the large side, so if you have small hands, there are probably better options out there. Having batteries inside the mouse also makes it heavier than corded mice, which some people will dislike. For many people, however, the new laser mouse is a treat to use. The included rechargeable batteries and charging base are typical of Logitech's high-end cordless mice, and a single charge lasts more than a day even under near-constant use. After the initial charge, the "rapid charge" feature can restore full power in about 15 minutes; so even at a LAN party, all you would need is a short break to ensure continued power. In our experience, nearly all cordless mice can have periodic communication issues, so if you're really picky about response times, waiting for a wired version may be something to think about.
SFF Thoughts
We've mentioned the possibility of ditching the large cases and motherboards and going with a small form factor (SFF) case before, and that is definitely an option. We saw a few PCI Express AMD SFFs at CES, but it will be a bit longer before they're available for purchase. We're still working on the SFF roundup that we've been talking about, and we will hopefully see the first article before the end of the month. There are a huge number of options, so for now, we suggest that you look around and try to find one that fits your personal aesthetics.
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Rocket321 - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - link
Could someone explain what has changed between the NEC 3520A and 3500A. I checked the Anandtech Fall 16x roundup and it has the 3500A listed as DVD-R 16x.Dranzerk - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - link
Mmm, i bought my 930sb from Newegg about 6 months ago, guess they ran out fast. Oh well. :(N3cr0 - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - link
Well, I think I may go with the system described with the ASUS board but a 3000+ processor to save some cash. As it stands right now, anything is an upgrade from my Celeron 1.2 system. The XFX 6600GT is also available for dramatically less then the Leadtek (40-50$ less) 6600GT, so I'm going to be going with that also.Zebo - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - link
"The Diamond Pro 930sb Mitsubishi monitor is also a excellent CRT choice for 19inch."Too bad no one sells it:(
Zebo - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - link
KILLER CHOICES!!!'Another good mobo is epox 9NDA3J... it's $45 less than MSI..same clocks many say better with new bios. I post at 330 HTT now vs 315 before.. My mem OCs much more too..
JarredWalton - Friday, January 21, 2005 - link
20 - NEC and Mitsubishi "merged" on the monitor segment. The NEC FE991SB is almost the same monitor as the Diamond Pro 930SB. The 930SB did have a few advantages, like a 110 KHz hoizontal scan rate and a slightly higher max resolution, and perhaps a few cosmetic differences.Unfortunately, the 930SB is no longer available online as far as I can tell (and it did cost a bit more). That's why it's no longer in the Guide. If you can find one, it's still a great monitor, although I wouldn't pay much more than $285 for it.
Dranzerk - Friday, January 21, 2005 - link
The Diamond Pro 930sb Mitsubishi monitor is also a excellent CRT choice for 19inch. Very nice monitor, gets great reviews, and cheap to boot.I beleive it used to be Anandtech buyers guide..maybe another type? check it out
JarredWalton - Friday, January 21, 2005 - link
#17 - certainly something to think about, although there are so many possible causes that a lot of people don't tend to list in forums. For example, are they overclocking? What sort of PSU are they running (as a 300GB three platter hard drive inherently uses more power than an 80GB one platter drive)?Most of the posts seem to be related to having RAID issues. I won't even get into the subject of RAID, but having two of those drives running is going to further increase the power demands. What sort of GPU do they have, CPU, etc.? People looking at running two or even three $200 drives are probably putting in other high-end hardware as well, and a 480W PSU - even a quality Antec, Enermax, etc. - may not be able to handle the power demands.
Anyway, the Maxtor is merely listed as an alternative. Plenty of people are using them without any problems, but they're also not using two of them in most instances.
PrinceGaz - Friday, January 21, 2005 - link
Those are a truly excellent set of recommendations for systems in that price-range, Jarred. Compared with your first few guides which I considered to have quite a few poor choices; I read through this guide from start to finish, and without exception either agreed with your choices or would have went with something so close it made no real difference.I'm very close to building an nForce4/A64 box and regularly looking at my options (the only thing I'm waiting for now is the E0 A64 revision), and at some points what you wrote was so close to my own thoughts that I almost felt as if I was reading something I'd written myself!
The only bone I'd pick is with SLI. I'll probably get an SLI board, but not for the SLI capability but because they tend to have more PCIe sockets generally if you run in non-SLI mode and treat the second x16 as a x1. I'll never buy another legacy PCI card, so the two PCI cards I already have are all I'd ever want to put in a new PCIe system, therefore the more PCIe sockets it has the better. The MSI Neo4 SLI board fails miserably in that respect as it has no PCIe slots at all apart from the two x16 slots, so at most you can put a single PCIe x1 card in. I hope MSI gets suitably slated in the forthcoming review because of that.
mad nebraskan - Friday, January 21, 2005 - link
With all due respect, the recommendation of the Maxtor 250GB drive in combination with the MSI Neo2 MB might not be a good one. I helped a friend who had serious issues trying to get a RAID 0+1 to work using this board. We finally gave up and bought Raptors. A quick search of the net found this forum:http://forum.msi.com.tw/thread.php?threadid=63105&...
Now, the problem might be fixed with the latest BIOS, but I don't think it it.
http://forums.pcper.com/showthread.php?t=368404
Just some thoughts from a guy who banged his head against this particular problem too many times.