Could this be it?

Hello,

 

I am looking for a new computer and found this on Overstock.com. I want to use this for photo editing mostly..we have a

home computer for internet use, etc. I have Lightroom 3, Capture NX2, various Topaz plug ins and Silver Efex Pro. I have

an external hard drive as well where I store my photos. I would like to get Elements 10, and add more plug ins. I know

nothing about computers except where to turn them on. I have heard that Asus is a good brand and this looks like its

pretty good. Does anyone with more experience than I have a thought as to whether this is a good buy or not?

 

Thanks!

<p>no link</p>

<p><Chas></p>

<p>asus is one of the better brands of motherboards..<br>

and usually is more reliable than lesser brsnds<br>

I may have missed it<br>

but I see no link to specify the type of cpu or the speed and amount of ram ( memory)<br>

be sure the computer uses sata drives., if it uses ide or eide drivres<br>

it is a much older model.<br>

the computer should come with windows 7 installed.<br>

will there be a complete install cd supplied?<br>

if the hard drive fails or a virus or something corrupts the operating system you may need to re-install .<br>

If you donot have that cd, it could be expensive<br>

dell makes it easy to reinstall., the Dell reinstall disk (9 cd) will do a complete re-0install even on a new blank hard drive.<br>

HP also make good computers.,<br>

Both dell and HP will upgrade drivers while your computer is on-0line.<br>

asus has a web site where you can get drivers and upgrades but sometimes it must be done manually. something you may not feel comfortable doing.<br>

Over all Dell is the easiest to deal with.<br>

much less angst.</p>

<p>I will tell you that the Asus netbook I have is one of the best computers I've ever owned (one of 5 computers I use). It is my go-to computer. I couldn't be happier with a computer.</p>

as far as the company goes , its one of the best if not the best at computer boards(mainboard, Graphics, ect)

 

they're are new in the Laptop/desktop business , their products are usually spec out pretty decent. They reliability as a

whole unit not the best but they are getting there.

 

 

Post a link of said computer , so we can see what you're looking at . Give further advice.

 

-Jeo

Wow....so sorry it didn't link.

 

Here's another try.....

 

http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/Asus-Essentio-CG5270-BP003-Refurbished-Desktop-

PC/6385223/product.html

Butchered link that was, perhaps from Das Kompressor's (http://www.photo.net/digital-darkroom-forum/00V23G) minion; try this: http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/Asus-Essentio-CG5270-BP003-Refurbished-Desktop-PC/6385223/product.html.

<p>I can't recommend Windows Vista. Look into the cost of uprading to Wndows 7.</p>

<p>I'm running an Asus motherboard and Win7. I'm happy with both. I frankly wouldn't buy a Dell anymore, although I've been a long-time customer of theirs. Tech support and customer service have gotten unbelievably, stupidly, inexcusably, and uniformly awfuly. That said, we recently bought a Dell laptop, not seeing any better options with the features we wanted.</p>

We bought this Lenovo last month and it crashes everyday ....Power State Failure it says. Ugh....

 

I just want a reasonably priced computer to do photo editing.....I can't even get this to work right...

A good trick with Dell is to buy through their Small Business and not Home website. The difference in tech support and warranty replacement is pretty substantial.

 

For the price, Lynn, that doesn't look bad. I agree about upgrading to Windows 7, though you might have to go out and buy that yourself.

<p><em>We bought this Lenovo last month and it crashes everyday ....Power State Failure it says. Ugh....</em><br>

<em><br /></em><br>

<em><br /></em><br>

<em><br /></em>I would check and see if that's not covered by warranty. </p>

<p>Last month I was in the same boat- shopping for a new PC. And I haven't really kept up with current stuff. The last time I shopped for a PC was 2005. So I was pretty green this go 'round.</p>

<p>I considered notebooks but was put off by the keyboards. I learned touch typing years ago and can't tolerate a chicklet keypad. I was impressed by the Asus, which I'd previously thought of as a bargain basement brand. At any pricepoint the Asus notebook and desktop models seemed comparable to similarly priced HP, Dell or Toshiba PCs.</p>

<p>Surprisingly, I was put off by the lower priced Lenovo notebooks. I've heard terrific reports about the high end Lenovo notebooks but apparently that doesn't carry over to the low priced models. They felt cheap and I read more unhappy consumer anecdotes about the low priced Lenovo's than any other brand.</p>

<p>FWIW, I bought an <a href="http://us.acer.com/ac/en/US/content/model/PT.SGM02.002">Acer mini-tower</a> and am satisfied with it. Initially I'd thought of Acer as equivalent to eMachines but the current models appear to be a rung up in quality and closer to comparably priced Dell or HP desktops. The all-metal black box is sturdy but small and light - an absolute must for me - enough so that I can move it around easily (not so with my old PC and CRT monitors). For just under $400 it included:</p>

<ul>

<li>Windows 7 (which I like so far)</li>

<li>a 3.1 GHz Athlon II quad core (very fast for the money and quiet despite the large fan)</li>

<li>a so-so nVidia chipset but good enough for photo processing</li>

<li>4 GB RAM (possibly upgradeable to 8 GB, but I can't swear to that)</li>

<li>1 TB HD</li>

<li>6 USB 2.0 slots but no USB 3.0 (suits my needs for now)</li>

<li>Limited to a single PCI Express slot, so expansions are very limited. I might add a video card later to boost performance a bit for video editing, but I'm not a serious gamer.</li>

<li>Cheapie keyboard and mouse - no biggie since I already had a good keyboard and mouse.</li>

<li>Cheapie USB speakers - again, no biggie since I had a good speaker set.</li>

</ul>

<p>This left enough in the budget for a 22" ViewSonic LED, which I've had for a couple of weeks and am satisfied with.</p>

<p>So far, so good, and I leave it running 24/7 (although it's set to sleep/hibernate when inactive). But it's been only a month, not enough time for long term evaluation. No problems or customer service calls so I have no impression of Acer's customer support. Previously I've been satisfied with mid-priced desktops from Dell, Compaq and Gateway.</p>

<p>If it seems interesting and you don't mind the limitations of a mini-tower, Google around for discounts. The Acer AX1 mini-tower configuration was ramped up for the Christmas 2011 season and some are still available with additional discounts. I also tried a variation of the same box with an AMD E-450 CPU which would have been impressive for a notebook but was a little underpowered for a desktop, even with a mini-tower.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1933603&Sku=D211-11012">Here</a> is a better deal I think. Its new with a warranty and has a larger hard drive. Tiger Direct are easy to work with and honest. You should always spend as much as you can afford on a computer. That will ensure that you will get your moneys worth. The lower performance (cheaper) computer you buy the sooner you will have to replace it.</p>

<p>The Dell John linked to does appear to be a good deal. The integrated WiFi is a nice touch. Three PCI Express slots plus a 300 watt power supply to handle extra cards. Intel i3 CPU and 6 GB RAM. Very good price. If I'd seen that last month when I was shopping I'd have been tempted, tho' I still prefer a mini-tower.</p>

There are Lenovo Thinkpad series, and there are Lenovo Not-Thinkpad lines. (That is not to say that a Thinkpad 'puter is immune from electronic injuries, including fatalities.)

John,

 

I really like this deal.....not bad price including the monitor.

 

We have Lenovo ThinkPads at work and really don't care for them. I wasn't really thinking when I bought

this Lenovo I'm using right now either. Earlier today I was woken up (I work nights) by a tech guy from

Microsoft and I swear he was calling from India trying to talk to me about our computer being slow.

Sigh....it constantly crashes with a Power State Failure...whatever that is.

 

I have never had problems with Dells..we bought one back around 2002 and it worked great for us.

 

Thanks for the link to Tiger Direct. I would never have even thought of them.

Lynn,

 

I found pretty much the same deal on Dells website. The only thing I would recommend would be to go with the Dell with the i5 Intel processor if you can afford it. I have used Dell's and my nephew the IT guy uses nothing but Dell's and they are fine computers. I was looking at the same machines last year and they have come down nearly $200 in price. They might be even cheaper if there wasn't a hard drive shortage due to the floods in Thailand. Take a look at Dells website if you can.

<p>I notice that the Windows 7 on most of the machines is 64 bit. All of my software is 32 bit. Would I have to buy all new software?</p>

<p>Howard,<br>

32 bit software will work fine with Windows 7. If you use the downloadable versions of Lightroom and Photoshop and de-authorize them on your old machine you can download the 64 bit versions for your new computer. The 64 bit programs should work a little faster than the 32 bit.</p>

<p>Thanks , John.</p>