I need a new pc. Luddite warning.

[wildoliver]

The luddite is a semi joke, I was very techy circa early 2000s, but in recent years have got progressively more and more behind the times. I do yearn for a return to windows 98 level of tech and no mobiles!

I currently have a load of out of date computers which have limped along fine each doing a job, but the heavily over locked desktop is now too slow to game on, the nice ThinkPad laptop is a lovely machine for working on but won't do what I need and the MacBook Pro I've been using since getting it as a present many years back is also starting to cough with some jobs.

I moved to Mac's a long time ago and loved them, but that same MacBook Pro I'm using now has along with an iPhone put me off Apple products so I'm looking for a pc. Either laptop or desktop.

I say laptop or desktop because it will be spending all of it's time at home, I don't need it really to travel with as I will be keeping the thinkpad and MacBook, but I'd be very open to a laptop if one will do what I want power and price wise. A do all machine I can travel and write/edit on would be advantageous but isn't essential.

So spec and budget. Id like to keep sub 1k if possible, I'll take advice on that. If what I want to do isn't achievable for less than 2k for instance I'll likely continue to struggle on a lot longer.

I write books, edit YouTube videos and game, those are the 3 requirements for a machine to do, the YouTube videos aren't gaming related, they involve memory cards from camera containing footage and stitching it together, but the 3 machines I've got at the moment take an age to render videos, any increase in speed here is a huge advantage. Video capture isn't of any use to me as I'm not a YouTube gamer.

If it's a laptop most of the time it will be hooked up to a bigger screen and kB/mouse, so needs to have plenty of usb ports or even better a dock available, I will regularly on laptops have 3-4 items connected by usb and at least a couple of usb 3 ports would be nice. I also need a decent keyboard built in if it's a laptop, I don't often end up on trains or typing away from home, but it's nice to have the opportunity, a lousy keyboard is no fun. And some battery life, even better if removable.

Gaming wise it won't be getting hammered with the latest and greatest stuff, world of tanks and steam library most likely, but by the same token I don't want to be running everything on low settings, I'd like some headroom and I assume at least my video editing requirements mean a fast processor, lots of memory and a decent graphics card will be on the cards anyway.

I don't really need a cd drive, floppy drive, dvd drive, removable hard drives, more than 1 hard drive (but would like upgradability after the Mac, and the option to fit multiple SSD or M2 drives as I think about it is attractive.).

I do currently have a relatively modern (it's 7 years old but not so old that most of it isnt reusable) desktop I built for gaming, I'd happily sling a new mb, CPU, memory, graphics card in the box if there is a recommendation and if it offers a sensible discount over buying a new box from Dell for instance.

[grumbledoak]

A laptop you never move is just going to cost more.

I would start here at this on Dell Outlet

Dell Outlet G5 5000 Desktop
Intel Core 10th Generation i7-10700F Processor (8 Core, Up to 4.80GHz, 16MB Cache, 65W)
Windows 10 Home
16GB (2X8GB) Up to 3200MHz DDR4 UDIMM Non-ECC
1TB PCIe M.2 NVMe Class 40 Solid State Drive
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8GB GDDR6
Tower with 500W Chassis (Bezel Lighting)
Software
Dell Wireless Card W1810 (802.11ac 1x1) + Bluetooth

https://outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/SecondaryInven...

or eviscerate and rebuild the gaming rig to similar spec.

[The_Jackal]

Forget a laptop. You will pay more for less power.
Just get the most you can for a grand.
Technology has moved on so much, it will be more than enough for what you want.

[Derek Smith]

Can you build one yourself? It's hardly difficult, nor complicated. It is, though, generally considerably cheaper than other options.

You can get a decent CPU and motherboard, a perfectly adquate GPU and 32gig memory for sub £700.

I edit videos, and use 3D software, both of which eat memory, thread and cores, so everything's a compromise, especially when you include price. You can play off RAM, CPU, and GPU against one another until you hit the sweet spot.

Or you could go for one built to your spec. More expensive, but if you leave out what you don't want, it's still cheaper than PCWorld.

[wildoliver]

I absolutely can build one myself. The killer I face is that while I lived and breathed pcs 20 years ago and could tell you the intimate differences between components and what worked well as packages together I've been out of it so long now I can't. I also no longer have the techy friends who could throw a list down to order from the likes of ebuyer having spent a quick 5 mins looking at what gave the best bang for buck.

I'll take a look at that Dell, totally agree about the laptop, having a couple of decent machines I can go mobile with already the only attraction to a laptop is to reduce the amount of machines and chances are I wouldn't anyway as I am a terrible tech horder. So I'll concentrate on a desktop.

[grumbledoak]

If you go for self build, the online sites are quite intelligent about compatibility, e.g. here
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/

Post a list and randoms will stretch your budget!

[Jessicus]

Not an expert but work in the field - basic choice is between Intel and AMD - Intel has higher clockspeeds so is theoretically better for gaming, however AMD generally has more cores/threads so better for video editing. After that choice it's a question of splitting money between components - say £200 on CPU, around £300 on graphics card, £100 on motherboard, around £100 on memory (if AMD then highest speed is important - plus storage and monitor and you should be good to go.

Surprisingly little has changed in PC building over the years, in fact it's easier in some ways as long as the components are compatible then they are pretty much plug and go - no messing with jumpers etc.

[Derek Smith]

wildoliver said:

I absolutely can build one myself. The killer I face is that while I lived and breathed pcs 20 years ago and could tell you the intimate differences between components and what worked well as packages together I've been out of it so long now I can't. I also no longer have the techy friends who could throw a list down to order from the likes of ebuyer having spent a quick 5 mins looking at what gave the best bang for buck.

I'll take a look at that Dell, totally agree about the laptop, having a couple of decent machines I can go mobile with already the only attraction to a laptop is to reduce the amount of machines and chances are I wouldn't anyway as I am a terrible tech horder. So I'll concentrate on a desktop.

I have built a number of PCs over the years, but I always read a manual before starting.

My view is that there's nothing really new for building since Win 98 which was my first self-build. Prepare, read the docs and it's easy. I've got dirty great big hands and fiddling with the connectors for the front panel is about as bad as it gets.

I normally ask ebuyer for their suggestions, giving them a price and functions. I've found them of great help. I bought a graphics card from them last year following their recommendation, which was cheaper than my top budget, and the following month I was reading a consumer-level PC mag and it gave it as best buy at the price. I was using a best-buy - cool or what?

I looked at specs of computers that were supposedly set up for me and then bought just what I needed. I went through YouTube for each component, just in case, and that was it. Less than four hours and I was loading Windows.

I use Cyberlink video software, the Affinity trio, Blender, and am learning Resolve. Before I upgraded from a Ryzen 5, a 4gb GPU and 16gb of RAM to Ryzen 9, 8gb GPU, and 64gb RAM and the regular crashes of Blender now happen a couple of times a week. Resolve gets the GPU fans going but it wouldn't run before the upgrade. No gaming.

The CPU, MB, GPU and RAM came to £770, and the GPU under £150. I had a decent PSU and the case was about £25. Add a 1TB M.2 SSD for under £100, and that's it.

[TotalControl]

grumbledoak said:

If you go for self build, the online sites are quite intelligent about compatibility, e.g. here
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/

Post a list and randoms will stretch your budget!

Start with PC Partpicker and try to go for AMD, as your video editing request seems to be what AMD is better at for the price IMO.

MoBo, RAM, CPU, GPU, Cooling and PSU. Should hit less than the benchmark price you've set I reckon.

[camel_landy]

How old is the Mac?

The reason I ask is that I've got a couple of older Macs which have had a new lease of life, simply by swapping out the HDD with an SSD.

M

[sutoka]

camel_landy said:

How old is the Mac?

The reason I ask is that I've got a couple of older Macs which have had a new lease of life, simply by swapping out the HDD with an SSD.

M

Anything pre 2017 iMac is easy to upgrade, RAM is as easy as popping the cover on the back and slotting it new sticks. Few I know have went from 8GB to 32gb which vastly improved performance.

My iMac 4K is late 2017 so upgrading the RAM is a screen off job.

[wildoliver]

The Mac is probably circa 2014ish. It's the point they started soldering them all up so it's not upgradable. It's a fast machine still for general use (what an SSD would help with but it's already ssd or more likely a stick) but coughs on serious video editing, but any old machine will, just like gaming it really is memory, processor and graphics hungry.

I lean towards amd, I'm old enough to remember when and kicked Intels arse constantly, and were traditionally cheaper for the power. Don't know if that still counts.

I'll get a list built up and see how it compares to a built machine. Once I've got the list if you guys don't mind I'll stick it up here and get your advice on it.