1st home PC - what do I need for gen use and digital photos?

1st home PC - what do I need for gen use and digital photos?

Author
Discussion

mccrackenj

Original Poster:

2,041 posts

225 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
I badly need your advice.
I've now decided to enter the 21st century and get into digital photography, which also gives me another reason to finally get a PC at home.

I will use it for the usual stuff ie: word-pro, spreadsheets, e-mail & internet, but also want to be able to download photos from a digital SLR and manipulate them. I'm not interested in altering the actual images, just storing them, e-mailing them and putting onto DVD (is that difficult?). Also - I've no interest whatsoever in gaming or downloading music or playing DVDs etc on it.

I'm a complete computer numpty (used 1 all day, every day for years but I haven't a clue what's 'under the bonnet' - the nice people in IT give me a new one every few years and I'm happy) so I need advice on what size memory I'll need, what software etc. Also I don't need a notebook jobbie.

For example: Dell have a Dimension 5150 with

Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 630 with HT Technology (3.00 GHz, 2MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
Windows® XP Home Edition
Windows Media Centre Software
512MB DDR RAM
15" Analogue Flat Panel Monitor (15.0" v.i.s)
80GB Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

for £489

Is that any use for me? What other software will I need? What else would you recommend as well / instead?

Sorry for the long post, grateful for any advice you might have

Cheers

John

(PS: I've also posted on the photography forum)

Plotloss

67,280 posts

269 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
The important thing with image manipulation is as much memory as is possible so whatever machine you go for spec the memory up to the eyeballs, 2Gb would be advisable.

That Dell machine you have listed will do the job but in some way seems to be packaged with Media Centre software which you wont neccesarily need from what you have said.

pdV6

16,442 posts

260 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
On the other thread pdV6 said:
Any bog standard PC should do you proud. If you're talking a lot of pictures, then a large, fast hard disk will be an advantage.

As you're not planning to do any photo editing, a huge amount of RAM isn't strictly necessary but its always a good idea to spec as much as you can sensibly afford.

Agree with Plotloss - Media Centre is overkill for what you describe; dropping it from the spec will save a few bob.

>> Edited by pdV6 on Tuesday 24th January 10:42

workshy fop

756 posts

266 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Try this E-Value code on the Dell site.

Same spec as above + 160Gb HD and 17'' flat panel £410 delivered.

DMUK4-D01312A

mr_yogi

3,278 posts

254 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Dell are great value for money, especially for general computing.

One thing though in addition to what people have already said, if you are going to use it to view pictures you might want to consider a larger monitor, something with a 17" LCD or even a 19" LCD? Dell's LCDs are quite well regarded

miniandy

1,512 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Get yourself a Mac - it's the all in one solution to your needs!

mccrackenj

Original Poster:

2,041 posts

225 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Thanks everyone for your advice so far, very useful. The choice of specs on the Dell site included the following CD / DVD drives:

48X/32X DVD/CDRW Combo Drive + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [Included in Price]

16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £58.75 or £1/month1]

48X CD ROM + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £11.75]

16X IDE DVD ROM + DVD 5.1 Power Software + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £29.38]

48X CD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £70.50 or £1/month1]

16X IDE DVD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £88.13 or £2/month1]

As I said, I'm a numpty in this field so I've no idea what the difference is between these. All I want to be able to do is store my pics on a DVD so that I can bung it into my DVD recorder and watch the pics on TV - is that possible easily or am I missing the point and talking out of my ar$e?

Thanks again everyone.

jimothy

5,151 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
mccrackenj said:
Thanks everyone for your advice so far, very useful. The choice of specs on the Dell site included the following CD / DVD drives:

48X/32X DVD/CDRW Combo Drive + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [Included in Price]

16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £58.75 or £1/month1]

48X CD ROM + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £11.75]

16X IDE DVD ROM + DVD 5.1 Power Software + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £29.38]

48X CD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £70.50 or £1/month1]

16X IDE DVD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £88.13 or £2/month1]

As I said, I'm a numpty in this field so I've no idea what the difference is between these. All I want to be able to do is store my pics on a DVD so that I can bung it into my DVD recorder and watch the pics on TV - is that possible easily or am I missing the point and talking out of my ar$e?

Thanks again everyone.



Thisis why I suggested a mac on your other thread about this on the photo forum. They come with Combo Drives that read all and write CD's, or SuperDrives that read and write all.

Easy.

page3

4,912 posts

250 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
miniandy said:
Get yourself a Mac - it's the all in one solution to your needs!
What he said. Sounds perfect for your requirements and excellent timing too with the launch of the new intel iMacs.

mr_yogi

3,278 posts

254 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
mccrackenj said:
Thanks everyone for your advice so far, very useful. The choice of specs on the Dell site included the following CD / DVD drives:

48X/32X DVD/CDRW Combo Drive + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [Included in Price]

16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £58.75 or £1/month1]

48X CD ROM + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £11.75]

16X IDE DVD ROM + DVD 5.1 Power Software + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £29.38]

48X CD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £70.50 or £1/month1]

16X IDE DVD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £88.13 or £2/month1]

As I said, I'm a numpty in this field so I've no idea what the difference is between these. All I want to be able to do is store my pics on a DVD so that I can bung it into my DVD recorder and watch the pics on TV - is that possible easily or am I missing the point and talking out of my ar$e?

Thanks again everyone.



The second option is the DVD writer - DVD +/- RW

This means it can write and rewrite either of the two DVD standards (DVD-RW & DVD+RW).

Macs are good, but they are quite a lot more expensive and slower (not that this matters much for general computing though...).

mccrackenj

Original Poster:

2,041 posts

225 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Jimothy, Page3 etc

Interested in your suggestions re: a Mac - where's best to get one? (on-line or otherwise)

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone, just what I'd expect from PH.



miniandy

1,512 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Well...

I would say you could just spec-up a Mac Mini, because at the end of the day it's the software that comes with it that makes your job easier. If your budget was higher I would suggest a new iMac, but as I have said previously, I reckon a Mini will do you just fine.

miniandy

1,512 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
For example, you could get yourself:

** 1.25GHz PowerPC G4
512MB DDR333 SDRAM
ATI Radeon 9200 32MB DDR video memory
80GB Ultra ATA hard drive
SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW)
DVI or VGA video output
AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth optional

for £450. Obviously you would need to get yourself a keyboard/monitor, but these can be picked up for peanuts. Apple currently do not offer a flat monitor for less than £500, so I would just get a 17" from another manufacturer. If you wanted to get a better processor, you can get this:

** 1.42GHz PowerPC G4
512MB DDR333 SDRAM
ATI Radeon 9200 32MB DDR video memory
80GB Ultra ATA hard drive
SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW)
DVI or VGA video output
AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth included

for £468. Have a look at www.apple.com/uk/switch/ or email me for more info...!

miniandy

1,512 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
mccrackenj said:
I badly need your advice. I'm a complete computer numpty




All the more reason to get a Mac. I got one for my Gran when the Mini first came out and she is so pleased with how easy it is to use in comparison with her old PC, as everything is included in the one tiny box. She's a bit of a numpty as well!

>> Edited by miniandy on Tuesday 24th January 15:10

annodomini2

6,860 posts

250 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
mccrackenj said:
16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £58.75 or £1/month1]...




Fit your own, dual layer +/- drives are about £30 including delivery, take 5-10mins to fit and dead easy.

Or build your own, you'd be surprised how easy it is.

jimothy

5,151 posts

236 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
mccrackenj said:
Jimothy, Page3 etc

Interested in your suggestions re: a Mac - where's best to get one? (on-line or otherwise)

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone, just what I'd expect from PH.





If you have an Apple store near you, pop in and play. Some PC Worlds have them to play with as well.

Then order it online from the apple store, so you can spec it how you want. Everywhere charges the same price in my experience, so no need to search for teh best deal.
They do have refurnished ones sometimes and this may save you a few bob...

page3

4,912 posts

250 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
I'd say for a beginner the new 17" iMac would be a perfect start.

www.apple.com/uk/imac/

Ok, its £900 but that's excellent value for what is included. Don't kid yourself with cheaper machines - you will end up spending more in the long run speccing it up to be something useable. The Mac Mini is a good alternative - but that extra money for the iMac buys a whole lot more.

Not that we want to get in to a Mac Vs PC argument here (plenty of other forums for that!) but I refute all claims that PCs are faster or cheaper. I my experience they are neither.

>> Edited by page3 on Tuesday 24th January 16:49

annodomini2

6,860 posts

250 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
page3 said:
Not that we want to get in to a Mac Vs PC argument here (plenty of other forums for that!) but I refute all claims that PCs are faster or cheaper. I my experience they are neither.

>> Edited by page3 on Tuesday 24th January 16:49


PC's and Mac's both have their good points and bad points.

Although the major benefit of PC's is their wide use, if you've kids and they intend to use it, PC's are more widely used in schools and industry.

PC's are cheaper and more easily upgradable (you're not restricted to Apple only parts (although I believe this is changing)).

The new intel mac's could be interesting, as MAC OS is widely reknowned for being easier to use than windows. Would be guessing to seeing a port of that to PC's in the near future.

RobDickinson

31,343 posts

253 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
Is it realy a good time to buy a mac? Changeovers are never smooth.

Either your new mac wont run latter software (or poorly, how well do universal binaries work on old powerpc chips)?

Or the new intel one runs old software slowly (via interpretor).

Macs are good but expensive for what you get and often limited in upgrade potential too.

Zad

12,695 posts

235 months

Tuesday 24th January 2006
quotequote all
I wrote a long diatribe about why PCs are better than Macs. Then I realised that would sound as bad as the rabid Apple evangelists. So:

Apple. Great marketing. All their users believe it. Consider all the vague and nebulous comments Apple owners give, with a singular lack of evidence.

PCs. Market forces. Choice.

Whatever you go for, you should have at least 160GB hard drive, preferably 250GB (they cost about 20% more than an 80GB). 512MB memory is ok, 1GB memory is nice. 2GB is overkill. I would go for a 17" monitor if possible, your eyesight will thank you for it.

A £400 PC running XP will be as reliable as a Lexus. In fact, if it is that unreliable then you should send it back.

Dell also have a "factory outlet". Basically these are machines returned under distance selling regulations rather than faulty refurbs.

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/default.aspx?c=uk&

e.g.Dimension 5150/E510 (System Identifier. EJ06CAHZ)
Dimension 5150 Pentium 4 Processor 630 with HT technology (3.00GHz, 800MHz fsb, 2MB cache) English - Win XP SP2 Pro. 1GB memory, 160GB HDD, 128MB video card, 16 speed DVD recorder.

£389:03

If that's too much, how about: Dimension 3000 (System Identifier. ZB189252) XP Professional
3.06GHz Celeron , 1GB memory, 160GB HDD. 16x DVDR

£324:04

No monitor with either by the look of it. But they aren't exactly difficult to find. Or expensive.


Mike (ready for the evangelists)