Basic computer wanted

[Gooose]

Hi guys

I did ask this question before and I had some good replies but the pc I bought from Amazon just doesn’t want to play ball with the internet so I’m asking again but this time I could do with something with built in internet.

I bought this one

HP EliteDesk 600 G1 SFF Desktop PC - Intel Quad Core i5-4570 3.20GHz, 16GB RAM, 128GB SDD & 1TB HDD with Windows 10 Pro (Renewed) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B084X48QZX/ref=cm_sw_r...

I sent one back with just stopped working after about an hour or so and I’m about to send my second one back because the Wi-Fi just won’t stay connected. The vendor did try and send a bigger Wi-Fi dongle which helped a bit but it’s doing my head in now. I really just want to turn the thing on connect to the internet one time and just happy browse the web, I really didn’t think it was that hard to make a pc which does this? Maybe I need a chrome book thing? I don’t know.

I bought that pc for £160 at the time and I don’t really want to spend much more than that tbh. All I do is a bit of matched betting and printing for my daughter and eBay. I just need a fair few tabs open at one time.

Any ideas?

[Cloudy147]

Chrome book, yes!

They are perfect computers for people who don’t want to have to deal with computer things.

https://www.currys.co.uk/products/asus-c423-14-chr...

£180, brand new. It’ll browse lots of web, let you print things and edit documents, either by using Microsoft web apps or chrome’s own office suites.

If that’s all you want to use it for you should check them out. You can go and click about with one in curry’s and see if it works for you.

I got one for my parents years ago and I’ve never had to deal with pc issues since.

[Corso Marche]

That C423 will only receive updates for another 2 years.

I'd look at newer devices. Still some very affordable devices coming to market in 2022 with Chrome OS.

I think it was 2020 when 8-year updates were introduced. So any machine launched since 2020 will receive 8 years of updates from its launch date.

[Gooose]

Can they be linked up to a monitor as well? Stupid question really but they aren’t limited some way are they?

[dxg]

What about putting Chrome OS Flex onto the laptop that isn't working for you?

There are walk-throughs on youtube. All you need is a USB stick and a bit of time.

[Gooose]

Corso Marche said:

That C423 will only receive updates for another 2 years.

I'd look at newer devices. Still some very affordable devices coming to market in 2022 with Chrome OS.

I think it was 2020 when 8-year updates were introduced. So any machine launched since 2020 will receive 8 years of updates from its launch date.

How can you tell how old a laptop is? And how long it will be updated for?

[Captain_Morgan]

I see you brought a desktop previously, is it not possible to either run a Ethernet cable between the pc and router or move the router closer to allow you to run a cable?

[cwis]

Captain_Morgan said:

I see you brought a desktop previously, is it not possible to either run a Ethernet cable between the pc and router or move the router closer to allow you to run a cable?

Good call. Or...

I've never had a problem with powerline network adapters - they just work:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TL-PA4010PKIT-Passthrough...

I've got various makes scattered about - one in the shed, one in the office etc etc.

[Gooose]

Captain_Morgan said:

I see you brought a desktop previously, is it not possible to either run a Ethernet cable between the pc and router or move the router closer to allow you to run a cable?

I live in a crap broadband area tbh so I’m on the 3 mobile broadband and to get the signal around the house it has to be placed quite centrally and my office is on the opposite side the the best signal, so kinda need Wi-Fi really

[Gooose]

cwis said:

Captain_Morgan said:

I see you brought a desktop previously, is it not possible to either run a Ethernet cable between the pc and router or move the router closer to allow you to run a cable?

Good call. Or...

I've never had a problem with powerline network adapters - they just work:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TL-PA4010PKIT-Passthrough...

I've got various makes scattered about - one in the shed, one in the office etc etc.

What is this sorcery!

[Corso Marche]

Gooose said:

Can they be linked up to a monitor as well? Stupid question really but they aren’t limited some way are they?

Yes, they can be used with external monitors (and external keyboards, mice etc)
If all you're doing (as per your opening post) is web-browsing then it makes perfect sense.
For other uses such as word-processing, spreadsheets, presentations, image editing, etc etc etc you'll be using online web apps/services, progressive web apps etc If the machine is powerful enough then Debian Linux desktop apps can be run, but I'd not recommend that on budget machines.

Gooose said:

How can you tell how old a laptop is? And how long it will be updated for?

For Chromebooks and Chromeboxes there's an easy to read list at the link below;
https://support.google.com/chrome/a/answer/6220366...

The easiest option right now might be sorting out your internal network. See the suggestion of powerline adapters to give you better coverage in your office space via ethernet or wifi via the powerline adapter.

[RVB]

Something like this should do:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/194488598492?hash=item2...

It has W10, 8GB RAM, SSD, DVD drive, several USB ports (will have external USB wifi dongle). Also very compact; 24 x 24 x 6.5cm, 3kg.
8GB RAM is plenty for light duty tasks.
The SSD is small-capacity but shouldn't be a problem for light duty tasks and will make windows updates/restarts a lot less of a chore.
The processor is old and has relatively limited throughput but won't be a problem for light duties.

W11 isn't supported but one of my computers is an identical machine and I bypassed the W11 hardware requirements and used it for testing purposes - it works just fine and updates occur regularly.

My daily computer being used to write this is a closely related 10+ year old Optiplex 780 with quad core Q9400 processor, upgraded to 1TB SSD, 16GB RAM and W11.
It is plenty for office tasks, browsing etc and my daily is barely distinguishable in everyday email//internet/office use from my wife's 1.5yr old Hewlett-Packard with Octa core processor and 16GB RAM. My old daily is a lot more stable than the wife's expensive HP, too.

Edited by RVB on Friday 11th March 18:55

[Gooose]

It’s the wifi problems which is causing me grief to be honest though. The first one I sent back worked fine with the dongle, the one I have now just drops out half the time, I’m not into computers at all and I don’t have any interest going into settings to find the problem.
I just want something I can turn on connect to wifi one time, sign in to Google or whatever and be done. Then browse the internet with like 10-20 tabs open lol

But even this seems to be quite expensive now, I’ve had a look at chromebooks but something that’s supported for a while and with 8gb ram and it’s bordering on a second hand MacBook price

[Corso Marche]

I'd sort your WiFi first. The machine you have is probably perfectly usable once it has a stable connection.

See the earlier comments about power line adaptors etc

[essayer]

I’ve never got on with those mini usb wifi things and Windows. The generic Amazon/eBay ones work, then randomly don’t, even with good signal. maybe proper branded ones (TP Link etc) are better.

Alternatives: Powerline, mesh wifi with Ethernet out, dedicated PCI wifi card.

[Captain_Morgan]

Gooose said:

It’s the wifi problems which is causing me grief to be honest though. The first one I sent back worked fine with the dongle, the one I have now just drops out half the time, I’m not into computers at all and I don’t have any interest going into settings to find the problem.
I just want something I can turn on connect to wifi one time, sign in to Google or whatever and be done. Then browse the internet with like 10-20 tabs open lol

But even this seems to be quite expensive now, I’ve had a look at chromebooks but something that’s supported for a while and with 8gb ram and it’s bordering on a second hand MacBook price

As has already been said a pair of £30 power line adapters will likely cure your woes.

Buy from amazon and if they don’t cure the issue back they go.

[paulrockliffe]

I think you'd be better spending your money on getting a local PC repair/setup type person to come and sort things out.

There's nothing wrong with your desktop, the issue is with your internet/WiFi setup and should be an easy fix, but it'll be best diagnosed by someone that can come and look at it.

[Gooose]

Captain_Morgan said:

As has already been said a pair of £30 power line adapters will likely cure your woes.

Buy from amazon and if they don’t cure the issue back they go.

True, I’ll get a set a see how they do!

[Mr Pointy]

Gooose said:

It’s the wifi problems which is causing me grief to be honest though. The first one I sent back worked fine with the dongle, the one I have now just drops out half the time, I’m not into computers at all and I don’t have any interest going into settings to find the problem.
I just want something I can turn on connect to wifi one time, sign in to Google or whatever and be done. Then browse the internet with like 10-20 tabs open lol

But even this seems to be quite expensive now, I’ve had a look at chromebooks but something that’s supported for a while and with 8gb ram and it’s bordering on a second hand MacBook price

Look at sorting out the internet connection as it will probably cost you far less than a new PC, which is likley to have the same issues. As has been mentioned Powerline is a system where a network connection is carried around the house using the mains wiring: you have two adapters plugged into a mains socket, one near the router & one near your PC, & a network cable from the router into the first adapter & out of the second adapter to your PC. It isn't 100% guaranteed to work but many people find them excellent.

Good brands are generally TP Link, Netgear & Devolo but the choice can be confusing so here's the TP LInk range:
https://www.tp-link.com/uk/home-networking/powerli...

Many of these are available for delivery today from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=powerline&i=compu...

Answering a few questions can filter the choice down:

Do you want to be able to use the mains socket for another device? You can see that some pass through the 13A socket to the front
Do you want wi-fi as well as Ethernet at the PC end?
Would two or more network connections at the PC be useful/required?

[RVB]

Gooose said:

It’s the wifi problems which is causing me grief to be honest though. The first one I sent back worked fine with the dongle, the one I have now just drops out half the time, I’m not into computers at all and I don’t have any interest going into settings to find the problem.
I just want something I can turn on connect to wifi one time, sign in to Google or whatever and be done. Then browse the internet with like 10-20 tabs open lol

But even this seems to be quite expensive now, I’ve had a look at chromebooks but something that’s supported for a while and with 8gb ram and it’s bordering on a second hand MacBook price

Due to me running many old computers (most not having a built-in wifi card/antenna) I have used a lot of USB dongles.
In general, the smaller the dongle the more likely it is to overheat and drop out. Also many of the smaller ones have lower throughput.

Some of the better ones I have are like a proper antenna. They look like a USB flash drive with a half-pencil sized antenna sticking out at an angle. They have much better data throughput and much stronger signal than the little dongles.

They resemble those in the links below but I am not necessarily recommending those items or sellers and beware because many sellers think it's OK to substitute with a different (inferior) design.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/255047739596?hash=item3...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/353177088393?hash=item5...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275026081255?hash=item4...