As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/

[tech] It's Tech Spring Cleaning Week now. Clean your....tech....stuff.

19495969799

Posts

  • T4CTT4CT BAFTA-NOMINATED NAFTA-APPROVEDRegistered User regular
    Got myself one of them there newfangled Pixel-type phones

    (it's sick)

  • OghulkOghulk Tinychat Janitor TinychatRegistered User regular
    Is there any pdf app for mobile that will resize pdf files so that they're readable on a phone without scrolling left/right and zooming in?

    Cause that'd be so so nice.

  • JasconiusJasconius sword criminal mad onlineRegistered User regular
    after much soul searching I think i've decided to get a Razer Blade Stealth

    it occurred to me that my favorite computer of my life is the Macbook Air, and since they are done making that, and the compromised version of the Pro is actually a shit computer... the Stealth most closely emulates that

    If I like it I may end up getting a Core too, to see how well it works, which would hopefully let it game

  • nicopernicusnicopernicus Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    T4CT wrote: »
    Got myself one of them there newfangled Pixel-type phones

    (it's sick)

    Yeah? We're looking at getting new phones, and the pixel is near the top of my list. Anything in particular you like?

    Edit - I hear the camera is really good.

    nicopernicus on
  • T4CTT4CT BAFTA-NOMINATED NAFTA-APPROVEDRegistered User regular
    T4CT wrote: »
    Got myself one of them there newfangled Pixel-type phones

    (it's sick)

    Yeah? We're looking at getting new phones, and the pixel is near the top of my list. Anything in particular you like?

    Edit - I hear the camera is really good.

    Well admittedly I've only had it for two days but here is a list of things that I like. Some are things that reviews mention and others are things that are neglected but very very good.

    1) Fingerprint Gesture - For a long time, the reason I've use stuff like Nova Launcher on my android phones is primarily that reaching up to the top of the screen to pull the notification shade down is a chore. You can turn in a gesture that makes it so that when you swipe down on the fingerprint scanner, it pulls the notification shade down, and you can swipe up to send it back to where it came from. It owns.

    2) Camera - It's just....it's nutso good. Not only is the quality crazy, but it's fast, which is much more important to me. You're not waiting for HDR to process and missing multiple shots in the meantime. Still sucks for snapchat, but that's the fault of the android app for snapchat, not the phone itself.

    3) Battery life -- I hear the Pixel XL is even better for this (I only got the regular sized one because baby hands), but the last two days I've gotten 14+ hours off a full charge, and I use my phone quite a bit. I'm curious to see how long this remains the case, but for now, it's grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreat

    4) It's thin without being nutso -- this phone is thicker than you would expect (not crazily so, but slightly thicker than the iPhone 6/6S), which I actually really like, because I think it makes it waaaay easier to hold.

    5) It has a headphone jack, that's pretty cool.

    The rest of the stuff I like about it is pretty standard Android stuff. I think it's definitely the best Android phone you can buy in my opinion, I think speaking objectively it's probably top 3-4, depending on your preference for specific little things.



    Also, as someone who has no interest in dumping money into an Oculus/Vive, or even a PSVR in its current state, I'm pretty ready to get my hands on that Daydream headset next week.

  • NaphtaliNaphtali Hazy + Flow SeaRegistered User regular
    T4CT wrote: »
    1) Fingerprint Gesture - For a long time, the reason I've use stuff like Nova Launcher on my android phones is primarily that reaching up to the top of the screen to pull the notification shade down is a chore. You can turn in a gesture that makes it so that when you swipe down on the fingerprint scanner, it pulls the notification shade down, and you can swipe up to send it back to where it came from. It owns.

    Is this a Pixel only feature? Where is it in the settings? That'd be sick on the 6P.

    Steam | Nintendo ID: Naphtali | Wish List
  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    Naphtali wrote: »
    T4CT wrote: »
    1) Fingerprint Gesture - For a long time, the reason I've use stuff like Nova Launcher on my android phones is primarily that reaching up to the top of the screen to pull the notification shade down is a chore. You can turn in a gesture that makes it so that when you swipe down on the fingerprint scanner, it pulls the notification shade down, and you can swipe up to send it back to where it came from. It owns.

    Is this a Pixel only feature? Where is it in the settings? That'd be sick on the 6P.

    It was contended to be Pixel-exclusive, yeah. Google claimed it was due to hardware differences, but teardowns revealed the 6P and Pixel has the exact same reader. Then they have said it's due to firmware differences. Now they're "evaluating" the feasibility of putting gestures on the older phone.

  • Muddy WaterMuddy Water Quiet Batperson Registered User regular
    Heyo

    I got a pair of ATH M50Xs last month and while I'm pretty happy with them, I was hoping to add a bit more oomph. Would a headphone amp be sufficient or do I also need a DAC? I'm confused about whether I should go for a Fiio E17K or a Dragonfly. Those things are expensive though. They're rubbing up against what I paid for my headphones! Or I could just keep it simple and get an E6. I'm really new to this; I've never owned a pair of headphones this expensive. Any advice would be appreciated :)

  • TallahasseerielTallahasseeriel Registered User regular
    The Fiio e6 works pretty well I find at least with my hd518s.

    It will really kick up your volume though if you aren't careful and don't hit the dumb bass boost options because they sound like garbage.

    I found it really helps me pick out mid tones I can't hear as well with the headphones alone though, and at it's price point it's a good way to see if you really like the idea of an amp.

    A DAC would plug into he data port on your device and convert the audio to analog and amplify it straight from your lossless files, so they would probably sound even better assuming you got those sweet sweet flac files. I don't know how they sound beccause I only have the E6.

  • OghulkOghulk Tinychat Janitor TinychatRegistered User regular
    What do AMPs and DACs actually do to headphones? For example, I have some DT 770 80 ohm headphones that I plug into the front of my case that plugs into the mobo sound section. If I changed the setup around would I actually notice some difference? I love bass so I'm curious if this would increase the bass I get from the pair.

  • CampyCampy Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Oghulk wrote: »
    What do AMPs and DACs actually do to headphones? For example, I have some DT 770 80 ohm headphones that I plug into the front of my case that plugs into the mobo sound section. If I changed the setup around would I actually notice some difference? I love bass so I'm curious if this would increase the bass I get from the pair.

    So I'm far from an expert when it comes to this stuff, so take this all with a grain of salt, but my understanding of them is thus:

    A Digital To Analogue Converter is kind of given away in the name, taking the digital signal that the music is stored in and turning it into analogue electric signal. This analogue signal is then directly converted into sound by your headphones/speakers. The nature and quality of the chips doing the converting gives this signal certain audio/tonal characteristics. Some of these are more obvious, such as preferred heavy bass, or clear highs/mids; however you'll often hear audiophiles giving other less obvious terms like open, closed, shiny, brassy and all sorts of otheres. You'll see folks talking about headphones that are well matched with DACs as they have characteristics that compliment each other, either making up for where one is lacking or really honing a certain area of the sound together.

    An amplifier work after the DAC, taking the now analogue signal and basically makes it louder. When this signal is processed by the amp certain characteristics will be imparted onto it giving it yet more audio/tonal qualities, or lack thereof. High impedance (ohms) headphones will actually require an amp to give you decent listening volume. 80 ohms is a middle of the road impedance, so you probably haven't noticed it on your PC speakers. Though I suspect if you tried using it with a mobile device you might find the volume a bit quiet sometimes.

    So in short, yes a DAC and/or Amp can most definitely give you a bass boost, depending on which ones you buy. Those DT 770s are pretty nice, so I think you'll also notice a clearer "better" sound with any half decent DAC.

    Campy on
  • Muddy WaterMuddy Water Quiet Batperson Registered User regular
    The M50Xs have an impedance of 38 ohms. I have no idea what means, but apparently low impedance headphones don't need amps, sooo.... should I even go with one?

  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    38 ohms is pretty low and you really don't need an amp to drive it (although it doesn't necessarily hurt either). I also have an 80 ohm DT 770, and those can be reasonably driven by, say my PC's output without an external amp. My phone however just barely does it at max volume. I have a Fiio dac/amp for my desktop mostly for the convenience of a volume knob when I'm using the cans.

    When you start going into 250 ohm territory, that's when amps start becoming a necessity.

  • CampyCampy Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    If you find that you're just not getting enough volume out of whatever devices you use then an amp will be handy. As Zxerol mentions, Fiio make some decent DAC/amp combos. So you'll get a better sound quality from the DAC part, and a louder sound overall from the amp. The requirement of the latter depends on your devices as mentioned, the former is another upgrade to your sound quality.

    Campy on
  • djmitchelladjmitchella Registered User regular
    Campy wrote: »
    A Digital To Analogue is kind of given away in the name, taking the digital signal that the music is stored in and turning it into analogue electric signal.

    This only happens after the music has been converted from bytes-in-a-file to a digital signal that's the actual sound level. If the file is WAV or other raw audio, then the digital signal is basically the same thing that's stored in the file; if it's FLAC/APE/other lossless compression, then decompressing the file doesn't lose any audio information, but it still has to use CPU to uncompress it; if it's mp3 et al, then the bytes-in-a-file represent a lower-quality version of the original audio, but hopefully lower-quality in a way that your ears won't notice.


    (re: more bass -- another way to get that is to physically modify your headphones. Better ear seals mean more bass (so just putting your hands on the outside of the headphones and pressing them gently to your head, or bending the headband in, or squishier earpads). Closed-back can mean more bass as well, or sealing up any ports on the outsides of your headphones. I did that with a mod kit for my hp100's at home, which consisted of a bunch of sticky plastic stuff that you wedge into the insides of the headphone shell, and it reduces resonance in some places so the sound is clearer, and helps to "keep the bass in" in other ways. I actually found that it was too much bass in the end, so I undid that bit of the mod).

    A cheaper way to get more bass is just to find the equalizer settings in your audio playing app and turn the bass up a bit:
    30Q6EzR.png

  • CampyCampy Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Campy wrote: »
    A Digital To Analogue is kind of given away in the name, taking the digital signal that the music is stored in and turning it into analogue electric signal.

    This only happens after the music has been converted from bytes-in-a-file to a digital signal that's the actual sound level. If the file is WAV or other raw audio, then the digital signal is basically the same thing that's stored in the file; if it's FLAC/APE/other lossless compression, then decompressing the file doesn't lose any audio information, but it still has to use CPU to uncompress it; if it's mp3 et al, then the bytes-in-a-file represent a lower-quality version of the original audio, but hopefully lower-quality in a way that your ears won't notice.


    (re: more bass -- another way to get that is to physically modify your headphones. Better ear seals mean more bass (so just putting your hands on the outside of the headphones and pressing them gently to your head, or bending the headband in, or squishier earpads). Closed-back can mean more bass as well, or sealing up any ports on the outsides of your headphones. I did that with a mod kit for my hp100's at home, which consisted of a bunch of sticky plastic stuff that you wedge into the insides of the headphone shell, and it reduces resonance in some places so the sound is clearer, and helps to "keep the bass in" in other ways. I actually found that it was too much bass in the end, so I undid that bit of the mod).

    A cheaper way to get more bass is just to find the equalizer settings in your audio playing app and turn the bass up a bit:
    30Q6EzR.png

    The open backed headphones brings up one of those aforementioned odd descriptive words that I've seen thrown around. Did you find the sound more open, or natural with the open back setup? More akin to listening to a pair of speakers than headphones? I've been told that this is what to expect and is preferable on open back compared to closed back.

    And oh man does that winamp equalizer bring back some memories. Used to have a Dragonball Z skin that was the (spirit) bomb to teenage Campy years and years ago.

    Something else to mention on the lossless audio compression is that MP3s and their ilk tend to lose veracity and quality at the very upper and lower end of the spectrum. Makes sense because most of the listening by humans will be done in the mid range, so if you're going to make some savings those are the places to do it. Because of this however, if you're a mega bass head listening to complex rhythms and melodies down at the super low end then you might well notice some difference even with high bitrate (320kbps). Especially with those Behrdynamics, since if I remember correctly they have a pretty good response down at those same low ends.

    Campy on
  • djmitchelladjmitchella Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Campy wrote: »
    The open backed headphones brings up one of those aforementioned odd descriptive words that I've seen thrown around. Did you find the sound more open, or natural with the open back setup? More akin to listening to a pair of speakers than headphones? I've been told that this is what to expect and is preferable on open back compared to closed back.

    I have closed back at work because nobody else needs to listen to my music, and both closed and open back at home because the computer's in a room with occasionally noisy heating and closed back helps keep outside sounds out; HD600s for open back, Soundmagic hp100 for closed.

    I don't feel confident that I can use the audiophile terminology the right way, so here's some concrete examples based on things I've listened to a lot so have had some practise trying to hear things in the music. A/B testing with a splitter cable coming out of the amp, so I can do a reasonable job of comparing them. (dac destroyer into O2, lossless / high-bitrate mp3s)

    Warren G, Regulate (Radio Edit, single), opening; the different lines are at subtly different places in the soundstage, and while the distance that they move around in space is about the same with open/closed-back, there's more sense of space around the vocals with open-back; closed-back, the sound is as if it's actively inside my head; open-back, it's not like the sound is in front of/behind/left/right me, it just doesn't sound as much as if the voice is coming right from between my ears. Sound-wise, the synth bass rumble at the start is 'bigger' on the closed-back headphones; the shape of the sound is more like MMMMM than mmmmm, I guess?

    Den Harrow, Catch the Fox ("Remix", no idea where I got this from, sorry); the main bass hit about 20 seconds in is as impactful in both cases, it just feels "gentler" with the open-back ones somehow; more like you got hit by a pillow than by a, uh, pillow covered in leather? (sorry) Again, for spacing, there's a little secondary echo for the main synth melody on the right (which awesomely I'd never noticed until I listened carefully with decent headphones); this time, the soundstage definitely feels wider in the open-backed ones. Also, the highs are sharper on the closed-back ones; I could tell which was which when I started playing it purely because of that.

    Eagles, Journey of the Sorcerer (One of those nights) This sounds like just the same sort of bull that I've read in reviews, I realise, but honestly I can't think of a better way to say it -- the HD600s sound like there is someone there in the room playing a guitar, rather than that I'm listening to a recording of someone playing a guitar. Just all the little subtleties are there so that it sounds "real". The HP100s sound like a very good recording of someone playing a guitar; all the same sounds are there, but something subtle about how they go together doesn't quite feel the same.

    Monty Alexander, Sweet Georgia Brown (chesky audiophile test disk 1); all the percussion instruments are distinct with both headphones, but here, the closed-back ones definitely have more impact, and the highs for the cymbals/snares are brought out more.


    Generally speaking, yes, I guess with these two headphones, the open-back ones are definitely more "natural" sounding, so for music where you want that, they'd be the way to go as long as sound leaking in/out isn't a problem.



    Now, for music where there's less concern about sounding "natural", things aren't necessarily the same.

    Alex Szahala, Alanarama (Arkitech remix; Bonkers 17): no natural instruments here at all, not a lot of soundstage, just a bunch of music coming at you pretty enthusiastically. It definitely hits harder with the HP100s here -- you know that there's percussion lines hammering away at you, and the break in the middle and buildup afterwards sounds much more like the music is staying at the same sort of level of energy, just not quite as loudly; on the HD600s, it's almost, I dunno, "comforting" when that bit happens? It feels a lot more relaxed. On the other hand, I can listen to this at a higher overall volume on the HD600s before it starts to get hard on my ears.

    Sam Torero, Endorphin Machine (Dancemania Speed Buuyuden); it feels almost as if the HD600s are trying to tone things down somewhat; in this case the closed-back ones are definitely better, because I don't want the rough edges to be smoothed off here -- the things that make the highs a bit harder to listen to in other tracks work in their favour here.

    Mark Franklin, Release To The System (Artificial Intelligence II) -- this time, the HD600s are nicer, because it's a much more relaxed sort of track, and the mellower sound of these headphones goes better with the music.

    Looking for other subtle differences; looking at clarity of vocals, for instance:

    Pop Will Eat Itself, Def Con One (This is the day...this is the hour...this is this!) There's a lot of other stuff going on around the lyrics here, but it's still possible to hear that there's more than one person singing the same lyrics at times (which, again, I hadn't noticed until I was listening carefully) -- both headphones you can tell it, but with the HD600s the second vocal's more distinctive, his voice is a bit deeper than Clint's.

    Lyrics Born: Do That There (Young Einstein Hoo-Hoo mix) (Same !@#$ Different Day): there are _many_ lyrics here, and unless you have some headphones that are pretty clear, you will have a hard time keeping up. In this case, having them a bit closer in with the closed-back headphones actually helps.

    Buck 65, Wicked and Weird (This right here is Buck 65); his voice isn't exactly smooth with either, but as I said somewhere else, it feels a bit easier to listen to with the HD600s, which is a good thing for listening to music and enjoying it, but it's fractionally less detailed-sounding in some ways. (but on the other hand the soundstage is narrower, and this may also just be more highs in the HP100s)

    Philip Glass, Koyaanisqatsi (Koyaanisqatsi). Okay, this isn't really about "clarity" of vocals, but there's something weird here I noticed; the HD600s sound like the lows go a bit lower, but the HP100s are more bass-y, if you see what I mean.


    It's actually been interesting going back and forth -- (of these two headphones) sometimes I prefer the closed-back ones when I'm listening for little fiddly details, sometimes I prefer the open-back ones when I find myself getting lost in the music itself. I think that's one thing that people say in reviews of the HD600s, that they make it a very _pleasant_ experience listening to music, and I think that's a really good way of putting it.


    (edit: doing a quick check with another couple of pairs I have sitting around;

    AKG K181DJ UEs (closed-back) / Superlux hd681 (open-back); comparing these two, this time the open-back ones have a lot more noticeable bass, they're definitely "warmer", but they're not as open feeling in this case; the soundstage is richer feeling, and wider, but more "congested", with all the percussion in Sweet Georgia Brown, it sounds more as if things are all on top of one another, there's not as much separation. And while there's more bass, it's fuzzier; the opening to Jai Ho (Slumdog millionaire OST) around 50 seconds in, there's lots of bass with the HD681s, but it is sloshing all over the rest of the music going, it's as if the bass is coming from someone driving by with big speakers in the back of their car. I didn't realise before what people meant when they said this sort of thing about bass, but now I totally get it. The K181DJs keep the bass separate from the other sounds, but all I can really tell there is that it's some sort of bass drum, I think.

    Listening on the HD600s, now I know what the bass is _meant_ to sound like; I can tell that it's a percussion instrument, and it sounds as if it's being hit by a hand or possibly a large soft-ended stick on a foot pedal-- it sounds like a physical thing being played, rather than a bunch of farty rumbles (hd681s). or a generic sort of bass-drum sound (k181s) With the hp100s, the drum is still there and still clear, but the slightly louder highs makes it harder to hear the bass because the vocals and strings cover it up a bit more.)


    And, all that aside, Massdrop is going to be running a drop on Sennheiser HD650s (re-stickered) for $199 in a few days, which is an incredible deal, and anyone looking for open-back headphones should seriously consider getting those, because you can pretty much just stop upgrading at that point until you get to very silly amounts of money.

    djmitchella on
  • Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    And, all that aside, Massdrop is going to be running a drop on Sennheiser HD650s (re-stickered) for $199 in a few days, which is an incredible deal, and anyone looking for open-back headphones should seriously consider getting those, because you can pretty much just stop upgrading at that point until you get to very silly amounts of money.

    This. HD650s usually sell somewhere around the $400+ level, and are basically the last step before you get into stupid money for headphones. Just about everyone into headphones ever has had or is planning to get a pair of HD600/650s, it's like going from a Chevy SS (which is a real nice sporty sedan) to a Porsche 911 Turbo S (which is a real nice sportscar). If you want significantly better performance than the Turbo S (or the HD650s), you need to step up into the hypercar level of devices (918, LaFerrari, P1).

  • BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular


    wUfIB72.jpg
    sennheiser orpheus, the best way to spend $50 000

    https://www.wired.com/2015/11/sennheiser-orpheus/

  • a5ehrena5ehren AtlantaRegistered User regular
    And, all that aside, Massdrop is going to be running a drop on Sennheiser HD650s (re-stickered) for $199 in a few days, which is an incredible deal, and anyone looking for open-back headphones should seriously consider getting those, because you can pretty much just stop upgrading at that point until you get to very silly amounts of money.

    Holy shit, thanks for the heads up on this.

    The run is limited to 5,000 units, so I imagine it will sell out fast.

  • NaphtaliNaphtali Hazy + Flow SeaRegistered User regular
    god fucking damn it. finally upgraded my 6P to 7.0 late last week, battery life was fine so I figured I dodged the bullet on the upgrade issue

    NOPE

    this week its been chugging while doing absolutely nothing. this morning I wiped the cache and recharged it. its been sitting on my desk doing nothing and its lost 5% in an hour. unfucking believable

    Steam | Nintendo ID: Naphtali | Wish List
  • OghulkOghulk Tinychat Janitor TinychatRegistered User regular
    Here's a history of Android icons.

    the one thing I'll always give iOS over Android: they have a much better looking UI. Those icons are fucking atrocious

  • KarlKarl Registered User regular
    So android sound issue

    I'm using Bluetooth headphones and the sound comes out all distorted in certain apps but not when I listen to music/podcasts.

    For example I can't seem to get audio to work right in worms 4 but it's fine when I use power amp or Spotify

    Nexus 5x with android 7.1.1

    Any ideas?

    I had this issue with my Nexus 6 when I wasn't in the android beta as well

  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    a5ehren wrote: »
    And, all that aside, Massdrop is going to be running a drop on Sennheiser HD650s (re-stickered) for $199 in a few days, which is an incredible deal, and anyone looking for open-back headphones should seriously consider getting those, because you can pretty much just stop upgrading at that point until you get to very silly amounts of money.

    Holy shit, thanks for the heads up on this.

    The run is limited to 5,000 units, so I imagine it will sell out fast.

    Sheeyit more than 11k waiting on it.

  • TallahasseerielTallahasseeriel Registered User regular
    My mom is in the market for a new pc but is looking around best buy. I hope she won't get ripped off.

  • XeddicusXeddicus Registered User regular
    Almost certainly to some small degree compared what you could build for her. Here hoping it's just that amount, though.

  • OghulkOghulk Tinychat Janitor TinychatRegistered User regular
    Looking to get a new laptop for a family member. Suggestions on something cheap that can use the internet and play videos without issue?

  • XeddicusXeddicus Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    If all they want to do is surf the webs an HP Stream is ~$200. So are a bunch of chromebooks.

    Xeddicus on
  • honoverehonovere Registered User regular
    One of the Win10 updates seems to have broken WinDVD. Like doesn't even start and isn't showing up in the programs list broken.

  • TallahasseerielTallahasseeriel Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Xeddicus wrote: »
    Almost certainly to some small degree compared what you could build for her. Here hoping it's just that amount, though.

    well unfortunately she is now looking at all-in-one things.

    I would build a tower for her but then I'd have to drive down to her house every time she needs tech support...

    Tallahasseeriel on
  • jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    Oghulk wrote: »
    Looking to get a new laptop for a family member. Suggestions on something cheap that can use the internet and play videos without issue?

    If you want the absolute cheapest that can handle web browsing and Netflix duty, the Dell Inspiron 11" is going on sale for $99.99 at 6PM ET on the 24th. It's very barebones (dual-core Celeron, 2GB of RAM, 32GB flash storage) but it should handle basic internet use/video playback.

    If you don't need Windows, a Chromebook could be a good option.

  • TallahasseerielTallahasseeriel Registered User regular
    Like my mom is looking at this

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-inspiron-23-8-touch-screen-all-in-one-amd-a8-series-8gb-memory-1tb-hard-drive-black-white/4205600.p?skuId=4205600

    And I'm like, that is way overpriced for the CPU and stuff, and the regular monitor she has still is fine and she doesn't need touch stuff.

    Also my mom' husband is buying it for her for Christmas, which means actually putting a tower together myself is probably out of the question anyway, which sucks because I can put together an afordable i3 or i5 system for her for somewhere around 500 bucks easy.

  • jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Uriel wrote: »
    Like my mom is looking at this

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-inspiron-23-8-touch-screen-all-in-one-amd-a8-series-8gb-memory-1tb-hard-drive-black-white/4205600.p?skuId=4205600

    And I'm like, that is way overpriced for the CPU and stuff, and the regular monitor she has still is fine and she doesn't need touch stuff.

    Also my mom' husband is buying it for her for Christmas, which means actually putting a tower together myself is probably out of the question anyway, which sucks because I can put together an afordable i3 or i5 system for her for somewhere around 500 bucks easy.

    Yeah, an AIO is going to be the most expensive pre-built option because of the monitor and integrated hardware layout. If she's dead set on getting an AIO, what about this one? Same specs as the Dell, save being lighter on RAM, but it's $175 cheaper. The specs list the RAM as being in an actual slot, so you could theoretically upgrade it to 8GB if she needs it and it would still be cheaper than the Dell.

    If you could convince her to just get a pre-built tower, she's going to get much better hardware for her money. This Lenovo comes with an A10 APU, 12GB of RAM, and a 2TB hard drive, and costs less than the cheaper HP AIO I linked above. For $650 you can get towers with i5s and dedicated (if low-end) graphics card.

    jgeis on
  • TallahasseerielTallahasseeriel Registered User regular
    edited November 2016
    Yeah I just put together a tower for her on newegg.

    The only thing I forgot to put in the wishlist was an optical drive (which she only needs because she has some old pictures bakced up but I could just put those on an external drive for her eventually.) but it was about the same price as the dell all in one except with a i5 6400 skylake and 8 gigs of DDR4 (even a 460 radeon which might actually be optional) and a new copy of windows 10.

    The guy at best buy told her not to get a lenovo :lol:

    Tallahasseeriel on
  • OghulkOghulk Tinychat Janitor TinychatRegistered User regular
    I still want windows 10 on there laptop and maybe Microsoft word

  • jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    Do laptops still come with word? I thought they all came with a free trial of Office 365 these days?

  • jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    @Uriel just get an Intel Compute Stick, plug it into her monitor, and voila, she has an AIO.

  • JasconiusJasconius sword criminal mad onlineRegistered User regular
    laptops come with a 365 trial

    cant really recall them ever coming with Word

  • KarlKarl Registered User regular
    Yeah you have to pay for ms office as standard now

  • jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    Jasconius wrote: »
    laptops come with a 365 trial

    cant really recall them ever coming with Word

    I definitely feel like the laptop I bought before I began college came with Word, but that was around 2008.

This discussion has been closed.