[blackdra19]

Can anyone tell me wat is the cost difference between the following 2 listed above and the pros and cons of them.

[dr_disciple]

Self assembled gives you a freedom to choose which ever parts you want in the market. For e.g. the same model of a VGA card comes in different flavors in terms of clock speed or type of cooling.

But for those who goes for pre-assembled, they just want the solution. They don't care what's inside the box. They just care about whether it works or not. Even though its not the best value for money.

[Del_CtrlnoAlt]

self assembled = either quality parts or cheaper parts

pre assembled = mass ordered parts for general usage

so with the same specs (on items) self assembled might be more expensive if go for quality parts and cheaper cost if going for low end parts.

Just look at price list for Mobo will do. same chipset also can have different pricing. And same CPU can have over a wide variety of mobo use. Rams as well, for most ppl who isn't into overclocking or bling blings won't even know the diff between the brands of chips or CL of rams that they're buying.

[blackdra19]

then if standard pre-assembled vs self-assembled is how much different in costs i mean,

[dr_disciple]

You can't compare the parts. Let say the motherboard, Dell has their own design. No 2oz copper or full cap stuff. Or sometimes not even more than 2 sata ports. And you don't exactly see Dell selling the m.board by itself.

[blackdra19]

let's not compare parts then, we'll compare performance,similiar performance which one cheaper?

[Del_CtrlnoAlt]

Originally Posted by blackdra19

let's not compare parts then, we'll compare performance,similiar performance which one cheaper?

well, there is the warranty 'mark-up' also, and other mark-ups and discounts. its hard to make a comparison like this.

[universe]

in business, there's always this thing call TCO, total cost of ownership

simply put, it's not the initial cost, but also the after purchase cost such as downtime, servicing time, troubleshoot time

it's quite hard to quantify which is cheaper...

preassembled comes with support and if there's anything wrong, you'll just give them a call and they'll cover it for you within warranty period
self-assembled, you'll have to do yourself.
if you are competent, it's fast and easy. else it's slow

then again, it's hard to compare as you might enjoy troubleshooting it, which is an added value of self-assembled.

personally, i would only recommend self-assembled to ppl who are interested in hardware and troubleshooting. else go for pre-assembled to save yourself the trouble (by paying slightly more, perharps)

[dr_disciple]

How do you compare? Do you know which motherboard chipset does each branded machine use?

Originally Posted by blackdra19

let's not compare parts then, we'll compare performance,similiar performance which one cheaper?

[shard]

Other than performance, there is also support to consider.

For DIY PCs, if something goes wrong, you are pretty much on your own, you need to troubleshoot it and then remove the spoilt component and send it for repairs or a replacement.

For pre-assembled PCs like Acer, Dell and HP, the entire box is under warranty, just call and someone will come and fix it.

I think this is the real consideration when choosing a DIY or a pre-assembled PC.

[batuchka]

I am a tad concerned with some of my clients zero knowledge troubleshoot, lazy to learn yet ask ppl to OC their machines zzzz CMOS cleared dunno how to go BIOS settings

[blackdra19]

Originally Posted by batuchka

I am a tad concerned with some of my clients zero knowledge troubleshoot, lazy to learn yet ask ppl to OC their machines zzzz CMOS cleared dunno how to go BIOS settings

lol.

[CUEBALL]

Originally Posted by batuchka

I am a tad concerned with some of my clients zero knowledge troubleshoot, lazy to learn yet ask ppl to OC their machines zzzz CMOS cleared dunno how to go BIOS settings

lol... but because of them, u earn right?? Actually you look at it... i tink they choose to ignore this lack of knowledge as they feel it fast and easier to seek help then learn..

When it come to tink i alway remember the classic desktop joke..

[batuchka]

Haha true but i would think it in their best interest to at least get acquainted with their hardware and learn if they have this desire to run out of factory spec

[booest]

i am so tempted to get the new iMAc 27"
but a lot is holding me back since my DIY system looks mighty fine