My pc died a while ago and I can’t get a new pc at the moment. I’m looking for a laptop to tide me over until I can repair it or replace it. Budget is 500-800 USD, any recommendations?
Hey Bear!
There are a few threads here about laptop recommendations - I’m not sure if you’ve seen them. Lots of good advice!
The reason I’m replying is because you said you have a budget of up to $800. If you applied that $800 to a desktop build instead of a laptop, you could put together something really decent.
Is there a reason you want to purchase a laptop rather than a desktop? If it has to be a laptop, I’m sure we can get you some good recommendations, but dollar-for-dollar you’ll do much better with a desktop.
Also, it would be helpful to know the use-case. Will this be just for WoW and do you want high graphics settings? Are you looking for a work/travel computer and only want to run WoW on low settings? These things make a huge difference in selecting the right equipment.
There is also the question of how soon you want/need to purchase. The next generation of components is due out soon. AMD has some exciting updates coming and Intel is making a big move as I mentioned in this thread:
So there may be some benefit to waiting.
Well if I can build a computer for 800 then heck yea I’ll do a pc! It’s mostly going to be for wow/ league with some older blizzard games like D2
Do you already have a display, keyboard, mouse, that you like?
If so, what resolution?
Also, do you need to build NOW, or can you wait for a few months/end of year to see what AMD releases CPU-wise, and nvidia’s GPU launch ~30 days?
I ask because this can influence your build choices based on options and price.
I got the whole setup. Basically what happened was either my cards or mobo died; it was coming though because my pc is like 10 years old
Edit: preferably now so I can do the pre patch event but if I have to wait then oh well
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This is a more modest build but it will perform very well in wow and most games, especially if you are on a 1080p/60hz display.
PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/W92Z6R
CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 3100 3.6 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI MAG B550M BAZOOKA Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial P1 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($59.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6 GB SC ULTRA GAMING Video Card ($239.99 @ Walmart)
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($49.19 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX (2017) 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $790.12
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-08-20 12:33 EDT-0400
Ideally, I would advise AGAINST placeholder components, but since you have a more limited budget, these will still perform very well and with the more powerful PSU and motherboard, you will be able to upgrade to Ryzen 4th generation and a newer graphics card within the next 2 years and still have a very powerful configuration.
Some wiggle-room - If you have existing hard drives/SSD’s that work, you could drop the 2TB HDD and then apply that savings towards a Ryzen 5 3600, and be set for quite a while for 2 years then upgrade the GPU alone.
I would advise against reusing PSUs and cases, depending on how old/quality they are.
Thank you for the list! Definitely going to start buying parts. This will be my first time putting a computer together, so exciting!
Edit: I might buy a new case then, my old pc is an alienware so everything might not fit anyways
np - may want to see if you can salvage your hard drives - might save you a few bucks to apply towards that 3600.
Although if you don’t already have an SSD, definitely get one that can house OS and WoW.
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You should definitely buy a case - those old alienware rigs tend not to be very upgrade friendly.
OP - as Sal said, get the 3600 if you can. I have one and it runs WoW like a champ. My son also has one - he is a gamer and he is very happy with the performance.
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Just saw that edit!
Only things worth salvaging on OEM systems (especially Alienware, who tends to make everything as proprietary as they can) are hard drives. Most often the CPU/RAM/GPU are what you’re looking to upgrade, so that’s off the table already.
I don’t have any PERSONAL experience with that Cooler Master case, and the thermals might suck, but it looks cool. If I were you, I’d do some digging on cases in your budget that perform well and apply that.
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The only change i would do to Sal’s build is the cpu. Would definetly recommend going with the Ryzen 3 3300x over the Ryzen 3 3100. Probably downgrade the ddr4 3600 kit to a ddr4 3200 kit to free up a bit of the budget needed.
I would too, if you can find one!
They’re like a unicorn or something, or sold at such a high markup the 3600 is a better choice. You can buy it on some sites, but generally seems to be backorder for who knows how long.
One thing I would do is revisit cases - I’m not sure how good the CM Q300L is, so search around that price point and reviews for the best option.