New PC System Specifications
As new computer system prices have declined and their power and utility have increased, the number of system purchases has similarly increased. The question arises each time what components and capabilities to acquire, leading the buyer into an extensive alphabet soup of choices and considerations. Here we take a look at the components to consider and some thoughts around what to purchase to maintain the bang for the buck.
The target use for the theoretical system is average and general business, excluding minimum basic operation and top of the line / state of the art choices. In other words, we will consider the system for most of us under common use.
We
start with the CPU, the brain of the system.
The highest class available is what Intel calls the ‘P4’. The previous class ‘P3’ has been available
for several years now. This component
also has a speed factor to consider.
Think of these elements as the number of cylinders [P3 vs P4] and
horsepower of an engine [speed measured in Megahertz]. A faster P3 serves almost all applications
more than adequately although a modest speed P4 markedly outperforms fast
P3s. The ‘obsolescence factor’ requires
consideration of the higher class chip.
That is, several years after purchase, the useful life of the system
naturally is longer for the higher class chip.
The P4 motherboard includes several design enhancements for the higher
class chip and new technology developed since the P3 motherboard. Software that will use the specific design
of the P4 will be available in the coming months.
As
usual you get what you pay for. A
middle-speed P4 costs about $200 more than a higher speed P3. It is the writer’s opinion that the cost
difference is worth the investment when considering the entire useful life of
the system even though at the outset the initial cost savings may appear
desirable.
This
component’s main consideration is quantity and secondly it’s speed.
Memory
requirements have increased significantly over the years as memory cost has
declined. This matches the increase in
the standard amount of memory included with packaged systems. Usually the amount of memory can be easily
increased at a future date but with the current low cost it is worthwhile to
consider a greater amount than otherwise.
Without theorizing on specific requirements of various programs, it is
proposed that 128MB is a reasonably adequate amount for above average use in
today’s programs with some to spare.
64MB works but will probably warrant increase in the future, 256MB might
never be needed or useful in the life of the system. That being said, some are saying the most recent release of
Microsoft’s desktop application package can benefit from 256MB even though
Microsoft’s stated memory requirements are not near that amount.
As
to memory speed, of course more is better.
For a P3 system look for 133MHz memory.
Before new P4 memory technology to be released later this year, 800MHz
is what to look for.
It
is assumed that the target system does not access all its programs over a
network and thus benefits from a measurable amount of local storage. Like almost all other components in today’s
systems, storage requirements have also decreased significantly over the last
few years. In fact the largest disks
available a couple years ago are not even made anymore. Today, 20MB is very common and 30MB is
available for a small additional cost.
There
are two primary technologies available, IDE and SCSI. IDE is very common and less expensive than SCSI. If cost were not a consideration, SCSI is
faster but not a great value for our purposes.
There
are two specifications in this component, memory and data path width. As to memory, 16MB and 32MB cards are common
and 64MB is available. The 32MB
capacity represents the approximate price / performance break point today. The data path width choices are 64-bit and
128-bit. Some applications benefit from
the greater capability but each option costs approximately $30, not a large
amount but quite a percentage difference.
Another consideration is that upgrading the video system usually
requires a full replacement of the adapter, pressing the case to reduce the
chance of requiring an upgrade later by opting for greater capacilities at the
outset. If budget allows, the better
capabilities are recommended as applications are currently available that
benefit from this – 64MB, 128-bit video cards are available for under $150
Related
to the video system, the monitor selection similarly has considerations. With today’s video capabilities, larger
screen sizes are useful. The most
common smallest monitor measures 15” and is not recommended. The largest commonly available size is 21”
and not worth the extra cost. A 19”
monitor runs $325-350 and is very desireable if budget allows, 17” is
definitely recommended and available under $200.
Commonly
available these days are CDROM drives that can be written, or ‘burned’ as the
operation is commonly referred. This can
be a very useful capability for data backup and storage purposes, or any other
large data uses. By the end of this
year, watch for a new CDRW technology that will greatly increase the storage
capacity beyond the current 650MB. The
other specification parameter is the burn speed, referred to by a numeric “X”
factor, the price break occurring at 12x.
This rewritable device has fallen under $100, extremely economical in
historical terms.
Sound
is usually a standard feature but can be excluded for a nominal cost
savings. It is strongly recommended
that at least standard sound be included.
For quality purposes only, the user can consider a speaker upgrade for
$20-50 but this isn’t necessary. If the
budget is tight, that extra speaker upgrade cost is better put into one of the
other options discussed herein.
Most
newer systems are coming with built in networking capability. Even for home stand-alone use, this can
eventually be useful even if not at the outset. Don’t be afraid of it or exclude it if it’s included in a
standard system package that may be considered. However, it need not be added if there is not a known need over
the projected life of the system.
Merely
from personal experience, the seemingly attractive dimensions of the ‘mini’
towers are not worth the inconvenience of later upgrade or service access or
drive-bay capacity. Conversely, the
larger full-sized cases are also inconvenient, leaving the recommendation for
the so-called ‘mid’ sized cases. With the
case comes a power supply, their capacity measure in watts. Look for 300 watts if available, otherwise
250 watts can work unless a large number of options are installed.
Also
referred to as battery backup, this can be very useful and potential insurance
against system damage from power spikes, brown-outs or outages. Some program errors can also occur from
uneven power which these units protect against. Look for at least 450 watt capacity for most computer boxes and
their one monitor. These should be
available for under $100 and are easily installed which is simply a matter of
plugging the UPS in the wall and the protected devices into the UPS.
There
are many choices for all the components in new systems today which has been
complicated by advancing and new technology.
However, the most common and moderately priced systems are very powerful
for almost all general needs and uses.
The discussion here tweaks the initial purchase process to increase the
chance for more satisfied use over the life of the system.