$350 and a bargain at that
Written: Jan 02 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Price, stability, speed.
Cons: Flashing blue light while on hibernate is annoying. Otherwise, no cons.
The Bottom Line: Basic machine for $350, it's a great deal
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| sneddren's Full Review: eMachines T2984 PC Desktop |
I have been suffering with an older Compaq desktop (see my previous review) since 2000 and decided it was time to upgrade. I figured there'd be some good sales post-Christmas, so I perused the Best Buy listings and found this computer. I needed to get a USB cable for a new printer anyway, so I drove over to the local Best Buy and within 15 minutes, I was walking out the door with a new computer.
For background, the Compaq desktop I had been using was a miserable machine. It ran Windows 98 and was the most unstable machine I had ever used. It was to the point where I couldn't use the computer anymore due to constant crashes, and my primary goal was to find something more stable and faster. I don't use the home computer for intensive applications-just a machine to do some word processing, spreadsheet work, a bit of website development and, primarily, getting online. So I knew that I could get away with buying a cheap box that had the basics. I had been considering just upgrading the Compaq from Windows 98 to XP, but that would require more memory, so I assumed that if I could get a new computer for under $400, it was probably more efficent than trying to upgrade.
So back to the eMachines....I knew that Gateway had acquired eMachines recently and I was very pleased with the Gateway laptop I bought a year or so ago (also review on Epinions). I scanned the specs at Best Buy for the various boxes on display and just couldn't understand why this eMachines product was so cheap ($350). It had near 3 ghz processor (2.9 something celeron), 512 mb ram, an 80 gig hard drive and XP Home. It seemed like it was too good to be true. Oh, and it also had something I loved with the Gateway latop-a slot where you can put memory cards (from digital cameras, especially) into the box and read directly from them. I went over all the specs and couldn't see any possible problems and bought it on the spot.
When I got the computer home, I was a bit concerned about having to reinstall a bunch of software. Luckily, within 20 minutes of taking the new computer out of its box, I was up and running. The migration of my DSL and WiFi network to the new computer was a breeze (SBC DSL with a Linksys router) and I was utterly shocked at how smoothly the whole thing went.
The new computer started up quickly and it had a minimum of registration requirements. Compared to W 98, XP was a great revelation. Quick startup, no crashes (yet) and seamless conversion of all my old programs. An hour after I got the computer home, I was online and working from home.
I don't know a lot of the tech details of this box, but for those of you who are looking to upgrade your old computers with a new, more stable, much faster machine, this is a great choice. It comes standard with the ethernet port so you can get your DSL connection going without having to crack open the unit and it has plenty of USB ports to hook up peripherals. Did I mention how fast this machine is? It's great and quiet and an utter joy to use.
The standard software is pretty minimal (XP, Works and a few other things like AOL) and it doesn't have an included monitor (just a keyboard, some mediocre speakers and a pretty good mouse). The one annoying thing is that when you put the machine on hibernate, it has a flashing blue light from the on button that can be seen for quite a distance.
But if you're more interested in, for the price of an OS, memory and HD upgrade, getting a brand new computer that is fast, stable and easy to use, this is a great deal. For those of you looking for a power machine, this probably isn't it. But if you view a computer as an appliance to use to get online (for, example, getting remote access to work) and don't need all the frills that cost so much, this is a great choice.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 350
Operating System: Windows
Processor: Intel Celeron
Processor speed: over 1000
RAM: More than 256
Internal Storage: CD-RW and DVD
Hard Drive (GB): Over 50
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Epinions.com ID:
sneddren
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Reviews written: 36
Trusted by: 6 members
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