Laptop vs. Desktop? Best you can buy for under $500?

[Munna]

So, my laptop is pretty much shot. It's constantly crashing, overheating, freezing, etc. and I've had it for a while now so I think it's just run its course. I'm looking to make a purchase soon that has to be relatively cheap, but I don't want horrendous quality... so I need help!

- I'm not a huge gamer by any means, but I do play Skyrim, Sims, and sometimes flash games a bit
- I probably have thousands upon thousands of pictures from my camera and graphics I've made
- I have photoshop and some art programs, but otherwise I don't have a lot of programs on my computer

So please give me any advice you can spare? :)

[rdrr]

Desktop for sure if you don't need the mobility of a laptop. As for your pictures, you can always buy external harddrives either way, I bought a 2TB harddrive for my movies last month for around $100.

[Munna]

Desktop for sure if you don't need the mobility of a laptop. As for your pictures, you can always buy external harddrives either way, I bought a 2TB harddrive for my movies last month for around $100.

Are desktops just better/faster all around? For the price, anyways? :)

[rdrr]

Yup. Since desktops are cheaper in general, you can get better specs for lower price. I would recommend asking your family/friends to see if anyone knows how to build a desktop to help you. That way you can choose each component (motherboard, harddrive, ram, graphics card, etc.) and it's cheaper overall. Another good thing is that a desktop is very easy to upgrade. So in a few years if you feel like you need an upgrade you can upgrade individual parts rather than buying a whole new desktop all over again.

[Wooloo]

Desktops are better than laptops, imo. The only thing you're missing is the mobility, but external hard drives are very handy for taking your files around with you (I have a 2 TB I take everywhere). I upgraded to a $1000 custom desktop around last May and it still runs like a charm! (Boot up speed and everything only takes like 20 seconds to complete.)

You could probably build a decent computer with a $500 budget. I think my ex built one for my mom around that price last year, so I agree with rdrr about finding someone who can build one for you.

[raithi]

Also, even if you dont know alot about building your own, you can buy motherboard/processor combos on line pretty cheap, that way all the shunts are preset on the jumpers (usually) correctly and all you have to do is screw it into the box, seat the ram and plugin your your fans and and all that jazz

[Munna]

Also, even if you dont know alot about building your own, you can buy motherboard/processor combos on line pretty cheap, that way all the shunts are preset on the jumpers (usually) correctly and all you have to do is screw it into the box, seat the ram and plugin your your fans and and all that jazz

I'm actually in a class right now learning how to build and repair, so maybe it was meant to be. xD I just want something sturdy and reliable, so it seems this is more of the way to go. Thanks for everyone's input so far. :)

[Elmo]

I have always preferred desktops, no overheating, better performance etc. However I currently have a laptop and have had for the past 4 years. I spend all day downstairs with my son and it's practical to whip out my laptop if needed.

[Skarl]

Be leery of refurbished parts from places like TigerDirect & NewEgg. While their prices are competitive, the item descriptions are worth a read.

[c4ndym4n]

snag a "barebones" desktop and customize how you want, it is extremely simple to build a desktop, it is all plug and play. i bought a mobo a 6X3.3 amd phenom processor, and 16 gb of ram for right about 200 bucks. laptops have become disposable. i have a 2 year old acer that is sitting on my shelf because i can not stand how slow it is(i but a quad core processor in it also). if you plan on spending an extended period of time on a computer and be able to upgrade due to new interests definitely go desktop. if you travel alot go laptop, its a personal thing. but thats just my .02

[Munna]

I have always preferred desktops, no overheating, better performance etc. However I currently have a laptop and have had for the past 4 years. I spend all day downstairs with my son and it's practical to whip out my laptop if needed.

I'm kind of in this boat now, so I don't know if I can compromise portability... But I'd rather get a better system overall, so I'm not sure what to do. :(

[Ent]

Unless you absolutely need to always be mobile, get a desktop. So much better for your price point. Laptops are inherently expensive, difficult to build on your own (to cut down costs), are prone to overheating, are next-to-impossible to upgrade, and become outdated quickly.

[Only registered and activated users can see links] is my favourite tool ever whenever I'm building a new PC.

[Charlie]

Munna
As many people have said, you will be able to get better specs with a PC for that money (but it's always like that - even spending $800, you're better off with a PC). However, if you do want portability, here is my opinion: Toshiba laptops! I had my toshiba baby, who I called "Tosh-tosh" for FOUR years. She ran like a charm. I played neopets, subeta, sims2&3, Empire Earth, and Age of Empires on her. She handled everything well. However, at the end of her four years, she began to literally lose her battery life. It was buy a new battery (about $150) or a new laptop. I chose to spend $900 on a mac (WORST MISTAKE EVER). I'm actually now considering buying her battery and seeing how she runs. When I bought her, I paid $750. That's over your price range, but my mom got a toshiba two years after me after she saw how well mine ran, and hers was only $450. It still runs great to this day!

[raithi]

I personally run a big tyan server rig at home, though I also have a prolient dl385 blade server, the tyan is a big gpu parallel processing rig with a bunch of radeon 7950 pcie cards (and I dont just use it for folding at home :P). But if you want something super reliable, old prolaient blade servers you can pick up bare bones pretty cheap, highly upgradable, AMD opterons are cheaper than xenons. Also you have this nifty ilo port (internal lights out) so you can boot it remotely and everything. EVERYTHING is redundant on those, form from fans to drives to power supply, I havent turned mine of in like 2 years lol

[Zachafer]

I personally run a big tyan server rig at home, though I also have a prolient dl385 blade server, the tyan is a big gpu parallel processing rig with a bunch of radeon 7950 pcie cards (and I dont just use it for folding at home :P). But if you want something super reliable, old prolaient blade servers you can pick up bare bones pretty cheap, highly upgradable, AMD opterons are cheaper than xenons. Also you have this nifty ilo port (internal lights out) so you can boot it remotely and everything. EVERYTHING is redundant on those, form from fans to drives to power supply, I havent turned mine of in like 2 years lol
I don't think servers are a practical solution for most end-users.

Also what gen is you DL385?

[lunarlet]

I prefer laptops since i'm always moving so desktops are a hassle for me. However for 500 you most likely can get a better desktop due to the fact that you can buy parts separately and upgrade easily as time goes by.

[raithi]

I don't think servers are a practical solution for most end-users.

Also what gen is you DL385?

It's an old gen 2 that I picked up super cheap, too cheap to pass up honestly even for dated hardware. The only qualm I have with it is that its packed with ecc memory, so ram read speeds are slower than they could possibly be, but the capabilities it present me with far make up for that. I thought about possibly getting a g5, but I dumped alot of my money into my tyan box, and my wife would kick my ass if I got another blade server lol

And it may not be practical, but its damn reliable, and older servers you can get barebones cheap

[Accelerator]

Desktop, better bang for the buck e_e (?) Unless, as many already told you, you need mobility (Cause you know, you won't be taking you whole desktop to the uni/college/whetever XD)

[JordBarb]

I've built myself and two friends custom gaming desktops this year, and I've got to say Reddit will truly be your best friend for finding what you truly need as well as saving your bank account. I play everything and anything under the sun with a Steam library of over 1.1k games however, so I spent over $3000 on my build.

Some places to look into: DEFINITELY take a look at [Only registered and activated users can see links] - The folks here will help you with literally anything, even if you decide to go the laptop route.
If you do decide to build a PC (which I highly recommend for multiple reasons, but the main ones being the issues you listed in your OP!) and you want to save money I would suggest taking a look at: [Only registered and activated users can see links]

/r/hardwareswap is just like trading on here or anywhere else online, so have your wits about you if you go this route. I've bought and sold on the subreddit with no issues though. :)

Best of luck!

[Misha]

Desktop for sure. I'm saving to build mine. I use New Egg for my parts.

[Naked Gamer]

I've had multiple laptops in the same spam of having 1 desktop PC which cost wise you get way more from a PC which is more powerful anyways and last long.


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[elirha]

desktop, i think laptops are laggy.

[grodgil]

I have a Lenovo Y510P (laptop) that I really enjoy. I also get a lot of compliments regarding my laptop, too, whenever people see it.