Branded Computers, are they worth it?

[IanDrexP]

Well firstly I know this does not apply to Laptops, Notebooks and Netbooks which are branded.

I know when you purchase a Branded computer from a specific manufacturer part of what you bought is the Brand name itself so my question is: "Does the features (Customer Support, Manufacturer Software, Exclusive Updates, Warrenty, etc) of Branded setups outweigh its pricing?". If YES, "What manufacturers/brand names are worth it?". If NO, "Why?"

MY OPINION: I personally made my own build but I have had Branded setups before but I find the features somewhat useless (DELL and HP) or is it just me? Or because I am not from the US where you can call Support, etc?

What are your thoughts, experiences, violent reactions, defenses, comments, rants, views on this? =)


~The Curious, IanDrexP

 

[PeaB4YouGo]

While I own a "branded" desktop at the moment, I've always built my own more for the customization that is possible more than any other reason. I think it comes down to your expertise than anything else. If you have NO tech skills and just need a computer, get something from Dell, HP or the others. If you have enough skill to add your own video card, memory, and even processor, then build your own, and enjoy the sense of accomplishment when someone asks what kind of computer you have.

 

[Kaktussoft]

Well firstly I know this does not apply to Laptops, Notebooks and Netbooks which are branded.

I know when you purchase a Branded computer from a specific manufacturer part of what you bought is the Brand name itself so my question is: "Does the features (Customer Support, Manufacturer Software, Exclusive Updates, Warrenty, etc) of Branded setups outweigh its pricing?". If YES, "What manufacturers/brand names are worth it?". If NO, "Why?"

MY OPINION: I personally made my own build but I have had Branded setups before but I find the features somewhat useless (DELL and HP) or is it just me? Or because I am not from the US where you can call Support, etc?

What are your thoughts, experiences, violent reactions, defenses, comments, rants, views on this? =)


~The Curious, IanDrexP

• Customer supports most of the time is like hell!!
• Manufacturer software? You mean all the bloatware and trial versions? I normal customer decides himself what to put on computer. First thing I always do is a clean install
• Exclusive updates... don't know what you're talking about.

Waranty is important. And with a brand name computer you know for sure all parts work together (otherwise it's their problem). You have waranty on computer parts anyway even if you buy them yourself.

Most brand name computers have a website and a tool that automatically updates drivers for detected hardware. Very handy for normal users. And normal users do need a helpdesk.

More advanced users don't need a helpdesk and go to sevenforums for example. And they search for driver updates themselves (or let win7 do it himself).

Price difference is not that much btw.
=======================
I have a brand name myself an ACER 5742G. I uninstalled all crap software, removed the recovery partition.

 

[IanDrexP]

• Customer supports most of the time is like hell!!
• Manufacturer software? You mean all the bloatware and trial versions? I normal customer decides himself what to put on computer. First thing I always do is a clean install
• Exclusive updates... don't know what you're talking about.

Waranty is important. And with a brand name computer you know for sure all parts work together (otherwise it's their problem). You have waranty on computer parts anyway even if you buy them yourself.

Most brand name computers have a website and a tool that automatically updates drivers for detected hardware. Very handy for normal users. And normal users do need a helpdesk.

More advanced users don't need a helpdesk and go to sevenforums for example. And they search for driver updates themselves (or let win7 do it himself).

Price difference is not that much btw.
=======================
I have a brand name myself an ACER 5742G. I uninstalled all crap software, removed the recovery partition.

Hahaha yea customer support is like Hell but slowly killing you XD

I dont mean the Bloatware but the software the manufacturer themselves developed (Sorry im not good with computer jargon).

 

[Kaktussoft]

the software the manufacturer themselves developed

Don't know what you mean... give me an example plz

 

[ignatzatsonic]

I'd always say build your own if you have the skills, inclination, and a few hours of time.

The most obvious advantage is the complete control over the parts list.

My few experiences with large OEM customer support have been fair at best and mostly poor. For that reason, the warranty and support don't attract me. Likewise, the included software is more of a negative than a positive considering what alternate software can be had for little to no money.

OEM PCs are probably cheaper overall, at least at most price levels. But that's not enough of an advantage to tip the balance.

I can understand why someone who could build a PC still chooses an OEM----they might save a few bucks, they don't have the inclination to build at the time, they need it quickly and don't want to research parts, etc. That can work out well if parts don't fail and there is no need to interact with customer service.

If I were forced to buy an OEM PC, I'd immediately make recovery disks and then wipe the drive and reinstall.

I had an unforgivable support experience with Dell and will never give them a dime, but would nonetheless probably recommend Dell to someone who wanted to buy a PC rather than build.

 

[gregrocker]

You'll never be able to build a PC for the value you get by buying a prebuilt one. But this price savings is subsidized by a boatload of sponsored crapware and useless OEM utilities which duplicate better version in Win7.

For this reason most tech enthusiasts wipe the HD and Clean Reinstall Windows 7 Factory OEM.

Until then you can Clean Up Factory Bloatware

 

[chev65]

You'll never be able to build a PC for the value you get by buying a prebuilt one. But this price savings is subsidized by a boatload of sponsored crapware and useless OEM utilities which duplicate better version in Win7.

For this reason most tech enthusiasts wipe the HD and Clean Reinstall Windows 7 Factory OEM.

Until then you can Clean Up Factory Bloatware

That's a very general statement Greg and mostly untrue.

You get much better value when building your own system, especially as you add on more expensive hardware. You can literally save thousands building a custom desktop type machine yourself over ANY custom built machine built by say Alienware. There is no question about this.

As far as that goes, you can also save a fortune over just about ANY cheapy machine that you can get from say HP. You can add superior hardware for penny's on the dollar compared to those over priced Chinese made machines. It does require some skill as to choosing the right parts but shopping at places like Newegg makes it easy. I built my last PC for 200 bucks, lets see HP beat that price.

And I agree that the bloatware alone is enough to make me NEVER consider purchasing an OEM machine. The customer service isn't so great as to make it worth while either.

So in final conclusion about this topic, NO branded computers are not worth it provided that you have the skills required to build a decent machine. Unfortunately this cuts out about 98 percent of the population.

 

[3D Jed]

There is a happy medium between branded and DIY computers and that is pre-built motherboard bundles.

For example - I use an overclocked 2600k that I built using an assembled, overclocked and tested motherboard + ram + cpu bundle. I get to choose HDD, case, graphics etc and the cost of the bundle isn't much different from buying the parts separately.

I wouldn't fancy risking overclocking an expensive cpu myself, but this way I have experts do it for me. I have also built pcs for friends using non o/c bundles. I'm in the UK and I use these guys

Bundles - Aria PC

but there are others.

 

[gregrocker]

I wasn't thinking of high end which may be different, but the basic Sunday newspaper special $349 Acer or HP which suits 90% of consumers, including many that we help here. I regularly find these for $287, all good quality parts with full warranty. When I've priced the onboard parts and OS before the value is often double your money.

The only compromise in quality is the bloatware which we turn to an advantage by urging a Clean Reinstall which is a better install than can be gotten anywhere else. I regularly keep these rigs running fast without hesitation or a single parts replacement for 10 years, or $28.70 per year for better General Use performance than any $1500 rig I've seen that lasts half as long.

I've also heard this before that we are not skilled if we don't build our own machines. Since this is a Win7 forums and not a hardware forum, our skills should be judged first by our abilities with the Win7 OS. Those who do not build their own rigs are not second class citizens here. I show the greatest respect to hardware experts whose help here is highly valued. But surely Win7 expertise should be equally valued. I've never needed to compare the size of my rig.

 

[DeaconFrost]

High end PCs usually cost MUCH more than what it would cost to assemble the system yourself. If you are looking for a low-end, basic system, it's hard to beat branded systems for price, but you will likely lose a lot of upgradeability. It also depends on the type of user you are. If you typically buy a system, leave it unchanged for a few years, and then buy a new system, you'd be fine with an OEM system. If you plan to upgrade something every six months or so...build your own.

 

[IanDrexP]

the software the manufacturer themselves developed

Don't know what you mean... give me an example plz

HP Advisor? DELL Dock? To name a few.

 

[bigmck]

I have a nice case, so a couple months ago I decided to buy all the parts to go inside and upgrade the whole thing. I didn't get a bundled set but found this site that you pick out the Motherboard and they tell you every CPU that fits it, like wise with RAM and everything else needed. This way you get a perfect match and also you have a choice. What I got could have been a couple hundred dollars cheaper if I bought the OEM PC, but the case would have been a plain black one and I just wanted the custom feel of my part choices.

 

[Layback Bear]

Well my specs show I think building your own was the way for me. Most of the time spent was research. Picking the parts and studying a lot of reviews from sites I consider reliable. Many hours and days doing that. Making a log and then analyzing the whole picture to make sure when the money is spent, everything will work together. Assembling the computer really taking your time to make sure every thing is neat and not hinder air flow. Every thing went smooth except for the damn wiring on the front control panel wiring. Nothing is labeled in my case. Other than that front panel wiring the 6ooT is a dream to work with.
To the point. If someone wants to do all that you will come up with a computer you will enjoy that may cost more than most but you got more than most. Every part is of know quality and reliability. Plus you did it yourself. You will have no problem going inside your computer and doing things because you know what you got.
Please note: Your the boss, if you screw up it's your fault.

 

[Ztruker]

I agree with Greg on this one.

I bought both of my current computers from a local thrift store for about $100 each.
One is a Dell Precision 370 and the other a HP xw400 Workstation (my web server). I added a couple hundred bucks in ram and hard drives and installed my own copies of Windows 7 Pro X64. Total around $500.

I have never built my own computer nor do I have any desire to do so and yet I'm very hardware and software savy. What I've purchased over the years has worked well for me, Dell, HP and Toshiba. You don't need to build one to understand how they work or how to fix them.

 

[lehnerus2000]

Yes and No

Building a system is easy.
Choosing the parts is the hard bit.

IMO, if you choose a good box, power supply and monitor, you can upgrade to a better system for less money, than a cheap brand name PC.
It's a long term proposition though.

My current box and power supply are ~8 years old.
I'm on my 4th motherboard (2 died and the other is ancient, but still working) and 2nd (main) OS.

OTOH, if you don't already have a PC and you don't require anything special (e.g. a gaming system) it would be difficult to build a system cheaper, than a cheap brand name PC (~$300).

Note:
I mean new or upgraded PC, not 2nd hand.

 

[Zepher]

I'm not sure how many of you actually build machines, but I usually build a dozen a year.
I am actually building 2 right now for clients, ordered the parts for one and am waiting on confirmation on the second before I order.
The hard drive and an oem os alone are over $200 and thats a lot of money and you still need 6 other pieces to complete the machine.

You can't build a cheap machine with the same specs as a prebuilt for less money.
$700 and up is about where it equals out.

 

[IanDrexP]

I have a nice case, so a couple months ago I decided to buy all the parts to go inside and upgrade the whole thing. I didn't get a bundled set but found this site that you pick out the Motherboard and they tell you every CPU that fits it, like wise with RAM and everything else needed. This way you get a perfect match and also you have a choice. What I got could have been a couple hundred dollars cheaper if I bought the OEM PC, but the case would have been a plain black one and I just wanted the custom feel of my part choices.

What site could that be if I may ask?

 

[fireberd]

For the typical "consumer" PC, a pre-built is probably the way to go. For the rest, a do it yourself is much better.

I just built a new PC, primarily for my recording studio. I looked at the new Dell XPS 8500 and several others and they did not offer what I needed. I would have had to go to either a custom built or a high end such as an Alienware to get what I wanted. I built my own for around $1100 (including Windows 7). A custom built "recording studio" PC would have been $1800 to $3000 for a comparable hardware setup. An Alienware "gaming" PC would have been in the $2500 (and up) range.

I went through some building pains with some defective hardware problems, but they were worth the $1000 or more I saved.

 

[indianacarnie]

I've never built my own ....... but then, all I use are laptops anymore. I must say that as far as "tech support" goes, Toshiba wins hands down in my book. The only time I've ever had to use it..... well, they stayed on the line to me for almost 2 hours until my machine was working perfectly. Asus , on the other hand...... well, if you can't say something good . Dell customer support was atrocious also imho.

Do want to build my own rig one day, but job movement keeps me from doing so for the forseeable future. For now I'll just stick to the upgrade route. (ssd and memory upgrades on horizon )