No fair, WoW got an upgrade. I want one too!

[Vrimmel]

I recently put together a new PC that ended up costing me more than I think it should have, probably because I went for both highend and good reviews on NewEgg, aaand the retail copy of Win 7. Gotta say though the 470 GTX does really well by WoW on high settings. Also SSDs are awesome.

Indeed. It's easy to get a PC with a good GPU, lots of ram and a many MHz processor which is what most people look at. For me those components took about two fifths of my total computer cost. (only buying case and internal components).

[Levantine]

If you could make a budget for the computers, and the usage you're gonna put it through (be honest!) I'll be able to make a list of parts for you. Feel free to choose a site you want them (personal reckomentations for UK are aria, and newegg for US)

I was looking at spending maybe $600 AU if I could get away with being that stingy. I only really need the new CPU/Mobo/RAM at the moment as well, since my GPU and HDD are serviceable for a while longer and aren't in dire need of upgrades like the aforementioned. My PC's mostly just for games, my uni work is pretty much limited to word processing, lol. Gogo Bachelor of Education! I don't expect to be able to blast out Crysis 2 or FFXIV at max settings or anything like that, but I'd like to be able to crank WoW up a little bit higher than the High it's at now, and I'd appreciate being able to overclock somewhat and future-proof myself for a little bit.

Afaik, Aus doesn't have a site like Aria or Newegg, which is a stupid shame. They've gotta be one of the very few reasons I'm jealous of you guys. But chyeah, I was looking at an i5, heard good things, dunno if you agree or not though.

[Pizbit]

I'd be extremely surprised if there wasn't a good solid online computer parts store for .AU, just ask around the uni geeks for where they buy all their parts.

[Levantine]

But that would mean I'd have to... like... talk to the uni geeks. That's like, social suicide (it's kinda scary how alike uni and high school are). I might ask around, if I'm ever anywhere near the IT department, which I probably won't be since the Education and Performing Arts faculties are at opposite ends to the IT one.

[Palisade]

I must be missing the boat on this, but what is the point of a solid state drive versus a regular hard drive? And why do you need both?

[Njall]

I must be missing the boat on this, but what is the point of a solid state drive versus a regular hard drive? And why do you need both?

No moving parts. Much more reliable from a mechanical standpoint. However, for long term storage, they require a certain amount of power. Basically, solid states are biiiiiiig Jump Drives.

[Goodheart]

SSD's are much, much faster then a regular HDD, because they have no moving parts. Downside is that they are alot more expensive per Gigabyte.
So usually you'd buy a decent sized SSD disk for your OS and other drive intensive programs, and a seperate huge HDD for all your other files like music, movies etc.

[Sabindeus]

But that would mean I'd have to... like... talk to the uni geeks. That's like, social suicide (it's kinda scary how alike uni and high school are). :P I might ask around, if I'm ever anywhere near the IT department, which I probably won't be since the Education and Performing Arts faculties are at opposite ends to the IT one. :(

oh noes teh geeks they will get their geek cooties on you

much easier to talk to geeks on the internet forums amirite

[Sabindeus]

SSD's are much, much faster then a regular HDD, because they have no moving parts. Downside is that they are alot more expensive per Gigabyte.
So usually you'd buy a decent sized SSD disk for your OS and other drive intensive programs, and a seperate huge HDD for all your other files like music, movies etc.

pretty much this. I have a 256 GB SSD for Windows and WoW, and then a 1 TB 7200rpm platter HD for all my other games.

[fuzzygeek]

I must be missing the boat on this, but what is the point of a solid state drive versus a regular hard drive? And why do you need both?

I have my OS and WoW on my SSD. Windows 7 boots in under ten seconds. Dalaran loading is comparably quick.

[Palisade]

I have my OS and WoW on my SSD. Windows 7 boots in under ten seconds. Dalaran loading is comparably quick.

OH. EM. GEE.

About how much would something like that cost? And would one really need a 256gb SSD if it is dedicated to the OS and WoW?


@Sabin: LMAO

EDIT:
Google is your friend.
$500 for a 256SSD. That's definitely NOT in my price range

[Sabindeus]

I have my OS and WoW on my SSD. Windows 7 boots in under ten seconds. Dalaran loading is comparably quick.

OH. EM. GEE.

About how much would something like that cost? And would one really need a 256gb SSD if it is dedicated to the OS and WoW?


@Sabin: LMAO :lol: :lol: :lol:

EDIT:
Google is your friend. :P
$500 for a 256SSD. That's definitely NOT in my price range

yeah I got my 256 GB one for $400 on sale. You can definitely go for a smaller one to considerably reduce the price.

[Discus]

What about an idiots, pre-made, all windows 7 software etc loaded PC - literally plug in and start playing WoW option?

I'm in the UK and when I can stop my IT friends from ranting about how I/they should spend 14 weeks building my own PC they suggest Aria for pre-mades? I have fun listening to their screams sometimes by telling them I'm in PC world and about to buy a PC...

[Braundo]

I can't speak to UK-specific builders, but I myself generally choose pre-built PCs these days. This is in no part due to technical unfamiliarity in the least -- I worked as a PC tech for several years and have built hundreds of machines, and I used to build all of my own computers every single time. Nowadays, though, I'm grown up and I have a bit more money to throw around, and my time is a bit more important to me since I work full time. I find that it's generally worth an extra hundred bucks or so to have the computer completely built, burn-in tested, OS installed, with guaranteed fully compatible parts so I don't have to go through all that mindless work myself. So, I think you're perfectly justified in your decision.

I'm in the US, but whenever we go through a custom builder like CyberPower we've had nothing but good experiences.

[Palisade]

Would I need a separate stand HDD if I am putting something together strictly for WoW?

I have a very solid pre-made Toshiba laptop that it is fairly new. I've got 150+ GB of space, and it runs like a champ. It just isn't a 'gaming machine' and I have run WoW on bare bones specs.

So I don't "need" a TB of extra HDD storage space. But should I get even a small 200+GB HDD just for other stuff? Or would a single SSD be sufficient?

Looking at newegg, seems I can get a 128GB SSD for about $280.