Can We Build It Cheaper: HP Edition
This is the third installment in our insanely popular series. Previously, we looked at systems from Dell, and then figured out if we could screw a rig together for less. The results were divided as on the low end Dell was considerably cheaper, and at the high end they were considerably more expensive.
This time around, I decided to give ol' Mike Dell in Texas (we're not quite on a first name basis...yet) a rest, and dissect a system from another manufacturer. Mmmmm...how does HP sound? Last I heard, they were the number two computer maker, so let's see how they do on the challenge. Rather than get the price on the HP web site, I decided to grab a bundle from a major computer retailer better known as Best Buy. I'm sure you've heard of them, and this way, on a bundle, we're trying to beat a real deal, and not a manufacturer's suggested retail price that most of us are smart enough not to pay anyway. The rules are simple. We price out the components from NewEgg, and we see if the HP is cheaper or more expensive. Ready? Here goes!
The HP Pavilion 820 Media Center Desktop starts with one of the lower end dual core Intel processors, the Pentium D 820. It features a 2.8 GHz clock speed, and each core has its own 1 meg of L2 cache. This processor retails for $167 currently.
The next item of business is a motherboard. We need one that supports the Pentium D processor (Socket 775). Also, the motherboard has to support the faster RAM (see below), and have both SATA and PCI Express connections. This rules out an older board. While there are several choices, this microATX board from Intel sports the right connections, and goes for an even $100.
The HP system has a generous 2 gigs of the fast 4200 DDR2 RAM. To match it, I decided to go with the Corsair Value Select, 1 GB per stick, DDR2 4200 memory. It retails for $73.50 per stick, and we'll need two. Of course, we could go with a no name brand, or buy 4 sticks of 512 MB RAM. In the end, who knows what HP is doing to save a few bucks, but if we're doing it ourselves, I plan on doing it right, and leaving a path to upgrade without tossing perfectly fine memory later on.
The HP specifies a 250 GB hard drive, with a 7200 RPM speed, using the SATA interface. This is easy to match with a Maxtor of the same specs, and a performance enhancing 16 megs of on board cache. For the record, the $75 price on NewEgg is downright cheap as I paid more for one last month, with only 8 MB of cache.
The HP uses a rather low end graphics card, the NVIDIA GeForce 7300LE with a paltry 64 megs of RAM. At least it's better than integrated graphics, although aside from not distracting the system RAM, I'm really not sure it's much of an improvement. The 64 megs of RAM must be an "HP exclusive part," as at NewEgg we can buy the card with 256 MB of RAM for $65, but not a 64 meg version.
The HP uses a single optical drive. It is a 16x DVD burner, supports LightScribe labeling technology, and even can write DVD-RAM at 5x. This LiteOn can match all of that, and is a cool $39!
The HP uses Windows XP Media Center 2005 as its operating system. We can match it for $110 over at NewEgg.
The HP is using motherboard ethernet, and audio connections, which our motherboard is supporting. The HP does come with a keyboard and mouse; if you don't have one lying around add $10 for a basic one. The HP system doesn't mention anything about speakers so we won't include them in our calculations. The HP doesn't have a TV tuner, which significantly limits it as a media center PC, so we won't include one in our build either.
A case is always difficult to match with HP. After all, they use a propietary case, and don't tell us how much wattage the power supply has. To be fair, I chose a $50 case with a 400 Watt power supply included. This is lower middle of the road as far as cases go, but it still looks better than the boring gray HP box.
The HP includes a 15" LCD monitor. That's a little small by current standards as many folks go for the 17" or larger today with the LCD. Over at NewEgg, a 15" LCD will set you back $150 (I'm not figuring in the $30 rebate for the price). I'm not recommending this display; personally I'd go larger, and more name brand.
Finally, the bundle from Best Buy includes a printer- the HP 5440 to be exact (not too surprising in the end). This general purpose inkjet sells for $60 over at NewEgg.
Now, the moment we've all been waiting for. The HP bundle retails for $970 after rebates over where the "geek squad" lives. Our matching system build will set us back a quite even $963! This is quite an even horse race...assuming we receive the Best Buy rebates.
However, I would still build personally. Why? I'd be willing to trade my system warranty for individual component choices (with warranties), and on the belief that I can do it better. The control freak in me tells me that it's better to know exactly the brand and type of RAM I'm getting, the more RAM video card, and the larger cached hard drive. Not to mention a motherboard that can be upgraded, or the cleaner wiring. Then again HP is in business, and from a parts perspective, at least this is a fair deal.
--Jonas
This time around, I decided to give ol' Mike Dell in Texas (we're not quite on a first name basis...yet) a rest, and dissect a system from another manufacturer. Mmmmm...how does HP sound? Last I heard, they were the number two computer maker, so let's see how they do on the challenge. Rather than get the price on the HP web site, I decided to grab a bundle from a major computer retailer better known as Best Buy. I'm sure you've heard of them, and this way, on a bundle, we're trying to beat a real deal, and not a manufacturer's suggested retail price that most of us are smart enough not to pay anyway. The rules are simple. We price out the components from NewEgg, and we see if the HP is cheaper or more expensive. Ready? Here goes!
The HP Pavilion 820 Media Center Desktop starts with one of the lower end dual core Intel processors, the Pentium D 820. It features a 2.8 GHz clock speed, and each core has its own 1 meg of L2 cache. This processor retails for $167 currently.
The next item of business is a motherboard. We need one that supports the Pentium D processor (Socket 775). Also, the motherboard has to support the faster RAM (see below), and have both SATA and PCI Express connections. This rules out an older board. While there are several choices, this microATX board from Intel sports the right connections, and goes for an even $100.
The HP system has a generous 2 gigs of the fast 4200 DDR2 RAM. To match it, I decided to go with the Corsair Value Select, 1 GB per stick, DDR2 4200 memory. It retails for $73.50 per stick, and we'll need two. Of course, we could go with a no name brand, or buy 4 sticks of 512 MB RAM. In the end, who knows what HP is doing to save a few bucks, but if we're doing it ourselves, I plan on doing it right, and leaving a path to upgrade without tossing perfectly fine memory later on.
The HP specifies a 250 GB hard drive, with a 7200 RPM speed, using the SATA interface. This is easy to match with a Maxtor of the same specs, and a performance enhancing 16 megs of on board cache. For the record, the $75 price on NewEgg is downright cheap as I paid more for one last month, with only 8 MB of cache.
The HP uses a rather low end graphics card, the NVIDIA GeForce 7300LE with a paltry 64 megs of RAM. At least it's better than integrated graphics, although aside from not distracting the system RAM, I'm really not sure it's much of an improvement. The 64 megs of RAM must be an "HP exclusive part," as at NewEgg we can buy the card with 256 MB of RAM for $65, but not a 64 meg version.
The HP uses a single optical drive. It is a 16x DVD burner, supports LightScribe labeling technology, and even can write DVD-RAM at 5x. This LiteOn can match all of that, and is a cool $39!The HP uses Windows XP Media Center 2005 as its operating system. We can match it for $110 over at NewEgg.
The HP is using motherboard ethernet, and audio connections, which our motherboard is supporting. The HP does come with a keyboard and mouse; if you don't have one lying around add $10 for a basic one. The HP system doesn't mention anything about speakers so we won't include them in our calculations. The HP doesn't have a TV tuner, which significantly limits it as a media center PC, so we won't include one in our build either.
A case is always difficult to match with HP. After all, they use a propietary case, and don't tell us how much wattage the power supply has. To be fair, I chose a $50 case with a 400 Watt power supply included. This is lower middle of the road as far as cases go, but it still looks better than the boring gray HP box.
The HP includes a 15" LCD monitor. That's a little small by current standards as many folks go for the 17" or larger today with the LCD. Over at NewEgg, a 15" LCD will set you back $150 (I'm not figuring in the $30 rebate for the price). I'm not recommending this display; personally I'd go larger, and more name brand.Finally, the bundle from Best Buy includes a printer- the HP 5440 to be exact (not too surprising in the end). This general purpose inkjet sells for $60 over at NewEgg.
Now, the moment we've all been waiting for. The HP bundle retails for $970 after rebates over where the "geek squad" lives. Our matching system build will set us back a quite even $963! This is quite an even horse race...assuming we receive the Best Buy rebates.
However, I would still build personally. Why? I'd be willing to trade my system warranty for individual component choices (with warranties), and on the belief that I can do it better. The control freak in me tells me that it's better to know exactly the brand and type of RAM I'm getting, the more RAM video card, and the larger cached hard drive. Not to mention a motherboard that can be upgraded, or the cleaner wiring. Then again HP is in business, and from a parts perspective, at least this is a fair deal.
--Jonas
Labels: build vs. buy, HP
posted by digitaldoc at 8:00 AM
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