All in one computer any good?

[dave1918a2]

I just bought a HP and it seems good so far. Will not buy Dell as the CEO donates to gun control groups and leftist Dumocrats.

 

[DWalt]

"All I really do is internet, email and and some basic stuff."

I'm not sure there are any "Bad" PCs on the market now, at least nothing like there were 20 years ago, so anything you buy will be adequate for your purposes. Better laptops will be Dell, Toshiba, or Lenovo. Acer recently had a very good writeup in Consumer's Report. If you want to go with a 15.6" laptop, there are lots available in the $300 price range, often on sale at places like Best Buy, Staples, Office Depot, etc.. Higher priced computers often use Intel microprocessors, while lower priced ones usually have AMD microprocessors. Unless you are planning to do some heavy gaming or intensive graphics (doesn't seem that you are) which require high-speed processors, go with one having an AMD processor and save a few bucks - they will work just as well for your purposes. And you can use a laptop just like a desktop, as you can plug in a separate monitor and a keyboard. I have a neighbor who does that. You can even plug the PC into your TV set if both the TV and the laptop have HDMI ports. Most do at present.

 

[Kanewpadle]

Have yet to see an all in one that I liked. Don't care for the concept.

I have the ability to replace various components such RAM, hard drive, video card etc....

ASUS makes a good computer. They often use AMD processors which are highly underrated but perform well and cost less.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

Yes. A $500 dell should be more than adequate.

 

[TX-Dennis]

All in ones are handy. Quick set up. No worrying about which plug goes where. The downside is they tend to have less powerful processors and less memory. For your stated usage, though, it will be more than adequate.

I like traditional desktops because I'm always tinkering and upgrading something, but I'm not normal. For internet and email the all in one will do just fine.

 

[DWalt]

Be aware some laptops now on the market are pure "Netbooks" and do not contain a conventional hard disk or a CD-DVD drive. They are intended to work "In the Cloud." I don't think they are desirable for most users, but they could use external drives.

 

[alde]

I went ahead and did it. I just went to Best Buy and got a Dell All In One with a 24" monitor for $549. It came with 4 GB memory but I just upgraded to 8 GB before I ever plugged it in. It works great so far. It has wireless keyboard, mouse, printer and network conection. It linked right up to my bluetooth printer and compared to my old pc is like night and day. I think this will work out great.

To top it off my new 640 Pro Series showed up at my FFL today. That was icing on the cake.

 

[cmort666]

What's an all in one?

It's a desktop computer with everything shoehorned into one case, including the monitor. It's not "portable" in any meaningful way.

If your monitor dies at 1:00am, you can drive to the Walmart SuperStore, pick up a replacement and be working in not much more than the round trip travel time. If the monitor on your all-in-one dies, you're toast until you get it fixed or replaced. And when you take or send it off to be fixed, you lose EVERYTHING (including your data) until it comes back.

I wouldn't go there.

 

[e3mrk]

I dont know mutch about them but I dont think I would like having to take Them in for repairs instead of doing it Myself.

 

[DWalt]

The advantage to using a laptop as a desktop by adding a separate monitor (and possibly another keyboard) is much greater portability. Just unplug the monitor from the laptop and take it with you if the need arises. I have recently added larger RAM chips to two laptops and can't really see any difference. I guess for more intensive computing applications it might have an advantage. By the way, that's a very simple upgrade with a laptop, takes just a few minutes. And RAM from eBay can be really cheap.

"I have no use for all-in-one PCs OR printers."

I have found that there seem to be almost no printers now available which are NOT all-in-one, except for more expensive laser printers. Simple and cheap ink jet single purpose printers are apparently extinct. I personally have zero use for an all-in-one printer. No one sends Faxes any more, and not too many need a scanner or copy machine. In any event, I already have a copier and a scanner and would rather have only a printer. I'm hanging onto my el-cheapo Lexmark ink jet printer which has provided excellent service for over 8 years. Lexmark no longer makes them.

 

[cmort666]

I have found that there seem to be almost no printers now available which are NOT all-in-one, except for more expensive laser printers. Simple and cheap ink jet single purpose printers are apparently extinct.

Unless I needed to print in color, I wouldn't use an inkjet printer anyway. Over the long haul, laser printers are MUCH cheaper. The low end single function Brother laser printers are so inexpensive that it's cheaper to buy another one than to replace the drum. I have a couple of them for text.

For color, graphics, and photos, I used to use a Canon S750 inkjet. After many years, it finally died last year. I replaced it with a significantly more expensive Canon Pixma iP8720. I chose it specifically because it was capable of 11x17" print on cardstock. Along with photos, I use it for printing holster patterns, and the ability to print on large format media is quite useful for the latter.

 

[LouisianaJoe]

I have had bad luck with All-In-One PC's. You can not upgrade them or add anything. If any thing breaks, just throw it away. They also cost more compared to tower or mini-tower PC's. Look at the Sunday ads for OfficeDepot or BestBuy. You can find a desktop for $220 - $400 that will do what you want to do. Bestbuy has a refurbished PC for $119.

 

[rwsmith]

That sounds good...

I'm sure it will be much more capable than my 8 year old pc. I may just go pick one up tomorrow. The one I am looking at even has built in WiFi so it will just need a power cord to get upand running and on line. My printer is even WiFi ready. I already print to it from my phone, which I think is about the coolest thing.

That sounds like you're one the right track. The nice thing is that it's easy to surpass an old computer if you get decent cpu, memory, etc.

 

[cmort666]

I have had bad luck with All-In-One PC's. You can not upgrade them or add anything. If any thing breaks, just throw it away. They also cost more compared to tower or mini-tower PC's. Look at the Sunday ads for OfficeDepot or BestBuy. You can find a desktop for $220 - $400 that will do what you want to do. Bestbuy has a refurbished PC for $119.

Some of my personal customers have been having very good luck with the low end HPs. The only problem I've seen with them has been the TON of intrusive junk software on them. On one of them I literally had to uninstall it all before the computer was usable.

Personally, I build all of my PCs (and servers) simply because I've gotten burned (and seen other people get burned) by the proprietary hardware trap. I don't care how good a name brand PC is. If I have to send or take it somewhere, or special order a limited availability OEM part when something relatively minor or straightforward dies, that negates the dubious advantage of the name brand.

I remember when HP not only used proprietary power supplies, but even proprietary floppy cables.

Unless it's Christmas day, I can replace anything on this PC in no more than two hours, maybe less, and most of that's driving time.

 

[sqhead]

I got a dell laptop and never looked back, love it......I have an older dell desk top like new and never use.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

I have had bad luck with All-In-One PC's. You can not upgrade them or add anything. If any thing breaks, just throw it away.

Right.

$500 PC maybe lasts 3 or 4 years, it breaks then toss it. Get a new one with new tech and software. What's the cost, maybe $10-15/mo over the period? Heck, I bet most folks Net service is more than their PC cost after a year or so. I pay $50/mo. Yeah, you could save a couple bucks by keeping the old monitor. I've got an old Dell 19in ultrasharp in the closet. Doesn't seem to have saved me any money.

For those with the know-how and who enjoy working on their computers that's entirely different. But for the average Joe, eh... toss it. Life is to short for some of the struggles I see folks endure with old computers.

 

[Comrad]

Don't be afraid to buy last years model, the advancements these days are so incremental does it really matter if your page loads in half a blink of the eye or a quarter blink of the eye.
Unless you're planning on calculating interplanetary travel times, there's no need for the latest fastest most powerful. Reading emails and web browsing doesn't take much horsepower.

 

[sipowicz]

My 8 year old imac is an all in one....still going strong..

 

[cmort666]

I've got an old Dell 19in ultrasharp in the closet. Doesn't seem to have saved me any money.

A couple of weeks ago, while I was reloading Ubuntu on my server, the flat screen monitor died. I had an old 19" CRT sitting on the floor in the living room. That saved me a good $100 and a trip to the store.

 

[Bill Bates]

My wife has about the same requirements as the OP. For the few years she has been doing all of that on her I-Pad which has a little keyboard in her cover. I'm just not sure if email, internet cruising and a little word processing or spread sheets type stuff you even need anything more than a tablet / I-pad.

I have an I-Mac but I'm doing video and photo editing so major computing power, speed and hard drive storage space are needed.