Buying a Used PC \ stacker news ~tech

3363 sats \ 29 comments \ @smuglydawg 19 Feb tech

I need to upgrade my computer soon since it is becoming outdated and will not be able to handle the new Windows operating system.

While I dream of having an awesome gaming rig I know who I am and don’t have time or money to get the new Twitch streamer machine.

Just need a basic office machine like a Dell. Anything to watch when looking at refurbish models?

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476 sats \ 3 replies \ @freetx 19 Feb

Your best bang for the buck on used PCs are any of the Lenovo / HP / Dell small "business desktops". Typically known by their Tiny / Mini / Micro name (Tiny = Lenovo brand, Mini = HP, Micro = Dell).

For instance, the HP 800G5 goes for about $200 used and includes following:

small 1l form factor
i5-9500 (6c) CPU w/ VPro
Supports up to 64GB DDR4
1 x 1Gbit Ethernet
1 x Wifi6 + BT
3 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbit)
3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbit)
1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type C (10 Gbit)
1 x nvme slot + 1 x SATA SSD
1 x FlexIO port (small add-in card support for things like serial, vga, usb, etc)
2 x Display Port

Lenovo and Dell have similar models that are comparable. So find whatever is cheapest and most available.

All in all for $200 its more than capable for being a good little desktop

5 sats \ 1 reply \ @doubleplusgood23 20 Feb

Great comment. I also really like the new AMD mini-PCs you'll see on Amazon for new. The Beelink systems are very nice for the price.

12 sats \ 0 replies \ @Bitcaan 20 Feb

have you had yours a while? the longer term reviews on amazon mention these units dying around the 1 year mark

10 sats \ 0 replies \ @smuglydawg OP 19 Feb

Wonderful write up, it is crazy what you now can get for half the price of my old machine.

248 sats \ 1 reply \ @MattInTech 19 Feb

Are you looking into a new laptop or desktop pc? What are your requirements in terms of available software and general usage? The more info you can provide the community, the more we can help you out ;)

10 sats \ 0 replies \ @smuglydawg OP 19 Feb

I have thought about a laptop but do lean me towards a desktop. What I need is most likely a basic office device as I start working on some college classes again.

But I will also have children that are soon to be the age they might also need to use the machine for education or games.

That is the hardest part of looking is the what ifs…

428 sats \ 0 replies \ @nullcount 19 Feb

Broke Microsoftpenis Windoze user needs new PC

New linux user, Chad, breathes new life into old PC

The choice is yours

141 sats \ 0 replies \ @npub1freed0m 19 Feb

Personally I would only ever buy a machine from this list: https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/certified-hardware/

Whatever you buy though, don't put windows on it

30 sats \ 1 reply \ @RoundaboutStacker 19 Feb

My sincerest condolences that you need to work with M$-Windoze.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @smuglydawg OP 19 Feb

Thank you for your condolences.

10 sats \ 2 replies \ @hodlpleb 19 Feb

I might pay for a used Mac, but if you are just checking email, web surfing, etc, you can fine a lot of new PC laptops for a few hundred dollars

51 sats \ 1 reply \ @JesseJames 19 Feb

Used Macs BTW are excellent bed for Ubuntu, solid hardware and modern (free) software. One can try if it wil run from usb and then if you like it, keep it :-)

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @doubleplusgood23 20 Feb

I wouldn't bother with an old Intel Mac. They're not particularly well spec'd for the price. Used XPS or Thinkpad of the same era would be a better bang for the buck.

The current M series Macs blow them out of the water but have very shaky Linux support, though I expect current efforts to continue improving.

25 sats \ 0 replies \ @MattInTech 19 Feb

interesting how comments that are supposed to be funny get way more attention and zaps than actually useful ones... this site is taking a strange direction

10 sats \ 0 replies \ @JesseJames 19 Feb

Why buy? You can build a decent one for half of the price of the new one, but then again it depends on your skills and the time you have. Building a PC is a valuable experience, one learns a lot about hardware, which can be used in the future for your job as well. Start with the budget - how much can you afford and go from there. Good suggestions are - put new Linux on old hardware, they tend to bring a new life into the machines, something easy like Ubuntu-Budgie, Mint, Mate, Solus, etc. New PCs these days are relatively cheap, look for deals around holidays and you can snatch one for very little $$ if you don't like or can't do it yourself. To each his own.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Design_r 10 Apr

Maybe this helps you #500477

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @bookguy 19 Feb

I’ve started a new build. Bought a used motherboard and processor off eBay. Will be a 10th gen i7, 32GB of ram. 1 TB nvme. Using a 32 inch television for hdmi output for now. Building this for photo and video work, likely some gaming too. Everything is on its way to get it running, I’m at around $550 right now. Last thing will be a graphics card, which I’m looking at used on eBay as well. Also will purchase a wide gamut display at some point.

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @smuglydawg OP 19 Feb

Did you have a worries with used items? Or since they are still newer less wear and tear?

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @bookguy 19 Feb

Yes, definitely some worries. What if the used components are dead? If everything works, how long before something breaks? My worry would be obtaining parts from those who overclock without adequate cooling.

Memory, nvme, case, cpu heat sink and fan, power supply keyboard and mouse I purchased new.

The motherboard board was a little dusty with some animal hair, it cleaned up ok. It also smells heavily of e-cig lol. Definitely some vape residue there. I would say dust and general cleanliness is an issue, but didn’t bother me too much. If you’re buying a fully assembled pc used, I imagine it could be very dusty and gross depending on the previous owner and the environment it was in. Good luck in your search.

0 sats \ 6 replies \ @ToxicSaraTV 19 Feb

Never buy used. Gross. Just find a new one in your budget or build one like a real man.

10 sats \ 5 replies \ @smuglydawg OP 19 Feb

What are your concerns with used electronics?

0 sats \ 4 replies \ @xz 19 Feb

Never really understood what people mean when they say 'build a pc' Does it mean, find screw driver and hex key, take RAM out of plastic casing, insert RAM, take SSD, attach to PCIe plug, close enclosure with said tools, switch on?

I've started to love using old systems and configuring them but you still pay for what you get. I imagine there's obvious trade-offs either way. I'd just assess what you need it to do, your budget and when you need it. If you don't really need it, you can always wait further down the line as you probably get the same thing for less in the future.

10 sats \ 1 reply \ @smuglydawg OP 20 Feb

Yes you can save some money buying the loose parts and before you had to be careful they would work together. It’s been awhile since I studied the field so not sure this is still a concern.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @xz 20 Feb

totally and it's good to have parts you can swap in/out as backup.

10 sats \ 1 reply \ @doubleplusgood23 20 Feb

Little outdated as far as parts go but YouTube is your friend. Searching "how to build a PC" will get you many results.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @xz 20 Feb

I see there's a lot more to think over when building gaming or cutting-edge performance machines.

I usually just use desktop/notebook/nucs that make decent servers / headless nodes (at less expense.) If you just want to supe/pimp a regular machine, your usually dealing with a cpu soldered onto a motherboard and that doesn't leave so much work, maybe ~75% work is checking for the spec and upgradeable options for best performance (research/shopping.)