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HPR4148: Cheap Computers
Buying Cheap Computers
Hi. I'm Moss Bliss. You may have heard me on mintCast, Distrohoppers'
Digest, or Full Circle Weekly News.
I keep hearing people complain that they can't find a decent computer
under $2,000. My response is: lower your expectations, and help end
digital waste. Do you really need a top-end gaming machine? Most games
will run on older computers just fine. And there are LOTS of 2016 models
(and a few newer years) coming off office leases.
My suggestion is the Lenovo ThinkCentre M700 Tiny; I will have other
suggestions later in the podcast, but this is what I went with an have
personal experience. The M700 Tiny is a box about the size of an older
external DVD drive, with your choice of an i3, i5 or i7 processor, up to
64 Gb RAM, and a power supply sipping away at up to 35 watts. If you go
on eBay or your local equivalent, you can find these for ridiculously
low prices.
My recommendation is to go for a box with an i5, 8 or 16 Gb RAM, with
or without a drive. You can find them even cheaper if you search for "no
OS", which frequently still includes the drive, but SSDs are quite cheap
these days so it hardly matters. I recommend the i5 rather than the i7
because, in the 2016 models, the i7 wasn't much more than a heat
producer compared to the i5 but no faster, and the i5-based machines are
often $100-150 cheaper.
Of course I recommend putting the Linux of your choice on these
machines when you get it.
You will need a monitor and keyboard for this. If you don't already
have one, I would suggest looking locally for a used 26" LCD/LED TV. You
will also want a cable for it, and you can either get a DisplayPort
cable while you're at eBay, or a DP-to-HDMI adapter to use the HDMI
cable which probably comes with the TV. For a keyboard, you should go to
your local big box store and get one you like, if you don't want to buy
used. You can find them from $5 to $20.
I apologize for my US-centric prices, but you should have similar
prices in your local currency if you have eBay or something like it.
I just did a quick lookup for "M700 Tiny No OS" on eBay, and saw i5
machines which were purported to work from between $80 and $120 with 8
Gb RAM. Be careful to watch for shipping prices, I see a particularly
good-looking refurbished model with 16 GB for under $120 -- but the
shipping is over $35 from Australia!
If you want an AMD chip, you'll need to research the model number...
but they do make them, just not as many.
If you don't like Lenovo, you can find Dells and HP EliteDesks in the
same range. One good thing about the HPs is that they label which
generation they are -- G2, G3, G4. Newer generations cost more, but will
be more future-proof. There is currently an HP EliteDesk 800 G2 with 8
Gb RAM and No OS on eBay for $50! Again, if you buy a G3 or G4 it will
cost more, but be a newer machine as well.
These are all 64-bit quad-core computers, some over 3 GHz, with low
power demands. Cheap to buy, cheap to use. Any version of Linux will run
on them, and if you're desperate you can run Windows 10 on them as
well.
That should be enough to get you started. If you have questions,
write me at [email protected].
Hacker Public Radio needs more podcasts, on any topic and any length.
Get in touch with Ken and volunteer! This is my second wholly unplanned
podcast on HPR; you could be next!
View all episodes
By Hacker Public Radio
4.2
3434 ratings
Buying Cheap Computers
Hi. I'm Moss Bliss. You may have heard me on mintCast, Distrohoppers'
Digest, or Full Circle Weekly News.
I keep hearing people complain that they can't find a decent computer
under $2,000. My response is: lower your expectations, and help end
digital waste. Do you really need a top-end gaming machine? Most games
will run on older computers just fine. And there are LOTS of 2016 models
(and a few newer years) coming off office leases.
My suggestion is the Lenovo ThinkCentre M700 Tiny; I will have other
suggestions later in the podcast, but this is what I went with an have
personal experience. The M700 Tiny is a box about the size of an older
external DVD drive, with your choice of an i3, i5 or i7 processor, up to
64 Gb RAM, and a power supply sipping away at up to 35 watts. If you go
on eBay or your local equivalent, you can find these for ridiculously
low prices.
My recommendation is to go for a box with an i5, 8 or 16 Gb RAM, with
or without a drive. You can find them even cheaper if you search for "no
OS", which frequently still includes the drive, but SSDs are quite cheap
these days so it hardly matters. I recommend the i5 rather than the i7
because, in the 2016 models, the i7 wasn't much more than a heat
producer compared to the i5 but no faster, and the i5-based machines are
often $100-150 cheaper.
Of course I recommend putting the Linux of your choice on these
machines when you get it.
You will need a monitor and keyboard for this. If you don't already
have one, I would suggest looking locally for a used 26" LCD/LED TV. You
will also want a cable for it, and you can either get a DisplayPort
cable while you're at eBay, or a DP-to-HDMI adapter to use the HDMI
cable which probably comes with the TV. For a keyboard, you should go to
your local big box store and get one you like, if you don't want to buy
used. You can find them from $5 to $20.
I apologize for my US-centric prices, but you should have similar
prices in your local currency if you have eBay or something like it.
I just did a quick lookup for "M700 Tiny No OS" on eBay, and saw i5
machines which were purported to work from between $80 and $120 with 8
Gb RAM. Be careful to watch for shipping prices, I see a particularly
good-looking refurbished model with 16 GB for under $120 -- but the
shipping is over $35 from Australia!
If you want an AMD chip, you'll need to research the model number...
but they do make them, just not as many.
If you don't like Lenovo, you can find Dells and HP EliteDesks in the
same range. One good thing about the HPs is that they label which
generation they are -- G2, G3, G4. Newer generations cost more, but will
be more future-proof. There is currently an HP EliteDesk 800 G2 with 8
Gb RAM and No OS on eBay for $50! Again, if you buy a G3 or G4 it will
cost more, but be a newer machine as well.
These are all 64-bit quad-core computers, some over 3 GHz, with low
power demands. Cheap to buy, cheap to use. Any version of Linux will run
on them, and if you're desperate you can run Windows 10 on them as
well.
That should be enough to get you started. If you have questions,
write me at [email protected].
Hacker Public Radio needs more podcasts, on any topic and any length.
Get in touch with Ken and volunteer! This is my second wholly unplanned
podcast on HPR; you could be next!
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