My son is about to buy a computer. How are eMachines?
http://portland.craigslist.org/clk/sys/3...
Best Buys eMachine...
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?...
We have no computer knowledge so any advise is appreciated.
Answers:
Most computers go because they are misused. They should be turned off when not being used for prolonged periods of time (an hour or more) and by damaging the Operating system (ex, XP, Vista). It is great that your son is saving so hard and he should be rewarded for his efforts. Get the emachine and don't be nervous cause there is always the warranty. For what its worth I think you arent making a mistake, nor your son. Do not buy used, go with Best Buy.
My experience with eMachines has been average.
Personally, I've had good experience with Dell Desktops. They come with 1 year full tech support (I've rarely needed it) and the machine just works well. I would recommend Dell if he's planning on getting a Desktop.
Also, buy it online or via phone rather than at a walmart or other computer store. Its cheaper.
- used computers = bad
people can do all sorts of things to their machines and you'll never know that there is a problem until prolonged use
- for a first machine, i guess an e-machine would be ok. you may want to look at a really cheap dell desktop as well. You're not looking for anything fancy - but for $450 you can get a low end laptop from Dell.
Steer as far away from eMachines as possible. They are absolute junk and will end up being a waste of you and your son's money. Go with a Dell or an HP. It seems as though you are very worried about warranty and tech support so that is another reason to go with one of those brands; they have great tech support without spending his college education. When you buy, however, say that you do not want any software expect the operating system installed because all of that is garbage that is one month trials. Look for free software for anti virus and such like AVG Free edition or Spybot Search and Destroy. Not getting software except for Windows will say you a lot of money and time in the future.
Don't even think of buying a computer on craiglist, is used and computer are delicate. Is better to buy new one at Best buy or whatever, if you ned help you can always call customer service plus for a little more money you can get 2 exta years of warranty, that means if anything happens to it, the'll replace it.
And trus that guy on craiglist, he just wanna make money, maybe his computer is full of viruses and you don't know what else.
Plus, EMachines are fantastic I have 1 right now for more than 1 year and it works like the first day I purchased it, Just don't buy and HP computer, they are expensive and crap. I had 2 HP desktop, and printers and They CRAP
Emachines are a low end of GATEWAY.pretty much the pinto of computers. Gateway bought out Emachines and although the emachines is built by gateway it is a lower end of their computers. For a 12 year old it could be a good start .
just depends what he will be using it for etc. and if bestbuy offers good warranty on the same. I recomend buying through best buy as they have great prices and offer 100% price match and offers techincal support etc. before buying the emachine shop around . such as HP ,compaq etc. they are good machines for the price. just shop other brands and also check out office depot, curcuit city etc. before buying the emachine. good luck.
I agree, eMachines are nothing but junk. I myself have had Hewett Packard machines and they ar ea better quality and easier to work on than other machines out there.
I have also bought refurbished machines and other electronics from Tiger Direct and I have not run into any problems and I don't pay top dollar for the product as you would if you bought it brand new. Though the warranty maybe only for 30 or 90 days. I would say he would be able to find a good computer there for around $400.
Good luck, any questions just email.
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