eMachines - Page 3

**BigMeatballDave** · GBM 8-12-15

I'm thinking about getting another pc when my tax refund check comes in.

Does anyone have an eMachine? Here's what I'm looking into:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...3A3951%3A41937

Frazod · 01-30-2005, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beer me

I don't play compueter games. The kids play several and have had no problems.

The games I tried to play on it didn't run right, even though they were within specs. It was really annoying. Then the thing started locking up on me all the time. It was a real pain in the ass.

Dr. Johnny Fever · 01-30-2005, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frazod

The games I tried to play on it didn't run right, even though they were within specs. It was really annoying. Then the thing started locking up on me all the time. It was a real pain in the ass.

That certainly would be. No such problems here.

I know nothing about computer or video games but I know the kids have some popular ones that look great graphics-wise and they've never complained about them not working right.

DRU · 01-30-2005, 09:11 PM

I personally hate ANY name brand computer...and especially eMachines.

I won't say much...but I haven't seen anybody mention this so I figured I'd put in my two cents.

One of the main drawbacks of eMachines (and some other name brand computers) is that the video cards are built onto the motherboard WITHOUT onboard RAM. This means that it has to use system RAM for the video. So, it might say it ships with 256MB RAM (which isn't much at all and I'd highly recommend at least 512MB regardless) the eMachine will allocate an amount for video...usually you can set this in BIOS. For instance, if I want to have a 32MB video card then my system is only going to have 224MB of actual RAM. You would now fall below the minimum requirements of a lot of software and your computer will run like CRAP! Of course you could allocate less RAM for the video...but then your video looks like crap. Allocate more and your system runs even worse.

Buy an eMachine and you'll end up buying more stuff later. Personally...I say build it!

Vegas_Dave · 01-30-2005, 09:21 PM

Let me first premise this that I am a tech. I used to als be a head tech for a Best Buy computer service 9mine was a good shop) when the eMachines were absolute garbage.

that being said, I have found them to have made GREAT improvements in quality over the past 2-3 years. My little brother has one of their laptops with the Athlon 64 CPU and frankly, it is by far, the BEST laptop that I have ever seen for under $3k.

they are making good computers now. the sempron CPU in that is based on the Athlon 64 core. While it doesnt support 64 bits, it is still a better CPU then the P4 in that Dell. I own Dells as well (business).

I personally would lean towards that Emachines out of the 2.

They used to be bad, but now they are decent. The only downside to BOTH of these systems would be gaming upgradability. Neither have an expansion slot for a better graphics cars. So you will be stuck with the weaker built in graphics. I think the eMachines has a better graphics chipset then the DELL as well.

My recommendation, spend a little more and get a more scalable platform. personally, i say build one. Go with the Athlon 64 (939 socket) and Win XP pro (not home. when Windows 64 Bit comes out, people who own WinXP Pro will get a FREE upgrade). Load WinXP 64 bit when it comes out (April/May) and your machine will be unbeatable.

Kerberos · 01-30-2005, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigChiefDave

I'm thinking about getting another pc when my tax refund check comes in.

Does anyone have an eMachine? Here's what I'm looking into:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...3A3951%3A41937

As eMachines are not of the greatest quality parts (that should be evident in the price) they are not the WORST machine you could buy but not far off either.

I have worked on a few dozen eMachines and one thing I look for in ANY computer is upgradablity...

Does it have built on video and if it does does the Mainboard have an AGP slot to upgrade to when video goes out ... Yea you can use a PCI video and if you are only using it for general surfing and general use that is all you would need anyway.

Does it have a name brand hard drive and if it does is it a Maxturd or Tri-Gem that seems to be in most? These drives do not have the greatest survivability reputation. I am a Western Digital man and will put NOTHING else in my customers or my own computer.

Is the damn power supply a reguar size power supply or the little bitty bastard they seem to put in eMachines, Gateways, Compaqs, HP's and alike ??? I have purchased powersupplies for some of these computers off ebay and paid as much as $50 to $75 for a "NEW" one that is duplicate of the one that came out. If you order a power supply from HP direct it can cost up to $150 in some cases ... I put $15 to $25 power suppies in my own computer that are 450 to 500Watt and fit into ANY CASE I sell ....

I guess the biggest thing I really hate about any prebuilt computer from any of the compays I have mentioned is the "PROPRIETARY" nature they all seem to have in them.

It's like buying a printer ... ya that Lexmark or HP printer might be $50 or $75 but when you get it home the INK is half full out of the box and new cartriges will cost you as much or more than the cost of the printer.

YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR .... If you only got $600 to spend then buy what you can afford ... if you have good luck with Wal-Mart computers then by all means roll them dice and I hope your luck doesn't run out like most of the people that bring their HP's, Compaq's, eMachines, Goatways and alike in for repair cause they just plain SUCK right out of the box ! It is like anything else ... if you take care of it... it might last longer than it is supposed to!

My.02

Cliff

Miles · 01-30-2005, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigChiefDave

I think I could build my own. I've added a DVD burner to this one a year ago, plus memory. That was easy.

Yeah id also suggest you build your own. If you have messed around inside of a PC case you should have little problem puting one together. With more recent computers it seems even easier than it was a few years ago.

The only thing that takes any effort is formating the HD and installing the OS (which is still pretty easy). Picking out the correct parts is the other thing, but all you would have to do is post it here and im sure you could get plenty of help.

siberian khatru · 01-30-2005, 10:43 PM

My .02:

Couple of years ago my fancy custom-made puter upped and died on me. I needed my puter and didn't have the $$ to get a nice one, so as a stopgap move I bought an e-machine CPU (didn't need the monitor) at Best Buy. Keep in mind I pretty much used it to surf the Net, do word processing and watch DVDs (before I got my home theater). After about a year I had the money to buy this Dell I'm on; I moved the old e-machine into the bedroom for my kids to use.

I found the e-machine good for basic computing. If you're like frazod and want to play games, or you're editing video software or whatnot, then NO I wouldn't use an e-machine for that.

Frazod · 01-30-2005, 10:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

My .02:I found the e-machine good for basic computing. If you're like frazod and want to play games, or you're editing video software or whatnot, then NO I wouldn't use an e-machine for that.

I guess I should add that my wife's best friend now has my old emachine computer. Of course, she plays no games and only has dial-up access - in other words, she does nothing to tax its meager limitations.

As far as I know, it's still working, although I know she had to have one of her IT geek friends work on it at least once.

Darkwolfe · 01-31-2005, 12:10 AM

You can build a real good machine for under $500 if you know what you are doing.

DO NOT BUY HP/COMPAQ!!!
Their hardware quality has improved but they do not provide backup CDs for the software. If it goes out of warranty and the hard drive fails you'll have to not only buy a replacement hard drive but also Windows XP and anything else that came with it.

Also, they do not post the system drivers online, so if you had to reload out of warranty, they charge to even talk to you.

Go Dell, Gateway, or eMachines off the shelf, all provide backup CDs and have improved their hardware quality over the last 2 years.

I've worked on all the brands I list here.

stumppy · 01-31-2005, 12:40 AM

You might go to your local Best Buy/ Circuit City and see what they have on sale. I shopped around for mine about 6 months ago and ended up buying from Best Buy.

Compaq
3200 AMD Athlon 64 bit processor
512 mb memory
160 gb HD
8x DVD/CD burner
CD-ROM
5200 (?) NVIDIA graphics card ( w/ 256 mb mem.)
JBL speakers
17 in. Compaq monitor
WinXP
Microsoft Word/Works ? ( I forget)
And some other software
At the time it was on sale and had several rebates.
$725.00 after sale price and rebates.

I also got a HP printer basically for free after the rebate on it.
It runs games like Far Cry without a problem. I haven't had any trouble with it running anything....yet.
It was by far the best deal I could find at the time.

It hadn't been advertised as on sale, so you never know what they might have for what price at any particular time.

Miles · 01-31-2005, 12:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darkwolfe

You can build a real good machine for under $500 if you know what you are doing.

DO NOT BUY HP/COMPAQ!!!
they do not provide backup CDs for the software. If it goes out of warranty and the hard drive fails you'll have to not only buy a replacement hard drive but also Windows XP and anything else that came with it.

Im not sure on desktops, but my HP laptop that i recent bought came with all of the restore software.

OldTownChief · 01-31-2005, 06:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miles

Yeah id also suggest you build your own. If you have messed around inside of a PC case you should have little problem puting one together. With more recent computers it seems even easier than it was a few years ago.

The only thing that takes any effort is formating the HD and installing the OS (which is still pretty easy). Picking out the correct parts is the other thing, but all you would have to do is post it here and im sure you could get plenty of help.

I agree, and if you stick with the CRT mon. like that one has you could also shave about $200.00 off the price for basicly the same computer.

If you want one that you can just take home, set up, and go, it's not a bad deal. You can upgrade the video with one of the two available PCI slots later if you wanted to. The nVidia GeForce4 MX graphics (w/ 64MB shared memory) would not be the best for a gaming machine. The 512 MB DDR RAM (expandable to 2GB) is a good thing and it has a 7200 RPM HD which is also a good thing.

Personnaly I can't stand the way store bought computers are set up and you would probably be a lot happier building your own and formatting it the way you want it software wise. The first thing I would do with that one is wipe out the HD and start from scratch with XP pro.

Kerberos · 01-31-2005, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miles

Im not sure on desktops, but my HP laptop that i recent bought came with all of the restore software.

I am pretty sure he is referring to the "Restore Partition" that is on the hard drive with MOST new HP/Compaq'... while it is booting you press F10 on most of them to boot into the restore partition and start repairing/restoring your partition("C" drive).

Since I don't buy or sell these kinds of computers I have no idea what tangible software comes with them. I think he is right .. if your hard drive goes titts up out of warranty you are stuck buying a new hard drive for cheap at computer store that doesn't have you restore partition on it..... unless you want to buy it from HP/Compaq. Then I am sure you will be paying 2 or 3X what you could pay for it anywhere else since it will have a NEW repair partition on it !

They fuck you at the drive through ...... AGAIN I will mention Proprietary and this time it's software!

You can however get a new hard drive pretty cheap and they do put the windows COA sticker on the sides of the machines so you could at least find a Windows CD from a buddy or you can order JUST the CD from Microsoft for $25. What you "WON'T" get is any additional software that was provided EXTRA by HP/Compaq cause it was loaded on the restore partition that you don't have anymore! That is there way of making money AFTER the sale. This is a new tactic to try and make money off of thier product after initial purchase.

And I am positive there are allot of people out there that will pay the EXTRA $150/$200 from HP/Compaq for a new hard drive to have what they had on thier machine BEFORE if the hard drive takes a hiatus.

Cliff

**Saulbadguy** · 01-31-2005, 08:31 AM

emachines have come up in the world. They had a bad reputation to start off, but they are solid machines now IMO.

01-30-2005, 06:03 PM
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	eMachines I'm thinking about getting another pc when my tax refund check comes in. Does anyone have an eMachine? Here's what I'm looking into: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...3A3951%3A41937
Posts: 59,997

01-30-2005, 09:11 PM	#33
DRU To the Game Join Date: Oct 2003 Casino cash: $7283516	I personally hate ANY name brand computer...and especially eMachines. I won't say much...but I haven't seen anybody mention this so I figured I'd put in my two cents. One of the main drawbacks of eMachines (and some other name brand computers) is that the video cards are built onto the motherboard WITHOUT onboard RAM. This means that it has to use system RAM for the video. So, it might say it ships with 256MB RAM (which isn't much at all and I'd highly recommend at least 512MB regardless) the eMachine will allocate an amount for video...usually you can set this in BIOS. For instance, if I want to have a 32MB video card then my system is only going to have 224MB of actual RAM. You would now fall below the minimum requirements of a lot of software and your computer will run like CRAP! Of course you could allocate less RAM for the video...but then your video looks like crap. Allocate more and your system runs even worse. Buy an eMachine and you'll end up buying more stuff later. Personally...I say build it!
Posts: 2,123

01-30-2005, 09:21 PM	#34
Vegas_Dave Veteran Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Casino cash: $2114720	Let me first premise this that I am a tech. I used to als be a head tech for a Best Buy computer service 9mine was a good shop) when the eMachines were absolute garbage. that being said, I have found them to have made GREAT improvements in quality over the past 2-3 years. My little brother has one of their laptops with the Athlon 64 CPU and frankly, it is by far, the BEST laptop that I have ever seen for under $3k. they are making good computers now. the sempron CPU in that is based on the Athlon 64 core. While it doesnt support 64 bits, it is still a better CPU then the P4 in that Dell. I own Dells as well (business). I personally would lean towards that Emachines out of the 2. They used to be bad, but now they are decent. The only downside to BOTH of these systems would be gaming upgradability. Neither have an expansion slot for a better graphics cars. So you will be stuck with the weaker built in graphics. I think the eMachines has a better graphics chipset then the DELL as well. My recommendation, spend a little more and get a more scalable platform. personally, i say build one. Go with the Athlon 64 (939 socket) and Win XP pro (not home. when Windows 64 Bit comes out, people who own WinXP Pro will get a FREE upgrade). Load WinXP 64 bit when it comes out (April/May) and your machine will be unbeatable. __________________ Lastly, Redrum_69:
Posts: 1,856

01-30-2005, 10:43 PM	#37
siberian khatru 21st Century Schizoid Fan Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: The Gates of Delirium Casino cash: $2574950	My .02: Couple of years ago my fancy custom-made puter upped and died on me. I needed my puter and didn't have the $$ to get a nice one, so as a stopgap move I bought an e-machine CPU (didn't need the monitor) at Best Buy. Keep in mind I pretty much used it to surf the Net, do word processing and watch DVDs (before I got my home theater). After about a year I had the money to buy this Dell I'm on; I moved the old e-machine into the bedroom for my kids to use. I found the e-machine good for basic computing. If you're like frazod and want to play games, or you're editing video software or whatnot, then NO I wouldn't use an e-machine for that.
Posts: 69,130

01-31-2005, 12:10 AM	#39
Darkwolfe A shadow with LARGE teeth Join Date: Sep 2004 Casino cash: $10004900	You can build a real good machine for under $500 if you know what you are doing. DO NOT BUY HP/COMPAQ!!! Their hardware quality has improved but they do not provide backup CDs for the software. If it goes out of warranty and the hard drive fails you'll have to not only buy a replacement hard drive but also Windows XP and anything else that came with it. Also, they do not post the system drivers online, so if you had to reload out of warranty, they charge to even talk to you. Go Dell, Gateway, or eMachines off the shelf, all provide backup CDs and have improved their hardware quality over the last 2 years. I've worked on all the brands I list here. __________________ *I ain't gonna give up yet!*
Posts: 503

01-31-2005, 12:40 AM	#40
stumppy New and Improved Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Springfield, Mo. Casino cash: $1518590	You might go to your local Best Buy/ Circuit City and see what they have on sale. I shopped around for mine about 6 months ago and ended up buying from Best Buy. Compaq 3200 AMD Athlon 64 bit processor 512 mb memory 160 gb HD 8x DVD/CD burner CD-ROM 5200 (?) NVIDIA graphics card ( w/ 256 mb mem.) JBL speakers 17 in. Compaq monitor WinXP Microsoft Word/Works ? ( I forget) And some other software At the time it was on sale and had several rebates. $725.00 after sale price and rebates. I also got a HP printer basically for free after the rebate on it. It runs games like Far Cry without a problem. I haven't had any trouble with it running anything....yet. It was by far the best deal I could find at the time. It hadn't been advertised as on sale, so you never know what they might have for what price at any particular time. __________________ “As a nation, we can endure damaging policies for a four-year term. But we cannot survive a president willing to terminate our Constitution”
Posts: 21,072

01-31-2005, 08:31 AM	#44
Saulbadguy When a nightmare becomes real Join Date: Nov 2003 Casino cash: $2666966	emachines have come up in the world. They had a bad reputation to start off, but they are solid machines now IMO. __________________ http://www.goemaw.com
Posts: 46,965