Buying a new computer can be very daunting. With so many different models out there to choice from, it can be all too easy to just give up and bury your head in the sand.
However at RHCC we have taken the time and tried to get around all that by breaking things down and telling it like it is.
Processor (CPU)
Dual Core
Intel Dual Core Clock Speeds Explained
AMD Clock Speeds Explained
Motherboard
RAM (Memory)
Hard Drive
How much can I store on my Hard Drive?
Why is my Hard Drive showing as a smaller size that it is?
What is SATA and RAID?
Graphics and Sound Cards
This is the brains of the operation, if you like. The CPU controls everything your computer does. Whilst it is worth investing in a good specification of processor, most personal computers running day to day activities will find a 3.0GHz ample, even for basic gaming, music and video streaming.
There are two makes of CPU: Intel and AMD. At the basic 3.0GHz level there is really not much difference between the two. It is only when you reach the dizzy heights of Dual Core, and now even quad cores, that some differences become apparent. However even then the arguments over price and performance, all really come down to personal taste.
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You may have heard this term in the press and really it’s quite a simple concept to get your head around.
CPUs have now become so powerful that there is no longer any space in them to expand. Therefore, the clever chaps at Intel and AMD have come up with Dual Cores; basically two CPUs in one to make them faster.
Now, here’s the confusing bit. There are different types of Dual Core: The Intel Pentium D Dual Core, Core Duo and Core 2 Duo, and the Athlon X2.
Athlon makes things easy as they only have one version. More technical advice on this can be found below.
However, whilst the three Intel versions appear to confuse matters, it’s really all in the name. The Pentium D was simply Intel’s first stab at Dual Core technology, and Core 2 Due is their latest. Obviously as technology moves on there are slight improvements, however these are reflected in the price of the newer chips. Whilst we tend to use the ‘older’ Pentium D Dual Core it still remains significantly faster than single core CPUs and is more than adequate for the majority of home users.
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All Intel CPUs run at the speed stated, but Intel Dual Core CPUs are like having 2 cores in one CPU. For example the Intel Pentium D 3.2Ghz only runs at 3.2Ghz, the same as the standard P4 3.2Ghz or Celeron 3.2Ghz, but because it is a Pentium Dual Core, this means that there is two cores inside the one CPU, so performance is not 3.2Ghz, it is more like 6.4Ghz. Obviously in our listing we state 6.4Ghz in item specifics as customers who do not know about dual core etc, would think that a Pentium Dual Core 3.2Ghz running at 3.2Ghz us the same as any other 3,2Ghz CPU, which of course it is not; the cost is a lot more and performance is the best on the market at the moment out of all the Intel CPUs available.
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AMD 64Bit Athlon CPUs are different to Intel Pentium CPUs. For example the 64Bit 3200+ model actually runs at 2.2Ghz, but due to the construction of the chip and the cache sizes, it is equivalent to the P4 3.2Ghz. Actually the AMD chips outperform the Intel chips due to the fact that they are 64Bit and this technology is so new that Intel haven’t even bought their 64Bit series out yet. There is plenty of information regarding this on the internet; just do searches on AMD clock speeds. In a nutshell, AMD outperform Intel even though the actual clock speeds are lower and this is why AMD name their CPUs with their rated speeds, i.e. 3700+ runs at 2.4Ghz, but is the fastest single core CPU on the market.
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The Motherboard is like the body of the computer. Everything links back to this one board, be it the Processor, RAM, Hard Drive, DVD writer or Sound and Graphics cards, they all are monitored and controlled by the Motherboard.
However having said how important this element of your computer is, RHCC is of the opinion that as long as the Motherboard is fully compatible with all the other part of the computer, it is a great disservice to force customers to buy more than they actually need, and basically if the Motherboard is not compatible the computer will not work.
All RHCC and Sussex PC Shop computers are supplied with a suitable branded Motherboard for the purpose of the computer. However all Motherboards that we supply can be upgrades to achieve higher grade sound and graphics, or a RAID configuration etc.
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Random Access Memory or RAM is a type of data store used in computers. The RAM allows stored data on the hard drive or other device to be accessed in any order, that is, at random and without the physical movement of the storage medium (eg hard drive) or a physical reading head.
512MB of RAM is usually enough for most daily tasks, however if you do like things to happen quickly on your PC or are looking towards upgrading to VISTA in the future then it is advisable to have at least 1GB of RAM. Equally if you normally keep many programs or applications all open and running at the same time, then an increase in RAM may help performance of your computer.
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The computer Hard Drive is its storage system or filing cabinet. All of your programs, files, documents, music, video and photographs are stored of the Hard Drive. Even with all of these things stored on the Hard Drive you will be amazed at just how much it will hold. Usually speaking, with normal personal usage, a 80GB will be more than adequate for a home computer. Equally it can be a false economy buying a Hard Drive with a capacity of more than 350GB, as they can be a little unstable due to the amount of data being stored in such a small area.
Hard Drives are much like old vinyl records, except they have a metal disc, or platter, containing all the data rather than vinyl containing songs. The data is written to and read from the metal disc with a small needle. However unlike 45s and 78s, all Hard Drive discs are about the same size, it’s just the information that gets written in a smaller and smaller space the larger the capacity is, therefore you can easily see the ease with which errors may occur with larger hard drives. Having said that new technologies are on the way to ensure these larger capacity drives are more stable and the first Terabyte (that’s 1000GB!) drive is due to be released in the first quarter of 2007.
The storage on your computer is just like a desk and filing cabinet. If you were to leave out paper work all over the desktop and throw the rest in random folders into the filing cabinet then it becomes impossible to manage and you can easily become bogged down. Therefore keeping your hard drive tidy is really important, especially if it has a larger capacity and lots of files. Not only will this help when you have misplaced an important document, but also it will speed up anti-virus scans, defrags etc and, should you have a problem, it will be easier to recover all your precious data if it is neat and tidy in one place.
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Buying the right size hard drive is actually harder than it first sounds, after all you want to have enough space for all your files and folders, but at the same time you do not want to spend a fortune on additional space you will never need.
For most computers 80-120GB is more than adequate, however if you are downloading quantities of music and videos then you should think about 250GB or more.
As files are stored in all different formats, for example MP3 and WMA for music, MP4 and Mpeg for video, and even Jpeg and Gif for images, and each format takes up a different amount of space for the same file. Therefore it is impossible to provide a comprehensive guide on exactly how many pictures, music files or documents a hard drive will hold.
However by looking at just one type of file a general guide can be provided, for example 1GB of hard drive space will hold about 409 pictures from a 5 mega pixel camera in high resolution JPEG mode. Therefore if you allowed a more than ample figure of 10GB for all your programs including an operating system like Windows XP Home and Microsoft Office 2003, a 80GB hard drive would be capable of hold a further 28,630 high resolution photographs!
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The solution is quite a simple one and a problem we get asked about a lot. Basically after formatting the hard drive looses a certain amount of space to this function. If you are in any doubt, you should be able to confirm that full size of the hard drive on the manufacturers label and in the BIOS. However, please be aware that removing the warranty seal on your computer, or tampering with internal hardware, voids the above warranty.
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SATA or Serial ATA (Advanced Technology Attachment) is the next generation drive interface, following the traditional Parallel ATA (PATA) Hard Drives that have traditionally been used.
Anyone who has peered into a computer will have seen the flat, 40-wire parallel ribbon cables that connected the hard drive, CDROM and other devices to their controllers. These PATA connections have been the standard and served their purpose well, but they also had their drawbacks. PATA’s limited length connections often made connections difficult and also clogged cases blocking the all important airflow that helps cooling. Equally the transfer rate of information along PATA connections did not perform very well.
SATA has distinct key advantages over its predecessor. Cables are very thin with small 7-pin connectors. They can be very much longer, so are easier to route around the inside of the case and thus allow for maximum airflow and cooling. SATA also has a lower power requirement. In all the set up with SATA is greatly simplified, the data transfer rate is improved and the technology even allows for ‘hot-swapping’, meaning drives can be removed or added while the computer is running.
With older systems SATA Hard Drives can be added with the aid of a SATA controller that will translate the data stream from parallel to serial; however performance will take a hit. If you are considering upgrading your Motherboard make sure you buy a SATA-enabled one that will allow ease of use for future SATA drives even if your current drives are PATA (ATA).
RAID, which stands for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, is a way of connecting two or more SATA Hard Drives order to ensure date is stored safely.
There are several different levels of RAID, each of which has their own specific method of protecting stored data. The most commonly used is Data Mirroring. Basically this allows data to be written to two drives simultaneously, which ensures that all data is duplicated on both drives so if one fails all is not lost.
RAIDs can also be set up for Data Stripping, which spreads parts of a file across multiple drives and increases performance; however if one drive fails all the data is lost, as well as other formations which can be used in many different circumstances for enhanced performance and/or data security.
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In many modern computers the Motherboard comes complete with sufficient on board Graphics and Sound integrated within its circuits for most of the ever day task you will need to carry out.
However, if you are especially keen to listen to music or play the latest games, you may wish to add a separate Graphics or Sound Card. Graphics cards in particular have a great upgrade following by gamers and one can set you back as much as £500, or as little as £30; it all depends what you want to achieve. Quite honestly unless you have a computer with a high specification to match your super graphics card and an equally high resolution large screen monitor, any improvement will be quickly lost. Equally at the very top end of the market the noticeable difference becomes less and less to the naked eye and the whole thing becomes more about impressing your friends than having a good working PC!
Just remember man managed to fly to the moon with just a 2MB 16-bit computer with 12K of RAM (there is more technology in your mobile phone today!). Whilst things have moved on dramatically, buying an overrated computer is literally a waste of money as a lot of the power can simply end up redundant!
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