DaDude Posted February 19, 2021 Share Posted February 19, 2021 This is my current computer that I purchased back in 2014- https://www.cnet.com/products/dell-inspiron-3847-core-i5-4460-3-2-ghz-8-gb-1-tb-led-18-5/ I was thinking of upgrading and buying this PC for $900- https://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-inspiron-3880-desktop-intel-core-i7-10700-12gb-memory-512gb-ssd-ethernet-wifi-bluetooth-keyboard-mouse-black/6423484.p?skuId=6423484 I would assume with the better processor, higher RAM and moving from HDD to SSD, the performance would be night and day. But before I spend $900, I want to be 100% sure that is the case. Will the performance upgrade be significant? I many use my computer for Microsoft Office, and internet surfing. My current PC is getting rather sluggish, especially when booting up and loading sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dead.cell Posted February 19, 2021 Share Posted February 19, 2021 I'd say definitely. I won't speak to Dell Inspirons though, but I noticed a good bump in performance just going from an i7-4790K to i7-5930K I believe, which is what I'm still using with a 6-core CPU over the 4 previously. SSD to HDD is also a huge jump in performance as well. Just be sure to remove the unnecessary software bloat you'll probably get, like Dell's Delivery Services sending promotional Dropbox ads in Windows if you're not the type to completely reinstall Windows. Also, I've noticed Office can sometimes come preinstalled in like English, Spanish, and French. I'd honestly be surprised if you weren't happy with it though, but alternatively, you have the 15 day return policy with BBY so keep that in mind if you're not satisfied with it. Just my 2 cents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 19, 2021 Author Share Posted February 19, 2021 (edited) Great, thanks. Thats what I figured. I probably won't buy from BB as I'm pretty sure I saw this somewhere on sale for around $700, so I might wait for a deal. But good to know so when I see this on sale at some point, I'll jump at it. Surprisingly, the Core i5 ones are significantly cheaper right now but that's because those are the ones on sale. But I'll pay the extra money for the Core i7. Might as well make sure that I make my next PC purchase is a good one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Biscuits Brown MVC Posted February 19, 2021 MVC Share Posted February 19, 2021 It will be faster however... for what you use your computer for, simply upgrading your current system to an SSD would probably get you 90% of the boost. ZakO 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim K Global Moderator Posted February 19, 2021 Global Moderator Share Posted February 19, 2021 For those purposes listed in the OP...I would think your current system is just fine. I would look at just getting a SSD for it. DaDude 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 36 minutes ago, Jim K said: For those purposes listed in the OP...I would think your current system is just fine. I would look at just getting a SSD for it. That's good to know. So now I'm wondering if I should get a similar system (i.e. Core i5 and 8 GB RAM) with a SSD. It would save me a lot of money as that can easily be found for around $500 or so, which is significantly cheaper than that $900 one I linked earlier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mindovermaster Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 2 minutes ago, DaDude said: That's good to know. So now I'm wondering if I should get a similar system (i.e. Core i5 and 8 GB RAM) with a SSD. It would save me a lot of money as that can easily be found for around $500 or so, which is significantly cheaper than that $900 one I linked earlier. Don't bother updating the CPU. Yes, it IS better, but for your use case, you won't get much out of it. Unless there is something you NEED with the new laptop, an SSD and RAM upgrade should suffice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim K Global Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Global Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 14 minutes ago, DaDude said: That's good to know. So now I'm wondering if I should get a similar system (i.e. Core i5 and 8 GB RAM) with a SSD. It would save me a lot of money as that can easily be found for around $500 or so, which is significantly cheaper than that $900 one I linked earlier. No...I would just get a SSD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 (edited) 7 minutes ago, Jim K said: No...I would just get a SSD. How can I do that? The HDD is attached to the inside of my PC with all data and programs on it. Not sure how to replace with a SSD and import everything over. I'm not that technical. In fact, I think my cousin tried to do that once to his PC and crippled it. I don't want to take that chance. PCs are not all the expensive so it's just easier and more practical to just buy a new one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mindovermaster Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim K Global Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Global Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 18 minutes ago, DaDude said: How can I do that? The HDD is attached to the inside of my PC with all data and programs on it. Not sure how to replace with a SSD and import everything over. I'm not that technical. In fact, I think my cousin tried to do that once to his PC and crippled it. I don't want to take that chance. PCs are not all the expensive so it's just easier and more practical to just buy a new one. aah..ok. I could say it is easy (for me)...but wouldn't want you to do something which you're uncomfortable with. So, in that case ... I would just say any new computer that fits your budget with an SSD at a minimum. Pretty much what dead.cell said...and the computer you linked to in your original post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 (edited) 14 minutes ago, Jim K said: aah..ok. I could say it is easy (for me)...but wouldn't want you to do something which you're uncomfortable with. So, in that case ... I would just say any new computer that fits your budget with an SSD at a minimum. Pretty much what dead.cell said...and the computer you linked to in your original post. Yeah, plus I think it's time to buy a new PC anyway. For some reason, the fan on my computer tower makes a loud noise when I first turn on my computer. It only makes that loud noise when I first turn on and goes away after five minutes. I thought it was just dust, but I tried to spray it with one of those air compressed dusters and still makes that noise. So probably a sign that the fan is starting to fail. Jim K 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mindovermaster Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 52 minutes ago, DaDude said: Yeah, plus I think it's time to buy a new PC anyway. For some reason, the fan on my computer tower makes a loud noise when I first turn on my computer. It only makes that loud noise when I first turn on and goes away after five minutes. I thought it was just dust, but I tried to spray it with one of those air compressed dusters and still makes that noise. So probably a sign that the fan is starting to fail. You could always replace that fan, you know... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Biscuits Brown MVC Posted February 20, 2021 MVC Share Posted February 20, 2021 2 hours ago, DaDude said: How can I do that? The HDD is attached to the inside of my PC with all data and programs on it. Not sure how to replace with a SSD and import everything over. I'm not that technical. In fact, I think my cousin tried to do that once to his PC and crippled it. I don't want to take that chance. PCs are not all the expensive so it's just easier and more practical to just buy a new one. As for all your programs and data, what are your plans with a new system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikh Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 2 hours ago, DaDude said: Yeah, plus I think it's time to buy a new PC anyway. For some reason, the fan on my computer tower makes a loud noise when I first turn on my computer. It only makes that loud noise when I first turn on and goes away after five minutes. I thought it was just dust, but I tried to spray it with one of those air compressed dusters and still makes that noise. So probably a sign that the fan is starting to fail. I think all of us would say save your money and keep that hardware as long as you can. I would find someone local like a computer shop or someone who has a reputation of fixing computers to migrate your stuff to an SSD. Also Biscuits makes a good point, how do you plan on migrating your data? if you have a backup then doing the migration from HDD to SSD yourself wont be much of a big issue. If you dont have a backup, I would recommend having a backup anyway. Either way, you can save money and get a 90% boost for about $100-150 at most. This is counting the cost of the SSD and labor if you pay someone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 1 hour ago, Biscuits Brown said: As for all your programs and data, what are your plans with a new system? When you buy a new computer, it comes pre-installed with Windows and everything. If you take my current PC, take out the HDD, then stick in a blank SSD on it, how is the computer going to function with nothing on it? I don't know the first thing about building a computer from scratch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mindovermaster Moderator Posted February 20, 2021 Moderator Share Posted February 20, 2021 (edited) 29 minutes ago, DaDude said: When you buy a new computer, it comes pre-installed with Windows and everything. If you take my current PC, take out the HDD, then stick in a blank SSD on it, how is the computer going to function with nothing on it? I don't know the first thing about building a computer from scratch. You need to watch a few YT videos. It's very very simple... As for backup, they aren't talking about the OS. They are talking about your personal files. Pictures, Videos, Documents, Downloads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaDude Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Mindovermaster said: You need to watch a few YT videos. It's very very simple... As for backup, they aren't talking about the OS. They are talking about your personal files. Pictures, Videos, Documents, Downloads. They were talking about both as if they are the same thing, but they are not. Transferring personal files is easy and there are many ways to do it. But swapping a HDD with an SSD when that HDD is what's running the PC.... that's where the difficulty lies. Having said that, I see what you guys are getting at tho. After thinking it through, it just doesn't seem ideal to be spending $700-900 on a new PC. Back when I was a kid, upgrading computers every few years was a no-brainer since the prices kept dropping significantly and the upgrade was huge. Not to mention that back in the day, PCs tend to slow down significantly as you keep installing new programs and take up hard drive space... but that's not so much the case anymore. Now, desktop prices have plateaued. I paid around $600 or so for my Dell Inspiron 3847 back in 2014. Now for $600, you practically are getting the same thing, with maybe an ever-so-slight upgrade, if any. Just to get a significant upgrade, I have to shell out around $900, which is more than what I paid for my PC seven years ago. So it seems like we've reached a point where it just seems better to upgrade parts, as you guys have mentioned, rather than buying a whole new PC. Edited February 20, 2021 by DaDude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaCrip Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 (edited) In short... the most obvious answer given what you said is to just get a SSD and it will be much better for you and save you a ton of $ as you simply won't see a large enough upgrade to justify the $900 if you ask me given what you do. a bit longer answer... I would just get a cheap/decent SSD (say 250GB or 500GB in size) and wait as long as you can as I can't see spending $900, especially given your comment, "I many use my computer for Microsoft Office, and internet surfing." as it would be largely a waste of $ as there simply won't be a large enough boost in speed to justify the $900. I got a i5-3550, which is slower than yours, and it's still pretty good for general internet surfing and other things. I had a Samsung 850 EVO 250GB SSD since May 2015 and I have no complaints about my computers speed, especially in regards to general use and the like. I had my motherboard since May 2012 (although the on-board sound on it died last year but I simply disabled the onboard sound in the BIOS and then bought a cheap USB sound card which was a nice cheap way to restore sound to it). also, depending on how much $ you want to spend, going from 8GB to 16GB of RAM might not be a bad idea but this is not as crucial as the SSD upgrade as that will clearly be the better all around upgrade. a 500GB range SSD is probably in the ball park of $50 the last I knew. p.s. last year I upgraded my i3-2120 CPU/8GB of RAM to a used i5-3550 CPU/16GB of RAM for $65 ($20 for CPU and $45 for RAM). I suspect ill easily get several more years of use out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Biscuits Brown MVC Posted February 20, 2021 MVC Share Posted February 20, 2021 7 hours ago, DaDude said: When you buy a new computer, it comes pre-installed with Windows and everything. If you take my current PC, take out the HDD, then stick in a blank SSD on it, how is the computer going to function with nothing on it? I don't know the first thing about building a computer from scratch. That new computer will come with Windows installed, that's it. If all you use is Microsoft Edge browser I guess you'd be all set. If you use an installed version of Office you will need to reinstall it. Any other apps you use, you need to reinstall them then move all your personal data over. from the old HDD in the old computer (unless you maintain current backups of your data someplace other than the old computer...) I guess the only real sticking point would be getting a Windows license if you were to replace the HDD with and SSD. Your current license is likely an OEM license that's tied to the original Dell PC and you may not be able to easily reactivate on the new SSD. For the record, I'm looking at a Win 10 machine running an old i5 3570k (that's not overclocked) with 8Gb ram that has a small 256Gb SSD for the OS that runs as a small file server. It also browses the web and before being repurposed, it ran Office 2016 just fine. That machine is about on par with your system and runs your use cases very well. As everyone has said, do not spend the 900 bucks on a new system. Maybe get some help from a friend to swap that HDD with an SSD. That's really all you need - and you may even be able to clone the old drive to the new one (although I always opt for a fresh install). My wife learned how to build a PC and install Windows/Office so I have no doubt you can as well. Its not rocket science. Sikh 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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