Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
brand name even in a prebuilt PC, such as an ATI or NVIDIA video adapter.
Invisible components are ones that buyers seldom ask about or notice,
such as motherboards, optical and hard drives, power supplies, and so on.
OEM components may be identical to retail models, differing only in pack-
aging. But even if the parts are the same, there are often significant differ-
ences. Component vendors usually do not support OEM versions directly,
for example, instead referring you to the system vendor. If that system
vendor goes out of business, you're out of luck, because the component
maker provides no warranty to end users. Even if the maker does support
OEM products, the warranty is usually much shorter on OEM parts—often
as little as 30 to 90 days. The products themselves may also differ signifi-
cantly between OEM and retail-boxed versions. Major PC vendors often
use downgraded versions of popular products, for example, an OEM video
adapter that has the same or a very similar name as the retail-boxed prod-
uct but runs at a lower clock rate than the retail version. This allows PC
makers to pay less for components and still gain the cachet from using
the name-brand product.
Quality Costs Money
Not all commercial PCs are poorly
built. Business-class systems and
gaming systems from “boutique”
vendors are well engineered with
top-quality components and high
build quality. Of course, they also
cost a lot more than consumer-grade
systems.
It's worse when it comes to “invisible” components. We've popped the lid
on scores of consumer-grade PCs over the years, and it never ceases to
surprise us just how cheaply they're built. Not one of them had a power
supply that we'd even consider using in one of our own systems, for ex-
ample. They're packed with no-name motherboards, generic memory,
the cheapest optical drives available, and so on. Even the cables are often
shoddy. After all, why pay a buck more for a decent cable? In terms of reli-
ability, we consider a consumer-grade PC a disaster waiting to happen.
No bundled software
Most purchased PCs include Microsoft Windows. If you don't need or want
this software, building a PC allows you to avoid paying the “Microsoft tax.”
Full, Upgrade, and OEM Windows Licenses
We formerly recommended installing an OEM (System Builder)
version of Windows. No more. We used to pay $50 or $60 for an
OEM Windows license, but beginning with Windows Vista, Mi-
crosoft started increasing the prices of OEM Windows licenses
and putting increasingly Draconian restrictions on them.
Buying an individual OEM Windows license is now a sucker bet.
Actually, using an OEM Windows license on a system you build
for your own use violates and voids the license. An OEM Win-
dows license is technically valid only for a system that you build
and subsequently sell to someone else. We suppose you could
build a system and sell it to your husband or girlfriend without
violating the license agreement, but that's treading a fine line.
costs about 50% more than an OEM or Retail Upgrade license,
but that license (including upgraded versions of it) can be freely
moved from system to system.
Before you buy Windows, make sure you understand all the
license alternatives. The best discussion we've seen of the com-
plexities of Windows licensing is Ed Bott's column on the subject
Finally, as long as you have a new system with no operating
system installed on it, you might as well give Linux a try before
you shell out money for Windows. Most people who give Linux
a serious trial are very impressed with it, and a significant
number of them end up converting to using Linux exclusively.
We and many of our friends are among that group. There are
many different Linux distributions available, but two of the
most newbie-friendly are Ubuntu (
http://www.ubuntu.com
)
and Linux Mint (
http://www.linuxmint.com
).
Assuming you have a qualifying older version of Windows,
a Windows Retail Upgrade license—which costs about the
same amount as an OEM license—is a much better deal for
most people. Finally, a full retail Windows license is available
for those who don't qualify for an upgrade. A full retail license
