New desktop in early 2021 for remote work or school
Need a new desktop in early 2021 for remote work or school? (or for your parents who use the computer exclusively for following the weather forecast for some reason, despite not going outside for the last 10 months)
The corporations don't want you to know this ONE SIMPLE TRICK
Sometimes you just can't buy used or hit AliExpress.
Perhaps your parents need a computer, but your father got scammed on eBay back in 2004, so he's never buying used again.
Or maybe it's a gift for your godson (but he doesn't even call you Godfather and he's 6 or 7, so he won't be doing any mafia work anytime soon).
The common advice from tech publications is to get a cheap but relatively powerful Pentium G6400 or Athlon 3000G because they're only slightly more expensive than the cheapest processors out there.
And an 80+ bronze power supply because they're only slightly more expensive than the cheapest power supplies out there.
And a B450 motherboard because they're only slightly more expensive than the cheapest power supplies out there.
And by the time you've got a slightly more expensive case, RAM and SSD, your total comes down to 300€ / 1200 PLN if not more.
Those publications are technically not wrong. All those components that they are recommending usually offer great value for money. But only if you're looking from the perspective of a power user or a gamer.
For connecting to VMWare Horizon or using Microsoft Teams you don't need the best value for money motherboard. You need a motherboard.
So for a case, power supply, RAM, and storage just get the cheapest options from the reputable electronics store that you're shopping with. If they sell it, it's not a fire hazard. Especially when used with the least powerful components (which are generating the least heat).
As for the choice of the processor and the motherboard, there is an entire category of products that evil corporations don't want you to know about (despite them being on shelves in pretty much every electronics store). Motherboards with integrated processors . And I don't mean normal motherboard sold together with a normal processor, and you simply pay less than if you were buying them separately. No, I mean physically integrated - the processor is soldered to the motherboard and cannot be removed. Which sounds like a horrible idea but thanks to this anti-competitive behavior we can get a motherboard with a processor for the price of a motherboard without a processor.
My top pick would be ASRock D1800M with Celeron J1800 . It's good enough to significantly outperform the vast majority of laptops under 400€/1600 PLN, and costs only 50€/200 PLN. What sets this apart from other similar motherboards is the PCI-Express slot. Which means that you can add a dedicated graphics card later, and your godson will be able to play GTA V (or sell it to someone who will be able to add a dedicated graphics card and play GTA V).
Right now it's priced just 1€ above the other cheapest motherboard with integrated Celeron, so I think it's worth that 'investment in futureproofing'. But should the difference increase to let's say 10€, I don't think it would be worth it. After all it is not a gaming platform by any stretch of the imagination.
Since you're buying new, I would recommend buying at an electronics store that offers a free (or very cheap) assembly service. Differences in prices on really low-end components are not that big (if a store charges 10% more on 500€ component - 50€ is a lot of money, but if they charge 10% more on 20€ component - that's not really a big deal).
In the Polish store Morele (which offers 1 PLN assembly fee) I was able to spec out a decent PC with 8GB RAM and 240 GB storage for 620 PLN (~135€). And that's without any discount coupons and no components are on sale.
Of course, if you're comfortable with building the PC yourself, the cheapest option is probably (as in most cases) trying Amazon or eBay.
https://www.ebay.de/itm/Asrock-D1800M-Mainboard/402470610321?epid=218433918&hash=item5db51e2591:g:J8UAAOSwvSJfdvJ6