New Computer - which one?

Any recommendations?

I want to buy the whole thing as a package as I wouldn't have a clue about separates.

Mesh? Dell?

PC World have Compaqand Acer.

If you dont feel you can make your own and I would choose dell, expensive but are good. Do a google search for reasons to avoid mesh, I have had nothing but trouble with them in the past.

HI,

Do you know what you want in terms of spec, if not then you should ask yourself a few questions first.

1) What is your budget,
2) What will the computer be used for
3) Do you want Desktop or Laptop
etc.

Feel free to pm me if you want some help

My next Laptop will be bought from a shop- like PC World. Reason is- if something goes wrong you can box it up and take it back to the shop. I ordered a Dell - (u can only buy from their site) and it was the wrong spec.It took months to get it replaced with the correct model. I was furious as Id already paid for it.

I've had excellent service from ROck Direct, good spec laptop, and in 3yrs it has gone back once, and they completely rebuilt the system for me in a week. My desktop from PC world, was away for a month a few years ago, as they had to send it off to the manufacturer to be repaired. There in house technicians can only do the simple stuff

Thank you. I guess I want a reasonably powerful one but a good, trusted brand that will last and not break down. Tall order?

PC-World have a good offer for the Toshiba A100 dual core very nice laptop same as i have and power but i have 2GB ram DDR2 and if you register it with toshiba you get all the new updates with e.mail and i have seen on sky they have a good offer at the moment and if you have a problem you can easy go to the shop with the others you have the problem you have to send it somewhere

size : 15.4 "
type : Toshiba TruBrite® WXGA TFT display
internal resolution : 1,280 x 800
dot pitch (HxV) : 0.25875 x 0.25875 mm
typical contrast ratio : 300:1
response rise/fall : 25/25 ms
LCD brightness levels 1-8 : 46-61-76-90-106-120-136-155 cd/m²

Expansion 2 x memory slots
PC Card slot for 1x Type II card, type : Express Card™ slot
number of expansion types : 1

Hard disk capacity : 100 GB
certification : S.M.A.R.T.
height : 9.5 mm
drive rotation : 5,400 rpm
number of disks : 2
number of heads : 4
interface : Serial ATA
buffer size : 8 MB
desktop or notebook? : notebook

Keyboard Keys : 86
Windows® keys : 2
function keys : 13
Euro key : yes
key pitch : 19.05 mm
key stroke : 2.7 mm
Hot Keys : 1
special features : spill-resistant keyboard

Non-operating environmental conditions temperature : -20°C - 65°C
maximum thermal gradient : 20°C/hour
relative humidity : 10-95% non-condensing
altitude : -60 to 10,000 m
shock with optical disk drive installed (without optical disk drive installed) : 60G (60G)
vibration with optical disk drive installed (without optical disk drive installed) : 1G (1G)

Operating environmental conditions temperature : 5°C - 35°C
maximum thermal gradient : 15°C/hour
relative humidity : 20-80% (non-condensing)
altitude : -60 to 3,000 m
shock with optical disk drive installed (without optical disk drive installed) : 10G (10G)
vibration with optical disk drive installed (without optical disk drive installed) : 0.5G (0.5G)

System memory standard : 1,024 (512+512) MB
maximum expandability : 4,096 MB
technology : DDR2 RAM (533 MHz)
expansion module sizes : 256, 512, 1,024 MB

Interfaces 1 x DC-in
1 x external monitor
1 x RJ-11
1 x RJ-45
1 x TV-out (S-video)
1 x i.LINK® (IEEE 1394)
1 x external microphone
1 x headphone (stereo)
4 (Rear 2, Right 2) x USB 2.0
1 x 5-in-1 Bridge Media slot (supports SD™ Cards, Memory Stick®, Memory Stick Pro™, MultiMedia Card™, xD-Picture Card™)

Pointing device type : Touch Pad

AC adapter input voltage : autosensing AC adapter (100/240 V) for worldwide usage
frequency : 50-60 Hz
output voltage : 15 V
output current : 5 A
power dissipation : 75 W
weight : 370 g

Battery type : main
technology : lithium-ion
performance : 10.8 V x 4000 mAh
maximum life : up to 3:27 (Mobile Mark™) hours
power on : up to 12:00 hours
power off : up to 4:00 hours

Graphics adapter manufacturer : Intel®
type : 945GM Express chipset
memory amount : up to 128 MB
memory type : DDR2 RAM (UMA)
2D graphics accelerator : Yes
3D graphics accelerator : Yes
motion compensation : Yes

BIOS manufacturer : Phoenix
ACPI : 1.0b
System Management BIOS : 2.3
Flash ROM : CMOS Flash EPROM
Advanced Power Management : 1.2
DPMS Support : Yes
VESA Support : Yes
DDC Support : Yes
Plug and Play Support : Yes

Physical dimensions W x L x H : 360 x 267 x 29.8 (front) / 36.8 (back) mm
weight : 2.72 kg

Sound system manufacturer : Toshiba Bass Enhanced Sound System with SRS® TruSurround XT™ System and SRS® WOW
supported audio format : 16-bit stereo
speakers : built-in stereo speakers
type : Realtek ALC861
maximum sampling rate : 48 kHz
full duplex support : Yes
direct sound : Yes
direct 3D sound : Yes
volume dial : Yes

External video modes The following video modes are supported:
resolution:800 x 600 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 100 Hz
resolution:1,024 x 768 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 100 Hz
resolution:1,280 x 1,024 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 100 Hz
resolution:1,600 x 1,200 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 100 Hz
resolution:1,920 x 1,440 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 75 Hz
resolution:2,048 x 1,536 , maximum number of colours:4.3 billion, maximum refresh rate (non interlaced) : 60 Hz

Internal video modes resolution : 1,280 x 800
maximum number of colours : 16.7 million

Operating system Genuine Windows® XP Media Center Edition

Wired communication topology : Ethernet LAN
speed : 10/100 Base-TX
connector : RJ-45
manufacturer : Askey
topology : international V.90 modem (V.92 ready)
speed : 56 Kbps data (V.90) and 14.4 Kbps fax
features : ring wake-up resume
connector : RJ-11

Wireless communication Compliancy : Wi-Fi™
Network Support : 802.11a/b/g
Manufacturer : Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945ABG LAN Mini PCI adaptor integrated in Intel® Centrino® Mobile Technology
Wireless Technology : Wireless LAN (802.11a/b/g)

Max. external video modes max. resolution : 2,048 x 1,536
max. colours : 4.3 billion
max. refresh rate : 100 Hz
non-interlaced resolution with max. refresh rate : 1,600 x 1,200

Technology type : Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology featuring Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T5200, Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945ABG network connection and Intel® 945GM Express chipset
clock speed : 1.6 GHz
Front Side Bus : 533 MHz
2nd level cache : 2 MB

DVD Super Multi drive (Double Layer) buffer size : 2 MB
compatibility : CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-R(DL), DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+R(DL), DVD+RW, DVD-RAM
interface : ATAPI
maximum speed : Read: 24x CD-ROM, 8x DVD-ROM/ Write: 24x CD-R, 4x CD-RW, 10x HS CD-RW, 10x US CD-RW, 8x DVD-R, 2x DVD-R (Double Layer), 4x DVD-RW, 8x DVD+R, 2.4x DVD+R (Double Layer), 4x DVD+RW, 5x DVD-RAM
type : DVD Super Multi (Double Layer) drive
weight : 190 g

Bundled hardware AC adapter

Bundled software Toshiba utilities and drivers
online user and modem manual
Toshiba ConfigFree™
Connectivity Doctor
Microsoft® Office OneNote™ 2003
Sonic™ Record Now!
InterVideo® WinDVD™ Creator 2 Platinum
InterVideo® WinDVD™
Toshiba Summit
Norton Internet Security™ 2006 (includes free Internet updates for 90 days)

Casework polycarbonate ABS

Certification CE Mark
The manufacturer declares that this product complies with the following directives and regulations for the CE-marking. Responsible for CE marking is Toshiba Europe GmbH, Hammfelddamm 8, 41460 Neuss, Germany.
GOST
R&TTE
CB report
SASO

Security features main hard disk (by screw)
keyboard lock
main memory (by screw)
BIOS password
slot for Kensington Cable Lock
Wireless LAN switch
system password security

Special features SM BIOS compliant
spill-resistant keyboard
HD Audio supporting
Multimedia Bar with 6 Easy Keys (Internet Browser, Rewind, Play, Stop, Forward, CD/DVD launcher)

Warranty 1-year international warranty. Upgrade your standard warranty with Toshiba warranty extension and uplift packs. Contact your nearest Toshiba Authorised Reseller for details.

Personally I'm a HP man.

Both of my desktop computers and my laptop are HP as are my printer scanner and I've never had a problem with any of them to date (touch wood).

Have a search on the following website: www.computeractive.co.uk

They often have reviews on brands which also includes their customer service. Personally I would stick to something like HP/Toshiba/Dell, as they seem to be reliable. I think you can get more for your money going direct to the supplier, such as the way dell operate, plus you get to choose the spec right for you. Somewhere like PC world is good if you want it straight away and if you a standard pc. Alternatively Evesham who operate like Dell, now have a few scattered shops around, so you might get lucky finding one of them near you too.

Best thing to do is to answer the sort of questions I mention above, then show these answers to someone who is a little clued up on computers, then they might be able to stear you towards a suitable computer.

WOW, thanks for all this information. I'm off for a read!