WHAT TO CHECK FOR WHEN BUYING A NEW PC
Make sure it’s up to spec Check the price is right
Processor Look for a PC with an Intel i5-7500 (or faster). This will be more than adequate for everyday PC tasks and should remain powerful for years to come. PCS with an i5 should be around £100 cheaper than basic i7 processors (and far cheaper than the new i9 that Intel has just introduced). An i7 is, strictly speaking, more future-proof, and will better handle games and 4K video, but the £100 is probably better spent elsewhere.
RAM We’re nearing a time when experts will suggest you need a minimum of 16GB RAM, not 8GB as is the case today. However, as we’ve already discussed, Windows uses RAM very efficiently, meaning there isn’t a burning need for lots of it. For now, we’d recommend you opt for a PC with 8GB, but make sure it’s on one slot on the motherboard. That way, even if your PC only has two slots for RAM, you’ll be able to add another 8GB to bring its total to 16GB, if and when necessary.
Storage PC manufacturers will always try to tempt you to buy a computer with a large (1TB minimum) SSD, but we suggest a cheaper M.2 256GB model, which should be enough to install Windows on. Use the saving to buy a 2TB traditional hard drive to add to your new PC. That way you’ll have enough storage space to keep on saving documents, photos and videos for years. If you’re worried that your SSD will fill up with Windows 10 apps, you can make them install to the 2TB hard drive instead. To do so, click Start, type save locations, press Enter, then select the hard drive using the ‘New apps will save to’ dropdown menu (see screenshot above).
USB Make sure your new PC has USB 3.1 (or 3.2 if the newer standard is available). You might not see much of an instant boost in how quickly files copy to and from your PC, but you will in a few years when you buy USB 3.1 external hard drives and USB sticks. Once you’ve decided which PC you want, use a price-comparison website such as Pricerunner ( www.pricerunner.co.uk) to find the cheapest price. Not every PC will be listed. For example, our current laptop Buy It! recommendation, the Dell Inspiron 15 5000, is only available from Dell’s site ( www.snipca.com/23375). But you can see a price comparison for our alternative Buy It! laptop, the Asus Zenbook UX310UA, on Pricerunner here: www.snipca.com/25177.
If the PC you want is on Amazon, paste its web address on Amazon into the search bar on Camelcamelcamel ( https://uk. camelcamelcamel.com) to see how its price compares against its historic prices.
Never get an extended warranty
Don’t be tempted to buy any extended warranty offered by the retailer. You’ll be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty for the first year anyway, while the Consumer Rights Act gives you the right to request a repair for as long as six years after purchase (five years in Scotland). If you want the peace of mind of an extended warranty, wait until the manufacturer’s warranty has expired, then approach an insurance provider.