doctorclark wrote:How loud is this computer? Also, will a 250W computer send my electric bill through the roof if I leave it on 24-7 (p2p, server, etc.)?

Greetings - here is an excellent resource for calculating energy costs -
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/howmuch.html

cheers!

unksol wrote:The power supply rating has nothing to do with how much power is used, its the average power the computer itself is using. They do sell a plug in meter called a kill-a-watt that will tell you the power being used by any plug in device for something like 20 bucks. If you just went off the power supply rating 250W/H * 24 = 6KW/H per day * 30 = 180KW/H per month.

This seems high, but the computer hardware has to be rated below the power supply rating, and for what you are proposing it will be idle most of the time, using very little power. My IBM xeon server only added 10 bucks a month to my electric bill.

To add the last piece of the math, in most of the US, 180kwh would cost $25-35. I agree that with the HD and processor idle much of the time, you'll be burning less than 250W typically, though if it's running P2P 24/7, it won't be idle. It's up to you to decide whether $25-35 is "through the roof" - that's the same order of magnitude as a refrigerator or a water heater.

WARNING! I bought a quad Core HP desktop that looks identical, and the hard drive crashed a few months later....(i went to HP's website and it was a KNOWN manufacturer issue with the hard drive upon shipment). They did not send out recall notices, and when I call to complained would not replace the drive, even though their site explains they shipped it out with a faulty HD. I was very dissappointed with this purchase and HP. I bought a new DRIVE, formatted and reloaded the OS and all my data and now it has been running no problems....So, to protect yourself, I would recommend looking at HP's site first, I would have a backup strategy and I would personally, not recommend purchasing this from experience.

BigSlowTarget wrote:250W is $0.025 per hour given a reasonable electric contract. That means it would cost a maximum of $219 a year or $18.25 a month to leave on. The system will probably use much less than maximum power on average. Call it $9-15 a month.

Electric rate varies by more than 2x depending where you live. Somebody living in the northeast, midatlantic, or california should expect to pay up to double what you quoted.

http://www.eia.doe.gov/electricity/epm/table5_6_a.html

beefmalone wrote:I wonder how much it will cost to upgrade to a decent power supply and add a graphics card?

$250 - $ 300 is what I paid to upgrade my HP Intel Quad core.

phacopida wrote:LightScribe technology? Sounds cool - but is it? Anyone have this? You have to purchase the LightScribe media separately and I'm wondering if it is worth it.

LightScribe is cool if you feel like taking the time. But as was mentioned earlier, a Sharpie does a good job in seconds.

billdoe wrote:Checked out the AMD processor page above and they don't acknowledge the existence of a 2.8 GHz quad-core Athlon II, just a dual-core. So, is it a dual-core, a quad-core with a different speed rating or such a buggy processor that AMD won't admit it exists?

Lucy, you got some splainin to do.

I was scratching my head on that one too. The dual core athlon is not a bad chip, and I know they had room theoretically for 6 cores. But Never seen it offered.

Funny coincidence, Dell just today pulled the triple core option for several computers. I assume they sold out of those builds because people are wanting the phenom.

slumpy03 wrote:Hey guys, maybe you can help me. I'm looking to get a new computer. I'm running on one that's almost 10 years old.

Is this a good deal? I know almost nothing about buying computers. Thanks.

It's a good buy. Compared to a 10 yr old computer this will be a cray supercomputer.

whitehatsforhire wrote:Just did it and used the coupon, it worked!

$25 OFF WOW!!!!

Can't get to the add, just post the code.

dcharney wrote:WARNING! I bought a quad Core HP desktop that looks identical, and the hard drive crashed a few months later....(i went to HP's website and it was a KNOWN manufacturer issue with the hard drive upon shipment). They did not send out recall notices, and when I call to complained would not replace the drive, even though their site explains they shipped it out with a faulty HD. I was very dissappointed with this purchase and HP. I bought a new DRIVE, formatted and reloaded the OS and all my data and now it has been running no problems....So, to protect yourself, I would recommend looking at HP's site first, I would have a backup strategy and I would personally, not recommend purchasing this from experience.

Yes, that little company called Western Digital did make some faulty drives that were sold to HP... and Sony, and Dell...

The drives that failed were covered at no charge through Western Digital. I don't know why you had to bash HP for something that was pretty much out of their control. I mean, it's not like the gas pedel got stuck and needed a mass recall.

anyone know if the firewire in this computer uses the Texas Instruments chipset?

rhythmchanges wrote:Does anyone have any experience using this (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) as the part of a DAW? Specifically with SONAR, even?
Thanks in advance.

I use Reaper and it works great with this computer.
As posted on page 3 of the comments:

I have a similar computer (no built in WiFi, no optical out, but otherwise appears to be the same) that I Wooted a few months ago. So far, so good. I use it for media conversions and haul it around for on location Multi track recording. I have recorded up to 15 tracks at one time without a glitch (I'm recording again this evening). Some songs can be found here (the two songs from the '70's were recorded before I had this comuter ): http://soundcloud.com/richard-king All of the mixing was done inside the box, no mixing console was used.

phacopida wrote:LightScribe technology? Sounds cool - but is it? Anyone have this? You have to purchase the LightScribe media separately and I'm wondering if it is worth it.

LightScribe to me is a cool toy, but I had an HP LightScribe dvd drive that fried after a few uses.

I don't know what I did wrong, but the laser burned up... It stopped reading discs and everything. Guess you can't expect much when DVD drives go for around $25-$30 these days.

Cyd wrote:250w PSU? is that supposed to be 520w?

So. The common misunderstanding of the build it yourself PC crowd is more watts is better. For your basic PC, 250 is probably over kill. I have an HTPC with a dual core desktop processor, on board video, and it has a 150w power supply which is probably too much.
The only time you need very many watts is if you have one beast of a videocard and CPU, but even beasty cpu's or pretty power efficient these days.
For something that is the caliber of this pc, 250w is more than enough, until you throw in a good videocard, etc.

saltone wrote:Can't get to the add, just post the code.

it generates new code every session, it is unique to visitor and can only be used once

try again, maybe the codes are all used up?

don know

theloudestfire wrote:
And this PSU:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371026.

I'm thinking about it...

Dead link;
Search Results
We apologize for the inconvenience, but the item you are looking for has been deactivated. Here are some similar products that you may wish to consider:

Lightscribe is a little better than novelty, in that it allows you a way to easily label your discs without using the paper labels. I don't design anything, but I label them with plain text, and it's easy and useful.

I have a very similar computer to this, only difference being a .1GHz faster processor and 250GB of extra HDD space. Aside from being an HP and coming preloaded with all of their bloatware, it's not a bad computer out of the box if you just want it for email and watching Youtube. When I got mine, I hopped on Newegg.com and bought a better power supply and a video card and now I use it for gaming and haven't had any problems. The hard drive is a little bit slow, but you could upgrade that as well and have a nice rig. When getting upgrades, keep in mind that the case is rather small, so you might have to get creative to fit everything inside.

12milluz wrote:anyone know if the firewire in this computer uses the Texas Instruments chipset?

My similar unit does not have the TI chipset. It does have LSI 1394 OHCI Compliant Host Controller. I use it with a Presonus Firestudio, which is VERY picky about it's firewire interface. It works just fine. I also use it with a Canon GL-2 video camera just fine. On my MB there is a second firewire header which I have brought out to the back of the machine.

argaiv33 wrote:Do you have to connect that antenna to get wireless? WEAK

The signal is WEAK without the antenna.

Mossard wrote:Another Question:

4)I have MS Office on my old machine that was bought and intalled thru the MS website. Can I transfer it to this machine?

If you have the install disks, you can transfer it, but you'll have to reactivate (by phone or internet) if it's Office 2007 or later.

inflatablechair wrote:Some of those in the writeup, like CIA, DOD, and IBM are actually called initialisms. This is because when you read them, you pronounce each letter, instead of combining the letters to form a "word," like in LASER, RAM, or LAN, which are acronyms.

That is technically true, although most folks just say "acronym" as long as the letters stand for something.

However, the OP did not mention initialisms. He only made the distinction between acronyms and abbreviations.

billdoe wrote:Checked out the AMD processor page above and they don't acknowledge the existence of a 2.8 GHz quad-core Athlon II, just a dual-core. So, is it a dual-core, a quad-core with a different speed rating or such a buggy processor that AMD won't admit it exists?

Lucy, you got some splainin to do.

Peperpuppy wrote:I was scratching my head on that one too. The dual core athlon is not a bad chip, and I know they had room theoretically for 6 cores. But Never seen it offered.

Funny coincidence, Dell just today pulled the triple core option for several computers. I assume they sold out of those builds because people are wanting the phenom.

From the Product Website (under "processor"):

AMD Athlon II X4 630

*
Operating speed: Up to 2.8 GHz
*
Number of cores: 4
*
Socket: AM3
*

And here's the quad-core porcessor at Newegg
Bus speed: 4000 MHz

saltone wrote:I don't see it, does this come with a Warranty?

From the item page:

"Warranty: 90 Day HP"

You can add a SquareTrade warranty if you want a longer one.

Ringo4422 wrote:If you are a student you can buy MS Office Pro for $29 directly from Microsoft. You only need a legitimate college or university email address. DON'T INSTALL THE MS OFFICE teaseware that comes pre-installed. I can't imagine why this would be a deal breaker for a student.

If any of the Woot! mods is out there, watching over us, could you please address this issue? The item description says, "Productivity - Microsoft Works 9", which certainly sounds like the full-fledged program, and not a teaser version. If true, an additional value, especially for those of us w/o current access to student discounts. So what's the story, Jerry?

emccoyii wrote:I'm actually considering this. I've badmouthed HP products for years, but it is a workable machine once the preinstalled carp is removed. At this price I can't roll my own for less, either.

Yes, that's Two Hundred Fifty watts on the power supply. As long as you aren't into gaming... ;-)

I don't know, I usually keep the standard fish installation as I like the smell it emits when the CPU heat reaches higher levels.

dmhpilot wrote:Even better is an E-SATA docking station.

I would recommend getting one that has both USB 3.0 and eSATA, since the cost difference is small. Also, this computer doesn't have eSATA (it does have USB 2.0, but why not be 3.0-ready?).

InFrom wrote:If any of the Woot! mods is out there, watching over us, could you please address this issue? The item description says, "Productivity - Microsoft Works 9", which certainly sounds like the full-fledged program, and not a teaser version. If true, an additional value, especially for those of us w/o current access to student discounts. So what's the story, Jerry?

MS Works is not the same as MS Office!

For one thing, it includes Works Word Processor - not MS Word.

Condition: Refurbished

There will likely be 100's of these units sold via Woot.
Does HP really get that many "come backs" ?
Maybe this is just a way for HP to sell a bunch of "new" systems with only a 90 day warranty???

Here's a chart showing power consumption for various configurations:



The article it came from was written in June 2009.

Here's a Computer Power Consumption Calculator that gives you an idea how much power various components draw (don't forget those USB devices!).

Just in case, here's another one.

I have general questions about this computer as well. It seems to fit my needs but I would like to branch into multi track recording with FL or pro tools and want the capacity to use this for netflix streaming and HULU type services. Recommendations? Would I need to upgrade?

rking wrote:I use Reaper and it works great with this computer.
As posted on page 3 of the comments:

So far, so good. I use it for media conversions and haul it around for on location Multi track recording. I have recorded up to 15 tracks at one time without a glitch (I'm recording again this evening). Some songs can be found here (the two songs from the '70's were recorded before I had this comuter ): http://soundcloud.com/richard-king All of the mixing was done inside the box, no mixing console was used.

NightGhost wrote:I would recommend getting one that has both USB 3.0 and eSATA, since the cost difference is small. Also, this computer doesn't have eSATA (it does have USB 2.0, but why not be 3.0-ready?).

Concur.

But you don't need a eSATA port, just a empty SATA drive connector inside the case. Example: I just bought a "NexStar" eSATA/USB2 HD dock from CompuUSA, $35. It includes a cable and bracket that connected to a empty SATA drive connector on the motherboard and brings it out to a eSATA external jack. No PCI slot needed, but it did take a bracket position.

Elsewhere it shows 5 SATA connectors on the motherboard, probably only 2 used.

250w powersupply? Yea...uh no

NightGhost wrote:MS Works is not the same as MS Office!

For one thing, it includes Works Word Processor - not MS Word.

Ah so it does, thank you! I had missed that. Probably need to think about upping my Rx for reading glasses.

mvpwoot wrote:You'd need to figure out what motherboard this PC has and if it can handle a GPU upgrade. GPUs really depend on your budget - you can spend $50 or $500. A good, quality PSU is usually at least $40-$50 up to $100-150 for the highest end stuff. And both of these will need to fit into the case, which you might need to change.

If you're thinking about going this route I might recommend getting a barebones bundle and building your own.

I upgraded mine with a decent PSU and GFX card for $120 total after rebates from newegg.

I also hear it only prints in B&W. I'll continue to use my Sharpie and buy the cheaper DVDs!

rbloom wrote:Concur.

But you don't need a eSATA port, just a empty SATA drive connector inside the case. Example: I just bought a "NexStar" eSATA/USB2 HD dock from CompuUSA, $35. It includes a cable and bracket that connected to a empty SATA drive connector on the motherboard and brings it out to a eSATA external jack. No PCI slot needed, but it did take a bracket position.

Elsewhere it shows 5 SATA connectors on the motherboard, probably only 2 used.

Actually, the Aloe mobo has 6 SATA connectors.

Ah - you didn't say that - your dock came with an installable eSATA port (not all docks do). Unless you're trying to draw a distinction between the words "jack" and "port." They're pretty much the same thing, except port is sweeter and has less alcohol.

What's good about all of these solutions (USB enclosure, USB dock, eSATA dock) is that they're externally powered, no they don't add additional draw to that wimpy power supply.

dlhuck777 wrote:I also hear it only prints in B&W. I'll continue to use my Sharpie and buy the cheaper DVDs!

That's true. You can buy colored Lightscribe disks, but I feel silly even mentioning that.

This was on eBay daily deal forever at five dollars less. So disappointed Woot!

theliuster wrote:This was on eBay daily deal forever at five dollars less. So disappointed Woot!

... with $5 shipping??