Building or Buying

Give three advantages to building a PC and three advantages to buying a PC.

Buying:

Convenient - Saves time. It allows you to buy a preconfigured system that contains all the components inside.

Bundled with OS and other software - Usually is bundled with an Operating System and some software. Usually the software can range from a multimedia player to antivirus.

Warranty and support - Most computers come with warranty, so if your computer breaks down, or you just have trouble with a certain component, you can easily call up tech support or bring it back to the store for some help.

Building:

Cheaper - Cuts out the middle man, so that when you're buying specific parts, you're not also paying for the license for that company to use it on their computer system. Also, you pay for what you need, so this allows people to get the only things they need for their computer at a cheaper cost.

Customizable - You get what you want. All the components are bought and installed by you, so that you're putting in what you NEED in. With this route you have a wide selection of different parts for different tasks, like graphics cards for example. You wouldn't really need a high end QUAD SLI Nvidia graphics card if you're just using the computer to go on Facebook and play the occasional Farmville or other flash game timewaster. However if you're a gamer and you're not on a budget, GO FOR IT!

Satisfaction - Building a PC is a valuable learning system. Also, the satisfaction of building something from scratch and having it work is a great feeling.

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I believe building your own computer is the best option. However, it's not the best for most people. to build a computer, you must have a vast knowledge of computer components and electronics experience. You must know what plugs in to where, if it's compatible, what the parts are for, the power supply, etc. Nonetheless, building a computer is usually cheaper as it cuts out the middle man, and it doesn't leave your computer with "bloatware" that's usually bundled with preconfigured system. You may have to pay for your OS, but it's a nice fresh install instead of having all that bundled junk that HP users usually have. Also, with building your own computer, you get to have what you want, meaning that you can customize every single aspect about your computer. Building could take a lot of time, but it's cheaper and rewarding in the long run.


Mark Kyrnin Building Vs. Buying a Personal Computer [Online]Available http://compreviews.about.com/od/general/a/BuildvsBuy.htm Accessed March 26, 2010