PC's are WAAAAY too expensive!

I've been in the market for a new computer for a while now, as my 4 year old computer is really struggling to keep up with the latest demanding games. A 250 watt PSU and a gig of slow, 333 mhz ram with a radeon X1650 pro and amd athalon 3000+ can barely get 25 fps in CoH at medium, though it can max out source engine games.

Anyways, i've done some research and figure that a q6600, 8800 gtx system will cost me about 1800 CAD after its all said and done, and this seems really expensive for playing some games on.

So, my question would be, should i go for the new PC approach, and while expensive, there are certainly some good games coming this fall/winter, or i could buy a PS3 (i'm a big Metal Gear fan) and maybe upgrade to a 1950 pro - it's AGP right?, another gig of ram and a new PSU for my aging PC, mainly to play the Company o Heroes expansion better, as well as Cysis on low/med.

Any thoughts??

But the thing is i can use the PC i have now do do those other things. From a gaming standpoint i would think that a PS3 would be better, because for a PC to keep up with technology it would need to be upgraded at least every 2 years, and is much more expensive. However, I really do like gaming on a PC, and need some good arguments for spending ALOT of money on something a can barely afford.the_dude69

You have to upgrade your console about every 4 years. My old computer lasted for about 4, you don't need to upgrade it every 2 years, just don't expect to run on max settings or such and such.

its not that expensive its only as expensive as you want it to be you can build computers for less than $1K that murder the consoles in performance and you don't have to upgrade to keep up with the consolesmastershake575

C2Duo and at least a gig of ram, all in all it would cost as more than a PS3, and last less than half the time.the_dude69

8800 GTX - $600

Q6600 - $300

2GB RAM - $100

MOBO P35 sli - $200

HDD - $100

OS - $130 OEM VISTA

DVD Drive - $30

Case - $50

PSU, SLI capable - $150

SUB TOTAL = $1660 CAD

AFTER TAXES AND SHIPPING = $1900

A Rig like that will what, max out games for a year and a half, maybe. Add in a second GTX in a year and a half and it will last maybe 2, maxing out everything.

A PS3 will max out all its games for its whole life, which will be for probably another 5 years, and is less than the price of one 8800 GTX.

A PS3 will max out all its games for its whole life, which will be for probably another 5 years, and is less than the price of one 8800 GTX.

the_dude69

It's really expensive if you want the latest hardware but you can cut at least 1/3 of the price if you go for a E6400 and a 8800GTS 320 MB for example. I would not invest into an AGP system at this point.Gog

However, it would not max out games or play them on high for as long, and i would have to upgrade it sooner to do so. And for 1300 bucks, it is still a lot of dough for a system that can play games on high for a year or so. ( because 320MB of VRAM wont be enough for all those big textures.)

[QUOTE="the_dude69"]

A PS3 will max out all its games for its whole life, which will be for probably another 5 years, and is less than the price of one 8800 GTX.

mastershake575

What i meant was that "I" wont have to lower the detail settings to play games stable. Console games will be maxed out compared to other console games and will look fine on a regular TV for some time. Anyways, who plays crappy PC ports??

[QUOTE="mastershake575"][QUOTE="the_dude69"]

A PS3 will max out all its games for its whole life, which will be for probably another 5 years, and is less than the price of one 8800 GTX.

the_dude69

What i meant was that "I" wont have to lower the detail settings to play games stable. Console games will be maxed out compared to other console games and will look fine on a regular TV for some time. Anyways, who plays crappy PC ports??

I posted this thread on a PS3 forum and supprisingly, they all suggested a PS3 intsead of a computer, like you guys did here with PC support. I think i'll go with the PS3 just because it is so much cheeper, and hey, maybe in six or 8 months ill have enough money for a PC.the_dude69

Not all of them did... I was just at the PS3 forum and I saw that thread (I didn't know it was the same person though). Anyway, you should ask in the General Games forum or System Wars to get opinions from different people. You will get a more variety of answers there...

[QUOTE="Gog"]It's really expensive if you want the latest hardware but you can cut at least 1/3 of the price if you go for a E6400 and a 8800GTS 320 MB for example. I would not invest into an AGP system at this point.the_dude69

However, it would not max out games or play them on high for as long, and i would have to upgrade it sooner to do so. And for 1300 bucks, it is still a lot of dough for a system that can play games on high for a year or so. ( because 320MB of VRAM wont be enough for all those big textures.)

Do you think that getting a card or CPUthat performs 15 or 20% faster will last significantly longer? I don't think so. With those specs ypou would max out any game for the next 2 years. How many games use more than 256 MB of VRAM? No games will require a quad core to run smoothly for at least another 2 or 3 years.

Why do you have to get a Q6600 and a 8800GTX? Thats just like saying cars are to expensive....a Ferrari will cost me 265K or a Infiniti for 40K....Kinda common sense if you think about it. If you really know this industry and you have justa littlea common sense PC's will be less expensive in the long run...but do what you want. Gaming4_Life

Well put. Even though i love PC gaming for the controls and the graphics etc etc... if you really enjoy playing on a console, then go for it. You know the pros and cons, the decision is yours.

I could build a +6000 AMD system with a 1950Pro and 1GB of ram for only $550 w/ OS. I would like to see a console beat that. If you plugged it into the TV, it would look better than the PS3.

Personaly, I would go with a PC; however, if you don't have the knowledge to build your own computer, get a console.

As for the board, you could post this on the console wars. Although, this board is the one that will give you the computer information.

u shud just get an e6600 and OC it.....

u also dont really a GTX cuz theres not much of a diff in performance between GTX and GTS

u shud just get an e6600 and OC it.....

u also dont really a GTX cuz theres not much of a diff in performance between GTX and GTS

smartthingy

GTS, GTX - what cards are you talking about; the 8800s?

Depends if you want to spend the money.

Most of the time,

there are HUGE bargains and very well priced mid-performance parts that will perform just as needed and can be pushed (overclocked) to achieve much higher status. Such as with my computer, my 3000+ is OC'd to 2.45Ghz and my X800GT is pushed to 515/1150 from stock 450/900. Performs insanely good for the price I paid, and for it's age (4 years).

There is not doubt that for gaming, consoles are a better value. A PC just cant compete with a 400-600 console. By the time you add OS, video card and get any decent performance, you blew past the console. And my PS3 can do 1080i/p.

Consoles have also become more flexible, with web browsers, MP3 and photo libraries, etc. However, a PC is a lot more versatile. You can do a whole lot more with a PC (which explains why costs more too).

I prefer FPS games on a PC - I just cant aim right with a console pad. Oblivion, on the other hand, was MADE for the console - that on a 72" HD TV is just GLORY.

If you only want to do gaming, a console can't be beat for value. But PCs can do a lot more than consoles, so the extra investment is well worth it.

you can build a 600 dollar pc that will play almost all of the games today on highinyourface_12

So, for $600 you can build a PC with video support for 1920x1080 @ at least 30fps, OS (not pirated), hard drive, memory, keyboard andmouse (or two wireless controllers), motherboard, CPU, PSU, network card, wireless 802.11b/g, bluetooth, HDMI video out, digital audio out, Blue-ray DVD player, andDVD decoder software? Because that is what you are competing against with the PS3. The video card alone is liable to set you back at least half that.

[QUOTE="smartthingy"]

u shud just get an e6600 and OC it.....

u also dont really a GTX cuz theres not much of a diff in performance between GTX and GTS

jed-at-war

GTS, GTX - what cards are you talking about; the 8800s?

[QUOTE="inyourface_12"]you can build a 600 dollar pc that will play almost all of the games today on highZBoater

So, for $600 you can build a PC with video support for 1920x1080 @ at least 30fps, OS (not pirated), hard drive, memory, keyboard andmouse (or two wireless controllers), motherboard, CPU, PSU, network card, wireless 802.11b/g, bluetooth, HDMI video out, digital audio out, Blue-ray DVD player, andDVD decoder software? Because that is what you are competing against with the PS3. The video card alone is liable to set you back at least half that.

Hes talking at 19" I believe. Cause 65%-75% of monitors used by consumers are 12x10 and lower in resolution. But youre right otherwise

It depends how powerful you want it. You can build a good one for $550 if you don't include the features: +6000 AMD, 1GB ram, X1950pro. It is not the best, but it is decent. PC's are only expensive if you want high quality. Consoles don't even give you that. Although, because consoles are a bundle package, they can build them faster and sell them cheaper. That allows you to get more for your money as far as features that cost a lot otherwise.

Bottom line is that computers are decently priced; consoles are just very cheap because of their included extra features.

If PC companies only made one cpu, one graphics card, etc., you would see PC's cheap too.