hardware valuation

[mat777]

i have a 2002 packard bell imedia 5054 desktop computer that i'm looking to get rid of as ive got a nice new acer aspire......

it has 256mb of ram, intel celeron processor, integrated graphics and no hard drive for data security reasons. it also has both a dvd-r/cd-rw drive as well as an aftermarket dvd-rw drive, so it can copy dvd's from disk to disk. i have been told that the motherboard is quite sought-after as it is a type popular with gamers that is not made any more. is this true (i was told it by a pc world engineer!). the case is also a fetching metallic blue and grey colour.

 

i reckon that with a few upgrades (1gb of ram is about 30 quid from orca logic, and apparently the celeron can be replaced with a better processor with the same connection layout. there are also redundant slots at the back that could accomodate a graphics card) someone could turn it into a nice media or gaming pc for themselves, and cheaply too.

 

my other option is to sell all the components separately, which i think may well make more money.

 

does anyone have any opinions on possible value for either option?

[zinglebarb]

to me and anyone in tech its worthless by the time a new hdd is installed and the ram upgrade its cost to much.Needs a local person who wants a starter machine cheap

[Tootech]

I agree with zingle - its too old to start spending money upgrading.

 

You may pickup a hard drive for £25 on ebay, sell the unit for £40 to of it £50, and so dispose of it usefully.

 

The other option, and one I favour is wipe the drive securely, reinstall Windows and donate it to a local charity. They always have people that really have no cash and are just stepping out into college life, needing a word processor.

[mat777]

unfortunately its a bit too late to reinstall windows on the hdd - its in several thousand tiny pieces. dont blame me, my parents had heard a few horror stories about supposedly "wiped" hdds which still contained accessible personal information

[danzil]

have you just turned down a scoket 478 motherboard, ,aaaargh lol i have been after one for the last 4 days second hand.....there not bad boards really if you get a decent make,,, stick a 3ghz socket 478 cpu in there (£25 ish) then 3 gb of DDR and then an AGP graphics card....

i still got a socket 478 PC running as my server and it is amazingzl swift. thats my thoughts anyway.

im a tech and i never turn down a 478,,,,give me a socket 7 if ya want lol...bring onthe k62

regards

danzil

[mat777]

you're welcome to buy my socket 478 motherboard if you like danzil. as they are all 35 quid on ebay, shall we say 28 quid? if you're interested i can extract it from the pc and photograph it just to make sure it is what you think it is (i haven't a clue!)

[zinglebarb]

not all sky 478 boards are equal there were a fair few max bus speed versions 400 mhz 533 mhz 800 mhz

 

You can find skt 478 motherboards with processors for 30 quid INTEL D865GLC MOTHERBOARD + 2.4GHz INTEL CELERON CPU on eBay, also For Intel, Motherboards, Desktop PC Components, Computing (end time 02-Jun-09 12:37:57 BST)

 

I picked up a 2 gig p4 mobo and ram for less than 20 .

 

board and cpu £12 dell 478 motherboard an cpu with memory on eBay, also With Intel CPU, Motherboard CPU Bundle, Desktop PC Components, Computing (end time 05-Jun-09 14:18:46 BST)

 

and another board and cpu for £20 IBM Socket 478 AGP 8X PC MB Motherboard With P4 1.5 CPU on eBay, also With Intel CPU, Motherboard CPU Bundle, Desktop PC Components, Computing (end time 15-Jun-09 16:44:37 BST)

 

as I said unfortunately your stuff has little value

Edited June 2, 2009 by zinglebarb

[mat777]

ok zinglebarb, thanks for the opinion. ill buy a cheap 10 quid 80gb hdd off ebay, reinstall xp from the recovery disk and whack it on ebay as "an ideal computer for first timers/students on a budget".

should make a few quids profit, which is better than it cluttering up my spare room

 

shall include the crt monitor with it as well? you cant seem to give those things away these days but its pristine and far too good to junk. i was using an old lcd but this has really had it and will be junked

[zinglebarb]

delivery wont be cheap are you uk and use parcels2go?

[mat777]

i hadnt thought about delivery actually....good point!

i am uk based though. ill just set delivery to "buyer must pick up" or maybe advertise it locally instead

[Plastic Nev]

ok zinglebarb, thanks for the opinion. ill buy a cheap 10 quid 80gb hdd off ebay, reinstall xp from the recovery disk and whack it on ebay as "an ideal computer for first timers/students on a budget".

should make a few quids profit, which is better than it cluttering up my spare room

 

shall include the crt monitor with it as well? you cant seem to give those things away these days but its pristine and far too good to junk. i was using an old lcd but this has really had it and will be junked

 

Please note the above underlined and in bold, the original recovery disk will not work on a new hard drive, or even a second hand hard drive, if it has been properly wiped. You will need at least a new copy OEM of XP to install a usable operating system.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Actually Nev you might find that is not the case, a new board yes but not a new HDD.

[Plastic Nev]

Sorry, I may have been a little unclear with that. I am assuming that because this is an older machine, the recovery disk he mentions would be the manufacturers recovery disk, However if it is a full OEM version, as I understand it now, then yes it should work. I misunderstood something earlier, my apologies. Edited June 7, 2009 by Plastic Nev