Build for an older woman who needs to be taught how to use a PC.

[Vitalius]

Now, before any of you look at the title, then look at the build and go "... but why?", I am one who prefers to give someone more than they'll ever need. So that if they use it for other things later, it will perform well enough.

Plus, you can expect this thing to eventually get viruses. Having more horse power when that inevitably happens would still keep it usable (albeit, that is possibly a bad thing, instead of a good thing).

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($201.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus H97I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($107.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk Z400s 128GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($42.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Silverstone 300W 80+ Bronze Certified SFX Power Supply ($48.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($95.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N180UBE 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VX228H 60Hz 21.5" Monitor ($121.98 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: Perixx PERIDUO-707B PLUS Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $770.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 11:07 EST-0500

 

• Quad core because I feel Dual Core is inadequate for... well ... anyone really. Particularly if you want to do anything other than browsing the web.
• Mini-ITX was preferred by her (i.e she wants a small case). This motherboard supports M.2 drives, and has HDMI as an output. Two things I'd prefer to work with.
• RAM speed tends to not matter, but 8GB is more than she'll ever need. I'd get 2x4GB, but again, I don't know what they will do with it in the future, so the option to upgrade later would be cool too. "Why not?" basically.
• M.2 because again "Why not?" when SATA SSDs are (mostly) comparable in terms of price. The only negative I can think of is Motherboard limitations caused by wanting this. But I found one, so there you go.
• M-ITX Case is preferred by her. I just chose the cheapest one that I also trusted the brand and looked nice.
• Cheapest SFX PSU from a brand I trust personally.
• Old people tend to want disc drives. Cheapest DVD writer from a known brand. Difference between this one and absolute cheapest is like $4.
• OS ofc.
• Her house doesn't have Ethernet. WiFi is required. I went with a USB because I'd like them to be able to move it if necessary.
• She'd prefer a 21.5" monitor (give or take an inch), and I just went with 1080p because I figure "I can always change the resolution to lower, but you can't go higher if you buy a lower resolution monitor".
• Wireless keyboard + mouse is preferred. Cheapest one that wasn't terrible in terms of reviews.

 

 

Her use case:

• Buying things through a browser
• Browsing Facebook and other similar things

Why go so far then to make sure she has a good machine? Her husband has an iMac. He likes things to just work, and be speedy. This isn't for him, but he is the one who has to help her through using it. I'm fairly sure the price is fine for what it is.

 

My questions are:

• Are there any parts in this build you wouldn't go with because you know of something wrong with them or of a better part for a comparable price?
  
  Examples (none of which are true, just examples of what you guys might say):
  "That case has <problem>, get this one because it doesn't have <problem>."
  "That USB WiFI dongle's drivers suck."
  "The Keyboard+Mouse combo's wifi connection is flaky."
  "That PSU has an iffy reputation and tends to kill components."
  
  Things that I couldn't know without using the products before, basically.
   
• Do you think I'm going too far?
  
  Examples (none of which are true, just examples of what you guys might say):
  "Dual Core is fine for even doing moderately intensive things for an old lady, such as Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Watching Youtube, on top of the PC maintenance things that run in the background."
  "Even 4GB RAM is overkill for the aforementioned things."
  "M.2 has some upkeep and can actually be annoying to work with. It's a bad choice for some old lady."
  
  Things I may not have experience with and you guys do.

[ShiroArikawa]

Trigger the seasonic psu recommendations

[2001jaden]

It would probably be best to get a apu or a g3258 pentium, cheap but still very fast and snappy at basic modern workloads,

[SkywardKkalox]

snip

Take it from someone that uses an i3 for a gaming PC, it's more than enough for these tasks.

I can play MGSV, have chrome open with 10+ tabs and my PC is still working buttery smooth. Also, let the 8GB there, if she is a tab fiend like myself she will adore those 8GBs.

[Fassive]

my opinions:

no need for an i5 (i3 would be the best)

no need for 8gb of RAM (4gb max)

motherboard can be WAAAAAAAAY cheaper

[Oshino Shinobu]

I would change the CPU to a 4460. It's overkill for what the system is for, but is cheaper than the 4590. Ideally, I would switch it out for an i3 with HT, which is enough, even for gaming. 

 

I would also go for Windows 10 from Reddit or somewhere similar and install it for her. No point in spending $95 when it's not needed. 

[Oshino Shinobu]

 

motherboard can be WAAAAAAAAY cheaper

The issue with the board is the mITX form factor. They're more expensive than mATX and ATX boards, just because of the cost of R&D for them. 

[TheRandomness]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($124.89 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($117.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($35.98 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Sandisk Z400s 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($87.36 @ Amazon) 
Case: Fractal Design Core 500 Mini ITX Desktop Case  ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($24.99 @ Newegg) 
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($15.99 @ Newegg) 
Monitor: Asus VX228H 60Hz 21.5" Monitor  ($111.98 @ Newegg) 
Keyboard: Perixx PERIDUO-707B PLUS Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($24.99 @ Newegg) 
Total: $604.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 11:36 EST-0500

PSU is fine for this build, OS off of G2A or /r/microsoftsoftwareswap or something, i3 is completely fine for a user (as well as a gamer ), board has built in wifi.

[DavidTheWin]

I'd go for a PCIe NIC with wifi, much better than USB and much less likely to be damaged by the PC moving. Otherwise, you might be able to find a board with built in AC wifi, the onboard ethernet is likely fine and that would leave your PCIe slot free.

 

Only other thing I'd suggest is maybe an optical drive that can do both blu-rays and dvd.

 

Edit: perhaps a microphone and headphones too for skyping family

[Enderman]

buy her an ipad

[ICantThinkOfAnyGoodName]

I would change the processor to an i3, it should be enough.

And if you expect it to get viruses eventually, you probably should also install some antivirus software.

[OmarM89]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($124.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($117.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($35.98 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Sandisk Z400s 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($87.36 @ Amazon) 

Case: Fractal Design Core 500 Mini ITX Desktop Case  ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($24.99 @ Newegg) 

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($15.99 @ Newegg) 

Monitor: Asus VX228H 60Hz 21.5" Monitor  ($111.98 @ Newegg) 

Keyboard: Perixx PERIDUO-707B PLUS Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($24.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $604.16

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 11:36 EST-0500

PSU is fine for this build, OS off of G2A or /r/microsoftsoftwareswap or something, i3 is completely fine for a user (as well as a gamer ), board has built in wifi.

 

 

just what i would recommend. you can bump the ram to whatever you think it is necessary. and use the latest RVZ01 or any other stylish Matx case

[Vitalius]

And if you expect it to get viruses eventually, you probably should also install some antivirus software.

Well of course that's a given.

[Oshino Shinobu]

Well of course that's a given.

It may also be a good idea to install TeamViewer when you're setting it up. That way if you need to sort something out, you don't have to physically be there. Good for virus removal/troubleshooting. 

[brob]

 

Now, before any of you look at the title, then look at the build and go "... but why?", I am one who prefers to give someone more than they'll ever need. So that if they use it for other things later, it will perform well enough.

Plus, you can expect this thing to eventually get viruses. Having more horse power when that inevitably happens would still keep it usable (albeit, that is possibly a bad thing, instead of a good thing).

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($201.98 @ Newegg)

Motherboard: Asus H97I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($107.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Sandisk Z400s 128GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($42.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Power Supply: Silverstone 300W 80+ Bronze Certified SFX Power Supply ($48.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($95.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N180UBE 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($19.99 @ Newegg)

Monitor: Asus VX228H 60Hz 21.5" Monitor ($121.98 @ Newegg)

Keyboard: Perixx PERIDUO-707B PLUS Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $770.87

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 11:07 EST-0500

 

• Quad core because I feel Dual Core is inadequate for... well ... anyone really. Particularly if you want to do anything other than browsing the web.
• Mini-ITX was preferred by her (i.e she wants a small case). This motherboard supports M.2 drives, and has HDMI as an output. Two things I'd prefer to work with.
• RAM speed tends to not matter, but 8GB is more than she'll ever need. I'd get 2x4GB, but again, I don't know what they will do with it in the future, so the option to upgrade later would be cool too. "Why not?" basically.
• M.2 because again "Why not?" when SATA SSDs are (mostly) comparable in terms of price. The only negative I can think of is Motherboard limitations caused by wanting this. But I found one, so there you go.
• M-ITX Case is preferred by her. I just chose the cheapest one that I also trusted the brand and looked nice.
• Cheapest SFX PSU from a brand I trust personally.
• Old people tend to want disc drives. Cheapest DVD writer from a known brand. Difference between this one and absolute cheapest is like $4.
• OS ofc.
• Her house doesn't have Ethernet. WiFi is required. I went with a USB because I'd like them to be able to move it if necessary.
• She'd prefer a 21.5" monitor (give or take an inch), and I just went with 1080p because I figure "I can always change the resolution to lower, but you can't go higher if you buy a lower resolution monitor".
• Wireless keyboard + mouse is preferred. Cheapest one that wasn't terrible in terms of reviews.

 

 

Her use case:

• Buying things through a browser
• Browsing Facebook and other similar things

Why go so far then to make sure she has a good machine? Her husband has an iMac. He likes things to just work, and be speedy. This isn't for him, but he is the one who has to help her through using it. I'm fairly sure the price is fine for what it is.

 

My questions are:

• Are there any parts in this build you wouldn't go with because you know of something wrong with them or of a better part for a comparable price?

  Examples (none of which are true, just examples of what you guys might say):

  "That case has <problem>, get this one because it doesn't have <problem>."

  "That USB WiFI dongle's drivers suck."

  "The Keyboard+Mouse combo's wifi connection is flaky."

  "That PSU has an iffy reputation and tends to kill components."

  Things that I couldn't know without using the products before, basically.

   

• Do you think I'm going too far?

  Examples (none of which are true, just examples of what you guys might say):

  "Dual Core is fine for even doing moderately intensive things for an old lady, such as Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Watching Youtube, on top of the PC maintenance things that run in the background."

  "Even 4GB RAM is overkill for the aforementioned things."

  "M.2 has some upkeep and can actually be annoying to work with. It's a bad choice for some old lady."

  Things I may not have experience with and you guys do.

 

 

I3 cpu are hyperthreaded, they have more than sufficient power for the intended user.

 

Most mini-ITX motherboards include WiFi. It seems pointless to pay extra for a part that can easily be removed/jarred loose. The motherboard has a mini-PCIe slot designed for a WiFi card. I would use that.

 

IMO M.2 is not a good choice for most mini-ITX motherboards. They tend to run hot and are usually mounted on the underside of a mini-ITX motherboard making cooling a real issue.

 

You might consider a Skylake build. Mostly because it will have a longer supported life.

 

Given that 8GB is overkill and that it is extremely unlikely more would be needed, one might as well opt for a better performing dual channel kit, rather than going with single channel.

 

While Silverstone does offer some good psu, not every model is good. I would suggest instead a very quiet, high quality Seasonic unit. One gives up modularity, but gains a much more efficient unit that will run very quietly.

 

While not strictly necessary, an aftermarket cpu cooler will lower noise levels and help the system run cooler.

 

I am a fan of MS wireless keyboards and mice. They have excellent battery life and are well built.

 

If space is not an issue I would suggest a larger IPS monitor. Larger as older people tend to prefer larger type. IPS for better viewing angles and color reproduction.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($124.89 @ OutletPC)

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9i 57.5 CFM CPU Cooler  ($43.98 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: ASRock H170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($102.98 @ Newegg)

Memory: G.Skill NT Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($39.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Crucial BX200 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case  ($42.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Power Supply: SeaSonic 360W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($57.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($15.99 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)  ($95.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Monitor: Asus VN248H-P 23.8" Monitor  ($130.98 @ Newegg)

Keyboard: Microsoft Wireless Desktop 3000 Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($46.00 @ Amazon)

Total: $765.77

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 12:21 EST-0500