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If you've already got a tower case and a (somewhat old) GPU, then all you need is:
Motherboard
CPU
CPU cooler
Memory
Storage
PSU
You can get reasonable motherboard/CPU deals from most retailers, e.g. https://www.awd-it.co.uk/amd-ryzen-7-5700x-8-core-4-1ghz-3d-v-cache-msi-b550m-pro-vdh-cpu-bundle.html at £190
2 x 16GB DRR4 memory will cost you about £50
1TB solid state SATA drive about £40
Decent PSU about £50
CPU cooler about £25
Maybe stick another £15 on for a pack of case fans if you really want to.
So you're about £350 for a top notch "office productivity" machine and just about the only thing you'd ever need to upgrade anytime in the future would be the GPU.
Cheaper motherboard/CPU/memory bundles are available on eBay but I've found these tend to be older/lower spec and therefore not quite the bargain they first seem. Would still work fine for office and streaming though and might save you £50
Edit: I just looked at the CCL one you linked. It's a very low spec CPU so while it'll do the job you may find it's not the best. What spec is the computer you're handing back to work?
Mrs Zip needs a new laptop with windows 11. It will be secondhand from our local computer shop.
She just needs it to do our accounts on. However once we retire we need it for browsing ,photo and music storage.
We know nothing about computers ,what are the minimium numbers we should be looking at?
I have just completed a motherboard and CPU swap to enable windows 10 to jump to windows 11. Desktop computer in a tower case so the physical bit of swapping the stuff was easy enough. Bought a MSI b760 gaming atx board and an intel core i3 with on board graphics. Updated the M2 SSD to an nvme drive for the operating system. Board and chip was £225 from scan and 512gb nvme £35. Took me longer to figure out command line stuff to format and partition the nvme drive and install windows 10 with the original code and then update to 11. Hopefully it'll last as long as the previous 9yr pc that wasn't broke but didn't have the tpm2.0 security stuff for windows 11.
My next PC will be mini pc, as I haven't opened the case of mine in years, the caveat being I don't play games or work with CAD/video. My current PC, one I built in 2016* (i5/8gb ram) is still more than capable of easily running everything "(MS) Office stuff, browsing and watching various streaming services (YouTube, iPlayer etc)", except Win 11 (without a work around). If you spec it right in the first place, and that doesn't need to be top end gear, it'll still last for years.
A quick random search (not a recommendation) brings up the like of this Ryzen mini pc do you really need more?
Mrs Zip needs a new laptop with windows 11. It will be secondhand from our local computer shop.
Any thing that is above the i3 processor (though I prefer i5) or AMD equivalent, & is less than 5 years old so has the TPM 2.0 (for Win 11) module, should be fine. I'd also want 16gb of ram, and an SSD drive (goes without saying)
* I hadn't realised it was that old
Mrs Zip needs a new laptop with windows 11. It will be secondhand from our local computer shop.
Pick one or the other. It's not impossible I suppose, but you'll be lucky to find anything second-hand which will run W11.
Any thing that is above the i3 processor (though I prefer i5) or AMD equivalent
This has nothing to do with it, it's the generation of CPU which matters.
I'd buy a Micro format i5 16GB RAM 512 GB( or 1TB). Should last for years. We've been rolling out Dell Optiplex Micro at work, they seem good and have VGA / HDMI / Displayport graphics plus 6 USB ports.
Don't think there is any point with large Tower cases any more unless you are building a gaming machine. I've a couple of Towers and they are literally a waste of space.
Mrs Zip needs a new laptop with windows 11. It will be secondhand from our local computer shop.
She just needs it to do our accounts on. However once we retire we need it for browsing ,photo and music storage.
We know nothing about computers ,what are the minimium numbers we should be looking at?
This is on offer on amazon at the moment for £299..
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 | 15 inch Full HD Laptop | Intel Core i5-12450H | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD | Windows 11 Home
I've also got a bit of skin in this game, so while we're on the topic...
I've been mini PC curious for a while. Main reasons are aesthetic: more desk space, tidier look, hopefully quieter. Also need something which can drive my new QHD monitor (and ideally 4k to future proof).
Also want something with Win 11 because sometimes it's just necessary - currently use Ubuntu, and will probably try and dual boot.
Current PC is c. 2010 vintage. i5 650 quad core 3.2GHz, 16Gb RAM, 500Gb SSD. Enough grunt for my use.
When I last built a PC, Moore's law was still reflected in processor clock speeds so it was fairly easy to spec something. Now it seems I can pay quite a lot for a "slower" but obviously more modern CPU. How much should I be worrying about the numbers?
This has nothing to do with it, it's the generation of CPU which matters.
You seem to have totally ignored the "& is less than 5 years old"... as the 8th gen was released in 2017, you have no need to know which gen it is & is simply confusing non-IT ppl
What do we think about this for £325?
The shop is near us, they are nice people and will set this up like the old one for us .
HP Probook Refurbished Laptop
13.3" Screen
Intel Core i5 Processor
16Gb Memory
512GB M.2 Fast SSD Hard Drive
+1TB Storage Drive
Intel HD Graphics
HD Web Cam
Card Reader
Wireless
Bluetooth
USB-3
HDMI
Windows 11 Professional
12 Months RTB warranty
How much should I be worrying about the numbers?
Not a huge amount, unless you're wanting top of the line. Even then I reckon the nerds into that kind of thing can only tell the difference between one CPU and another by using hardware monitoring software.
You don't mention what you're using for, but realistically you can spend about £650 and build something that'll be upgradable in the future but plenty good enough for 4k streaming and office stuff.
E.g. https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/ctFZmC would do absolutely fine and should you get into hardcore gaming or video editing then it's easy to add more storage, RAM, better GPU, etc.
This is on offer on amazon at the moment for £299..
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3
I was looking at the IdeaPad Slim last night as it happens. My partner is going to need a new laptop soon and I was eyeing it up as a birthday present. One of the concessions made with the Slim is that the RAM is soldered to the motherboard.
You seem to have totally ignored the "& is less than 5 years old"... as the 8th gen was released in 2017, you have no need to know which gen it is & is simply confusing non-IT ppl
What I missed was you speccing something that will run sensibly rather than merely "at all." Microsoft has a big-ass list of compatible processors including Atom and Celeron CPUs, both of which I'd avoid like the black death for reasons wholly unrelated to Windows 11.
This is on offer on amazon at the moment for £299..
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3
I was looking at the IdeaPad Slim last night as it happens. My partner is going to need a new laptop soon and I was eyeing it up as a birthday present. One of the concessions made with the Slim is that the RAM is soldered to the motherboard.
I have an asus laptop of the same spec, gen 11 i5 though rather than the gen 12 of this one. it has expandable RAM and I bought it because of that, but to be fair, I've not felt the need to upgrade it from 8gb. It's absolutley fine but I dont do anything too demading with it, just use it for travel, so your usual web surfing, watching videos, bit of office work etc.
Its also a very slim trendy one.
Might be worth checking as some of these models have 8gb soldered, but a normal slot for another stick thats not really advertised, so you could chuck in an extra 8gb (or whatever) if you really wanted to.
Or maybe it has 4gb soldered and a physical additional 4gb stick in the slot? Either way you can just sling a bigger stick in the slot.
Dunno if this is exactly the same model..
As recommended in previous threads, I just bought a new tower PC from SCAN computers.
My existing 10yr old DELL PC now takes 15 minutes to wake up and is unsuitable for Windows 11. I rang SCAN computers and received some good advice on the spec I needed to get a decent life from the new PC, I settled on an i7 processor, without having to upgrade for a good few years. I don’t game, or anything else with a high level computing requirement. Ran through all the peripherals I use with SCAN, including 2 screens, to make sure the PC had enough connection points. Only additional purchase was a cheap pair of speakers/woofer as mine was damaged mine a while back.