What's A Good Desktop Computer under $1000?

[+ Lucky]

We need a computer as the old one sucks. The budget does not allow anything fancy. No gaming, just browsing.

So far this looks like a good deal:

https://www.costco.com/lenovo-ideacentre-27"-all-in-one-touchscreen-desktop---amd-ryzen-5-7535hs---1920-x-1080---windows-11---16gb-ram---1tb-ssd.product.4000300798.html

$700 at costco.com plus delivery and CA charges

[soloyo215]

When I shop for technology. I keep a budget in mind, but I also have to ensure that the computer is going to be reliable for my purpose.

I use a lot of media and CAD software, so I need lots of RAM, processing power and Graphic cards.

My suggestion is to start with what do you want to use it for, and the hardware requirements for that purpose. Also consider convenience (such as portability and connection with other legacy devices) and expected longevity of the equipment. That can give you an idea about if the computer will be reliable for your purposes.

[+ Just Chuck]

I normally use a desktop or my iPad around the house but recently needed to buy a laptop for work travel.  I thought that it only needed to run a word processor and a browser.  So, I tried to save money and buy a reconditioned laptop.  Then, I learned that the older hardware couldn't log into a work-related VPN so I had to replace it with a newer machine.  So, beware of older hardware as a money-saving method.

[maninsoma]

For pre-configured, name brand computers, Costco typically has very competitive prices -- sometimes slightly better specs than other places like Best Buy for the same money.  The computer you linked looks more than capable for your needs.  That's what brings me to this question: Do you need that much memory, that speed of processor, that much drive space, a touch screen?  If not, I'm sure you could save money by buying something with lower specs.  Just browsing the internet doesn't require much in terms of computing power.

[Lotus-eater]

If you want to increase its longevity:

I would not pick the lowest end processors (the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS in that Lenovo is more than adequate for your needs).

16GB rather than 8GB RAM doesn't cost that much more, which is useful for Windows (which requires more memory after every new version) and if you keep many tabs open.

An SSD with more storage space will last longer because the writes are spread across more cells, so I wouldn't go below 512GB even if you don't need much storage.

I don't think a touchscreen is very useful on desktop but YMMV.

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

On 3/26/2025 at 2:48 AM, Just Chuck said:

I normally use a desktop or my iPad around the house but recently needed to buy a laptop for work travel.  I thought that it only needed to run a word processor and a browser.  So, I tried to save money and buy a reconditioned laptop.  Then, I learned that the older hardware couldn't log into a work-related VPN so I had to replace it with a newer machine.  So, beware of older hardware as a money-saving method.

Right now I have no computer at home.  My mobile phone is satisfactory for internet.  When I need to print something, I use the computer at my place of employment.  When I leave employment in 3 years, I can't see myself purchasing a computer and printer and all the software and Internet services it entails.  So, I'll look for a typewriter instead.  No software updates are needed with a typewriter.

[+ sync]

1 hour ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

Right now I have no computer at home.  My mobile phone is satisfactory for internet.  When I need to print something, I use the computer at my place of employment.  When I leave employment in 3 years, I can't see myself purchasing a computer and printer and all the software and Internet services it entails.  So, I'll look for a typewriter instead.  No software updates are needed with a typewriter.

I respect your feelings, however, I encourage you to consider periodically putting  aside a modest amount of funds during the next three years, which might finance the purchase of a computer/printer/supplies/basic internet.

The one item for which I caution against skimping is security.  If you do decide to get a computer, by all means spring for a quality computer security package.

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

26 minutes ago, sync said:

The one item for which I caution against skimping is security.  If you do decide to get a computer, by all means spring for a quality computer security package.

I agree!  No one's hacked into a typewriter yet 😊 

[marylander1940]

On 3/25/2025 at 1:14 PM, Lucky said:

We need a computer as the old one sucks. The budget does not allow anything fancy. No gaming, just browsing.

So far this looks like a good deal:

https://www.costco.com/lenovo-ideacentre-27"-all-in-one-touchscreen-desktop---amd-ryzen-5-7535hs---1920-x-1080---windows-11---16gb-ram---1tb-ssd.product.4000300798.html

$700 at costco.com plus delivery and CA charges

Wait for Cyber Monday! Great discounts!

Edited March 28 by marylander1940

[maninsoma]

17 hours ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

Right now I have no computer at home.  My mobile phone is satisfactory for internet.  When I need to print something, I use the computer at my place of employment.  When I leave employment in 3 years, I can't see myself purchasing a computer and printer and all the software and Internet services it entails.  So, I'll look for a typewriter instead.  No software updates are needed with a typewriter.

You don't need a computer to print at home.  I can print to my wireless printer from my phone if I want to.  I typically don't do this because I do own both a desktop and laptop computer, but the functionality to print from my phone is there if I want to use it.  Of course this is easy because I have internet service at home and a wifi network.  But even if you don't have that and just use your cell phone's network, there are still printers that will work via Bluetooth or something called WiFi direct, that basically allows another capable device like a phone to connect to the printer's WiFi network.

[NJF]

16 hours ago, marylander1940 said:

Wait for Cyber Monday! Great discounts!

The summer time actually offers deeper discount on computers. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are largely gimmicks in recent years.

[+ sniper]

If you're just browsing, a Chromebook should be good enough for your needs.

[+ Lucky]

I ended up buying a refurbished computer at ebay. It is rated "excellent,' has a DVD player, and was only $175 with tax.

DELL Desktop Computer PC i7, up to 32GB RAM, 14TB SSD HDD, Windows 11/10,DVD-ROM

Did I make the right (or a good)  choice?

 

[maninsoma]

3 hours ago, Lucky said:

I ended up buying a refurbished computer at ebay. It is rated "excellent,' has a DVD player, and was only $175 with tax.

DELL Desktop Computer PC i7, up to 32GB RAM, 14TB SSD HDD, Windows 11/10,DVD-ROM

Did I make the right (or a good)  choice?

 

Something doesn't add up.  SSDs aren't cheap and I doubt anyone would sell any system, refurbished or not, with a 14TB SSD for under $200.  Are you sure it didn't say 1.4 TB SSD?  Even with that size of a drive, the price you got seems very low considering it has an i7 chip, 32GB of RAM, and an optical drive.  If you received it and everything works as it should, I'd say you got a great deal. 

[+ Lucky]

It hasn't arrived yet, but I will update when it does.

[BuffaloKyle]

Good to buy one now or the prices you see now will be the prices on cyber Monday anyway with the tariffs.

[+ Lucky]

So I had a computer guy come by to install the refurbished desktop. He said it was worth no more than a paperweight, having been made in 2014. So I got suckered on Ebay. He reminded me that Microsoft won't be offering any updates for computers that are not operating on Windows 11 starting in February.. I wrote the guy from whom I bought the item, and he responded thus:

Hello, the computers we sell are all highly cost-effective. Moreover, we are now in an era of hardware performance excess, and we have also carried out refurbishment and upgrades for both software and hardware on the original basis. Currently, it's no longer a purely 2014-model computer—after a computer is released, it’s common for users to upgrade components later, such as the RAM, hard drive, and CPU. You shouldn’t easily believe others’ opinions—if you were to switch to a newer computer, the cost would definitely be far more than just over $100. Thank you.

Xiong.

 

So do I keep trying to make it useful?

[+ JamesB]

1 hour ago, Lucky said:

So do I keep trying to make it useful?

Is it at least a DELL with  i7 and 32GB RAM?

[Lotus-eater]

3 hours ago, Lucky said:

So I had a computer guy come by to install the refurbished desktop. He said it was worth no more than a paperweight, having been made in 2014. So I got suckered on Ebay. He reminded me that Microsoft won't be offering any updates for computers that are not operating on Windows 11 starting in February.. I wrote the guy from whom I bought the item, and he responded thus:

Hello, the computers we sell are all highly cost-effective. Moreover, we are now in an era of hardware performance excess, and we have also carried out refurbishment and upgrades for both software and hardware on the original basis. Currently, it's no longer a purely 2014-model computer—after a computer is released, it’s common for users to upgrade components later, such as the RAM, hard drive, and CPU. You shouldn’t easily believe others’ opinions—if you were to switch to a newer computer, the cost would definitely be far more than just over $100. Thank you.

Xiong.

 

So do I keep trying to make it useful?

The seller is not completely off base. Upgrading RAM and storage drives is common on older computers (I did it to mine), but it's probably not worth it if the CPU has not been upgraded to a chip that is recent enough to allow use of Windows 11 (without extraordinary measures like modifying the registry). 

[maninsoma]

12 hours ago, Lotus-eater said:

The seller is not completely off base. Upgrading RAM and storage drives is common on older computers (I did it to mine), but it's probably not worth it if the CPU has not been upgraded to a chip that is recent enough to allow use of Windows 11 (without extraordinary measures like modifying the registry). 

That's the real issue.  I have a laptop from 2015 that I haven't even modified that generally still meets my needs.  The one problem is that its CPU isn't whitelisted to work with Windows 11, so Microsoft is basically making it obsolete by ceasing support for Windows 10 later this year.  I'm sure it will still work for at least a while, albeit at increased security risk when going online.