Here’s the PC configuration of the month for home/office use by Pathik. For gaming you may add a graphics card as per your budget.
Processor:
I’ve chosen Intel Core 2 Duo processor as it gives the best value for money & is excellent in performance too.
Intel Core 2 Duo E7200- Price Rs. 5900.
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Specifications Overview:
Socket- LGA775
Frequency- 2.53 GHz
FSB- 1066 MHz
L2 Cache- 3 MB
Architecture-45 nm SOI
Power Consumption- 65 Watts
Motherboard:
I’ve selected Abit motherboard.
Abit IP 35 E- Price Rs. 5350

Features Overview:
Socket Support- LGA775. Supports Intel C2D, Q2D & C2E.
RAM-Supports DDR2 800 MHz. Upto 4 slots & 8 GB.
Graphics & Chipsets-Intel P35 Express & ICH 9
HDMI-HDMI ready.
Audio- Supports HD 7.1 channel Audio & Jack sensing.
LAN-Gigabit(1 Gbps).
Ports- Up to 12 USB ports, 4 SATA ports, 1 IDE port, 1 FDD, Front panel audio.

RAM:
I prefer DDR2 800 MHz as there is not much price & speed difference between 667 MHz & 800 MHz in Value RAM category. You can buy Kingston or Transcend whichever is available with the dealer. Buy 2 modules of 1 GB RAM.
2 X 1 GB DDR2 800 MHz-
Kingston Value RAM- Price Rs. 2350.
Transcend- Price Rs. 2300.
Hard Disk Drive:
I’ve chosen the capacity of 500 GB for the HDD. It is a minimum these days & is enough for normal use.
Seagate- 500 GB- Price Rs. 4100
Specifications Overview:
Capacity- 500 GB
Interface- SATA II
Spindle Speed- 7200 RPM
Buffer- 32 MB
Optical Drive:
I am going to select a DVD Writer.
Samsung SH S203
SATA 20X- Price Rs. 1700
Monitor:
Dell 1908 WFP- Price Rs. 12500

Specifications Overview:
Screen Size-19”
Max Resolution- 1440 x 900 pixels
Contrast Ratio- 1000: 1
Brightness Ratio-300 cd/m2 (Typical)
Response Time- 5ms
Pixel Pitch- 0.2835 mm (Typical)
Power Consumption- 32 Watts (Typical) – 75 Watts (Max). Less than 2 Watts on standby.
Viewing Angle- 160° / 160° (Typical)
Built in devices- USB 2.0 Hi-Speed Hub with 1 USB upstream port and 4 USB downstream ports
Connectivity- DVI-D, VGA
Stand- Height-adjustable stand, tilt, swivel, pivot and built-in cable management
Graphics Card:
I’ve chosen three graphics cards depending upon your budget.
Palit 9600GSO 384MB- Price Rs. 6500

EVGA 9600GT KO- Price Rs.9350

MSI 8800GT 512MB OC- Price Rs. 10900

Cabinet & SMPS:
Cabinet:
Zebronics Bijli- Price Rs. 1550
(With SMPS. Buy without one.)

Specifications Overview:
Front panel ports:
USB- 2 Ports
Audio- Mic & Out
Display- LCD Display
SMPS:
Cooler Master Extreme Power 460/500/600W
(Depends upon chosen graphics card)
460 W- Price Rs. 1900
500 W- Price Rs. 2650
600 W- Price Rs. 3150
Keyboard & Mouse:
I’ve chosen Logitech Keyboard & Mouse as they are the best, in my opinion. Microsoft optical mouse has a problem of pointer jumping around the screen.
Logitech Multimedia Wired Keyboard- Price Rs. 550
Logitech Optical Wired Mouse- Price Rs. 400
UPS:
UPS is a must for Indian users. UPS for this configuration must be atleast 650 VA & APC is my preferred choice. You should get around 10 minutes of backup on this configuration.
APC- 650VA- Price Rs. 3300
Softwares:
You pay for the hardware & should also pay for the software you use. Please do not use pirated Operating Systems or other application softwares. In case you cannot afford the Operating System you can use a Linux distribution for free. Ubuntu is the easiest Linux distribution & is recommended for users who want to shift from Windows. However I prefer Microsoft Windows Vista. For normal usage Windows Vista Premium is suitable. Do not buy Windows Vista Home Basic as it lacks many features like Aero & it can’t even play DVDs without 3rd party application.
Operating System:
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium (OEM)- Price Rs. 5200
OR
Linux Ubuntu- Price Rs. Free
Anti Virus:
Avira Antivir Personal Edition- Price Rs. Free
Rajbir Singh | 



I need to configure a desktop for my friend.
I haven’t yet zeroed in on the processor and motherboard.
E7200 does seem like a good buy.
He wants a sli compatible motherboard. Does Abit IP 35 E support sli? If not, can you suggest any cheap sli compatible motherboard?
I am also looking for a good 17 inch lcd monitor (pref at around 7-8k). Any suggetions?
Rest of my config :
Transcend Value RAM 2GB 800Mhz
250 GB SATA2 HDD (Seagate)(wht is the cost of WD Cavier 250gb hd?)
ony AD-7190A 20x DVD Burner
Ball Entry Level Designer Cabinet
VIP 600W PSU
Galaxy Geforce 9600 GSO
Altec Lancing BXR 1121 Speakers
Cooling unit : Artic Freezer F7 or Cooler Master Hyper L2
This costs about 19k. So I have to fit in Processor+Motherboard+Monitor in about another 19k.
By Pallab on June 27th, 2008 at 2:03 amYou can try the MSI P7N SLI. Google the specs. The best low cost SLI mobo IMO. It should be around 8k. Add to it a e7200 or a e2160(to save moolah)
By Pathik on June 27th, 2008 at 2:31 amThe WD 250 GB Caviar is around 2500 I guess.
For monitor you can buy Dell 1708FP or Samsung 740N, IMO.
I don’t trust VIP SMPS at all. Rest config is good.
By Rajbir Singh on June 27th, 2008 at 2:40 am8k is too much for a mobo.
By Pallab on June 27th, 2008 at 4:29 amAbit Fatal1ty FP-IN9 SLI costs about 7k. I wanted to know if there was anything cheaper.
But the Abit is an ancient 650i chipset. Maybe the Asus P5Ne SLI is cheap now. But no point taking that as well. Either go P35 or Nv 7×0.
By Pathik on June 27th, 2008 at 2:45 pmAsus P5Ne SLI seems good enough to be.
By Pallab on June 28th, 2008 at 3:13 pmBandwidth wouldnt be a problem since I am gonna use 9600GSO.
The conf. is prety cool esp. the processor. I totally agree that Dell monitors rock. Mobo is quite costly.. 8k is too much.. a mobo around 5-6 would be best.. rest configuration is good.
By Tarun (Hellknight) on August 5th, 2008 at 1:10 am