Desktop Computer: Depressing Dwindling Choices

[Tom Saurus]

This could just be me, but I got quite depressed when looking at the Desktop Computers at the Future Shop Canada website. I like Windows 7, and most of the computers have Windows 8 on them, and there is nothing about that new OS that appeals to me. Most of the desktops don't have HDMI out and that is something I think is desirable in a computer. I was thinking of getting another desktop as a spare, but maybe it is for the best I can't find that just right computer, as I should not deplete my meager savings. It seems that these Tablets are really having a big impact; they don't appeal to me. Maybe a laptop is the way to go next time, but they have that unappealing Windows 8 on them as well.

[ranchhand]

Hey Tom.... detail to yourself what you want to do with the computer. If mainly web sturfing, email and storing photos, etc. a good lap will serve you. As far as W8 goes, the word is that Microsoft will upgrade all registered W8 users free to Windows Blue when it is released. I have no idea what Blue will look like, but if you want W7 you will have to purchase it and then wipe W8 and install at this point. Another suggestion is to build your own, then you will have exactly what you want.

[jman98]

Build your own. You can get exactly what you want that way.

Despite all the hype from the PC press who'd have you believe that PC sales are perhaps in the thousands per year, PC sales are actually stable. In fact the 2012 sales were slightly higher than the 2011 sales. However, the numbers are not what they were in the pre-tablet days and tablet sales have skyrocketed. There's still a market for PCs, but the days of idiot customers buying a new PC every year or two years at the longest are probably gone forever.

I know nothing about Future Shop Canada nor why you are married to them. Have you considered the possibility that THEY simply may not be the best place to shop? I took a quick look at HP's website and they have several desktops that I'm sure could meet your needs. The problem with laptops is that they don't last as long as desktops and as they have no bays in which to put cards, if you need a new graphics card you are out of luck. That's just an example.

[Tom Saurus]

ranchhand: Thanks for this information. It is nice to know that maybe Microsoft is going to have something I assume like Windows 7 coming up to take the place of Windows 8. I think I will have a computer built. As long as my tech guy can purchase Windows 7 sometime in the next year or so then I can wait until I feel more comfortable about spending out the money.

jman98: I tend to want to record shows from our Satellite receiver, edit them and shrink them to .mkv files to watch on our Blu-Ray player. I wanted to get a spare desktop as I feel it is good to have some redundancy, because sooner or later something is going to happen to my HP i5 computer. I think I will check out the HP website, as I don't have to be loyal to Future Shop. Thanks for your advice.

[usually_quiet]

This could just be me, but I got quite depressed when looking at the Desktop Computers at the Future Shop Canada website. I like Windows 7, and most of the computers have Windows 8 on them, and there is nothing about that new OS that appeals to me. Most of the desktops don't have HDMI out and that is something I think is desirable in a computer. I was thinking of getting another desktop as a spare, but maybe it is for the best I can't find that just right computer, as I should not deplete my meager savings. It seems that these Tablets are really having a big impact; they don't appeal to me. Maybe a laptop is the way to go next time, but they have that unappealing Windows 8 on them as well.

It is true that laptops and tablets are now favored by consumers over desktops, and almost no new computers are available with Windows 7 installed. As others have mentioned, shopping on line may give you more options.

Of course, the ideal way around your problem is to build your own PC. Although it may cost more than buying one that is pre-built, you will be able to get what you want. If that isn't an option, you should be able to do a few things to customize a pre-built PC to be more to your liking. For example, you may be able to replace the video card or add one for about $40-$50 to get HDMI out. Download the manual to find out if there is a PCI-e x16 slot you can use, and if the BIOS allows you to disable the CPU's built-in video.

I use Windows 8 fairly often, and will agree that some of Windows 8's new features are fairly annoying. If the machine you buy is equipped with Windows 8 Pro, you may be able to downgrade to Windows 7 Professional. http://lifehacker.com/5974318/downgrade-your-new-windows-8-computer-to-windows-7-for-free

Otherwise if you can't afford to buy a new Windows 7 license, it is possible to add a Start Button and Start Menu to the Desktop with third party software and avoid the Start Screen for the most part. If you don't like the new Ribbon interface on some pre-installed Windows 8 windowed applications, unfortunately you are out of luck. There is also nothing you can do to change the behavior of the non-windowed apps that run at full screen and force you to interact with the Start Screen.

Chances are that you don't use Windows 7's pre-installed games, Windows Media Player, Windows Media Center, Windows DVD Maker, or Windows Movie Maker and won't care about them being gone or substantially changed in Windows 8. I didn't find many third-party programs that worked on with Windows 7 Home Premium 32-bit but not Windows 8 Pro 32-bit. (My OEM versions of Cyberlink PowerDVD 10 and Cyberlink PowerDirector 9 were exceptions.)

[usually_quiet]

ranchhand: Thanks for this information. It is nice to know that maybe Microsoft is going to have something I assume like Windows 7 coming up to take the place of Windows 8.

Windows Blue is now officially called Windows 8.1. It will be an improved version of Windows 8, not an improved version of Windows 7. http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/14/4330000/windows-8-1-windows-blue-update-official

[Kerry56]

Windows 8 is fast, stable and I have had very, very few issues with it. But I dislike the "Metro" section of Windows 8 and never use it.

Windows 8 does take some tweaking, but it can be set up to work in a very similar fashion to Windows 7. I put in Start is Back, but with the new Windows 8.1 coming out this fall, that may not be necessary. With Start is Back, I boot straight to the desktop and the start menu is virtually indistinguishable from Windows 7. The other necessary task is to change file associations so that absolutely none of the "Metro" applications are default for any type of file. I did this setup in just a few minutes, and haven't had to change anything since then.

I did find a way to install Windows 7 games like Solitaire, Hearts and Spider Solitaire back into Windows 8. Not hard at all. And Windows Media Center was a free download for me.

The only completely incompatible program I've run into so far is Arcsoft TMT 3. It will not even install in Windows 8. I switched to TMT 5.

[redwudz]

I put W8 on the laptop I'm presently using. It might be great for touch screen tablets, but it sucks for laptops and desktops, JMO. I got it discounted, and outside of seeming to be slightly faster than W7, I dislike it. I would not have it on a desktop PC. I think W7 is a lot better choice for non-touchscreen PCs. W8 is very annoying trying to access the other screens with a mouse.

That said, a custom built PC is one way to go. I use a six core AMD processor and it really does well for MKV (H264) encodes. More cores and multithreading speed up the encodes quite a bit. I encode one of my DVDs to MKV format in about 23 minutes. That's a CQ setting of 19.3 and a passthrough or encode to AC3 audio.

If you do decide to build your own PC, or have it built, spend a lot of time shopping around for the setup you want. You can build fairly cheap and still use quality parts. Most of my PC builds run about $500 - $800US, but I normally put in at least three HDDs and two optical drives, a 500W name brand power supply and name brand RAM. I have put together decent PCs for about $300US, but the people that use them don't do encoding or video editing.

For video, I've had good luck with the newer on board video, same with audio. Some Micro-ATX MBs do have HDMI out, I have two like that. A Micro-ATX motherboard will save a few dollars if you don't need a expensive video card. Unless you plan to use W7 64bit, you only need 4GB RAM.

Another option is a refurbished PC. Unfortunately, most are office PCs and don't always have fast processors or good video cards. Or enough HDDs. But they do often have W7.

[Tom Saurus]

usually_quiet: Thank you for this information. I don't feel so bad now. I talked to my computer guy and he said he could build me a computer or he can get me a decent i5 prebuilt one and put Windows 7 on it.

Kerry56: I am glad you got Windows 8 to work for you. For myself I just hate the whole touch screen experience. I think Microsoft should of had this Windows 8 for Touchscreen only devices and work on something similar to Windows 7 for the desktops and laptops with some kind of improvements. Windows 7 doesn't seem like that old of a system to begin with, there is still a lot of vitality to it and it seems to be adequate for the needs of most people. Thank you for your input.

redwudz: My HP i5 computer came with Windows 7 64 bit and it has been a beautiful machine. The only worry I have with it is that probably the power supply isn't a powerful as it should be, but no problems so far with that. I use vidcoder to convert my HD recordings to 720i mkv files and it is just terrific. I thought it would be good to have a spare computer that I could use for some encoding as well; but more of an Entertainment PC. It is nice to have the HDMI output to go to a TV. Thank you for the information you have provided. I am feeling more hopeful now. I would like to put off buying the computer off until fall and depending on what life brings I may have to drop the idea all together.

[usually_quiet]

Windows 8 is fast, stable and I have had very, very few issues with it. But I dislike the "Metro" section of Windows 8 and never use it.

Windows 8 does take some tweaking, but it can be set up to work in a very similar fashion to Windows 7. I put in Start is Back, but with the new Windows 8.1 coming out this fall, that may not be necessary.

It doesn't seem likely we'll get the traditional Start Button or Start Menu back on the desktop. Rumor has it that the Window charm that returns to the Start Screen has been relocated from the Charm bar to the spot on the Task Bar that the Start Button used to occupy. At least that is a clue to help new users to figure out how they might return to the Start Screen. ...but if that is the case, I'll still be using Classic Shell if I can. I find using the Start Screen to launch programs to be a RPITA because I prefer clicking with a mouse to typing the name or the program.

[aedipuss]

dell will still sell you win7. both home and business builds. there is even an xps model with win7 still available at a decent price.

[Tom Saurus]

aedipuss: I tried the Dell Canada website and the only option is Windows 8 as far as the operating system. Thank you for your input.

I will just have to see what my tech guy says this fall, if I feel comfortable about spending the money at that time.

[aedipuss]

aedipuss: I tried the Dell Canada website and the only option is Windows 8 as far as the operating system. Thank you for your input.

I will just have to see what my tech guy says this fall, if I feel comfortable about spending the money at that time.

you're welcome. on the u.s. website in both hom and business sections they have this on the side to select what version of windows.



i thought this i7 xps with win7 at $850 was reasonable

[redwudz]

I got tired of 'mousing' around all four screen corners trying to find my lost desktop and the other deleted parts of the start page with W8 and installed Start8 from Stardock: http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/ About $5US. Similar to 'Start is Back'. Now the OS seems to work as well as W7 for me. And I now have a 'Shut down' button that I never found in W8. I just gave up and closed the laptop lid. Since W8 is only on my laptop, I haven't really noticed any compatibility issues. But I plan to stick with W7 on my desktop PCs.

Tom Saurus, If you have the time to shop and plan for building a new PC, I would go that way. That would also give you time to set up a savings plan or budget so you can get exactly what you want. I spend a week or two comparison shopping before I build a new PC, so as to get the best quality/performance for my money. The PC setup I have in my 'Computer details', while a bit pricy for some members, should last me several more years and is somewhat 'future proof'. At least I have no need of updating it.

[Tom Saurus]

aedipuss: I went back to the Dell Canada website and did a search for Windows 7 and found some computers. Thank you, as thanks to you I gave it another try.

redwudz: Thank you for the additional information. My impression is that Windows 8 is an interface I don't like and I am thankful Windows 7 is still around.