Future Shop total ripoff waste of a year Calgary Alberta

This is for all the people who think that Dell, Acer, eMachines, Gateway, Compaq, IBM, Lenovo, etc are the way to go.

Do you really think that by being lazy and buying a system that is pre-made by a company that makes money by lulling you into a false sense of security with its "big name" brand you're going to prosper? Come on man, really! There is a reason that when you walk into REAL computer stores like Tigerdirect.ca and smaller stores that specialize in built systems that they all have things for sale like motherboards, RAM, video cards, empty computer cases, internal hard drives, internal DVD-RW drives and the like. It's because anyone who knows their arse from their elbow when it comes to computers knows that a built system using parts like Asus, Intel, AMD, OCZ, Corsair, ATi and nVidia are going to be superior to a "name brand" system of equal dollar value. This is because there isn't some company bureaucracy like Dell, Acer or IBM at the top purchasing the cheapest electronic parts that China can provide and then selling it all to you at a profit because they have a fancy-looking case. Often, the aftermarket cases look as good or better anyway. I'm 32 years old and ripped apart and put back together a computer for the first time when I was 12 years old! That was in 1988. Since then, I would never even consider a branded system when I can build my own. It's not hard you know, YouTube has several videos that give step-by-step instructions on how to do this. It's actually quite simple and straightforward. Whatever fits together, goes together. If it doesn't go together easily, there are two solutions. 1. That part doesn't belong there or 2. turn the part around. PC parts are designed so that they cannot be put together the wrong way. The quality of the parts in a build system far exceed those of a branded one because you know EXACTLY what went into it right down to the wattage of the power supply. If you want quality, get off your a*s and do a build or pay a tech department to do the build for you. I'll give you a little list of reputable brand names for parts makers and you can decide for yourself what you want.

CPUs - Intel or AMD, whatever gives you the best deal at the time

Video Cards - ATi and nVidia both make excellent cards but nVidia isn't trustworthy because they tend to overprice their items by as much as 62%.

Motherboards - They all tend to be excellent. Asus has the best name but you pay a premium for it. ASRock, Biostar, ECS Elitegroup, EVGA, Foxconn, Intel, MSI, and XFX all make fine motherboards for the average consumer.

Cases and Power Supplies - As long as you're getting over 400 watts, you can't really go wrong. Often you'll get a better deal on a case that already has a power supply included.

Internal Hard Drives - No real problems here. Seagate, Hitachi, Western Digital and Samsung all make good drives.

External Hard Drives - Again, Seagate and Western Digital make good drives but so too do iOmega and others. Maxtor had problems before Seagate bought them. Again, whatever gives you the best value.

Mice, Keyboards, Game Controllers and Webcams - Stick with Logitech or Microsoft although Kensington makes a decent product as well.

Monitors - You will pay a premium for Sony, Panasonic, Philips, ViewSonic, etc. but they're not really worth it. Usually you can find an LCD with a name you don't recognize like Hanns or I-INC that most likely are just as good as the big names. Remember, LCDs have no moving parts. Beware the high prices of monitors with computer brand-names on them. Acers, Gateways, IBM, etc. are just re-branded monitors made by the same makers as I-INC. There's nothing wrong with them but the Acer, Gateway or IBM name demands a price increase so they're not worth it.

The other obvious advantage to this is that when your computer becomes too slow and you need a hardware upgrade you don't have to buy a whole new machine. You can usually get away with changing the CPU, motherboard and RAM, leaving everything else intact. This will usually cause your system to become more powerful over time as you add things like extra hard drives because you can afford to.

Laptops are the only situation where you cannot build your own. If you stick to a normal-looking black laptop like the ones offered by eMachines and get the extended warranties, you can't really go wrong. Acer, HP, Compaq, IBM, Lenovo and Gateway will cost more without much added value except that they may be prettier with their red, blue, pink and silver colours.

The only drawback to this idea is a lack of a 1-800-I-AM-AN-IDIOT customer service line. This is easily sidestepped by the vast amounts of information on how to fix problems simply by typing into google what your computer is doing wrong. I'd rather watch a step-by-step video or read step-by-step instructions in a tech forum than listen to some customer service rep giving me some schpeel that they are required to read off of their screen to me. Apple is the only company with decent tech support but the drawback is of course, you have to buy an Apple..lol!!

Hope this helps you in future. It's a zoo out there but as long as you pick the right animal, you'll ride out into the sunset with very little problems.