retail box or oem (bulk)?

[redrogue14]

hi i was wondering if all you guys can tell me what parts are ok to buy either for oem (bulk) or retail box? like for example my friend said it was ok to buy a cdrom,cdrw,dvdrom oem because you wouldnt really need drivers for it just hook it up and you all set. i would like to have all the parts included when i buy my comouter to build. its just that i want to save money when i buy them. and another thing is, my teacher told me to buy a cpu for retail box cause it is included with a fan? so please help me out guys: oem (bulk) or Retail box?

mobo:
cpu:
vid:
sound:
cdrom:
mem:
case:

[Monaco]

welcome to the forums redrogue14!

I've been buying everything OEM lately. My current PC is 100% OEM components.

The quality level is just as high as retail as far as I can tell, and a bit cheaper. It was sort of a pain hunting down drivers for my network card, cuz I needed it to go online with:D Luckily I have another PC.

If you are comfortable installing things with no instructions or drivers, and don't mind the usually shorter warranty, then OEM is just fine, for every type of component.

you're right about the CPUs- if the retail one is not too much more expensive than OEM, I get retail so I can have a HSF for it as well. Even tho the retail fans suck, it's good to have an extra to play with :)

[Killer Chef]

Originally posted by redrogue14
hi i was wondering if all you guys can tell me what parts are ok to buy either for oem (bulk) or retail box? like for example my friend said it was ok to buy a cdrom,cdrw,dvdrom oem because you wouldnt really need drivers for it just hook it up and you all set. i would like to have all the parts included when i buy my comouter to build. its just that i want to save money when i buy them. and another thing is, my teacher told me to buy a cpu for retail box cause it is included with a fan? so please help me out guys: oem (bulk) or Retail box?

mobo:
cpu:
vid:
sound:
cdrom:
mem:
case:

Mobo:- Retail, this is the MAIN part of the system so you want to make sure you get what you want and the drivers for it. OEM motherboards are generally for people that dont know what the inside of a PC looks like.

CPU:- I think that OEM only had 3 month warranty? anyway if you are going to get an OEM cpu, you can always buy a heatsink/fan for it inexpensively.

VID:- Probably bettr to get the retail version, that way it comes with full warranty and drivers.

SOUND:- Depending on what type of sound card you're after really.....if its just a cheapy, get an OEM 1, if you're after a good card get a retail 1 instead.

CD-Rom:- OEM, you don't have to have specific drivers for cd-roms/cdr's

MEMORY:- RETAIL RETAIL RETAIL!

Case:- Make sure you get a good sized case with a 300watt+ power supply. OEM or Retail doesnt make much difference, afterall its only metal riveted together, its the power supply and ease of accesability that is the issue.

[travenwatts]

killer chef has it right. like he said i bought MOBO, VID card, RAM, Sound Card, NIC, retail. i bought CPU, HSF, case, HDD, DVD, FDD, OEM.

i bought my CPU at tccomputers.com (along with about everything else) and they give a year warranty on CPUs (if you don't overclock...hehe)

[Monaco]

I think you guys are maybe being too cautious! OEM or retail, it's still the same product made by the same company in the same factory. oh well, to each his own :D

There are different shades of OEM, also. My RAM is OEM- it's genuine Micron SDRAM, but the store sold me two bare sticks in a static bag. This was a B+M store, too. I thought it was weird!

My mobo I got refurbished from Newegg- I think that qualifies as OEM or worse :D True OEM mobos are always the crappy ones Dell, Gateway, etc uses- I've never seen like an Abit or Iwill 'board sold OEM.

[Henry Rollins II]

Get OEM everything but the memory. Every time I bought an item that need a driver, the driver was supplied. So unless you think that it´s smart to pay like $30 extra for a colorful box that soon will be in the thrash can anyway, go OEM.

regards,
Henry

[Mike K]

Here are my parts and what I bought retail/OEM.
Mobo:8K3A+ retail, there were no refurbs and OEM was not offered. I bought this board the day it cams out so there could be no refurbs.:)
Memory: Crucial DDR-retail-was cheaped than OEM
Vid Card:7500-OEM and came with drivers also.
CPU-OEM-never had a proc for more than 1 year anyway so I don't need a warranty
DVD and burner-bought for me so I didn't have a choice
NIC and modem- retail-at $10 each, local store, same price as OEM online

It is okay to but OEM. If you have another computer just spend a couple minutes online and get the drivers. Even get the manuals if available or if desired. I saved around $100 getting OEM.

[Captain Slug]

I buy everything OEM except for motherboards (because finding the manuals online can be a real booger).

Most OEM items will include driver disks unless marked otherwise. BULK items are those that come without ANY cables, disks, etc.

Bulk is fine for parts that don't need manuals, but I buy OEM everything now.

[JeffnNetti]

seems that some video cards are clocked a lil lower when OEM but can usually be fixed by flashing the bios...

i bought a radeon 8500 OEM and it was clocked 25 mhz lower then the retail version.

[Henry Rollins II]

Originally posted by JeffnNetti
seems that some video cards are clocked a lil lower when OEM but can usually be fixed by flashing the bios...

i bought a radeon 8500 OEM and it was clocked 25 mhz lower then the retail version.

Well that is both true and not true at the same time. ATI clearly makes a difference between retail and OEM, I don´t think that any other company does the same. Actually you don´t have a 8500, you have an 8500LE. The 8500 can only be bought retail.

regards,
Henry