How do i convice my dad not to upgrade my pc and buy me a new one

Alright here is the story. My pc sucks here at the specs
1.7ghz
512 Mb Ram
Geforce 2
80 Gb Hd

I want to build my own or buy a pre-built. But my dad said he is gonna call the queek squad. I need some suggestions

I would think you would have to show him how insanely expensive geek squad is. I think they charge like 40 bucks for just the installation of RAM. Maybe have him call and just get a price quote, don't give them any money or else it will cost you greatly. After you show him how much it costs to maybe buy some RAM from them and get it installed show him the price comparrison from newegg and show how much you can save. You may also be able to convince him that you could salvage some of the parts from your old PC like your 80 gig HD (not too bad) to reduce the cost of building a new one.

"1.7ghz" Is that overclocked? Because if it isn't if you can get it up to 2.1/2.2ghz you may not need a new CPU.
"512 Mb Ram" Just slap another stick in.
"Geforce 2" Buy a new graphics card.
"80 Gb Hd" Buy a 120 and add it as a slave.

Why do you want a whole new PC? Your dad's right; it just needs an upgrade, but DO NOT call the geek squad. They rip you off, try and get the components from a computer fair (do you have thos ein the USA?) or a website like eBuyer or Newegg (???).

If you really want it to look like a whole new PC then buy a new case, an aftermarket CPU heatsink and bung in some cold cathode.

I wouldn't trust the geek squad.This thread has some quotes from the geek squad that show how much they know. It's also good for a laugh.

Do you have more info on your pc? Like mobo info? If it's a recent socket it may be worth it to just upgrade and not buy a new one.

explain to him that you:
-have roughly 400 or 500 people on these forums at any given time to support you with any problem (who are more helpful and are not trying to sell you something - like the geek squad).
-can tailor the computer to your needs
-will learn more about the computer and how to fix it if something should break

now as to upgrading v. starting new, what is the model of the computer? is it already pretty much maxed out (the fastest processor, most ram, etc) for the motherboard? if its a p4, you could likely do a really nice upgrade. processor and video card could get that system to a very nice level, without breaking the bank

How many parents are going to go for "strangers" on the internet where you don't even know who they really are, are going to help you build a pc. Upgrade it yourself, drink coke dump a can on you mobo than clean up all the sugar mess on the mobo. Also just take a magnet to the hd or corrupt the bios.

wow, his computer brings back memories of what my last computer was....

if you are really short on cash, just upgrade the videocard to a geforce 4ti / 9600 pro or something along those lines (its what i did, i actually had a geforce2 pro before), maybe even a 9800 pro if you can find one for pretty cheap. but besides that, your computer is pretty much maxed out in terms of upgradeability.

heres some things thatll convince ur dad......hopefully

1.7 ghz cpu? if it your computer was an HP/compaq/dell etc, i *think* the highest upgrade you can get is a 1.9ghz if its a socket 423; a 2.4ghz if its a socket 478. both these run on the old 400 mhz fsb. still pretty darned slow.

512 mb ram? again, judging by the 1.7 ghz cpu, this is probably rambus (but of course, check and make sure). upgrading rambus is stupidly expensive and not worth the money.

geforce 2? even if you do upgrade to a 9800 pro, the performance of your computer will still be over 2 years behind.....any better videocard will just get bottlenecked by the cpu and make it useless.



and most importantly...1 grand will get you a VERY nice computer from parts bought off of newegg.....1.5 grand? verrrrry nice

Thanks Guys. The only reason i asked this because the ram for example causing sttutering and my hard drive died, and my geforce 2 isnt cutting it. Im going to still try to convince him since he is very stubborn. but ill try

I will like to tell u my mobo parts and what not, but my computer wont even stay on long enough to do that.

I will like to tell u my mobo parts and what not, but my computer wont even stay on long enough to do that.

Wow, that's pretty bad.
Tell your dad that so many components are going bad that you should just start from scratch. Even if you replaced those bad parts the cpu would hold the whole system back.

I very... very.. deeply agree.... If things get bad enough... Sabotage your pc. Put a magnet net directly onto the hard drive ( a STRONg one), and then take out your cpu and chip a corner badly.

That way you will be forced to buy a new one. If you think this is the way to go... You can also try and break the soldered wire ends of one of the capacitors. That will surely get things goin. Then you go... DAD! I CAN'T TURN ON MY PC!!!! ARRGGHH!!!!

But thats not very cool. Just try and convince him that the geek squad are a bunch of bird brained idiots that don't know jack about computers and charge you an arm and a leg just to do some thing that i do for free for my clients.

(No offence to you guys here that work for the geek squad, you guys are cool, and actually know what your doing).

:Santa: Have a good one!

PS. If you do decide to sabote, take pics and post em in the hardware destruction thread.

Tyreal said:

I very... very.. deeply agree.... If things get bad enough... Sabotage your pc. Put a magnet net directly onto the hard drive ( a STRONg one), and then take out your cpu and chip a corner badly.

That way you will be forced to buy a new one. If you think this is the way to go... You can also try and break the soldered wire ends of one of the capacitors. That will surely get things goin. Then you go... DAD! I CAN'T TURN ON MY PC!!!! ARRGGHH!!!!

But thats not very cool. Just try and convince him that the geek squad are a bunch of bird brained idiots that don't know jack about computers and charge you an arm and a leg just to do some thing that i do for free for my clients.

(No offence to you guys here that work for the geek squad, you guys are cool, and actually know what your doing).

:Santa: Have a good one!

PS. If you do decide to sabote, take pics and post em in the hardware destruction thread.

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Better yet just flip the switch power on the supply over to the 220v setting.

I dont think its right to destroy your computer to get another one, I mean think about it, you could sell it, or better yet, use it for folding. I think the best way to get your way is to show him this thread, shure, were "strangers", but we know what we are talking about, and thats all that really matters when it comes to building a computer, isnt it?

Money is always a good motivator. I bet if you explain that youc oculd build a better computer for less than what the GS would charge for some upgrades that only buy time will be very convincing. Especially if he is picking up the bill.

Also upgrades greatly depend on what type of PC it is to being with. Generally spekaing the box companies such as Dell, Gteway, etc. will make the PC so that it is basicallt not upgradeable much. You can dd some RAM, but as mentioned if it is Rambus it isn't worth it, and possibly a new video card. I am running a Gateway P4 1.7Ghz, and can't upgrade much at all. My next PC, if I ever have the money, will be custom built for sure.

my sister has pretty much the same pc i have, and her keeps stuttering. she has 512 ram. Is the ram defective or does she need more ram ?

Dmac803 said:

my sister has pretty much the same pc i have, and her keeps stuttering. she has 512 ram. Is the ram defective or does she need more ram ?

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Stuttering? I doubt ram has anything to do with it. Probably spyware and such just slowing the system down.

OK to start i do work for the Geek Squad, and yes i do tell people to look elsewhere for cheaper prices. But if they are willing to pay what i HAVE to charge (way to much) then so be it. That being said.....

Have him call me at work and i'll give him even more outrageous prices than normal. Then we'll get you what you want.

Look i dont want to be a downer, but breaking what you have is not the way to go about this. Explain to him what you need/want and compramize. I'm sure you 2 can come to some sort of an arangement. Offer to pay half, that will help. But talking about the problem and working together will work better than sabotaging your current rig and hoping for the best. Some people are willing to take advantage of your dad/you and selling you garbage you dont need. Be a man and tell your dad what you want and see what he is willing to spend on the new system. You never know, he may respect your decisions and help a little more.