Computer help

[Cvargo]

Alright going to be honest here. We meaning my wife and I aren't really that tech savvy... Especially for what's considered millennials. We primarily use our phones. I have a work computer and a 5
year old Samsungg tablet in addition to my phone. I also use a Chromebook for other standard surfing etc when at home and to do our taxes.

My wife uses her phone and a Samsung tablet.

We do have two laptops that are from our college days. So literally 9+ years old, I think mine is 12. We have relied on Google drives web server to back up all our pictures etc.

Well we have been thinking that having a centralized computer would probably come in handy so we are in the market for a computer. We don't game etc. We literally just want it to house everything and have the ability to connect via wifi to our router so it can access the internet on our fiber line.

We want it to house our movies, photos, and tax information that's pretty much it. We would like to do this before the laptops officially die. Mine takes 40 min to turn on lol! It's old and still on Vista!

Any recommendations without breaking the bank? I have monitors and keyboards etc for when I work at home so no issue there.

 

[GearNoir]

All my opinion of course:

I’d say go MacBook or MacBook Pro off hand, they’re still by far the most user/interface friendly. I would avoid any type of browser only sort of computer, they are generally light use/task only. I’d want something with a little bit of guts if need be and with a sturdy build, having kids around.

It helps that you have your important stuff like photos already backed up to an external, multi platform accessible drive. That should save you from the hassle of needing to transfer from old computer to new.

 

[Cvargo]

Never really used a Mac before. Both our employers use windows. I know that's what we are used too

 

[uacowboy]

They have been swapping a lot of computers at my office to these. They should handle all that you want pretty easy. Just get the biggest hard drive you can

Intel NUC NUC7i5BNK Mini PC/HTPC, Intel Dual-Core i5-7260U Upto 3.4GHz, 8GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, 4k Support, Dual Monitor Capable, Windows 10 Pro (8GB Ram + 128GB SSD) Amazon.com: Intel NUC NUC7i5BNK Mini PC/HTPC, Intel Dual-Core i5-7260U Upto 3.4GHz, 8GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, 4k Support, Dual Monitor Capable, Windows 10 Pro (8GB Ram + 128GB SSD): Computers & Accessories

Plus they are super small

 

[dkeester]

Check with your employer. Many larger companies offer discounts with certain manufacturers, along with discounts for other goods and services. If you go through the corporate discount site you can get a really good deal. If that is a no-go, I would look at HP and Dell. They both offer decent packages and allow ordering online. Also, take a look at your local Best Buy or other electronics store. You can at least see what is out there.

Also, Costco does carry computers. So, you might get a good deal there.

Get the most RAM that you can (8GB is decent, but get 12GB or 16GB if you can afford it). That is probably the most important thing. Hard drive size is probably number 2 in importance. Definitely consider getting Windows 10 Pro over Home to get the disk encryption capabilities.

You need to start looking around online. All of the PC manufacturers these days will do online custom orders. Also check Amazon.

 

[dkeester]

They have been swapping a lot of computers at my office to these. They should handle all that you want pretty easy. Just get the biggest hard drive you can

Intel NUC NUC7i5BNK Mini PC/HTPC, Intel Dual-Core i5-7260U Upto 3.4GHz, 8GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, 4k Support, Dual Monitor Capable, Windows 10 Pro (8GB Ram + 128GB SSD) Amazon.com: Intel NUC NUC7i5BNK Mini PC/HTPC, Intel Dual-Core i5-7260U Upto 3.4GHz, 8GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, 4k Support, Dual Monitor Capable, Windows 10 Pro (8GB Ram + 128GB SSD): Computers & Accessories

Plus they are super small

If you go with something like this, I recommend getting the 16GB Ram + 256GB SSD version. More RAM and bigger disk should give it greater longevity.

Also, SSD hard drives are fast, but they are more expensive and can have a shorter life span than traditional spinning hard drives. See: SSD vs. HDD: What's the Difference?

 

[NurseDave]

We got a new computer a couple years ago and I went mostly with aesthetics and monitor size for photo editing. The computer is out in well used room and I didn't want all the wires any more. I went with one of those deals where everything is built into the monitor and it comes with wireless keyboard and mouse. We were able to get a nicer desk without the area needed to hid all that stuff. Only one power cable. I do have it hard-wired to the internet, but it could do wifi to eliminate that wire as well.

 

[Gagi]

to house our movies, photos, and tax information

For this I would go for external HDD. Safest option.
As for the new computer, do you need laptop, I mean, would you like to move it around. If yes, then go for premium line (thinkpad, tecra, elitebook etc.), but with lower specs. You would be fine with integrated graphic card, i3 or i5 procesor... Hdd or ssd, well ssd is better, but you should know that it should be 50% full max, or its life span go down drastically. So amount of storage you need, times 2. Or regular 240/256 but with some external memory.
Desktop, dont know