ZOTAC ZBOX-ID41-U (used)

Crucial 64 GB SSD (used)

[Crucial 4GB DDR3 Memory] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KB21KA/ref=oh_details_o02_s01_i00)

Seagate 1TB External HD

Total Money Spent: $357.48

Using my laptop in another room to rip blu rays straight on to this external HD over wireless network, also to do the compression. Works great!

The RAM you selected is unnecessary, pointless, and overpriced. 2133 provides no discernible benefits over 1333. This 8GB kit is more than enough.

This PSU is cheaper, better, AND fully modular. Can handle tri-SLI 570s and overclocks.

Nicer case with better cable management. Also has 8 expansion slots. Get the black version if you don't like the white.

Better thermal paste, and cheaper.

Ditch the RAID 0 setup and grab a SSD and 2TB drive for media.

Spend your money for a keyboard that will last you a long time, and feels good to type on (uses MX brown switches).

As for the monitor, $180 for a 23" TN is a ridiculous price, not to mention ASUS panels aren't anything great. Get a nice IPS monitor for superior colors and viewing angles.

You don't need that thermal paste removing kit. Rubbing alcohol (isopropyl) and Q-tips work fine. Dip Q-tips in solution, scrub off thermal paste, and let it air dry.

Disclaimer: I don't care if you feel 'set' on buying the parts you have selected. I'm suggesting this because you're just wasting your money. But yes, your original build is compatible.

Here's an alternative with integrated graphics and a better power supply:

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Celeron G530 Dual Core | $47.25 @ Amazon
Motherboard | ASRock H61M-VS | $54.99 @ Newegg
Memory | G.SKILL 2GB DDR3 1333MHz | $12.99 @ Newegg
Hard Drive | Crucial M4 64GB | $91.77 @ Amazon
Power Supply | FSP Group ATX350-PNT 350W | $32.99 @ Newegg
| | Total
| | $239.99

Hey there.

A 128GB SSD option would be cool. 256GB would be nice too but sadly SSD's are still pretty expensive right now. (64$ for 128GB but 147$ for 256GB on amazon)
According to your comment above (-20$ when buying without a drive) that should make the price ~293$ with a 128GB one?

Also is the NODISK thing mentioned above something permanent? Or was it special for the question above? You could also add a no drive option to the selection but I assume the customer you are targeting with the device might select it and be confused.

I would love to buy one with a SSD for use at university. How long would it take to deliver to Germany and how much would it cost? Also very important for use at places where many other laptop users are: Does it support 5GHz wlan? Or only 2.4GHz?

Also honestly, as you seem to target (ex-)windows user and mostly non-geeks, I dont think this is the right place to take suggestions. As I expected most people here want to customize / add more RAM (or use another harddrive). However this is definitely nothing other customers care about.

Sorry for the long text and thanks in advance for a response.

You won't be able to overclock with that motherboard you picked. You need a p67/z68 mobo like this.

You'll probably want an aftermarket CPU cooler, so I suggest this

For the SSD I suggest you get this

You picked a 5400RPM HDD, you want a 7200RPM like this if you need to store lots of files like pictures, movies, etc then get 1 7200rpm and 1 5400rpm.

Personally I'd go with a more cost effective SLI/Crossfire solution for your video card, the 580 is pretty bad when it comes to price/performance. You can get two 570's/6950's and it will cost about the same, if not less, and you will get much more performance.

Case is up to you, but I suggest something like the HAF912

And finally, your power supply is a bit overkill. At most, 750W is what you need if you take my advice and sli/crossfire 570s/6950s.

Case - Antec ISK110 DC Powered

MB - ASRock FM2A88X-ITX+

APU - AMD A-10 6700 4-Core 3.7GHz 65W

Cooling - Noctua NH-L9A Low Profile

Memory - Crucial DDR3 1866 2 X 4GB

Disks(Internal) - 2 X Crucial M4 64GB SSD

Disks(External) - StarTech e-SATA enclosure w/ 2 X 1TB WD Blue HDD

Optical Disk(External) - Vantec USB2 enclosure w/ Sony Optiarc BluRay Drive

OS:

• Win7 w/Media Center + BluRay + Steam
  
  
• Linux Mint 17 + XBMC + Steam (to be replaced w/SteamOS)
  
  
  
  
  
  

Yeah; wouldn't mind doing that.

Is this a good one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004W2JKWG/?tag=pcp0f-21

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-internal-hard-drive-ct064m4ssd2

Well, it seems like you got a bunch of people to help you out anyway. :P

Okay, pretty much everything looks good, save for the case and/or CPU and/or motherboard.

• The cases I would recommend at ~50$ are the NZXT Source 210 or the Cooler Master HAF 912.
  
  
• Now, for motherboard and CPU. If you plan on using crossfire/or overclocking your CPU in the future, you should get a motherboard that supports it. Otherwise, the motherboard you chose is good.
  
  
• If you are the kind that likes to overclock, go for a k series CPU (e.g. i5-2500k or i5-3570k). But, if you don't want to, the 3550 is still a pretty good CPU.
  
  Okay, now this isn't necessary, but if you can afford to squeeze an SSD into your build, do it.
  
  There are a lot of SSDs that are getting cheap nowadays, and the benefit you will get from an SSD is pretty nice. You can search up the benefits if you want, or if you already know what they are and what they do, no need to search 'em up.
  
  A [Crucial M4 SSD] (http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-64-2-5-Inch-Solid-State-CT064M4SSD2/dp/B004W2JKWG/ref=lh_ni_t). An [OCZ SSD] (http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-Technology-2-5-Inch-Industrys-Warranty/dp/B007R1FH3K/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1345671640&sr=1-1&keywords=ocz+ssd).
  
  Hope this helps. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask and/or consult other pc builders here.

I wouldn't buy that graphics card from scan.co.uk. At amazon, the Asus gtx 560 TI 1gb is £60 less at only £164.

Also, the 2500k is only £2 more at amazon and as other people have stated is fully unlocked. And with the money you saved on the graphics card, you could buy a cheap aftermarket cpu cooler to overclock it. I'd recommend the CM Hyper 212 Evo £28.

You might also want to purchase an SSD if you have the cash to drastically speed up load times. A small 64 gb crucial M4 is only £60 and you can combine it with intel SRT for good results cheaply.

Links to 2500k, 560 TI, Hyper 212 and Crucial M4.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004FA8NX2/
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004K8R8DA
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0068OI7T8/
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004W2JKWG/

The most important thing for Minecraft is probably the CPU, 2nd is graphics card, and third is disk read/write speeds. (If you are playing online internet speed would probably be third and disk speed fourth.)


Best Value CPU choices:

CPU NAME CPU Power Price

 1. Intel Pentium G620       42.4     $70<br />
 2. Intel Pentium G840       46.4     $83<br />
 3. Intel Pentium G850       48.2     $88<br />
 4. Intel Core i3 2100       50.9    $123<br />

All of these CPUs should be sufficient for playing Minecraft.


--------------------

Motherboard:

$55 - ASRock H61M

It doesn't have all the greatest features, but it has what you need, it's a good price, and a good brand.


--------------------

RAM choices:

• 4GB 1333MHz PNY - $25
  
• 8GB 1333MHz - $41
  
  RAM is cheap now days. You should get at least 4GB.
  
  
  --------------------
  
  Power Supply:
  
  350 Watt Seasonic - $43
  
  SeaSonic is a good quality brand. I have purchased three of this same model. It's great for budget builds.
  
  
  --------------------
  
  Hard drive options:
  
  
• Crucial M4 64GB solid-state drive - $88
  
• Seagate Barracuda 7.2k RPM 1TB hard drive - $100
  
  There was a natural disaster a few months ago that hit a lot of hard drive manufacturers. There aren't a lot of cheap options. The Crucial M4 is a very reliable and pretty fast SSD. The Seagate Barracuda is fast for a traditional hard drive at 7.2k RPM. With the usual Samsung Spinpoint hard drives hard to come by, this hard drive may be the next best thing.
  
  I have purchased one of the 64GB Crucial M4 drives and two of the 1TB SeaGate Barracudas myself.
  
  --------------------
  
  Video card choices:
  
  
• Gigabyte Radeon HD 6450 - $40
  
  This is the cheapest you will want to go. It is better than integrated graphics. It has VGA, DVI, and HDMI outputs for whatever your monitor requires.
  
  
• EVGA Nvidia GeForce GT 430 - $57
  
  The second cheapest video card you should consider. It also has VGA, DVI, and HDMI.
  
  
• Sapphire Radeon 6570 2GB - $65
  
  This is a respectable graphics card. It has VGA, DVI, and HDMI.
  
  
  --------------------
  
  Case:
  
  NZXT Gamma - $40
  
  This is the best case you are getting for only $40.
  
  
  --------------------
  
  Totals:
  
  With all the cheapest options, you are looking at spending at least $361 for a new computer. If you pick all the most expensive options, you are looking at spending $467.
  
  All prices include any shipping. None of these items include any rebates that have to be filled out. All prices straight up.
  
  I'm pretty great at all this, but my weakest area is video cards. If you want to your sister a computer, pick out what you want from here and post your build on /r/buildapc to get the opinions of lots of other builders.

Is this better? If you can afford to add a 64GB SSD to it, I strongly recommend it. Even if you buy one after you purchase this. :)

Part list permalink / Part price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor | $179.99 @ Microcenter
CPU Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler | $29.33 @ NCIX US
Motherboard | ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard | $137.86 @ Newegg
Memory | Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $44.99 @ Newegg
Hard Drive | Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $82.99 @ SuperBiiz
Video Card | Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card | $472.90 @ NCIX US
Case | NZXT Phantom 410 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case | $99.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply | SeaSonic 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply | $86.99 @ SuperBiiz
Optical Drive | LG GH22NS90B DVD/CD Writer | $15.99 @ Newegg
| | Total
| Prices include shipping and discounts when available. | $1151.03
| Generated 2012-03-12 16:19 EDT-0400 |

The Crucial M4 64GB is only £78...

From what I have read, crucial m4 comes more highly recommended than the vertex 2 you have chosen, but it's $110 at newegg (out of stock) and $112 at amazon.

I would do the following:

• Buy a refurbished Asus X401A with an Intel Celereon B980 for $290
  
• Buy a Crucial m4 64GB SSD or a Samsung 840 128 GB SSD
  
• Replcae the HDD with the SSD
  
• Have fun!