The top end model doesnt seem to bad for price. Consdiering the ram/mobo/cpu/gpu end up being around 900 bucks from tigerdirect. Not to mention the other items (including a nice case) and more important OS (depending on your legitimacy and source can vary vastly in price). So looking for a good starting computer Id consider it. Although using the 1156 socket seemed like a poor choice if your looking for someone interested in upgrading it (although I guess making this the one part not worth upgrading would benefit them in the long run...).