Crashman :
WHAT are you talking about? If he's not a gamer? IF HE IS A GAMER TELL HIM TO BUY AMD. If he's NOT a gamer...perhaps he needs the power for other applications? Intel beats AMD in APPLICATIONS, not games.
OK chill out dude ffs no need to shout. I'm not going to TELL him to do anything, however I will suggest something once I know what his usage is. All he's said to this point is that he's not a gamer and he browses the web.
And if that's all he's doing then why waste the money on an Intel rig when a low-end AMD setup will do the job perfectly well - Intel doesn't make teh intarwebz any faster.
rugman1969 :
I will be using it for video and photo editring, while having multiple windows open, web surfing, etc...
Also, I have a 450 watt pow supply, and am wondering if that would be enough? Also, how about the moving from XP to Win7? Is that a smart move? I love XP and have been using it for years, but know it's expected life cycle wil lbe coming soon. Then should I do retail or OEM? Thanks
Bingo! Exactly why I asked what he's doing with the system.
For photo and video editing Intel all the way. Core i5 750 with 4GB 1600MHz RAM is a safe bet straight away, however depending on how heavy-duty your work is you may even consider 8GB RAM, or even going the whole hog and getting an i7 930 with X58 motherboard.
As far as power supplies go, it really will depend on what your complete system will be. 450W PSU may well be enough, but unless it's from a trusted manufacturer like Corsair or Seasonic it may well not be up to the job.
And yes dump Windows XP and go Windows 7 for this new system. All this modern hardware will benefit greatly from a modern OS, and even with 4GB RAM I'd still recommend the 64-bit version.
As to retail or OEM? That's your call really. The OEM version will be tied to the specific machine you install it on and can't be transferred to another machine. The retail version however has no such restriction and can be installed on any machine you like - it's still a single-user license though so it's only one machine at a time.
One last thing. Crashman: if you really ARE a member of the Tom's team then I'd expect a little bit more civility and respect towards your user base, not the whole "what ARE you talking about" routine as if I'm some clueless n00b just because my post wasn't worded very well, or YOU just didn't understand it.