- CyberPower warranty is 1 year. You pay shipping, of the whole box. Individual parts that you buy may have a warranty of 2-3-5-10 years.
- Yes. And for a system like this, an OS license should be budget in.
- We're not speaking of the ATX case, but rather the demonstrated lack of quality we've seen in CyberPower systems. Simple things, like the DVD drive not connected. Fans not connected. System simply not booting up at all, right out of the box. And for "upgrades"...be very very careful about what power supply is in there. Usually, it is just barely enough to run the system in its original config. Add something....not gonna work.
- User ratings like that are mostly useless
Can a CyberPower system be "cheaper" Sure. If initial cheapness is your main consideration, go for it.
As said though...there a re many benefits doing it the other way.
Earlier, I mentioned my grandson, at age 11. That system was also around $500. That one afternoon of putting it together was a great bonding moment. And gave HIM a much much greater appreciation of how it all goes together. Instead of being a black box with some blinken lights, and no knowledge of what goes on inside.
Seeing the look on his face when he pressed the power button for the first time, on a system HE assembled - Literally priceless.
A prebuilt system, especially CyberPower/iBuyPower, is not the automatic GoTo. No matter what price.