Entry-level PC for about 20K

We help you choose components to put together a basic PC 1. CPU: - If you are one of those who have been saving to buy a PC this festive season, here is a guide that would help you put together an entry-level PC.In today's times this is basic computer that will allow you to easily perform all your daily tasks without any problem, which may include some Office applications, internet, multimedia (music & movies) and some casual gaming.
We set off with a budget of Rs.20,000 in mind, which is a fairly acceptable price for your first PC or someone looking for a basic setup, but not bare bone either like a netbook. These are all Mumbai prices, so if you're in Delhi or Chennai then you may get these components for a little less since these things are always a little pricier in Mumbai. So without wasting any more time let's get on with it and build our entry-level PC.

CPU and Motherboard Combo (Rs. 5,500)

AMD Athlon II X2 240 (2.8Ghz)

2. Motherboard: Whenever you buy a CPU and motherboard, it's better if you buy them as a set as many vendors offer you a small discount when you do so. The two choices were Intel E5200/G31 and Athlon IIX2/740G. We chose AMD for our entry-level system because you get a higher clock speed for the same price as an Intel E5xxx series chip. Yes, you can overclock the E5200 more easily but we are not targeting that audience here and more importantly we are looking for a solid performing combo, and even a blonde would agree that the 740G kicks the G31's butt.

This is micro-ATX board with plenty of features like 3+1 phase power design, solid state capacitors, 6 SATA II ports, Gigabit LAN, DVI and VGA, and the list goes on. It also has a PCI-E x16 slot in case you want more graphics power later.

Gigabyte GA-MA74GM-S2 (740G Chipset)

3. Memory (2GB RAM): -

Next step is buying the memory, prices of which have shot up lately for some reason. After a little digging around we found that the difference between a regular Kingston 1GB RAM and G.Skill was only 100 bucks, which is why we chose the G.Skill for its better performance. Note that this matters much for an entry-level PC, so it's up to you really if you want to save the 100 bucks. It's better to go for two 1GB sticks instead of a single 2G stick, as you get an added advantage of Dual Channel.

G.Skill F2-6400CL5S-1GB NY (2 sticks) - (Rs.2200)

4. Hard Drive: -

Hitachi 500GB - (Rs. 2,450)

For the HDD we wanted to go for the Seagate 500GB, which sells for 2.4K. However, the new version (7200.12) has some problems like developing bad sectors or simply dying. The price of WD is still a bit high at 2.7K (for our build at least), so we went with Hitachi, which isn't talked about much, but performs well and doesn't have any major issue that Seagate is currently facing with their 500GB.

4. Cabinet with SMPS: -

Circle 512 with 400W Power Supply - (Rs. 1,300)

Circle is a tried and tested brand that provides good quality cabinets for a very reasonable pricing. Another main point is that the cabinets are pleasing to the eye with a modern design and plenty of ventilation holes, as well as provision for a fan in the front and back. The one we've chosen is one from their lower end models that fits our budget.

5. Optical Drive: -

LG, Sony DVD Writer (Rs. 1,125)

Here you can go for any brand that is easily available to you. All of them are around the same price of 1.2K.

6. Monitor: -

AOC 831S+ : 18.5" LCD Monitor (Rs.6200)

The monitor of choice here would be the AOC 831S+, which has some good specifications like 1366x768 resolution screen, 300 cd/m2 of brightness, 10000:1 Dynamic contrast ratio, 5ms response time, VGA and a piano black finish.
If you want something cheaper, then there's the Acer AL1716W, which is a 17 incher that retails for 5.9K. I would still suggest you go for the bigger screen though.

7. Keyboard & Mouse: -

Logitech Desktop/ Microsoft Desktop 500 (Rs. 650)

This is the most basic keyboard and mouse combo that is comfortable to use and relatively cheap

8. Speakers: -

Altec Lancing BXR1221 (2.1 System) - Rs. 1,050

We've reviewed a 2.0 speaker system known as the BXR1220. (Read the review here) This is desktop variant that comes with a 4-inch subwoofer that should provide some decent bass in music and movies. Another alternative to this is the Logitech R20 (also a 2.1 system) that retails for just Rs. 850.

9. Final Build

What this will let you do?

--> Watch Full HD movies
--> Play music
--> Office and other productive work
--> Surf the Internet
--> Light/Casual gaming

Thanks to the strong onboard GPU that's derived from the 780G, you can easily play games like The Sims 3, StreetFighter IV, or anything on the Unreal 3 engine albeit at low settings. In fact, even full HD movies are not a problem when you use Media Player Classic: Home Cinema, which uses the GPU to decode the movie. Below is our entire PC at a glance.

So there you have it, our entry-level PC is ready. You can mix and match some of the components if you wish, but this guide should give you a good idea where to start. Next up is our "Jack of all trades" PC that will do pretty much anything but without breaking the bank, so stay tuned.