Parents Computer Died, Need Help Picking Out Something Cheap

Arbitrary

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I was told this morning that last night the cat stepped on the switch on the surge protector and now the computer wouldn't turn back on. I checked all the plugs, connectors, cords, and the thing is a corpse. No lights no sounds no bells no whistlescorpse.Given it's complete corpse nature I tried replacing the power supply and it's still a corpse. I checked the power button to make sure it wasn't just a mundane problem and it's still a corpse. This was the computer I blew a ton of money on when I got out of the Army back in 2003. It just passed its tenth birthday this October.

We would just buy something else but October was replace the entire fucking roof + sub roof + roof repairs + holy fuck I hate roofing month. It's done but everyone is broke. I'm afraid to buy some refurbished Dell from Walmart for 200 bucks. The last time I went with a budget computer for them it ended going really badly so I don't want to just go and do something that turns out to be retarded. All they really want is something that can use the internet well. Does anyone have any idea what I should buy? We are talking about an absolute price ceiling of like 300.

Without some help my father is just going to walk into Best Buy and pick up whatever the 200 dollar machine of the day is.
 

Srathor

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I would almost say a tablet. Especially if they have the computer in a little back room squirrelled away.

Depends on your folks of course, but my 72 year old Mom who is computer illiterate has taken to the tablet like a duck to water. Dad has had a computer in the house for like 35 years, she never used it. Dad had the tablet I got him for a day and she stole it and he never got it back.
 

lurkingdirk

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That, or you might check ebay for rebuilt dell laptops. They are really affordable, and tend to run well.
 

Jovec

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We are talking about an absolute price ceiling of like 300.

Without some help my father is just going to walk into Best Buy and pick up whatever the 200 dollar machine of the day is.
Might be the best option in that price range anyway, especially if you are going to need a new Windows license that is going to eat 33% of that $300 budget. Later just up the RAM and toss in a spare GPU if the IGP isn't enough.
 

Joeboo

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Tablet

If they were still using a 10 year old computer, then they obviously don't do anything with it besides check email and maybe browse some web pages for news
 

Arbitrary

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They went with some little Gateway thing. It came with Windows 8 and a mountain of garbage installed.

Thus far I hate Windows 8. Haaaaaate it. Hate. And fuck you Norton.
 

Srathor

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Should have gotten them a tablet.
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Good luck with the oblig tech support for a couple months.
Also get Start8 from Stardock. Might help them out some. It is good for old people.
 

Noodleface

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Probably your best course of action is to tell them they don't make computers anymore. That phase is over.
 

Skanda

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Thus far I hate Windows 8. Haaaaaate it. Hate. And fuck you Norton.
Tell them what I told my mother when she got a Win8 laptop, "I know jack shit about it and I can't help you with it."

Now her IT guy at her work gets all the lame Win8 questions.
 

BrutulTM

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Anybody gotten a chromebook for an old person computer? I'm thinking about getting my grandma one because she wants to be able to email and that seems like the simplest, safest, hardest to fuck up option in the sub-$300 price range.
 

ToeMissile

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Anybody gotten a chromebook for an old person computer? I'm thinking about getting my grandma one because she wants to be able to email and that seems like the simplest, safest, hardest to fuck up option in the sub-$300 price range.
Take her to best buy or somewhere to try out a bunch of display models and see what she takes to best.