All-In-One Computers

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BeanCounter

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Does anyone have experience with these, or with all-in-one's in general?

I am looking at one of Dell's particularly. Not the Studio computer though.

I don't really need a huge computer taking up space, so I am considering opting for one of these conglomerations. With an Intel Pentium 2 Duo Core processor, 200+ GB of memory (which I will likely never fill 1/2 of) and sufficient RAM, I think this wouldn't be a bad setup.I think they typically come with wireless mouse and keyboard.

Any input?>
 
I already have one.
I wouldn't mind another newer laptop, but I don't really have the need for one while the one I have is still working fine. I can always rebuild the one I have if needed.

Since I recently purchased a house, I wouldn't mind filling out the computer room and desk with a nice, larger screen computer. The All-In-One's, considering the space I have to work with and the aesthetics, seems to fit the bill pretty well.

Anything wrong with them?
The one's I am looking at have (1) plug. That is it. Right down my alley...
 
They probably work for an internet machine, but you will be limited in upgrades and addons. If one part fails, the whole thing is shot. In other words, if the monitor fails you can't just replace the monitor.
 
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
They probably work for an internet machine, but you will be limited in upgrades and addons. If one part fails, the whole thing is shot. In other words, if the monitor fails you can't just replace the monitor.


Good point.
Are they for a fact any worse on reliability?
They are honestly pretty new to me. I just figure with the increase in technology that for my needs I don't think I have to have a 16x8 box to hold all the internals. Everything is getting pretty small now...
 
Why not look into a USB mouse, keyboard, and eternal monitor for your laptop. I have a 21" screen, regular keyboard, and mouse connected to mine. You can use this just like a desktop but it utilizes the resources of your laptop. I would do that if all you want is the feel for a desktop when you are at home.
 
Originally Posted By: pondfishr
Why not look into a USB mouse, keyboard, and eternal monitor for your laptop. I have a 21" screen, regular keyboard, and mouse connected to mine. You can use this just like a desktop but it utilizes the resources of your laptop. I would do that if all you want is the feel for a desktop when you are at home.


I have thought about that a lot too.
The only thing stopping me is I think the fan needs to be replaced and the computer can get on the fritz now and then. Nothing terrible, but it heats up more than needed and is loud(er) than I desire.

Those issues made me reconsider buying a dual fan base, USB parts, external monitor, and so on if the computer were going to need repair at some point. I reckon I need to just fix some of those things anyway, or at least narrow down what the problem is. Between the noise, the overheating and an occasional blue screen of death, I just get bugged.
Maybe I just need to get an external hard drive, move over the files, and then wipe out the computer and fix whatever the overheating/noise is related to and go that route!
 
I have no idea how durable they are, but the Apple iMac all-in-one sure looks and feels nice, from the small amount of time I've played with one at the Apple store.
 
If your laptop is overheating it is more than likely that the fan and heatsinks are clogged with dust and lint. Clean it out and you will be good to go.
 
My wife has a Lenovo A600. It's a hybrid inside, with a mix of laptop and desktop components, but attached to a huge display that no laptop can match.

It has been excellent. A poor man's iMac to be sure.
 
I have not spent much time looking at one of these, and I have not owned one (though I have looked). While there are certainly good arguments to be made for these contraptions, for my needs, they seem to represent the worst of both worlds. Except for one tower system we bought for the den back in 2001, all of our computers have been notebooks, and for the most part, they have met our needs. The Win7U Inspiron on which I'm creating this post would beat that 2001 tower in every conceivable way (including graphics) (but I know, that's an unfair comparison...).

I guess my opinion is that if you're going to give up the lightweight flexibility of the notebook, you might as well go for a tower (or even a mini-tower), and gain the advantages that come with the heft. Those would include separation of components (so one component failure doesn't drag your whole system down), more options, multiple HDDs, better video and audio, and so forth.
 
Originally Posted By: Volvohead
My wife has a Lenovo A600. It's a hybrid inside, with a mix of laptop and desktop components, but attached to a huge display that no laptop can match.

It has been excellent. A poor man's iMac to be sure.


That sounds pretty interesting...
 
Originally Posted By: wavinwayne
I have no idea how durable they are, but the Apple iMac all-in-one sure looks and feels nice, from the small amount of time I've played with one at the Apple store.


I'm so deep in PCs I don't think my brain has enough capacity to switch to Macs now...
crazy2.gif

They definitely have some nice products out for sure.
 
Originally Posted By: ekpolk
I have not spent much time looking at one of these, and I have not owned one (though I have looked). While there are certainly good arguments to be made for these contraptions, for my needs, they seem to represent the worst of both worlds. Except for one tower system we bought for the den back in 2001, all of our computers have been notebooks, and for the most part, they have met our needs. The Win7U Inspiron on which I'm creating this post would beat that 2001 tower in every conceivable way (including graphics) (but I know, that's an unfair comparison...).

I guess my opinion is that if you're going to give up the lightweight flexibility of the notebook, you might as well go for a tower (or even a mini-tower), and gain the advantages that come with the heft. Those would include separation of components (so one component failure doesn't drag your whole system down), more options, multiple HDDs, better video and audio, and so forth.


Duly noted!
Thanks for the comments. Makes sense!
 
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
If your laptop is overheating it is more than likely that the fan and heatsinks are clogged with dust and lint. Clean it out and you will be good to go.


Yeah, that is what I figure.
I don't think a fan is a difficult replacement on a Dell though, if that were the case. Probably just gunk clogging it.
 
Originally Posted By: BeanCounter
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
If your laptop is overheating it is more than likely that the fan and heatsinks are clogged with dust and lint. Clean it out and you will be good to go.


Yeah, that is what I figure.
I don't think a fan is a difficult replacement on a Dell though, if that were the case. Probably just gunk clogging it.


I'm 110% sure that this is NOT an approved maintenance procedure, but I just take the vacuum, and apply suction directly to the intake side of the cooling air path. I figure an intense flow of air, in reverse, has the best chance of removing maximum crud. I suppose that with some really cheaply built systems, you might inadvertently suck out some things that were meant to be in there -- so be careful...
wink.gif
cheers3.gif
 
Last edited:
Oh yeah, I'd also add that despite the FACT that my wife is a fanatical clean-a-holic, when the Dell tower was our primary at-home system, I had to do a major undusting at least twice a year. I would have to pull the tower out of its nook, remove all the connections (which I learned to carefully label after the first cleaning misadventure...), open the thing up, and clean.

With as much air as these things pull in for cooling, it's inevitable that even in the cleanest of houses, dust build-up will become a factor; it's only a matter of time. Beware!
 
A good friend of mine has a Sony all in one, the problem he has is that the software driver that comes with it are not really "universal" and if you happy to not like its component, you are screwed. That however applies to almost all non custom build stuff.

Regarding to quality and reliability, like most branded computer, you are out of luck when trying to replace a broken power supply (common these days) or if you want to keep your monitor when you get a new computer.

Computers are like cars nowadays, if you like the way it looks and feel, just get it.
 
Originally Posted By: BeanCounter
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
If your laptop is overheating it is more than likely that the fan and heatsinks are clogged with dust and lint. Clean it out and you will be good to go.


Yeah, that is what I figure.
I don't think a fan is a difficult replacement on a Dell though, if that were the case. Probably just gunk clogging it.


The problem with a DELL fan is not that you can't replace it, but the parts they use aren't something you can easily get from newegg. CPU fan for example has different wiring scheme and you probably have to buy from electronic component store rather than Fry's or newegg, which means it cost more and take you extra effort.
 
Originally Posted By: ekpolk
Originally Posted By: BeanCounter
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
If your laptop is overheating it is more than likely that the fan and heatsinks are clogged with dust and lint. Clean it out and you will be good to go.


Yeah, that is what I figure.
I don't think a fan is a difficult replacement on a Dell though, if that were the case. Probably just gunk clogging it.


I'm 110% sure that this is NOT an approved maintenance procedure, but I just take the vacuum, and apply suction directly to the intake side of the cooling air path. I figure an intense flow of air, in reverse, has the best chance of removing maximum crud. I suppose that with some really cheaply built systems, you might inadvertently suck out some things that were meant to be in there -- so be careful...
wink.gif
cheers3.gif



Make sure that you lock fans in place if you use a vacuum cleaner or canned air to clean them. You do not want to break the fan bearings.
 
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