Barebones ASUS

my experience dealing with what makes a computer compute consists of swapping out my mobility radeon 7500 with a mobility radeon 9000 (which is still my main computer, hence the need for an upgrade) in my dell inspiron 5150. i was comfortable with the process. would putting together a barebones ASUS from milestonepc.com be much more complex in concept? thanks!

 

barebones comes with a graphics card, so i guess it would be easier? iono

 

Barebones consists of the chassis, screen, motherboard and video card. Nothing else. You will need to buy the Hard Drive, Optical Drive, CPU, RAM and wireless card separately.

 

Install the CPU will be the trickiest part, as you will have to remove the heatsink, seat the CPU, apply the right amount of thermal grease, and re-seat the heatsink. RAM, HDD, optical and wireless are easy though.

 

Buying parts like the processor or RAM from the reseller (in this case, milestonepc.com) is more expensive than buying the barebones from milestonepc, but then the processor or RAM from a place like newegg.com and then assembling the system yourself.

If you feel comfortable assembling the computer by yourself, you can buy just the barebones laptop at milestonepc (don't forget to buy an optical drive and wireless from milestonepc - newegg doesn't carry those specifically, and the wireless card is a hassle!), then go to newegg.com and buy a processor, hard drive, RAM, and some Arctic Silver 5 for processor cooling.

 

i appreciate all the info. im a little concerned with the "you will have to remove the heatsink, seat the CPU, apply the right amount of thermal grease, and re-seat the heatsink" part, but ill do some research and see if i feel i can handle it. any websites you can suggest to guide me would be helpful.

p.s. is milestonepc.com a reputable company?

 

Correct me if I am wrong but I believe the barebones C90 comes with an optical drive already, an HD / blue ray one I might add.

 

C90 has an Optical drive but it isn't HD-DVD or Blu-ray at the moment.It would cost much more if it had.

 

I would bet they would construct it for you if you requested it.

 

Milestonepc has been around for a while, and has been posting on NBR frequently especially in the ASUS section to help people out. From what I've read, they provide good and friendly service.

 

The most difficult part of notebook assembly (for me), is the mini pci(e) wireless card antennas. You aren't gonna save a ton of money doing it yourself most of the time, so I recommend letting the reseller handle that part. Everything else on a notebook is generally cake. Sometimes getting the screws in the heatsink around the CPU is a minor pain, but that's it.

 

what if i use a external wireless card, link a linksys, instead of the mini pci(e) wireless card?

 

What kind of RAM will need this laptop? desktop or laptop memory?

 

It's SODIMM(laptop memory).

 

MilestonePC is really trustful.

 

I'm almost sure I'm gonna get this but excuse me if this is obvious, will the wireless card and the barebones notebook come with instructions on installation? also any recommendations on wireless card, wireless card 4965AGN or Intel Wireless card WM3945AGM1GEN. And why is the windows Vista Home Premium $100 less than what it runs for at major retailers like Best Buy?

 

It's OEM probably.

As for instructions, nope, you'll have to ask the dealer to provide it.

 

not sure but i think the 4965agn is a wireless n card whereas the 3945agm is not.

chris

 

The 4965AGN is indeed a wireless-N card with 3 antenna wires where as the 3945ABG is a A/B/G card with 2 antenna wires. Note: most current notebook chassis are NOT wired with 3 wires, but that doesn't mean you can't add a 3rd wire yourself.