Barebone vs. Factory-built

I was just doing a rough cost-estimate of a barebone HEL80 system and it turns out as follow:

Barebone: $660 ($640 w/ cash discount)
Processors: Core 2 Duo T7200 $300
RAM 2 x 1GB G-Skill $140
HD Toshiba 120Gb 5400rpm $83
ODD Samsung Slim Super Multi 54$
Wireless card: Gigabyte AirCruiser (Atheros chipset) $26
Everything adds up around $1280 ($1260 w/ cash discount) including shipping

The same systems from powernotebooks.com and xoticpc.com (which are the cheapest I have found) are around $1460 ($1418 w/o cash discount) including shipping.

I don't know how much powernotebooks.com and xoticpc.com are willing to lower the price through negotiation (Does anyone know?) but at these prices, $150 is a pretty substantial amount of money to college students like myself. Do you think its worth the hassle of having to deal with multiple warranties? I have built a desktop system before so I guess it will not be terribly risky.

Thanks. I appreciate any suggestion.

PS: And it's actually be fun!

 

you need a SATA hd not a ATA and check out Milesstonepc HEL80 Barebone( its $719 but comes with a 3 year warrenty)

also if you need help assembling it, look at the HEL80 assembly video on YouTube and there are also some dissembly guides that could help

 

Thanks for pointing that out. I edited the list. Any other opinion would be welcome.

 

Are you getting the Matte(105 upgrade) or the Glossy Screen

 

I'm getting the Glossy. The $105 upgrade is just too much.

 

THIS is what you want instead.

 

Thats one reason why i suggest the MilestonePC barbone becuse it comes standard with the Matte screen but if its out of you budget then get the glossy.
Then only reason i mention the matte screen it becuase its one of the major selling points of the laptop.

Also there is no harm in calling up Powerbook, MilestonePC, and xoticpc.com and see if they can do anything about the price,

 

Some of you have seen this post a number of times already, but it rings true every time.

 

As Chrisyano pointed out, it's mostly about the domestic phone support 24/7, plus I believe they pay some, if not all the shipping on the Power Pro line at PowerNotebooks. They are also great to work with for cross-shipping items when you are suffering from a show-stopper problem.

I doubt you will get then negotiated down, especially that low. Essentially what you are seeing as difference is them paying to have a qualified assembly and initial burn-in test, as well as any support you might require down the road.

 

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the response. Besides saving money, this also seems like a lot of fun to me so I think I'll take that risk. I will try to talk down the price on the Hel80 barebone on MSI (3 year warranty + the matte) so it'll be quite a saving.

Can anyone please confirm that all the parts I picked are compatible with the HEL 80?

Thanks!

 

Yes the parts should be compatible but the ODD might not be flush with the side of the Hel80.

And by MSI are you talking about MilestonePC or something else.

 

I meant MilestonePC, sorry. I was looking at MSI website and I guess I got confused.

 

Good luck on the project, superpig. I'm not trying to dissuade you, but feel like it's worth pointing out that if you should run into one problem or RMA--the additional cost of buying a pre-assembled/tested system will have paid for itself. Not to mention 3 years of next-business shipping covered both ways and 24/7 support.

Regardless, welcome to the Compal club and we look forward to your future participation here.

 

I actually contacted xoticpc and Justin said he would provide free arctic silver as well discount shipping. He is also willing to negotiate. So I changed my mind and would go ahead with the pre-built system instead of the barebone. Thanks guys!

 

Congratulations on the purchase! Enjoy your new notebook.

I'm happy to hear you'll have more warranty coverage than if you'd built it yourself.

 

Ditto, and i hope the HEl80 serves you well.