I'm a 19-year-old who has always wanted to own a PC, but my family's financial situation means I can't spend much. After doing some freelancing and gigs, I've managed to save up enough for what I consider a basic PC build. I have an offer for a new setup that includes:
- A 22-inch 2K qHD monitor
- A mouse and keyboard
- CPU specs: Windows 11 pre-installed, Intel Core i5, H61 chipset, 3GHz processor speed, 16GB DDR3 RAM, 500GB SATA HDD, but no graphics card.
The entire setup costs 17,000 INR (about $183). I'm debating whether to get an SSD (which would cost extra) and plan on adding a 1050 Ti or 1650 GPU later. Or should I just wait and try to save more for something newer and more powerful? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
4 Answers
The H61 chipset paired with a 3rd gen Intel i5 processor is really old—about a decade! Windows 11 doesn’t officially support CPUs older than the 8th generation. I bought a similar system for $100 five years ago, and even then it was a questionable buy. Save your money and look for better options if you can. That setup won’t do well for gaming or current tasks at all.
You'll manage alright with the basics. But I really recommend getting at least a GTX 1650 for any build. I’ve upgraded older systems like mine with them, and they perform surprisingly well! Just keep in mind that games are getting more demanding, so plan for eventual upgrades if you can.
If the whole setup isn't under $100, I'd say it's not worth it. With a budget of around 30,000 INR, you could find a decent secondhand machine on platforms like Facebook Marketplace. Let us know your exact budget and location, and we might be able to help more!
I'm based in India and can stretch up to about 30,000 INR.
I see where you're coming from, but honestly, that build is going to become outdated really quickly. Consider saving up a bit more. If you can, go for a Ryzen 5 5600G with 16GB of DDR4 RAM and a 500GB SSD. All that would set you back under 50,000 INR. You can even find some used parts to save money!
Buying the proposed setup now might not serve you well for freelancing or gaming down the line.
Thanks for the suggestion! I’ll hold off for now and save more.
Looks like I should pass on this deal, huh?