Lenovo H430 Desktop: Core i5 3330 3GHz, 8GB DDR3, 1TB HDD, DVD Burner, Windows 8 $375 + Free Shipping

Quote from Syrinx2112 : I currently have an ASUS AMD Phenom II X6 1065T 2.90Ghhz running Windows 7 Home Premium with 8GB Ram, 1TB HD and a Radeon HD 6950 2GB video card. Would this Lenovo i5 system be an decent upgrade for me (transferring the vid card over of course) or should I just stick with what I have and get an i7 or some other system later this year?

I don't know if that graphics card will fit into this case, either physically, thermally or power-connector wise. You will have to get a different power supply for sure, but there is no guarrantee you will be able to dissipate all that heat.

I am just curious: Has anyone attempted to do a processor upgrade/downgrade on this PC? Here is an idea for the adventurous among those who are using this as an HTPC: Replace the CPU with i3-3225. It's a downgrade in terms of overall performance but an upgrade graphics-wise as it has HD 4000.

It's on sale for $135 on Newegg. The i5-3330 sells for more, but I don't know if there is any financial benefit in the swap considering the transaction costs on the secondary market (eBay/PayPal/Craigslist hassle).

i3-3225 with HD 4000 for $135 on Newegg [newegg.com]

Quote from deelseaker : I am just curious: Has anyone attempted to do a processor upgrade/downgrade on this PC? Here is an idea for the adventurous among those who are using this as an HTPC: Replace the CPU with i3-3225. It's a downgrade in terms of overall performance but an upgrade graphics-wise as it has HD 4000. It's on sale for $135 on Newegg. The i5-3330 sells for more, but I don't know if there is any financial benefit in the swap considering the transaction costs on the secondary market (eBay/PayPal/Craigslist hassle). i3-3225 with HD 4000 for $135 on Newegg [newegg.com]

Probably would work out better to just buy a budget video card. You can typically get a 6570 or GT 640 for ~under $50 on sale/after rebates.

How does this deal compare with this:

http://t.staples.com/skava/static...1%22%5D%7D

Quote from deelseaker : I am just curious: Has anyone attempted to do a processor upgrade/downgrade on this PC? Here is an idea for the adventurous among those who are using this as an HTPC: Replace the CPU with i3-3225. It's a downgrade in terms of overall performance but an upgrade graphics-wise as it has HD 4000. It's on sale for $135 on Newegg. The i5-3330 sells for more, but I don't know if there is any financial benefit in the swap considering the transaction costs on the secondary market (eBay/PayPal/Craigslist hassle). i3-3225 with HD 4000 for $135 on Newegg [newegg.com]

Im typing on this computer with my dinovo mini right now. its a great upgrade from my home built amd phenom 2 with overkill (benchtesting i sort of overheated because my son decided to put a blanket over the case that i did not notice!!!!!). as of right now ive blown threw 1080p videos with no lag or stutter, 720p streams with no issue. i have a bd drive to install, but heard it might be an issue with the flip drive case. thing's a beast for htpc, i run an i7 on my work computer, but this is a do all htpc in my opinion. why would you buy to downgrade?. just get the i3 deal if its still available in your area.

Quote from TheTomSawyer : How does this deal compare with this: http://t.staples.com/skava/static...1%22%5D%7D

Oh oh. AMD/Intel. And the discussion was so civil until now...

Quote from deelseaker : I don't know if that graphics card will fit into this case, either physically, thermally or power-connector wise. You will have to get a different power supply for sure, but there is no guarrantee you will be able to dissipate all that heat.

Thanks for the reply. Yeah I forgot to mention that my current system is in a Cooler Master Elite 430 case with a 500 watt power supply. So I would definitely be transferring the motherboard out of the Lenovo into this larger & well ventilated case.

With this in mind would this system be a good upgrade path for me?

Quote from TheGiantInc : Im typing on this computer with my dinovo mini right now. its a great upgrade from my home built amd phenom 2 with overkill (benchtesting i sort of overheated because my son decided to put a blanket over the case that i did not notice!!!!!). as of right now ive blown threw 1080p videos with no lag or stutter, 720p streams with no issue. i have a bd drive to install, but heard it might be an issue with the flip drive case. thing's a beast for htpc, i run an i7 on my work computer, but this is a do all htpc in my opinion. why would you buy to downgrade?. just get the i3 deal if its still available in your area.

how did you connect your desktop to your TV?

i've never done it before and I'm thinking a simple connect via HDMI would work right?

you've played 1080p videos with no jitters or lag on stock graphics? and where do you put your tower? is there enough ventilation?

I see you got the dinovo mini, I opted for the lenovo N5902 with backlit for $30, the dinovo was a bit steep imo.

Quote from Syrinx2112 : Thanks for the reply. Yeah I forgot to mention that my current system is in a Cooler Master Elite 430 case with a 500 watt power supply. So I would definitely be transferring the motherboard out of the Lenovo into this larger & well ventilated case. With this in mind would this system be a good upgrade path for me?

Don't see the point. And that's assuming the mobo has standard mounts, which I don't know for sure. Here is the breakdown: The Lenovo, depending on your local tax rate is just under or just over $400. You can get a z77 mobo with an i5 for under $300, maybe even bundled with some RAM. And you may even be able to stretch the $300 to pay for an unlocked i5-3570K.

So why pay more for inferior performance and buy a headache along with it?

Quote from mdburkey : I'm assuming the DVD drive is behind a fold down door, but other than that, it's a completely standard 5.25" DVD-RW burner. At least this has been the case on every other H430 and H420 I've bought -- and I've got two other H430's sitting right here (Pentium Dual Core variants). Unless they've done something funky with the case, I don't see how this could be a slot loading drive.

On the Staples [staples.com] website under Product Details it says "Integrated slot-in DVD reader/writer Optical Drive". Not sure this is accurate or not, but that's what it says.

Quote from mandangolo : Not a bad price. If I wouldnt have to be buying a monitor and graphics card ($300 easy), i'd be tempted.

Just hook it up to your HDTV.

Quote from TheGiantInc : Im typing on this computer with my dinovo mini right now. its a great upgrade from my home built amd phenom 2 with overkill (benchtesting i sort of overheated because my son decided to put a blanket over the case that i did not notice!!!!!). as of right now ive blown threw 1080p videos with no lag or stutter, 720p streams with no issue. i have a bd drive to install, but heard it might be an issue with the flip drive case. thing's a beast for htpc, i run an i7 on my work computer, but this is a do all htpc in my opinion. why would you buy to downgrade?. just get the i3 deal if its still available in your area.

Can you tell me if the DVD drive is a slot load type? The Staples website seems to imply that it is, but if so that would be a bit odd. I also would want to put a BD drive in this sucker.

Does anyone know if it's possible to revert this thing to Windows 7?

I keep hearing the horror stories about Win8.

Does anyone have this model? I ordered it (kind of an impulse buy) and am considering using it as a HTPC (HDMI connected to my HDTV and running as a file server). How are the graphics capabilities of this machine? Will I need anything else to have a nice HTPC setup with this as the foundation?

Quote from gmxno : I am considering turning my I5 PC to HTPC; as long as i can use 250W PSU I think it shouldn't be a overkill because it costs around 250-275 for an decent HTPC with 200W PSU I think this PC should do a better job as HTPC with little more power consumption... any thoughts?

Currently have 3 hard drives in mine. 4.5tb of spaces. Plus a XFX ATI Radeon HD 4650 1 GB DDR2 Graphics Card. It runs great!

Quote from gnueliafnak : how did you connect your desktop to your TV? i've never done it before and I'm thinking a simple connect via HDMI would work right? you've played 1080p videos with no jitters or lag on stock graphics? and where do you put your tower? is there enough ventilation? I see you got the dinovo mini, I opted for the lenovo N5902 with backlit for $30, the dinovo was a bit steep imo.

the dinovo is worth it.had one till it just fell apart from everyday use. about 2 years. found a pretty much new one on CL for $35. people nuy them, but are not everyday htpc users like me. so they dont end up using them.

my tower is actually next to mt tv stand sort of hidden due to setup. simple hdmi does it!