SLI VS CROSSFIRE VS MY BRAIN

February 10, 2009 1:00 AM

Question: where can I find a valid coupon/discount code for a Dell XPS 730x. I've heard there's some out there for 20-25% off, but I can't seem to find anything online that's working. Failing that, how much of a difference is it really if I just build a really sweet XPS 630?

The system I want, the 730X, has an Intel® Core™ i7-920 (2.66GHz, 8MB cache), 3GB3 Tri-Channel DDR3 at 1066MHZ (3x1GB DIMM), and a pair of nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB3 setup SLI along. If I can't find a coupon to get the price lower, I'm looking at building (XPS 630) would have a Intel® Core™2 Q9550 (12MB,2.83GHz, 1333FSB), 8GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz (4 DIMM), SLi Dual nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB... the difference without a coupon is nearly $1000. It's been a lonnnnnnnnnnng, long time since I've built a PC or even scoped out the specs on the newest processors, video cards, shit, rigs at all. Like, for instance, instead of getting the SLi, Dual nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB on the XPS 630, should I spend the extra $100 and get CrossFireX, Dual ATI Radeon HD 4850 512MB instead?
For the record, I don't do a whole lot of gaming YET on the PC, but I could. I do use it for a lot of multimedia (like 3 to 4 TB of movies and music and stuff) and graphic design. I spent a lot of time on the computer and it'll be awhile before I get to buy a new PC again. Help?

posted by Bageena to technology (4 answers total)

Keep an eye out on www.fatwallet.com and also on www.hot-deals.org for coupons for dell. Be patient; most anything will come up if you've got the patience to wait for it.

on fatwallet, head to the 'hot deals' forum to see the good deals, also search on the site using XPS and/or Dell Coupon et all. And: bensbargains sometimes has pretty good finds at times, worth keeping an eye on....
posted by dancestoblue at 1:37 AM on February 10, 2009

There's an awesome site called gotapex.com that collects and aggregates coupons like that. Then even have an RSS feed!

On speccing new computers, keep two things in mind:

1- The newest stuff is rarely discounted.
2- Buying the newest stuff is guaranteed heartbreak. Example- my friend was looking for a new computer. I suggested he check out the Dell Latitude line, as it incorporated a lot of features standard that he wanted. He picked out a sweet D830 and paid something like $1400 for it. Six months later, I was in the market and bought out a nearly identical model for half the price. Was the six months of utility worth the $700? Chasing the bleeding edge is a costly habit, especially if you are buying machines with imagined future needs in mind.

If it was me, I wouldn't spend the extra money on a Core i7. I was just looking at the specs, and it seems disappointing for the price. Uses a lot of power for not much more performance. Check out the benchmarks and see if the increased performance is worth it to you.

You should probably run the numbers and see if it might be more economical to plan and budget for cheaper, more frequent, computer purchases. Instead of spending $2500 every 5 years, you might be better served technologically and financially spending $1300 every 3 years. Three years from now, that $1300 will almost surely buy a better machine than the $2500 one will be at the time.
posted by gjc at 4:30 AM on February 10, 2009

If its not at dealcatcher.com, bensbargains.net, or techbargains.com then that coupon probably doesnt exist.

Here's one at techbargains.
posted by damn dirty ape at 6:33 AM on February 10, 2009

I ended up buying this for roughly $1500;

XPS 630, Intel Core2 processorQ9550 (2.83GHz,1333FSB) w/Quad Core Technology and 12MB cache, 8GB DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4X2GB ,2 NVIDIA GEFORCE 9800GTs on a SLI, and SATA 2 RAID 0 With Dual 500GB Hard Drives for space. I used a coupon for $500 off. Thanks for your help guys!
posted by Bageena at 7:48 PM on February 10, 2009