Workstation question

[CTravert]

Hi all, 

So coming this July my company finally gave me the green light to update my workstation (an old Dell T3500).

I have been given a rough $4K budget and I have been looking at the new Dell T3600.

Here are the specs I was looking to get some feedback on:

Xeon E-1660 (6 core @ 3.3Ghz)

Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit (with XP compatibilty)

8GB EEC Ram @1333MHz

Nvidia Quadro K4000 (3GB ram, 2 DP+ 1DVI-I)

256GB SSD for OS

500GB HDD for data (Already have in the T3500)

According to Dell, that sums up to a $3487.50 bill.

This computer is expected to last me for about 4 years (according to my boss).

What do you guys think? should I add anything to meet the 4 year life expectancy?

(Note that I am not allowed to build my own computer, it has to be from a mfg  )

Any suggestions are welcome.

Clement

[dgorsman]

Let me put it this way: I *wish* our laptops were that spec...

[CTravert]

What's surprizing with XI is that I could build that for the same budget as the workstation.

It does pack a bit less punch than the desktop quote I got but having the mobility is a decent plus.

On top of that I was advised to get a docking station with it so it will feel just like a desktop while at the office.

I haven't found any benchmark notes on the CPU though, I'm assuming it's a bit too early for that since it just came out in the second quarter of 2013.

I'm looking forward to unpack that baby! I'm pulling the trigger today and placing my order.

[WORKSTATIONresearch]

"...  I am personally not ready to switch to 8 as it still has an oddball feeling to it. ..."

Ditto.  There is also the issue of interaction with others who are still uising Windows 7.  And the incompatibility of Autodesk products.  Windows 8.1 is on the horizon.  It's assumed the displeasure many have stated over some aspects of Windows 8 will be addressed.  On the positive side this OS is significantly faster than previous ones.

Anyway we're probably all going to be dragged kicking and screaming into using it.  Here all sorts of tries at getting it to install resident with Windows 7 on the same hard drive have failed.  The reason this is preferable is because if a dedicated drive with the OS's on it fails a dedicated data drive should remain intact.  The only other option would be a 2nd dedicated drive with the other operating system on it.  If dedicated operating system SSD drives are used to speed things up that could get expensive if 2 dedicated OS drives turn out to be necessary.  Then there is the issue of drive bay space along with the hotter operating temperatures of less expensive SSD drives.

Today a FREE program was discovered that seems like it might allow what is being looked for:

http://www.partitionwizard.com/help/about-partition-wizard.html

This will have to be investigated thoroughly to make sure there are no problems associated with it as described by other users.

If anyone gives Partition Wizard a try please provide your experience with it.

[Anonymous]

I have used Partition Wizard with my Alienware computer at home and didn't have any problems at all. It was relatively easy and straightforward. Only took a few minutes and I then had two partitions. No glitches, no problems, everything went as smooth as can be. Would suggest defrag and etc before running it to maximize free space together.

You can be sure that I will be keeping my old full windows 7 copy I purchased for quite awhile it seems. I have no intention for switching to a system designed for touchscreens and laptops, they decided to shove onto desktops as well. Windows 8 is not the future, despite what they may think. I think if enough people simply refuse to upgrade, they will have no choice but to make 7 available again. I purchased windows 8 installed on a seperate drive. Works great on my wifes little touchscreen laptop, but using a mouse and keyboard I can personally say I DO NOT like it one bit. it is not self intuitive and is nothing more than a system designed for ipod touchscreen like machines stuffed onto a desktop platform. Now perhaps if one buys a 19 inch touchscreen (I don't even want to know the cost) it might be a good system, if of course Inventor will work properly without a mouse and using a touchscreen.

Of course I started with 7 and installed 8 on a secondary drive, so I don't know what happens when you go the other route, but I did have trouble getting it to install by itself, it wanted to overwrite my primary windows 7 installation. Solved by removing the primary hard drive for the installation process.

I would suggest any companies wanting to upgrade computers do a search online for anyone that still has windows 7 for sale and buy them up while you can.

[mrattray]

Could you imagine trying to run Inventor for 9 hours a day 5 days a week with your arms in the air tapping a touch screen? I'll keep my arms down on the desk, thanks.

[Anonymous]

I used to have a Dell laptop they were advertising as a mobile desktop, and was quite pleased with it. My only objection with laptops is you can not upgrade them like desktops, so once they reach the end of their useful lifecycle (3 to 5 years), you are forced to buy a brand new one. Not that it matters I guess, as they are starting to do the same with desktops, by constantly changing the pin connections so you can't just snap a new cpu onto a motherboard, but are forced to purchase almost all the main components.

The laptop even had a dedicated gpu, but of course you couldn't upgrade it because the next design changed the shape and size so it wouldn't fit in the old one. One can always make more money selling an entire unit than parts. But parts is what made the PC, it's ability to be customized and upgraded. Would be a simple matter to make laptops the same, just more money making you buy a new one every 5 years or so.

[CTravert]

Steven,

I entirely agree with what you are saying, which is why I tried to max out almost every components I could in this build.
I am hoping this setup will last me at least 4 years.
I hardly see PCs last more than 5 years nowaday.
My personal computer at home is almost 5 years old and is completely outdated when comparing what's out in the wild.
I am still running the 1st gen i5 CPU. The only good thing in my tower is a Nvidia Quadro 3800. And like you said, no way to upgrade it but to replace at least the motherboard and CPU together.

[Anonymous]

To be fair, replacing a laptop isn't much different to what happens in reality with desktops.  As someone who spent years building and modding their own PCs, I can tell you that planning for a future upgrade is a waste of time.  By the time you get there, technology has moved on so you can either buy the original memory, which has stopped being manufactured and is now 5-10 times the original price due to its scarcity, or you can get new memory, but you have to replace the motherboard.  Only problem is that if you replace the motherboard, you have to replace the CPU.  Oh yeah, and your graphics card is not supported by the new motherboard, so more cash gets spent. Rinse and repeat until you've got a new computer in an old case.

Basically get the highest specs you can afford, and make sure you get the maximum RAM that the machine can handle, it'll be cheaper in the long run...

[CTravert]

That is exactly what I did.

The laptop I ordered and is currently being built contains the latest goods on the market.

It's so recent that I couldn't get any benchmark on the CPU. It litteraly came out two weeks ago.