DIY guide:Low cost desktop PC

For a lot cost PC, i have chosen to build an AMD based desktop. The reasons will be explained later in the article.

Processor: AMD Athlon II X2 245:$70

This is a processor from the newer Athlon 2 series. It is only $70 and can even be found for lesser. Its the faster processor at this price range. Its faster than the E5300 from intel when they are at stock speeds. The Athlon II X2 is clocked at 2.9Ghz and has 2 MB of L2 cache.

Motherboard: Biostar 760G micro ATX motherboard :$65

This board is great for the price. The onboard video is way better than the Intel G31/G41. It also features both DVI and D-sub connectivity. It also has a PCI-e 2.0 connector. It supports up to 8GB of memory.

Memory: Kingston 2GB DDR2 800Mhz : $28

Good quality RAM at a good price too. Use 1 stick of 2GB RAM and you can add one more stick later when you feel it is required. The motherboard has only 2 RAM slots so be careful.

Hard Disk: 500GB Western Digital Caviar Green: $55

500 GB is almost a minimum on new computers. It will provide enough space for all your movies, music, games, etc. Western Digital make good quality hard disks and this one is no exception.

Optical Drive: Pioneer 22X DVD writer : $25

These days optical drives are so cheap. Get this pioneer for best experience.

Case: Cooler master Centurion 5: $50

This case is very good and a favorite of most of budget system builders. At only $50 it provides good ventilation with a rear 120mm fan and a 80 mm front fan. Looks are also good.

PSU: Antec Earthwatts 380W PSU: $50

This is a very good PSU. It is 80+ certified and has active PFC. At only $50 you can not go wrong !

The cost of the PC comes up to $340. It is a very good and an upgradeable system.

If you want more features and DDR3 memory, please have a look here: