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These are the questions we get asked the most so we've put together some answers for you. If you have any questions not answered here please call us.

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 I want to buy a PC that I can upgrade

It is worth first evaluating what upgrades you are likely to consider in the next few years. Upgrades like additional hard disks, DVD drives, CD ReWriters and Zip drives don't have high upgrade requirements. Most PCs would have the spare 5.25 inch bay required for an additional CD/DVD drive, or 3.5 inch bay for a hard disk or zip drive.

Other popular upgrades are RAM (SDRAM/memory) and Processor (CPU) upgrades. These are more tricky. 

For RAM upgrades you need to have at least one spare RAM socket. Do note that several well known brands of PCs have a trap in store for you here. You can only upgrade with RAM bought from the manufacturer of the PC, at highly inflated prices! While we, like most other smaller companies, use generic RAM i.e. standard Samsung or Micron (Crucial) memory, some manufacturers ensure that their motherboards work only with memory bought from them. Other tricks to watch out for.

With processors it gets even more difficult. There is no guarantee that you will be able to upgrade your processor two years after purchase! That's true. Here's the evidence: The first motherboards that came out for the Intel PIII processor had a "Slot 1" socket for the processor. Intel very cleverly changed the shape of the processor to a "Socket 370" format. So, in theory, though your Slot 1 PC is capable of taking the latest Intel PIII processor the latest processors are not available in the physical shape you require to plug them into your motherboard. 

AMD is not less guilty. After all the fuss with the Athlon processors and their popularity in the market AMD changed the shape of the processor from a "Slot A" to a "Socket A" i.e. if you bought one of the original Athlons you can't upgrade the processor without changing the motherboard!

And there's no guarantee that if you buy the latest, fully upgradeable PC today, that you will indeed be able to upgrade the processor a year or two from now. This applies irrespective of where you choose to buy your PC. And let nobody fool you on this.

Upgrades to the soundcard and video card are generally not a problem. Also, adding additional cards like ISDN cards, modems, network cards should not normally be a problem if you have enough free PCI slots

PCs with integrated video i.e. video built into the motherboard and generally highly restrictive. Motherboards like the Intel 810 chipset which came with integrated video did not have an AGP slot. Since most of the latest and best graphics cards come in the AGP format you will not be able to upgrade the graphics if you have an integrated graphics card.

Integrated sound is not so much of a problem because soundcards come in the PCI format, and onboard sound can usually be disabled. Just ensure that you have the spare PCI slot/s required.

Some of the cheaper motherboards in the market come with video, sound, modem, and even a network card built into the motherboard! While this cuts costs drastically and gives you what may seem to be a very cheap PC it is just that - a cheap PC. You'll have minimal, if any, free PCI slots and if something goes wrong with the sound you'll probably have to change the entire motherboard! What makes should you avoid? Erm, we'll pass on that. We can confirm though that none of the PCs advertised in our products sections use such motherboards.

It would be our advice to also avoid PCs with the motherboard and other crucial parts integrated with the monitor, Imac style. While they make look very pretty, and save space by not having a midi tower or desktop case on your table, they are usually a nightmare to upgrade. Also, highly compact desktop or mini tower cases may not have the spare 5.25 inch bays you would need to add another drive, and many of them even have no PCI slots for cards you may wish to upgrade to.

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