What to look out for when out shopping for a desktop PC There are numerous factors to consider before you choose the desktop PC that is right for you. Moreover, there is now a wide, almost mind boggling array of choices for the buyer. Hence, it will pay to make an informed decision.

The following are some of the key factors that are worth considering before you make your final decision:

Processor (CPU)
The choice of which processor you should have will be determined by how much power you need. Although most of the budget processors available today are efficient enough to handle simple office applications such as e-mail, a slightly higher expenditure on a faster processor would increase your PCs life span by five years. Moreover, you will need a faster processor for memory-hogging applications such as photos and graphics.

Recommendation: Intel Pentium 4 or AMD Athlon XP

Memory (RAM)
Good RAM ensures that your PC will run at optimum performance. The minimum amount of RAM required is 256MB. Ideally, however, 512MB would be optimum. A bigger RAM will allow you to run multiple applications at the same time and power Windows XP. All the current systems use DDR memory, the most common one being PC3200.

Recommendation: 512MB

Monitor
The type of monitor you buy depends upon what you will use it to do. Graphics and spreadsheet applications require a bigger monitor, while e-mail can be done easily on a smaller one. Ideally a 17 CRT or 15 LCD would do the job.

Recommendation: 17 CRT or 15 LCD

Hard disk drive (HDD)
Today, most hard disk drives provide at least 40GB space, which is enough for most tasks. However, if you want to work with graphics, music or large databases, get a minimum of 60GB installed. An 80GB HDD would be ideal. 7200-rpm drives give optimum performance whereas 8MB of cache would really give a super-turbo performance.

Recommendation: 80GB with a 7200-rpm drive (or 8MB cache if you can afford it)

Optical drives
If you do not plan to view DVD movies, then a CD-RW drive should do the job. Each CD-RW drive has three speeds mentioned for it recordable speed, rewritable speed and read speed. The minimum your drive should have is 40x recordable speed, 12x rewritable speed and 40x read speed. There should be at least a 2MB buffer for CD-RW drives.

Recommendation: CD-RW drive (DVD drive if you plan to view DVDs) with 40x record speed, 12x rewritable speed and 40x read speed