ColGraff's Journal: Cheap, Semi-Decent Walmart PCs sans OS

Just saw a blurb on the Register and checked it out myself - Walmart is selling Duron 1ghz Microtel systems with 128mb of ram for $399, sans windows and monitor. The hard drive is only 5400RPM, the integrated video card is nothing to write home about - but the price is certainly right, and while there are no AGP slots, you can still get decent performance from a PCI card. This is far from a screaming LAN party rig, but for a poor high school student looking for a college machine, this does not look bad. And even with the limited RAM and video capabilities it ships with, a 1Ghz Duron goes a long, long way.

Why I respond to journal entries? I have no idea.

[Nonesuch]

Thanks for the heads up --
The URL is http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/24165.html [theregister.co.uk] .

Actually, their prices don't seem all that cheap.

Respectful disagreement

[ColGraff]

First of all, thank you for replying in this journal - I'd feared it would get a little lonely in here :-). That said, however, I do think the prices are good. Putting together a gigahertz system for less that $399 may be doable, but I suspect one would have to buy from the "bottom feeders" on pricewatch to accomplish this, and I don't trust those guys.