Entry-Level Performance Workstation

Antec NSK6580 Black/ Silver Computer Case
Not only is Antec a leader in quality when it comes to hardware, but their products are known for easy assembly and intuitive design. This entry-level Antec case comes with a 430 watt Antec Earthwatts power supply, making it an excellent value for our workstation.

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GIGABYTE GA-G31M-S2L Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
For this configuration, we'll use a motherboard with onboard video to help keeps costs down. That doesn't mean we'll be compromising performance, however. This Gigabyte motherboard is ready to handle some beefy components: Core 2 Quad Processor, DDR2 800mHz RAM, and a PCI-E video card. We won't be pushing its limits because of the budget constraint on this configuration, but it will easily handle the components we will be installing.

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Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 2.53GHz LGA 775 65W Processor
Intel's Core 2 Duo is the standard in performance, and we'll be using one of their newer, more efficient models in this configuration. With dual 2.53gHz cores and a 1066mHz FSB, this is one screaming chunk of metal for the value. This CPU will keep us cruising through startup and enable quick load times for applications.

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Patriot 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
For the cost of memory these days, I can't justify putting any less than 2GB in any machine. These two 1GB sticks of memory run in dual-channel mode (supported by our motherboard) to keep up with our 1066mHz FSB on the CPU. The DDR2 800 matches the memory standard for our motherboard, maximizing performance.

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Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Seagate is a major name brand in the storage industry, so I feel good about trusting them with my data. We're using a standard 250GB hard drive that spins at a standard 7200rpm with a standard 16MB cache. Nothing too special here, but it'll do the job and has plenty of capacity for all the documents, music, pictures you want to store.

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LITE-ON Combo Black IDE Model DH-52C2P-08
Having a DVD-RW is essential for data backup and efficiently transferring large files, not to mention burning any videos you create or edit on the computer. Lite-On is the brand I've trusted for the last 7 years, and they've never done me wrong.

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Windows Vista Home Basic
If you want to stick with Windows, I recommend Vista Home Basic for this configuration. Amazon has free shipping on most software, so the link will take you there. If you'd like to save some money, try out a nice version of Linux (which works a lot like MacOS) - Ubuntu Desktop. It's rock-solid and, of course, free.

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