Since I constructed two new desktops recently, I thought to add my experience with all of you who might be looking for a new machine.


Budget PC
1)Case - $60
If you have one already, you don't need one. If not, just find the cheapest one. Choose ATX if you plan to add a graphics card later although there are some midi ones (Coolermaster perhaps) that have good airflow anyway. Choose the smallest one if you don't.

2)PSU (Power Supply) - $45
Go for a branded PSU. It will pay back in lower noise and temperature. Probably Corsair or Coolermaster. For example, a corsair cx430 is more than enough for this setup here, even if you plan to add a huge video card later.

3)CPU - $50
For our system, Intel Celeron G1610 hands down. Ultra cheap and more than enough for most. You could always upgrade in many years from now to a better cpu.

4)Motherboard - $47
Go for the cheapest really. I would avoid Gigabyte if I wanted to install ubuntu, you can run in all sorts of problems. Perhaps you might want to pay a few $ more to get hdmi from the mainboard. If you want USB 3.0, you will need about $30 more which I am not sure it is worthwhile. None of the two for the price chosen here.

5)RAM - $30
Just get a 4GB ram with a heatsink on it. Don't pay great attention to the 1600Mhz but it should be at least 1333Mhz.

6)Hard Disk - $60
SSDs are good. But we want a budget pc here that can stand the test of time easily. So a WD disk of 500GB or 750GB is the option. Even if you would like an SSD later, this disk will not go in vain.

(Monitor-Keyboard-Mouse -> Not included)

System total: $292 (maximum)

In my case, I had the HDD, case and PSU and I only gave like $160 (prices a bit higher here too).
At the above setup, you could add any HD Radeon card of the 79xx series. The more you pay, the better it is. Not that you need it anyway.