Tips for PC buyers in the fall of 1995
It is curious to look into the past and compare how computers have changed. For example, here is an article for October 30, 1995 ( scan ), the author of which gives users tips on components. He notes that in just a couple of years, prices have fallen dramatically - and now is the time to buy: “Back in 1993, we saw modem ads for 9600 baud for only $ 500, and Dell offered a top model with a 486th 66 MHz processor, 8 MB of memory and 320 MB hard drive for $ 4400. Single speed CD-ROM drives sold for $ 600. Today, if you want to buy such equipment, then it will cost 10-25% less than two years ago! ”, The author rejoices. There have been changes in the typical configuration of an average PC.
Memory (RAM) . It seems that most manufacturers have adopted a standard of 8 megabytes, compared with 4 megabytes in 1994. Do not buy less than eight. The difference in performance between a computer with eight megabytes of memory and four can be radical.
Hard Drives : This year, the usual 1 gigabyte hard drives have become common compared to 400-500 megabytes last year. The price difference is only about $ 200, but the money pays for itself.
Monitors . In 1995, we come to the fact that 15-inch monitors are becoming standard, compared to 14-inch monitors of the past, but one inch is not such a big difference. If you want a really big monitor, then take a 17-inch, which is $ 400 more expensive.
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Video Now there are 24-bit graphics cards with special graphics accelerators, and although they look great in performance tests, in fact, the presence of a graphics accelerator is not critical, as the performance of processors and memory increases. The 24-bit function affects the color depth - this means that the computer can display more than 256 colors (8-bit color). A 24-bit video card can display up to 17 million colors — this is great if you can find an image with so many colors somewhere, but very few programs support it. So you don’t need an upgrade to 24-bit color from a standard 256-color display: many low-priced graphics cards support 32,000 or 64,000 color modes, which is already a significant improvement.
Sound cards . In 1995, we see more and more cards with support for wavetable synthesis, which provides a more realistic transfer of musical instruments. But again, not so much software requires it: the plasma-braster sound in DOOM is not a musical instrument. If you are not working professionally with music, then for now you can ignore the wavetable sound.
Modems Models 14,4k gradually go off the stage, giving way to 28,8k. I prefer to take $ 28.8k for $ 100 more, although 14.4k is enough to work with e-mail.
CD-ROM . In 1994, two-speed drives were mainstream, and four-speed drives were only planned for the future. Well, the future has come. I would like to say that here you don’t need extra speed, but I think software developers assume that people have already switched to 4x, so upgrade if finance allows.
Memory (RAM) . It seems that most manufacturers have adopted a standard of 8 megabytes, compared with 4 megabytes in 1994. Do not buy less than eight. The difference in performance between a computer with eight megabytes of memory and four can be radical.
Hard Drives : This year, the usual 1 gigabyte hard drives have become common compared to 400-500 megabytes last year. The price difference is only about $ 200, but the money pays for itself.
Monitors . In 1995, we come to the fact that 15-inch monitors are becoming standard, compared to 14-inch monitors of the past, but one inch is not such a big difference. If you want a really big monitor, then take a 17-inch, which is $ 400 more expensive.
')
Video Now there are 24-bit graphics cards with special graphics accelerators, and although they look great in performance tests, in fact, the presence of a graphics accelerator is not critical, as the performance of processors and memory increases. The 24-bit function affects the color depth - this means that the computer can display more than 256 colors (8-bit color). A 24-bit video card can display up to 17 million colors — this is great if you can find an image with so many colors somewhere, but very few programs support it. So you don’t need an upgrade to 24-bit color from a standard 256-color display: many low-priced graphics cards support 32,000 or 64,000 color modes, which is already a significant improvement.
Sound cards . In 1995, we see more and more cards with support for wavetable synthesis, which provides a more realistic transfer of musical instruments. But again, not so much software requires it: the plasma-braster sound in DOOM is not a musical instrument. If you are not working professionally with music, then for now you can ignore the wavetable sound.
Modems Models 14,4k gradually go off the stage, giving way to 28,8k. I prefer to take $ 28.8k for $ 100 more, although 14.4k is enough to work with e-mail.
CD-ROM . In 1994, two-speed drives were mainstream, and four-speed drives were only planned for the future. Well, the future has come. I would like to say that here you don’t need extra speed, but I think software developers assume that people have already switched to 4x, so upgrade if finance allows.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/138883/
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