HP PAVILION S7610.UK

ID: PCD17

SPECIFICATIONS:

Machine Type: Desktop SFF
Model: HP PAVILION S7610.UK
Year of Manufacturer: 2006
Motherboard: MOCA-AR REV 1.02
Chipset: INTEL 945GT
Processor: INTEL CORE 2 DUO T7400 2.16GHz 64-Bit (SL9SE)
RAM: 2GB DDR2
Hard Drive(s): 120GB 2.5" SATA SSD
Optical Drive(s): DVD-RW
Graphics: AMD RADEON HD6450
Audio: INTEGRATED (Realtek)
Network: INTEGRATED 100Mbps
USB: 2.0 (1 Front, 4 Rear)
Power Supply: ACBEL 108W CUSTOM
Other Features: Card reader, Firewire
COA: Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional
Office Software: LibreOffice


REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS

• Hard drive replaced with SSD.
• Processor upgraded (was INTEL CELERON M 430 1.73GHz 32-Bit).
• Graphics card added.
• Memory upgraded to 2GB (was 1GB).

NOTES

By modern standards this is a very old PC, but with the upgrades (SSD, processor, RAM and graphics) runs Windows 10 a treat. Installing the graphics card made a huge difference to overall performance. The power supply is of a very low wattage but seems to have coped with the upgrades fine (I was careful to choose a low power graphics card). It passed 12 hour Prime95 and other stability tests with no problems!

Suitable for: Most general purpose uses. Light Internet usage (single-tabbed browsing)
Not suitable for: Gaming, video editing

ZOOSTORM 7876-0095/D

ID: PCD24

SPECIFICATIONS:

Machine Type: Desktop Tower
Model: ZOOSTORM 7876-0095/D
Year of Manufacturer: 2012
Motherboard: ASUS P8H61-MX R2.0
Chipset: INTEL H61(B3)
Processor: INTEL CORE i5-3330 3.00GHz (SR0RQ)
RAM: 8GB DDR3
Hard Drive(s): 240GB 2.5" SATA SSD
Optical Drive(s): DVD-RW
Graphics: INTEGRATED (Intel)
Audio: INTEGRATED (VIA)
Network: INTEGRATED 1Gbps
USB: 2.0 (2 Front, 6 Rear)
Power Supply: FSP 350W ATX
Other Features: None
COA: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home
Office Software: Microsoft Office 2016 Professional Plus


REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS

• Hard drive replaced with SSD.
• Power supply replaced. The capacitors were replaced in the old unit but it still proved to be unstable (was Zoostorm 350W).

NOTES

This is the best PC I have given away so far and really shows how little regular PCs have come in the last few years. It may be seven years old, but with the addition of an SSD (which I cannibalised another system for), works just like a new one. It lacks USB 3.0, so working with external storage will be slower than an up-to-date system, and requires a Windows 8.1 driver for the sound to work properly, but other than that it's a very viable computer. I'm so glad this didn't go to to the dump!

Suitable for: Any general purpose use. 
Not suitable for: Games that require high performance graphics cards.