Personally I'd ask around for a reputable local computer shop and see what their specials are. They can build a better machine for a cheaper price than you can order one. For what she's using it for you don't need a great deal of power, about anything should work. Even a cheap laptop should be more than enough.  

Avoid HP/Compaq....

Thanks, Gamera.

Jester - avoiding HP/Compaq

I work in a doctors office that uses EMR and everything we do is electronic. I do like some of the stuff Lenovo is putting out lately and their prices are pretty decent as well. We use a lot of Dell stuff currently but we are probably moving away from them soon and over to Lenovo. But honestly, I would go with about anything other than HP or Gateway (if they are still around). Just from my experience repairing machines, I see more HP than anything. It just seems their QC just isn't quite as up to par as many other companies. As with any brand though, you will always have someone chime in with their personal experience with any particular brand as being good or being bad. You have to remember though, that individuals machine is a very small portion of how many are made and may or may not really be representative of the overall quality of a company of device.

*Typing from my Gateway*   Thanks again, Jester.  Well, I was looking at Gateway because I really like mine but I'll steer clear of them for this purchase.  Now I'm leaning towards Dell.  Hadn't heard of Lenovo but I'll go check those out now.   Thanks again!

I've had a Gateway laptop for six years and it has never given me any problems despite being carted around the world numerous times, even with that nasty ol' Windows Vista loaded on it. The HP all-in-one that my wife uses at home for work has also been trouble free. I guess these machines must be the exception or something. What are these other people doing to their machines to cause them to go bad?

Just what in particular is wrong with them?

Look it up on CNet

Hmmm, Lenovo does look interesting.  I'm thinking I want to get her a desktop.  She had a laptop for a while but she hated not having a mouse (so I got here a USB mouse and she refused to use it) , and thought the keyboard (so I got her a USB replacement and she refused to use it) and screen were too small.

Also, on a seperate tangent . . . she wants a VHS to DVD conveter.  Does anyone know if one is better than another?  Found a Toshiba on Amazon that looks ok . . .

I got nominated for this job because I used to build and repair computers and worked for AT&T Worldnet tech support (of which I am not proud) . . . but that was like 20 years ago and I haven't been keeping up to date.  So what I"m saying is I know next to nothing at this point.  

Can't advise on any particular model, but the majority of people that I know that only do the basics like what you are looking for have had a hard time with Windows 8, especially if they are coming from XP or 7.

Win 7 kit is still readily available & is cheaper than Win 8. 

Well, in my experience with HP/Compaq, they tend to have a lot of board level components fail. Either using cheap resistors, transistors, chipsets, or even the boards themselves. There isn't really anything that a person would do to cause these to fail rather than just bad/cheap components.

Dont get me wrong, they arent the only ones that are guilty of doing this, Dell got busted several years back for using cheap knockoff capacitors that had been copied from another company. The electrolyte formula that was used had been stolen, but little did the cap manufacturer know that it was a faulty formula that they were copying. But many many companies got caught up in this particular scandal.

Like I said, I am sure there are many out there that work fine and great, but repairing machines on a daily basis, I see more of these come into the shop than any other system. I will say that I like HP printers....

bitbite, go with a clone computer from local computer store not a namebrand computer so can put on either xp or win7 but not win8.

But make sure the shift buttons on the keyboard work first.

If its just for browsing and email  and Intel core 3 or better will be fine. Be sure it has a HDMI cable for the monitor and a good network port of an external modem or a good antenna for WiFi.

why not just get a tablet if thats all you need it for?

I'd Agree with Jester (and other that said it too) Stay away from HP/Compaq. Two Compaq laptops both had parts fail a few months out of warranty. Never had a problem with Sony but you tend to pay a little more for them. Acer and their lesser brand eMachine are great had two of their laptop/netbooks last 3 years with moderate to heavy kids use so far with no real problems. Asus made there name as reliable tech in the components market and from what I've heard are just as good in complete computers.

Windows 8 was an issue for most general uses (I usually used mods to back date things like start screen etc that have now been reinstated), but 8.1 is supposed to be much better but I haven't tried yet.

As for machine for converting VHS to digital probably better off going for desktop here as if you have more options to upgrade HDD space, Graphics Card (shouldn't be an issue with video but), RAM and any extra needed hardware (though these days it should be possible to do this with USB).

@Talentless, I find my tablet average for surfing and poor for email compared to my desktop BUT I think these are more due android and lack of "power" vs decades of desktop evolution and much more raw power . I've been thinking about upgrading to Windows Tablet however.

PS Never heard anything bad about Lenevo.

PS Never heard anything bad about Lenevo.

nope ive heard only good things about them, highly recommender in fact.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I have a store that sells used computers near by.  

I bought a refurbished HP and it's been fantastic.

Mike! youre still alive and posting here! Good to see you.

Thanks Carlos, I drop in from time to time. Not doing any modeling yet but I am still around.