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[Mariofan0]

What if I were to go with a desktop, I'd probably see better options there right? As much as I'd prefer a Laptop, I may be able to fit a Desktop into my home without the floor collapsing underneath. Only problem is the only logical place to put it, doesn't get good signal from my router, and an Ethernet cable would never reach without multiple extension cords.

[shinygerbil]

you, sir, need to look for longer ethernet cables

[Mariofan0]

you, sir, need to look for longer ethernet cables

I would but the port is jammed anyways.

[Magurp244]

Cameras do come standard with most laptops these days, a tiny lense built into the top of the monitor. Don't worry though, you don't have to use it.

Desktop PC's do come with greater customization (and potential savings!), but also come with a few caveats, like having to get a decent monitor, keyboard, and mouse, which don't seem to be directly covered by the Kotaku guide. Mouse and keyboards can be generally cheap, 10-15$ a piece, but a good monitor (if you don't already have one) can set you back 100$ or more, all this on top of potential portability issues.

I would but the port is jammed anyways.

I'm going to assume you mean the port of the router is jammed. A laptop may be a better choice in this case since you can position it for better reception, if you decide to upgrade your router though you could also just run a more reliable cable to it. You can read up more on Routers on Gizmodo, along with other various articles. Also Amazon.

[jamesprimate]

since most people are trolling here, ill try to actually be helpful

as many people have said, $500 is a little low for a dev rig, but you can definitely get something usable. i would *highly highly* suggest getting something with a dedicated GPU (nvidia, etc) and seriously avoid those intel hd 'integrated graphics" cards like the plague, they are straight garbage and you'll have tons of trouble with shaders. since you'll be running games inside of tools, id also suggest getting as much RAM as you can, and if you can get a decent CPU (as close to 2Ghz as you can with dual core) so much the better. for your purposes, AMD chipsets are just as good as intel, so dont bother with i7 sandy bridge, etc etc.

honestly, id say go for a refurbished or used year old something-or-other with the highest specs you can find, rather than a new but low end dell at $500. good luck m8

[Mariofan0]

I was honestly kidding about the router port, that said there is still a pretty significant distance between the router, and the only logical place to set up another Desktop, so an ethernet cable may not be the best idea for that, (I'd have to have a cord running across the entire length of the house, which I'm sure my Dad wouldn't appreciate much.) So wireless is my best bet.

I've pretty much settled on a reasonable Laptop for now, both for portability, and function, & I plan to upgrade to a more Powerful Desktop once I need one, and have the funds. (While keeping the Laptop for portability, yay portability!)

since most people are trolling here, ill try to actually be helpful

as many people have said, $500 is a little low for a dev rig, but you can definitely get something usable. i would *highly highly* suggest getting something with a dedicated GPU (nvidia, etc) and seriously avoid those intel hd 'integrated graphics" cards like the plague, they are straight garbage and you'll have tons of trouble with shaders. since you'll be running games inside of tools, id also suggest getting as much RAM as you can, and if you can get a decent CPU (as close to 2Ghz as you can with dual core) so much the better. for your purposes, AMD chipsets are just as good as intel, so dont bother with i7 sandy bridge, etc etc.

honestly, id say go for a refurbished or used year old something-or-other with the highest specs you can find, rather than a new but low end dell at $500. good luck m8

I've pretty much decided on sticking to the 400$ - 500$ range, I don't expect something that'll be flawless for what I need, just something that should suffice at the end of the day. One thing I was actually curious about was the uses of HDMI Ports in a Laptop, more specifically could It act as an input rather than an output with the help of another program, and assuming my HDTV had an Output for it? I thought I might try recording vids from PS3 or WiiU, and posting them on Youtube or something.

Regardless thanks for making an effort to help, I'll do the research, and take the time to look.

[bassp]

My friend put this build together. It's a decent basic rig. Nothing super powerful but definitely workable.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/fXLMgs

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

i think this depends entirely on the type of game you want to make. but basically you simply can't get a laptop that can competently make 3D games, or even one that can competently record good video footage for trailers, for $500. i'd highly recommend a desktop, and that you build it yourself.

but even with $500 a desktop that is good is very very hard to build. here's what i recommend spending on each component, minimum, when building a desktop for game development:

-power supply: up to $80; this is one area where i don't recommend getting the cheapest possible for, because a bad power supply can destroy your other parts, and a good one extends the life of your machine
-gpu: up to $200, but $100 ones are fine if you will only be making 2d games
-cpu: a $50 cpu is fine, preferably intel
-motherboard: a $50 motherboard is fine, make sure it's compatible with your cpu
-ram: $50 for 8gb of ram is good; make sure it's compatible with the motherboard/cpu (e.g. typically it'll be ddr3 ram)
-keyboard: cheapest you can find, about $15, although when you get some birthday money or something splurge and get a real mechanical keyboard for $100 -- it's that important
-mouse: cheap $15 mice are fine. you do not need to buy a mousepad, you can really just use a book, but mousepads are cheap so if you want one get a $5 one
-case: cheapest you can find, make sure it fits the form factor for your motherboard, probably around $50
-case fan: cheapest one you can find, about $15
-ssd: $80 for a 256gb ssd, or $80 for a 1tb hdd (your choice; i'd go with the ssd unless you are addicted to downloading pirated movies and tv shows or something and really do need that much space, but 256gb really is enough for most people who aren't hoarders of files). if you get the ssd, you'll also need to get a converter that lets you fit it into larger slots, which are cheap (about $10), you may also need to buy a sata wire because sometimes hard drives don't come with the sata wire, but that's like $5 or less
-monitor: cheapest 1080p monitor you can find, probably $100 -- when possible get a second one for another $100
-speakers or headphones, speakers can be around $30 for cheap ones, headphones are dirt cheap at the lower end; i'd budget $30 here for either one or the other
-wifi dongle (since you mentioned an ethernet wire isn't an option): about $20

total comes out to: above $500, but not that much more than that. perhaps you could save up a few more hundred dollars? i would not recommend spending less on each component than what i mention above, unless it's used. you could, however, scrounge around on craigslist, or ask people to give you their old parts when they buy new ones.

you will also need a screwdriver (phillips-head, non-magnetic if you get a traditional hard drive, otherwise magnetic ones are fine) and video tutorials to put all that stuff together, and you do need to be careful, but it's not rocket science, i've seen even 13 year olds build their own computer out of parts. it's just assembly, screws, and attaching wires, etc. -- i wish i learned how to build computers earlier than i did, as it saves a lot of money.

there are also certain games that require other specialized hardware. if you want to record voices or sound effects for your game, you'll need a microphone. if you want to make a video of yourself for marketing purposes, such as for kickstarter videos, you'll need a webcam (unless your phone can record video, if you have a phone). if you want to hand-draw things for your game and use those drawings in your game, you'll need a scanner. and so on.

you'll also need to buy tools to actually make games with, but that's another thing entirely. you can make games for free, but paying for software is very very useful; even if it's just buying fraps for about $40 so that you can record footage for your game trailer. so this hardware stuff is completely ignoring the software cost of developing games, which can be very expensive. some games work fine with completely open source tools for development, but that really isn't the way even most indies do it; most indies at least have *some* tool that they bought to develop games with, even if it's just game maker and graphics gale. fraps is pretty much a necessity for recording game footage though, it's hard to do without it. i also don't recommend pirating software if you plan on selling games, because it's possible to get caught if you do, and it'd end your career

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

another note though; if you are still in the *learning* stage of game development, and don't intend to actually produce serious games for sale on steam or something, you can certainly do that with just a cheap netbook. you can make very simple games with very cheap hardware. what i wrote above is only for what i personally would find to be the minimum acceptable level for indies who already know how to program games and are working on games that aren't just "babby's first gam". if you are still learning how to program, you can learn how to program on a cheap netbook. you may want to just get that, spend a few years learning to program and making simple games, and then in a few years buy a system similar to the one i describe above

[Mariofan0]

Got that new Laptop, Its looking great, but sadly it lacks a decent antivirus so I'm waiting for that at the moment.

The laptop itself is great for what I got it for, being a 600 Dollar Laptop, I managed to get the thing for 480$ because "Someone" wanted to shove Windows 10 into the thing.

Its a Toshiba Satellite C55-C5241

I don't expect it to be flawless, but I'd say it should suffice for now until I need a more powerful Rig for whatever it is I end up doing in the Future.

Also thanks for all the help.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

anti-viruses are free you know; i think it's a negative rather than a positive if a computer comes with one, because you should always install your own free one (like avast or avg) rather than be forced to pay for one

[Superb Joe]

have you considered the sega sg-1000? there's a strong indie community behind it, and modern classics such as piss game http://68000.web.fc2.com/piss/index.html

[battlerager]

have you considered the sega sg-1000? there's a strong indie community behind it, and modern classics such as piss game http://68000.web.fc2.com/piss/index.html

[Mariofan0]

anti-viruses are free you know; i think it's a negative rather than a positive if a computer comes with one, because you should always install your own free one (like avast or avg) rather than be forced to pay for one

I already paid for a copy of one, and its in the mail, all the other computers in my home use this one, and it always seems to work well for us. Only spent 20$ on the thing, not really a huge loss as long as my computer gets the protection it needs.

[16soft]

Why would you pay for an antivirus? I've been using Windows' and I've never been infected.

Also if someone's selling cheap because they shoved Windows 10, that means that it probably will boot to a black screen. Get the old OS back up if that's the case.

[Conker]

-keyboard: cheapest you can find, about $15, although when you get some birthday money or something splurge and get a real mechanical keyboard for $100 -- it's that important

why do you think a mechanical keyboard is so important? I've been using this cheap walmart keyboard for years with no issues. The only reason I can think of for upgrading is some mechanical keyboards have function keys and I'd love to take advantage of that.

Got that new Laptop

I would have built a desktop. Its a great learning experience and personally I cannot stand laptops. Awesome that you're geared up to dev now though

[Mariofan0]

Why would you pay for an antivirus? I've been using Windows' and I've never been infected.

Also if someone's selling cheap because they shoved Windows 10, that means that it probably will boot to a black screen. Get the old OS back up if that's the case.

A Good Antivirus doesn't come cheap, and better safe then sorry at this point.

Already booted the thing, runs fine, but since its brand new I wouldn't expect to have issues like that day 1, if I did I've got a Warranty & Amazon has a 90 Day return policy. (At least I think its 90 days, might only be 30.)

[16soft]

Why would you pay for an antivirus? I've been using Windows' and I've never been infected.

Also if someone's selling cheap because they shoved Windows 10, that means that it probably will boot to a black screen. Get the old OS back up if that's the case.

A Good Antivirus doesn't come cheap, and better safe then sorry at this point.

Already booted the thing, runs fine, but since its brand new I wouldn't expect to have issues like that day 1, if I did I've got a Warranty & Amazon has a 90 Day return policy. (At least I think its 90 days, might only be 30.)

Okay then. Anyway, hope you have fun with it, because the specs seems pretty damn good compared to what I could get for $400 4 years ago. It's not perfect due to it missing a dedicated video card and having an internal res of 768p (but you could always plug in a 1080p monitor and Win+P it to be primary), but honestly, it's the 5XXX series with a HD 5500 which apparently is pretty good for integrated video cards.

[Mariofan0]

One of the things I was hoping to do is record Lets Play Vids, and whatnot for my Youtube Channel. But It appears I may need a Capture Card to do so... Although I am curious as to what the USB Slot on my TV is for... I'll need to check the Manual for that I guess.

[Schoq]

it's so you can put a usb stick and conveniently watch downloaded movies without having to mess with cables and shit from the computer
it's one of the best things since bread