Warranties, Where to get Deals, Pre-Built HTPC's
Warranty
I can not stress enough how important it is to buy parts from a place with a good warranty. Always try to find a local computer store with good prices and good warranties. A stores return/refund policy is also very important. Circuit City, although I rarely buy from them has a great policy, "We want to make sure you're completely satisfied with anything you buy from us. Try it out for 14 days. If something is not right or you've simply changed your mind, please return it within that time so we can either exchange it or give you your money back." They have no re-stocking fee if you get something, try it, and find out there is a hardware compatibility issue you can only solve by getting different hardware. Most companies consider hardware compatibility issues as not their fault. They won't refund your money and will tell you to contact the hardware maker, who will tell you it's always the other hardware devices fault. Because of only 14 days return policy, don't buy your hardware until you are ready to put it together and test it. If you get some hardware online and some local, buy the online hardware first as that will likely take longer and be harder to return if you do have problems, then when it shows up buy your local hardware. Also google a lot if you can't afford to not use what you buy. I spent 20 hours researching a good learning remote because a cheap $20 one didn't work well for learning keyboard IR commands
Where to buy Parts for a HTPC
Where to buy parts depends on if you value lower costs or better support. Because I can figure out hardware problems I choose value. Everyone is different. For example, if someone is a computer novice I recommend a store that works well with customers and supports viruses and user error well, but the systems cost slightly more. If someone doesn't want hassle I recommend a local store that is within 10% of what's online but if you have any problem, regardless, they'll swap hardware and will deal with returning it, and not put you through that mess -- These stores are hard to find, but if you're in a local LUG someone knows of one. If you don't mind spending your time fixing and dealing with things, online is a good place to get the best deals.
I check slickdeals.net, outpost.com, and newegg.com almost daily. If some holiday is coming up I check compusa.com, officemax.com and office depot.com. If I'm looking for a specific item I check mwave.com, froogle.com, pricegrabber.com and pricewatch.com. I also post any really good deals on my Deals page in this howto. I do this as a nice service to help everyone.
How about a pre-build HTPC?
There also isn't a place just to buy what I consider a good HTPC all put together and for a good price. Rarely do you find a PC with DD/DTS TOSLINK optical out, or with DVI video, or with a wireless keyboard and mouse, with a good support contract and at a price many people could afford. If you do find a good price on a PC, they probably cut a few corners somewhere that you will end up regretting. It's simply cheaper and better to buy all the right things as parts and put them together yourself. Building a computer is easy and everyone probably knows someone who can help if needed.
There are some places that sell HTPC's that work fairly well. They don't have all the features as a system you build. Some people do sell MythTV boxes but this scares me as MythTV isn't 100% stable and though it may work for a while, what happens when it breaks (and it will) and you don't know enough to fix it? This is one reason why building it yourself will help, as you understand how it went together so you can fix it, and in a hurry if you don't want to miss your favorite shows. Late 2005, I think there will be some pre-build MythTV systems that could be worth buying. I know google ads links to a few from my pages. If after you read this whole howto and still think one is right for you then it probably is. I just get a kick out of them when I find out someone who sent me dozens of e-mails about how to do things the best way suddenly is selling them. :) Oh, and the Telly from InteractTV, it's a SilverStone LC04 case with a VIA C3 board, about $400 worth of hardware to them. I've reviewed that SilverStone case too if you're curious about it.
If you think you found a good HTPC to buy but aren't sure, let me know. I'll take a look. If I can find someone who is selling good hardware for a good price I'll let everyone know.
Pre-Build MCE HTPC's
If you're wondering about MCE systems you may want to go read what people who have bought them have to say. Most are very unhappy, but some aren't. I have not evaluated them so I won't comment. Right now though, almost every Joe on the block has bought a bunch of shuttle computer systems, put a TV (Or HDTV) tuner in them, installed Windows and MCE or Linux and Myth and is selling them on Ebay. So yes, it is possible to buy a ready to use HTPC online but I don't recommend any of them if you are doing this as a hobby. I have researched 10 models from different makers. My conclusion is it is not worth the $700 for $250 in hardware or $2000+ for $700 in hardware. The main problem is it may work for a while, but it will break, be it program guides, hardware, software bugs, etc. There isn't a 90% stable HTPC program let alone a 99% - There has yet to be a stable release of Myth for HD that isn't critically broken somewhere. It is getting much better and will one day be there (Maybe this June or July of 2005 is my estimate). If you didn't install the software yourself you will probably get stuck sometime and upgrading may not be easy and you will not be happy with the "solution" as you got it. Also, by the time you get it, the software is probably outdated and the annoying bugs you get all the time are fixed in the new version. :) HTPC's are changing so fast that software is outdated every couple months -- Really. Commerial HTPC's (Tivo, replay, Telly) don't have many features because they spent time on testing rather than developing new features. MythTV is a good example of something that works 95% of the time and has more features than Any HTPC software around. It does require maintainence, it does break, it does crash and not record the show you wanted. But it hobby, and a hobby is does take time. If you are not doing this as a hobby, I do recommend you get a commercial (Something with real support, not an e-bay seller at home) HTPC and realize that you won't have all the features, but it will be more stable.
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