Suggestions on best site to get BI computer?

reb214

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New to BI, and to the site. I've read the post that is referenced for what specs to look for in a BI computer, but I'm having a hard time finding anything remotely close to the prices listed in several of the posts when I do a search. For example, I've been searching eBay today, and the cheapest refurbished i5 or i7 6th gen that I can find is $500, with most over $600.

I was able to find some 3rd generation workstations for around $350, but I thought I must be looking in the wrong spots or using the wrong search terms since some folks on here seem to be finding deals for $200-300. Any advice on sites or links to recent deals you found?

By the way, if older generations are fine, I'm open to them too, I was just trying to follow the recommended specs. I'll not have a large system ( 4 x 2mp and 2 x 4mp all Dahua). I currently have them all run back to and powered from a Netgear 8 Port Gigabit PoE Smart Switch. I just need to add in the BI machine, and didn't want to buy something inadequate just to save a few bucks.

Thanks for the help in advance.
 

actran

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@reb214 I bought an Optiplex 5050 i7-7700 during Black Friday from Dell Outlet Refurbished Laptops, Desktops & Servers .

If you ring their sales team via chat window, ask if they still do 10 or 15% discount on top of the webpage price.

The benefit from buying from Dell is the 3-yr warranty.

Personally, I had an i7 3rd generation previously. It felt underpowered. You should think about getting a generation that has h265 support, if you decide to store your recordings in h265 in the near future.
 

Revlus

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@reb214 I bought an Optiplex 5050 i7-7700 during Black Friday from Dell Outlet Refurbished Laptops, Desktops & Servers .

If you ring their sales team via chat window, ask if they still do 10 or 15% discount on top of the webpage price.

The benefit from buying from Dell is the 3-yr warranty.

Personally, I had an i7 3rd generation previously. It felt underpowered. You should think about getting a generation that has h265 support, if you decide to store your recordings in h265 in the near future.
Any idea what wattage you are drawing with BI in use?




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tangent

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New to BI, and to the site. I've read the post that is referenced for what specs to look for in a BI computer, but I'm having a hard time finding anything remotely close to the prices listed in several of the posts when I do a search. For example, I've been searching eBay today, and the cheapest refurbished i5 or i7 6th gen that I can find is $500, with most over $600.

I was able to find some 3rd generation workstations for around $350, but I thought I must be looking in the wrong spots or using the wrong search terms since some folks on here seem to be finding deals for $200-300. Any advice on sites or links to recent deals you found?

By the way, if older generations are fine, I'm open to them too, I was just trying to follow the recommended specs. I'll not have a large system ( 4 x 2mp and 2 x 4mp all Dahua). I currently have them all run back to and powered from a Netgear 8 Port Gigabit PoE Smart Switch. I just need to add in the BI machine, and didn't want to buy something inadequate just to save a few bucks.

Thanks for the help in advance.
Prices fluctuate.

Right now on dell outlet you can get an:
Inspiron 3668 i5-7400 for $400 after 15% off coupon.
Inspiron 3668 i7-7700 for $650 after 15% off coupon w/ windows 10 pro.
Inspiron 3650 i7-6700 for $500 after 15% off coupon.
OptiPlex 7050 i5-6500 for $526 after 12% off coupon.
OptiPlex 7050 i7-7700 for $588 after 12% off coupon.
...

I'd expect some better deals at dell outlet in the next 3-4 weeks.
 

tangent

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4th gen i5's and i7's are getting a little long in the tooth. I'd try to stick to 6th or 7th gen if you can, a 4th gen should have enough processing power but newer would be better.
 

dryfly

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I'm running a 4th gen i7 with 6 cameras and having no problems. CPU usage runs about 16%. However if I was buying today I'd definitely buy a later generation CPU.
 

actran

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Any idea what wattage you are drawing with BI in use?




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@Revlus Sorry for the delay.

I had to put a wattage meter on my Optiplex. Reading varies between 65 to 72 watts. This PC is dedicated to running BI on a 2.5" SSD + 1 Purple WD for 8 cameras.
 

Revlus

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@Revlus Sorry for the delay.

I had to put a wattage meter on my Optiplex. Reading varies between 65 to 72 watts. This PC is dedicated to running BI on a 2.5" SSD + 1 Purple WD for 8 cameras.
Thanks actran! I appreciate you taking the time to do that. That's quite low... ~$75/year'ish at 12c per watt.
 
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