The best bet when buying a computer is to spend more towards the high-end of the computer spectrum, but not the highest. The performance improvements on the top models compared to those just below it do not justify the extra costs. By saving the money now, you can save money to either upgrade or even replace the computer in several years. For desktop computer systems, a good price point is between $1,000 and $1,250 including a monitor. Laptop systems are a bit more expensive so expect to pay between $1,500 and $2,000.

Desktop vs. Notebook