updateing my computer

[Fraserr1991]

first of all i am currently on a completely unmodified dell dimension 5100 right now so its not exactly the best pc on the earth, heres the specs for it
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/desktops/0,39029979,39192686,00.htm

well theres so many questions i need to ask, first of all this is what im looking to do, i would like to replace my computer monitor and tv monitor with one tv screen, and connect my computer ps3 and sky to the one monitor, this is where my first question comes in, is this possible and how hard would it be to do?

this is what i was planing to buy can anyone give me some opinions or changes to my choices?

a new graphics card - nothing amazing just so i get a crisper picture quality than ATI RADEON X300 SE...budget for graphics card = £30-50
XFX 8400GS 256MB nVidia PCI Express Graphics Card - currently looking at buying
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000SAIQWQ/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=A17AS5ETPMZ9A1


a new 5.1 sourround system - budget of £40-100 on this
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000UC7W3Q/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ACRTI4YR8LRR0

a new sound card to support 5.1 sourround - was looking at Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE - budget of £10-30
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000CF0ZXK/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ACRTI4YR8LRR0


new hard drive - didnt realise i only had 40gb's on my hard drive  and only had 120mb's left so need a new harddrive looking to spend no more than £40 -
Generic Hard Disk Drive 250GB SATA II (the one im looking at buying)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Generic-Hard-Disk-Drive-250GB/dp/B000OUI8QO/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1221054516&sr=8-7

so the full budget would be around £200 max

anyway thanks for having a look, there will most likely be many more questions i would like to ask

[Calum]

I don't think you'd get crisper quality from a better graphics card, but you would get better 3D performance.
I'd strongly suggest more RAM, at least another 512MB and preferably 2GB total.
That sound card isn't great - if all you need is 5.1 support then it's fine, but it's not good quality.
It's possible to use a TV monitor as your PC screen but the picture won't be great as it will be low resolution for the size.  However, I believe what you want to do is achievable.

[Fraserr1991]

sorry i forgot to mention im going to be getting another 4gb of RAM too

well i am looking for a way of having one monitor or tv screen, playing my tv, ps3 and computer, im deffinetly sick of the dell screen that came with the computer, i dont have too much to spend on what im wanting to acheive, but do you have any idea's on what you would do? im only trying 2 work out what i could get with my money, i have no solid plans as of yet

[Calum]

What I would do in an ideal world is buy a nice big monitor, big enough to watch TV on.  But, that's expensive.
You've got a choice between a quality PC monitor and make do with the smaller screen (maybe sit closer?) or a larger TV and make do with the low resolution when you're using the computer.
if you get one with the right inputs, or buy converters, you can have Sky, PC and games consoles on either one.
It'll come down to how much you want to spend and what you want, and in the end we can't say what you'd prefer.

[Fraserr1991]

would the quality of the picture from a tv monitor instead of a computer monitor really be so much worse? i dont know i like the size of the tv but at the end of the day i think id rather go for quality than size what size of computer monitor would be in my price range?, im actually hopeing my parents will get me the monitor for a joint bday xmas present but i know they wouldnt be willing to spend over 300 and that would be streching the amount theyd buy me anyway, the rest im buying from my own money

[Fraserr1991]

oh and another thing, is there anyway of my surround sound working for my computer ps3 and tv without having to constantly switch the cables? sorry about all the questions im a bit out of my deapth right now lol

[killerb255]

sorry i forgot to mention im going to be getting another 4gb of RAM too

...another 4 GB of RAM?  Are you going to be running Vista x64?

well i am looking for a way of having one monitor or tv screen, playing my tv, ps3 and computer, im deffinetly sick of the dell screen that came with the computer, i dont have too much to spend on what im wanting to acheive, but do you have any idea's on what you would do? im only trying 2 work out what i could get with my money, i have no solid plans as of yet

So you want one monitor that also functions as a TV set?  Purchase an HDTV.

Pros:
+: DVI or HDMI port to connect to your video card so you can use your PC on it as well.
+: Decent resolution with a 1080i or 1080p TV (1920x1080).

Cons:
-: If you game at resolutions higher than 1920x1080, you're SOL.

[Fraserr1991]

thanks for the advice

i was actually looking on ebuyer at a new 32inch hd ready screen...

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/136349

would anyone be able to tell me if they think this is a good buy?
and how well would it suit my "wish list"? lol

[Fraserr1991]

and i was thinking about going for the 4gig option but i might just get 2x1gb's of ram that should be f9 for me

[Calum]

The quality from a TV may be acceptable, but let me put it this way.
I have a 19" monitor, widescreen, with a 1440x900 resolution.
That 32" TV has a resolution of 1336x768, which is lower.
So, even if it was the same size, the image would be bigger, but as the screen is much larger the image will be quite blocky.
Personally I can't stand using a TV screen as a monitor, but some people say it's fine.
As killerb says, you could spend a lot more on a 1080 spec HDTV, with a better resolution, but they tend to be expensive.

Not sure about your surround sound question, there may be some way of doing it but I really don't know.
If you're running XP 2GB will probably hold you, but with Vista you should consider more.  Memory isn't expensive right now.