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Look at Computer Options for Children

Aired August 13, 2003 - 14:46   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Summer is almost over and children around the nation are heading back to school. Not to fear, kids. The new school year is a perfect excuse to hit your parent up for new stuff, right? And at the top of many shopping lists is a new back to school computer.
With computers getting faster and cheaper all the time, parents have a lot great choices. CNN technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg is here to help us process all the options. Daniel, we never got to pick computers. A typewriter was a luxury.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: It sure was, Kyra. Actually, I have the manual from one of my first computers here, the Vic 20.

PHILLIPS: Oh my God.

SIEBERG: They've changed a little since then.

You hear all the terms. SD-RAM, gigabyte, gigahertz. What does it mean and what do you really need to help your child in school if you're buying a new computer? It's probably the most commonly asked question that I get.

Well I'm going to defer that question over to our guest who's Janice Chen, the editor in chief of CNET.com reviews section. Janice, first of all, is it a good time of year to get a good deal on a new computer?

JANICE CHEN, CNET: Absolutely. All the computer vendors are really trying to pitch to parents and kids who are looking for new computers for the school year. So there are great deals to be had right now.

SIEBERG: And a lot of stuff bundled in one. So let's start with the Dell you've got over here, the Dell Dimension. What does this one offer?

CHEN: The Dell Dimension has -- it's a really great priced system. It starts at $499. And we really liked it because the price was so good, and it comes with a pretty good warranty. And we think that parents will really like it because it's got a lot of features and still the $499 price is amazing.

But students and kids who are really into gaming, they might not like it as much because it is not a great gaming system. It doesn't have super performance and doesn't have great graphics. But it'll do for homework and surfing the Web.

SIEBERG: And surfing the Web or doing some assignments.

OK, so to another sort of all in one. We should point out it does come with the speakers and the monitor as well?

(CROSSTALK)

CHEN: ... yes, for that low price.

And then this one, the Compaq Presario 4000 is actually $497. And it comes with a really great bundle. It comes with the speakers, the monitor, but also a printer and even paper. And that is, you know, one of the benefits of HP and Compaq getting together. they have the great bundle with the printer, and it's a terrific system for kids that are wanting -- that are starting to do reports and stuff, kids in middle school. and parents will really like it too because of the great price.

SIEBERG: OK, so we move from the desktops to some portable models. We have the Dell Inspiron. I see this Sony Vaio which is wireless.

CHEN: Right. And this one is a pretty low-cost notebook. It's $990. And this one is a little bit steeper. It starts at $2,399. The -- part of the reason that it;s more expensive is that it has some pretty-high end features in it.

SIEBERG: Right, and we can show people here that we are surfing the Web right now.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: ... Centrino chip in it.

CHEN: Exactly. It's got the Centrino technology which lets you do wireless Internet access, and it makes for a really good college notebook. But it is pretty steep at $2,399. Not sure which parents are going to pay for that.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: Just quickly, why do terms like RAM and storage space like gigabytes -- what does that mean to a parent? How important is that to have a higher number, for example?

CHEN: Well I think that if you are going to be doing a lot of surfing on the Net, you want to try to get as much RAM as possible because the RAM -- as much as you can afford. Because it will make your system faster.

And then in terms of gigabytes, the hard disk space, that also you want as much as you can because there are more media files now that take up more space. And that becomes important.

But my advice is usually get the most that you can afford and you can always upgrade it later.

SIEBERG: All right, we're going to move from PCs over to the world of Apple. And they always have some stylish models here. And we're going to start off here with the iMac, if you want. And these speakers are certainly eye catching.

CHEN: Yes. The speakers and wide screen monitor. This is great for kids who are into video editing, into doing -- you can also put up more than one document on the screen at once and doesn't take up that much space.

It is a bit more expensive, it's $1,799 for this 17-inch monitor version. But it has a super drive in it which has both DVD recording and CD recording capabilities. So it is a great multimedia system for the higher-end student.

SIEBERG: Right, and although Apple's are only a few percent of the overall computer market, they're certainly fighting to get more. The eMac is one that they're trying to sell for sort of a lower cost version or a desktop. Right?

CHEN: Exactly. And when it first came out, it actually was targeted towards education first. And Macs do have a bit more install base in education and in universities. The eMac is a really, really good value for a Mac. It is an all in one system which is nice to a dorm room or bedroom.

This one is $799 and up. But the great thing is it is the cheapest G-4, which is the fastest Mac processor. And it also comes in configurations -- you can configure it with a super drive. So it becomes a low cost, high-end multimedia system as well.

SIEBERG: OK, well speaking of fast, we only have about 30 seconds left, what can you tell us about these two laptops (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

CHEN: Well I would say this one, the Power Book is faster and more expensive. It is $1,599. But this is a nice low-cost option at $999, has great battery life, actually better battery life that the Power book. But it is a little bit slower and you see it is a little bit thicker and clunkier.

SIEBERG: OK, all right. Well a lot of different computers and ideas to choose from. Thanks so much to help break it down for us. Janice Chen, the editor in chief of CNET.com review site, thanks so much for joining us.

CHEN: Thanks for having me.

SIEBERG: So, Kyra, as you can see, there are all sorts of choices. You just have to drag your parents out and get them to look at the different ads and shop around. That's probably the most important thing we can tell people here. Shop around. There are endless choices and specs. We hope we gave you some ideas.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely. Do your research. Thanks, Daniel. Thanks to both you of you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired August 13, 2003 - 14:46   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Summer is almost over and children around the nation are heading back to school. Not to fear, kids. The new school year is a perfect excuse to hit your parent up for new stuff, right? And at the top of many shopping lists is a new back to school computer.
With computers getting faster and cheaper all the time, parents have a lot great choices. CNN technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg is here to help us process all the options. Daniel, we never got to pick computers. A typewriter was a luxury.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: It sure was, Kyra. Actually, I have the manual from one of my first computers here, the Vic 20.

PHILLIPS: Oh my God.

SIEBERG: They've changed a little since then.

You hear all the terms. SD-RAM, gigabyte, gigahertz. What does it mean and what do you really need to help your child in school if you're buying a new computer? It's probably the most commonly asked question that I get.

Well I'm going to defer that question over to our guest who's Janice Chen, the editor in chief of CNET.com reviews section. Janice, first of all, is it a good time of year to get a good deal on a new computer?

JANICE CHEN, CNET: Absolutely. All the computer vendors are really trying to pitch to parents and kids who are looking for new computers for the school year. So there are great deals to be had right now.

SIEBERG: And a lot of stuff bundled in one. So let's start with the Dell you've got over here, the Dell Dimension. What does this one offer?

CHEN: The Dell Dimension has -- it's a really great priced system. It starts at $499. And we really liked it because the price was so good, and it comes with a pretty good warranty. And we think that parents will really like it because it's got a lot of features and still the $499 price is amazing.

But students and kids who are really into gaming, they might not like it as much because it is not a great gaming system. It doesn't have super performance and doesn't have great graphics. But it'll do for homework and surfing the Web.

SIEBERG: And surfing the Web or doing some assignments.

OK, so to another sort of all in one. We should point out it does come with the speakers and the monitor as well?

(CROSSTALK)

CHEN: ... yes, for that low price.

And then this one, the Compaq Presario 4000 is actually $497. And it comes with a really great bundle. It comes with the speakers, the monitor, but also a printer and even paper. And that is, you know, one of the benefits of HP and Compaq getting together. they have the great bundle with the printer, and it's a terrific system for kids that are wanting -- that are starting to do reports and stuff, kids in middle school. and parents will really like it too because of the great price.

SIEBERG: OK, so we move from the desktops to some portable models. We have the Dell Inspiron. I see this Sony Vaio which is wireless.

CHEN: Right. And this one is a pretty low-cost notebook. It's $990. And this one is a little bit steeper. It starts at $2,399. The -- part of the reason that it;s more expensive is that it has some pretty-high end features in it.

SIEBERG: Right, and we can show people here that we are surfing the Web right now.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: ... Centrino chip in it.

CHEN: Exactly. It's got the Centrino technology which lets you do wireless Internet access, and it makes for a really good college notebook. But it is pretty steep at $2,399. Not sure which parents are going to pay for that.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: Just quickly, why do terms like RAM and storage space like gigabytes -- what does that mean to a parent? How important is that to have a higher number, for example?

CHEN: Well I think that if you are going to be doing a lot of surfing on the Net, you want to try to get as much RAM as possible because the RAM -- as much as you can afford. Because it will make your system faster.

And then in terms of gigabytes, the hard disk space, that also you want as much as you can because there are more media files now that take up more space. And that becomes important.

But my advice is usually get the most that you can afford and you can always upgrade it later.

SIEBERG: All right, we're going to move from PCs over to the world of Apple. And they always have some stylish models here. And we're going to start off here with the iMac, if you want. And these speakers are certainly eye catching.

CHEN: Yes. The speakers and wide screen monitor. This is great for kids who are into video editing, into doing -- you can also put up more than one document on the screen at once and doesn't take up that much space.

It is a bit more expensive, it's $1,799 for this 17-inch monitor version. But it has a super drive in it which has both DVD recording and CD recording capabilities. So it is a great multimedia system for the higher-end student.

SIEBERG: Right, and although Apple's are only a few percent of the overall computer market, they're certainly fighting to get more. The eMac is one that they're trying to sell for sort of a lower cost version or a desktop. Right?

CHEN: Exactly. And when it first came out, it actually was targeted towards education first. And Macs do have a bit more install base in education and in universities. The eMac is a really, really good value for a Mac. It is an all in one system which is nice to a dorm room or bedroom.

This one is $799 and up. But the great thing is it is the cheapest G-4, which is the fastest Mac processor. And it also comes in configurations -- you can configure it with a super drive. So it becomes a low cost, high-end multimedia system as well.

SIEBERG: OK, well speaking of fast, we only have about 30 seconds left, what can you tell us about these two laptops (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

CHEN: Well I would say this one, the Power Book is faster and more expensive. It is $1,599. But this is a nice low-cost option at $999, has great battery life, actually better battery life that the Power book. But it is a little bit slower and you see it is a little bit thicker and clunkier.

SIEBERG: OK, all right. Well a lot of different computers and ideas to choose from. Thanks so much to help break it down for us. Janice Chen, the editor in chief of CNET.com review site, thanks so much for joining us.

CHEN: Thanks for having me.

SIEBERG: So, Kyra, as you can see, there are all sorts of choices. You just have to drag your parents out and get them to look at the different ads and shop around. That's probably the most important thing we can tell people here. Shop around. There are endless choices and specs. We hope we gave you some ideas.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely. Do your research. Thanks, Daniel. Thanks to both you of you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com