What is OEM?

Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
edited May 2008 in Science & Tech
For Windows, what is OEM system builder?

I watn to put XP home on a computer im building but i really have no clue what OEM is.

It may be a side note, but it isnt, for me, im selling the computer.

Comments

  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer

    In this case, if you are building and selling the computer, the OEM is you.
  • Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    primesuspect wrote:
    OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer

    In this case, if you are building and selling the computer, the OEM is you.

    woot, thanks for the help

    are OEM disks reuseable if i build another computer and want to put the same OS on it?
  • CycloniteCyclonite Tampa, Florida Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    No. The license is required to stay with the original hardware.
  • Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    thanks for all the help, im going to build my first computer, hehe

    want to know what the best deal is for an OS, trying to keep price to a minimum.
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    Make sure you and your customer understand one very important thing about OEM licenses: They cannot be transferred to another computer. Also, they can only be legally sold once.

    Generally speaking, a "computer" is designated as the motherboard. You can replace a few components and be asked to re-authenticate that copy of WinXP, but that only goes so far. OEM licenses are cheap for a reason.
  • Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    alright, so, if I build it and say, pawn it, ebay it, sell it here on the trading fourm, sell it to a friend, or donate etc i should include the disc and sleeve?

    also: if the parts are a little over $500, then what should i sell for? $700?
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    you do not have to include the disk, but the computer MUST have the OEM sticker with the license key on the case somewhere.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    if the parts are a little over $500, then what should i sell for? $700?
    Whatever you can get. There is no formula. It all depends on the market in which you intend to sell it: supply, demand, knowledge level of customers. Unless you are in a market that is desperate for custom computers, I wouldn't plan on making any profit on this computer, especially once you factor in the shipping costs for your parts. You can talk all day long about the benefits of a custom computer (and indeed there are!), but you will be hard pressed to convince most buyers that your un-branded machine is worth more than the very inexpensive box off the shelf that comes with manufacturer's warranty and customer service 800 number.

    If your intent is to sell this to a good friend or relative who trusts, then that's another story. I am not trying to discourage you against building a computer; just hope that you are realistic about the market that is already saturated with sellers. Know what stores - big box and mom and pop, and custom builders are in your area. Check out Craigslist. In my area, I see many adds for custom computers. Prices start out very high, with the seller stating something like, "I put $XYZ into this computer just two months ago..." Then, just a week later the computer is still on Craigslist with a steep discount from the original asking price.
  • Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
    edited April 2008
    right, thanks.

    I was really just going to build it to see if i could, then sell it from there, try selling it to somebody in the area who needs a computer, or just try putting it on craigslist.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited May 2008
    Build yourself a computer. Migrate parts from the old computer to the new computer that you think are still good performers. Sell what 'old' parts for whatever you can get.
  • Gate28Gate28 Orlando, Florida Icrontian
    edited May 2008
    tecnically, i did build my computer, but it came as a standard XPS 400 and over time i replaced all of its parts except the mobo and cpu, but I guess I could order some new parts for my current rig and move all of my old parts into a different one? I need to leik toally double my RAM...
  • GrayFoxGrayFox /dev/urandom Member
    edited May 2008
    Gate28 wrote:
    right, thanks.

    I was really just going to build it to see if i could, then sell it from there, try selling it to somebody in the area who needs a computer, or just try putting it on craigslist.

    Just a bit of a heads up craigslist has some of the cheapest people on the internet out there. You will end up with 20 emails offering you between $5 and $200 if you try to sell it for $700.

    Also when I sell computers I normally mark them up 10% of the cost (10% is even pushing it sometimes if its a sub $500 computer), Ive noticed they sit around never sell if its more then 10% then new stuff will come out and you will never get rid of your old inventory. (If you do you will take massive losses)

    Im in Toronto tho the market might be different where you are.
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