Taking a computer or buying one?

Laura
Thanks for your suggestions, I do want a desktop because we plan on using it for our media entertainment also. I know it would be much cheaper here than in Europe, I am just worried about the voltage and plugs that are different. I can not seem to get a straight answer from Dell. Some say I can take it and the computer has a built in voltage adjustment and others say I need to get a conversion for it. Before I make the investment I would like to know exactly what I need to do if I buy a desktop here and take it to Belgium.
I am sure someone has done this.

Not sure about whether you should buy a new one or take over your current one, but if you decide to buy a new one (and probably if you decide to take yours over it would be smart for back up purposes) you could just burn your data onto DVDs or CDs to transfer it. Very simple and it should be universal.

In regards to the current, all laptops are dual voltage meaning they can handle 110v-240v. So you just need the proper adapter plug so it can fit into the outlet. Another way to transfer data would be via an ethernet cable connecting between both computers.

Thanks for your quick response, I will look into putting my files on a DVD, but I need to buy a desktop and I still do not know what to do. In Belgium the Windows Vista is in Netherlands and I need English.
If anyone has moved to Europe and can tell me what they did I would love to hear from you

Hi Gigi,

When I lived in Sweden, I bought a laptop in the U.S. and brought it with me. It was really cheaper to get one from Dell in the U.S. than to buy one in Europe. But this was in the late 90s. I don't know how prices compare now, but suspect with the weak dollar that it would still be cheaper to bring one from the U.S. Electronics seem to be less expensive in the U.S. Do you need to have a desktop or could you live with a laptop? I would suggest that you bring a laptop, a keyboard, and a mouse.

If you buy your computer in Europe, you may have a slightly different keyboard so that you have any of the special characters that the language has. The differences are slight, but if you are mostly writing in English, you will probably prefer a laptop with a U.S. keyboard.

As far as windows and language, I'm not sure that you really need to worry about this. You should be able to change the regional settings in window to reflect the language that you want to use

I know that some of my co-workers brought their desktops from home. I don't know if they had to get anything special other than an adapter. You might try posting on one of the Dell message boards and see if anyone has recent experience taking a desktop to Europe. good luck.

Whatever you choose, make sure you get an American keyboard. Using keyboards in Europe that are set up differently can be hard. I can type 80-90 wpm on a US keyboard but, for example, in France I was reduced to a low rate due to the different set-up.

There should be no problem with power. As far as I know, all PC power supplies are voltage switching. For some there's a manual switch on the back to flip between 110/220 V while others are autoswitching. I would also suggest buying a new power cord with the proper plug instead of using an adapter. (The plug on the PC side is standardized.) Dell should know if the power supply is voltage switching, it might just be a matter of finding the right person to ask. In the worst case scenario, you could replace the power supply (should be under EUR 50), which is fairly easy to do.

Paul

Thanks to all of you for your response. I know this should be a simple answer and I am starting to see it is possible. Now I just have to get the right person on the phone to sell me the right computer.
Thanks again for all your help, and when I get settled I will let you know what happened so it may help someone else in this position.
Any more help is appreciated, and maybe not just for computers, but living abroad.
Gigi

Gigi - my daughter just left for a year in France. She brought her Dell laptop with her. It says on the laptop or power pack itself that it can handle the voltage (110-240) so she knew that was okay. She also brought a plug adapter to be able to plug the computer into the wall. Finally, she did bring her internet cable but had to buy an adapter for that as well as the telephone or cable jack was different in her French dorm than her US one. She found it very easy to buy the necessary adaptor at a local electronics shop and was set up computerwise on the first day.

Once again I want to thank everyone for their help. I have information that could be helpful for anyone moving to Europe and wants to take their desktop.
I know laptops are equipt to handle the changes and you can get take them without any problems, but as far a desktop goes "don't"
I just talk to a computer guy here and he just saved me a lot of money as I was about to order a new computer from Dell today and take it with me after I transfered my information.
He said I would burn it up in now time with the converters, and he said that the monitor and printers would not work. Along with this information he told me to wait for awhile before getting Windows Vista as there are to many problems.
Anyway, back to the computer. He told me to take out my harddrive on my compture and take it to a shop in Belgium and have them install it into my new computer that I buy over there.
I am so thankful I talked to this guy. So I hope this information is helpful, laptops OK Desktops NO!
Gigi

Yikes you need a new computer guy. Or at least one not named Rip van winkle. I haven't seen a desktop powersupply that wasn't 110V/220V in over 25 years. Look at the back of your computer near the spot the cord goes in. You'll likely see a red switch. Moving that switch to the 220V setting would change the voltage. Then you could just buy a new cord or get a plug adapter.

But even if the power supply wasn some wierd 110V only unit replacing one is less then a 30 minute job for any 13 year old.

Desktops are actually safer in this regard then some laptops.

Monitors and printers are a greater issue. Many monitors are universal voltage but relatively few printers.

On the issue of buy here there it depends on how much stuff you're shipping. Shipping a whole house of stuff then adding a computer isn't much. If you aren't shipping much then it's not worth it.