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Posted by adlep 4 days ago

Show HN: I built a tool that prices a pre-built PC part by part(pcdealcheck.com)
I've missed out on an awesome computer that I could use for a project because figuring out value took too long. Users paste a listing and receive a value grade, dated component estimates and a shareable report. AI reads the listing but my custom built price engine determines the grade (updated every day). Self financed and working now. Looking for feedback re: scoring, interface, and if its helpful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tpft--x3WlI
120 points | 85 comments
blue_green_maps 3 days ago|
Is this similar to https://pcpartpicker.com ?
adlep 3 days ago||
PCPartPicker is awesome but more manual work, at least for me, and that takes time. This is a quick “paste the link” that then gets read to identify the components. Those get priced, and the deal also gets a score. So it’s almost like them but in reverse, and designed for a quick decision reference.
hk1337 3 days ago||
I was actually wondering this. Is it the same as pc part picker or used in addition to it?
vonneumannstan 3 days ago||
Seems like the inverse? Select a prebuilt PC from Origin, Alienware, Cyberpower, etc and it independently prices each part of the build so you can see if you are getting ripped off(you are).
fyonn 3 days ago|||
I certainly feel that I wasn't ripped off when in Feb this year, HP sold me this Omen desktop (https://www.hp.com/gb-en/shop/products/desktops/omen-35l-gam...) with a 9800x3d, rtx5080, 2TB SSD and 128GB?! of Kingston fury ram for £2700... with four years interest free credit...

it's now selling for £2300 more than when I bought it...

I didn't even want 128GB of ram... it just came with the pre-built spec I chose... I feel like they sold me the GPU and half the ram, and then threw in the rest for free! it's my deal of the decade...

half wish I'd stretched for the one with the 5090 now... :)

vonneumannstan 3 days ago|||
Not sure this demonstrates that HP gave you a deal so much as RAM and GPU prices have skyrocketed since then...
fyonn 2 days ago||
GPU and ram prices have certainly gone up since then, but they were also were high even then. I put that spec into pcpartpicker the day I bought it and was was over £3800... I think they'd set the prices the year before when they built the PCs and didn't update them...
adlep 3 days ago|||
not just you, all of us. the thing is that there will be more demand on what is available on the market: make sure to check and have at least some reference. Seems that hardware pricing will become more so like commodity/stock market.
limagnolia 3 days ago||||
Well, whether or not its a "good deal" depends on how much you value the OEMs efforts to select, test, assemble, and support the parts. I say this as some one who has been building computers for myself and others since I was like 17, and working on them longer- and I have charged a fair amount of money for these services. I think what I charged was fair, too.
adlep 3 days ago|||
there is a difference between a "gourmet" service and mass assembled PCs for sure. We now focus on scoring the run of the mill computers sold by big e-tailers.
algonney 2 days ago||||
[dead]
vonneumannstan 3 days ago|||
Well test an example for yourself. I did and around 25% of the total price was for their "efforts". I doubt you would have charged as much to plug components into a Mobo...
adlep 3 days ago||||
Exactly. Thank you! 100% the intent to come across
blue_green_maps 3 days ago|||
Thanks, that makes sense.
adlep 4 days ago||
Thank you for nice comments. This is just a self financed prototype that will get better with use! I appreciate your time with testing/using the site. Lets not get ripped off! I expect the supply to get even tighter and prices going higher unfortunately. Local AI models, GIS/digital twins uses, robot training, VR, of course gamers, content creators, casual users, and of course people overseas all will be competing for similar hardware.
nukanse 3 days ago||
I suggest to add mini PCs. You can buy motherboards and other parts, but some have soldered cpus. They are cheaper, so it may be a good deal anyways.
yathern 3 days ago|||
Self-promo plug - I've been working on https://MiniPCs.zip for the last few months, which is a kinda inverse concept - build a price model for Mini PCs based on their parts, and find the best possible deals - since these are like commodity items and prices change every day
adlep 3 days ago|||
noted!
ttytty 3 days ago||
if you add mini PCs, this will blow up on r/homelab and become a bookmark link, i would use it a bunch too!

last i checked, there was a google doc that inventoried the mini PCs available but it’s difficult to read tbh

burnt_toast 3 days ago|||
Not OP but I've been working on something similar to that: https://minihomelabs.com/hwdb

I use mini pcs for homelabbing and was getting frustrated trying to figure out how they all compare.

adlep 3 days ago||
kind of cool. lots and lots of models to pick from
adlep 3 days ago|||
Noted!
Trlog 3 days ago||
Are there plans to support prices in other places like Europe?
adlep 3 days ago||
right now we are limited with daily api calls. One way to support additional markets is to add data sources but that requires a monthly fee. This will be our next step.
mustafaabasdemi 23 hours ago||
I think the project is quite good; however, I should be able to configure a computer according to my own preferences on the site, and then the site should be able to tell me where I can find that specific configuration—for example, by suggesting computers via links to sites like Amazon or eBay.
adlep 17 hours ago|
[flagged]
chrisgarand 3 days ago||
I like the idea, I tried using it, however it gave me the following error: New photo and listing checks are currently available in the United States. More regions coming soon. You can still view saved reports.

At first I tried with a Canadian website, so I tried with a US url (the message confused me), but it still gave me the error, I checked the response and got the following:

{ "error": "New photo and listing checks are currently available in the United States. More regions coming soon. You can still view saved reports.", "code": "read_region_unavailable", "recovery": "region" }

I figur it checks the requester's ip location.

adlep 3 days ago||
Forgot to specify: US market only: Canadian market will come next. Basically up to 20 biggest retailers will be supported - the usual suspects.
contingencies 3 days ago||
Laptop support would be nice, even if it's just a desktop comparison. Australia support too please! I would like to send this to a school who are about to waste a lot of money buying garbage.
adlep 3 days ago||
It would be nice but it will be difficult to figure out the value of components other than RAM and SSD - CPU and GPU if present are "built in". Also: what is the value of RTX 5070 mobile vs desktop? I know that there is a big diff in performance due to physics (cooling/wattage). Canada and Australia coming next. I will need to get some traction going first and other markets will be opened for sure. Thank you for your thoughts.
contingencies 3 days ago||
Rather than just purchase cost you could project total lifetime value based on average lifespan plus replace-ability per component.
adlep 3 days ago||
this is possible but with data points. I'd have to have access to internal metrics of PC manufactures since they track those.
contingencies 3 days ago||
Perfect is the enemy of done!
adlep 3 days ago||
I have to be stingy on usage/bots. But we will open it up to Canada and Euro markets next. But it will require some traction and use and feedback. I am limited with api calls for pricing data.
embedding-shape 3 days ago||
> I am limited with api calls for pricing data.

You'd only need to make one request per component per week or something, how limited are you here? Sounds like a harsh limit.

adlep 3 days ago||
Harsh limit. And other api sources are like $299.00 plus a month so we have to work around what access we have. Results are noisy and have to be filtered the right way.
AlexMC 1 day ago||
Looks good, and I can see it being useful.

I was putting together a gaming PC last year, before the RAM price hike. Not being certain I was getting a good deal made me keep delaying the purchase, and when I noticed prices were ridiculous, PCDealCheck, or at least an EU-based version, would have helped.

adlep 2 days ago||
Small milestone tonight: PDC sent its first deal alert to 17 subscribers who requested A/B deals. A real B+ deal, reviewed before sending, with the component breakdown and direct retailer link included. The feedback here is helping turn this into something useful—thank you! We also recommend users to sign up for both A and B rated deals. This one seats exactly at "B+". Thank you for submitting and checking it, also thank you for signing up and giving it a try: Microcenter deal still in stock at my local Microcenter - better hurry! https://app.pcdealcheck.com/r/4a151189-53be-435c-819c-1ca18e...
xnx 3 days ago||
Cool idea. Promising, but failed for me on https://www.amazon.com/Dell-XPS-8950-Desktop-i7-1TB/dp/B0BR9...

I got pretty good results when I asked an agent to put components to build an equivalent PC in a cart for me.

adlep 3 days ago||
I think for that money you can do better. https://app.pcdealcheck.com/r/2a594e9b-dbf5-4b19-939d-140c6f... and add $50.00 for the hdd. not very good deal and the included parts are getting old.
adlep 3 days ago|||
I think it works now. I am upping my daily usage quotas and will give it a shot in a bit.
creativeSlumber 4 days ago||
Hey, cool project. Whenever I've seen a deal on a pre-built PC I've always wondered, hey, how much would this cost if I built it myself from parts.

Some feedback on your website. I would suggest moving the "try it" from the bottom of the page towards the top of the page so that visitors don't have to look for it.

adlep 4 days ago|
Cool beans! Thanks for your comment and pointers. Ill move it down a bit to make it easier to "try"... And btw: please, try it yourself and keep on checking deals! Let me know what you think. The price engine/scoring will change most likely as this is just a prototype that I want to have discussion about. And I hope the service will be helpful! Lets not get ripped off! I check prices every day at around 8:00am
adlep 2 days ago||
First A- rated deal went out! https://app.pcdealcheck.com/r/a7f91506-b928-4637-b9a7-7f4a37... still in stock!
adamkumpf 3 days ago|
Super useful. I think everyone is swimming in the overpriced PC era due to the memory shortages and desire to run local AI when possible. Is this something you want to support long-term?
adlep 3 days ago|
This is the intent. I have a plan for this project to become a viable business. Discord plus additional features coming soon. If you like the project, stick around and refer others. Thank you very much for such nice comments!
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