No one can deny the usefulness of the home computer, but what about the cost of all those new fancy thingamajigs and whatyoumacallits. "A computer for a thousand bucks? But I'm just using the Internet! I want cheap computers!"

The computer industry has become so big that it is now possible to get really cheap computers, which will not break down after a few months and will give you all you need for everyday use.

You don't need to steal them or get second hand stuff to accomplish this either because as the market for cheap computers has gotten bigger and more competitive so the quality has increased. Of course you can't always get the attention to detail you might get from a computer with very custom parts, but you can get a functional one, maybe even a good one for very little.

The motherboard is the heart of the computer and in cheap computers it is essential that you get one that has the most options onboard as possible. Every extra part you don't need to get makes that much less upgrading in the future. The ASUS P5P800 motherboard is a great choice for those looking for an Intel computer and the ECS nForce4-A939 motherboard for an AMD system. Both include SATA and built in sound and networking, the former has AGP for graphics, while the latter has PCIe.

Cases can be bought for next to nothing, and are an area that can be sacrificed in cheap computers if it just sits at home. But be wary of cheap power supplies that come with them sometimes.

The CPU processor should be the cheapest in the top line. Pure clock speed is not worth paying for and should be invested elsewhere in the computer. The AMD Athlon64 3000+ and Intel Pentium 4 530 are suitable chips which also deliver performance.

Extras like mice and keyboards should be decent, but wireless is not necessary, nor are laser mice necessary for cheap computers.

Nearly everyone wants an LCD model nowadays but don't overlook great deals on large CRT monitors, which still outperform LCDs in many areas. I find anything less than a 17-inch pretty small now, but a 15-inch might do for doing single tasks. Bigger monitor gives more "desktop" space for working on the computer.

Finally, the graphics card makes a difference mostly if you are running games or a large monitor. The basic one on the motherboard might do fine more general stuff, but large monitors with high resolutions need at least a simple graphics card.

Finding the best quality cheap computers at the lowest price is not the hardest thing. You will not be top of the line, but not many people need to be, computers are mature enough technology to not need that. cheap computers are enough.