BleepingComputer.com: Wanting to upgrade old Gateway 838GM

I went to the gateway website to get the Specs on the old desktop, because I'm lazy ;)
Here's the link for the Specs http://support.gateway.com/s/PC/R/5389/5389sp3.shtml

So far I've chosen a graphics card, Memory, and a Wireless Card.
It should all be compatible, but thats why I'm here for a second opinion ;)

Memory: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Memory+Master+-+2-Pack+1GB+PC3200+DDR+DIMM+Memory+Kit/9359892.p?id=1218090909818&skuId=9359892&st=PC3200%20DDR%20SDRAM&cp=1&lp=1

I believe that the Desktops maximum RAM capacity is 2 GB. All I did was Best Buy search the kind of RAM in the Specs list and that came up ^^

Graphics/Video card. The onboard graphics on this dinosaur is back in the stone age, 2004 I believe. It wasn't any good for gaming then, I doubt it will be now.
I chose an ATI Radeon 5770. Because ATI is my favorite
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+ATI+Radeon+HD+5770+1GB+GDDR5+PCI+Express+Graphics+Card/9749039.p?id=1218166512457&skuId=9749039
That should be able to handle Call of Duty, right? (I don't do CoD on the computer, I prefer something more along the line of HAWX. I like flight.)

As for networking. My dad probably isn't going to go for upgrading the whole desktop. "Do not fix what isn't broken" right? Well, I doubt he'll go for it at all if there's a 50 foot ethernet chord tripping him where ever he goes (It's a dry joke...)
So I need help choosing a Wireless card.

I also want to know if I should upgrade the Pentium 4 630 processor it has. It's hyperthreaded, so I supposedly get 6.0 Ghz of power. Which is better than what my laptop gets, but my laptop has a Pentium T4400, but my processor actually has 2 cores, the Pentium 4 doesn't, it's just hyperthreaded. I dunno whether to keep it or toss it and upgrade, and I'd need instructions on changing it out.

Last but not least, the Power Supply. I believe its a 300 Watt power supply. Would I need to upgrade that too?

Keep in mind. There's a PCI express x16 slot, a PCI express x1 slot, and 3 regular PCI slots. The x16 slot is reserved for the GPU and the Wireless Card would have to be either PCI or able to fit in the express x1 slot.

Upgrading's all new to me, It'd be a learning experience. I'd love all the help I can get.

Thanks for your time,

~Jayson

Also. Is it possible to change my name? I had made it what it is back when me and my mom were going to make a Tech Support website but that idea failed. (She taught me most of what I know, I built onto it using Google :D )

This post has been edited by ComputerTalk-Jayson: 27 July 2011 - 04:34 PM

Please tell us the exact model of power supply you have.

According to the website, 300 Watt Bestec Power Supply , but I'm pretty sure thats not all.
According to the sticker on the side of my power supply Bestec ATX 300 12EB3

and a side note. According to the website there are 3 regular PCI slots, I see only 2. then theres the bottom most PCI, the smallest I believe is the express x1 slot and the top most, the largest, i guess is the PCI e x 16?
the 2 white ones in the middle are Regular PCI slots I believe, and the bottom and top ones are black.

This post has been edited by ComputerTalk-Jayson: 27 July 2011 - 05:10 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027 -$60 - This should be able to power it up without a problem

killerx525, on 27 July 2011 - 05:30 PM, said:

will it fit in the case though? Are they all made around the same size or are there different sizes?

" Two PCI-E connectors are included to support a mid-to-high end graphics card. "
It says that in the description. Thats confusing ^

and how difficult will it be to replace a PSU?

This post has been edited by ComputerTalk-Jayson: 27 July 2011 - 05:44 PM

ComputerTalk-Jayson, on 27 July 2011 - 04:30 PM, said:

Send me a PM, with the name you would rather go by.
If it's available, I'll change it for you.

Jayson201, on 27 July 2011 - 05:39 PM, said:

Yes this will fit in your case. The size usually should be ATX. It shouldn't be difficult, you just have to remember where everything is plugged in.

ATX will fit based on the model of my current power supply.

I still need to know which Wireless Card I should get, and whether or not to upgrade the processor. It is a bit outdated. Also, if I have to upgrade the processor, how would I go about doing it?

Thanks for all the help so far guys

If you want to upgrade processor, you may want to think about building a whole new computer. Your motherboard is a bit outdated, and finding a processor may be hard and very expensive.

I'd love to build my own computer but my dad isn't really supportive. I might have to wait for my birthday (Which is after christmas) just to get the RAM.
Do I NEED to upgrade the processor or is it alright if I leave it as is?

Itll do depending on what you do with the computer.

Usually I'll just go on facebook and watch movies, but I want the desktop for gaming. Games such as Battlefield 3, when it comes out, or Resident Evil 5, which is just over the capabilities of my laptop.
Since the Pentium 4 in the desktop is hyper threaded, would that make it anything like a plain dual core processor running at 3 Ghz or should I try and convince my dad to let my build one from scratch?

Nope that hypertheading is nothing like dual core. Its virtualization of the CPU.

I would strongly convince your dad because the pentium 4 does not meet the system requirements for a lot of games out there.

Hopefully I can convince him. If I can then I guess you'll see me in another post sometime in the future ;D
Thanks to all of you