But also note that sometimes the "microsoft tax" manifests as a discount. Getting a cheapo Dell with windows, at least used to be, just a tad cheaper than asse

But also note that sometimes the "microsoft tax" manifests as a discount. Getting a cheapo Dell with windows, at least used to be, just a tad cheaper than assembling a similar spec'd one yourself. But I still assembled my own because it was a fun learning experience and you can focus more on getting a (more) future-proof motherboard and a solid PSU.