Hardware Recommendations is a community-run question and answers website to help you find a specific product for your needs. That means you can ask for a pre-purchase recommendation for hardware to perform a specific task.
We do not answer questions asking for technical support for hardware.
"Hardware" is not an all-encompassing term. We can help you if you're looking for a recommendation for hardware that is "an electronic item that is, interfaces with, or connects to a computer to operate". For more details on how we define hardware and a list of hardware that is on topic for this site, please see What is hardware? on our meta site.
Due to the subjective nature of recommending hardware, we have strict quality guidelines which are outlined below but you may find more detailed information about them here.
In general your question should be:
- a request for a product recommendation
- a request for information that will lead to a product decision
and it should not be:
- a request for technical support of hardware
- a request for step-by-step instructions for Do-It-Yourself installation
- a request for a build review
- a request for compatibility advice
- a request for help specifying your custom PC; we can only help with requests about single, specific components
Additionally, questions asking for general advice about buying hardware are out of scope because they don't necessarily lead to a concrete decision, and go out of date quickly.
Questions asking for information that will lead to a product decision
Please be aware this is a fine line to walk. While these questions are on-topic here, "general advice" type questions are not, and will be closed. That means that asking about characteristics of a limited set of hardware options is okay, but asking more generally "how do I choose X hardware" is not.
Quality Guidelines
Your question on Hardware Recommendations should:
Clearly define requirements - Objectively define what the hardware must do and must not do. e.g., "must be less than $100" is good; "must be cheap" is bad). Include optional requirements, if any.
Show previous research - Tell us what products you are aware of that do not meet your needs. Otherwise, you may get those products as recommendations, wasting your time and ours.
Provide relevant details in the question - Links are useful for supporting your information but visiting them should not be required to answer effectively, in case they stop working.
Include a good title - Briefly summarize your goal in a few words and mention only one or two of the most important requirements (e.g., "25-inch monitor under $150"). See "How do I write a good title" for more tips.
Make use of tags - Tags help sort questions. Use them to categorize your question and narrow the scope of your request. Avoid using too-broad tags on their own.
Have a narrow scope - Only ask for one piece of hardware at a time and focus on what you need from that item. If you need multiple items, ask more than one question.
We do not answer questions asking for technical support for hardware.
Please look around to see if your question has been asked before. It’s also OK to ask and answer your own question.
If your question is not specifically on-topic for Hardware Recommendations Stack Exchange, it may be on topic for another Stack Exchange site.
- Questions asking about troubleshooting hardware or technical support for hardware may be on topic on Super User.
- Questions asking for software product recommendations may be on topic on Software Recommendations.
- Questions asking for help with hobbyist, consumer, or professional electronics may be on topic for Electronic Engineering, Arduino, or Raspberry Pi.
If no site currently exists that will accept your question, you may commit to or propose a new site on Area 51, the place where new Stack Exchange communities are democratically created.