£500 Gaming pc

[steveg]

Been asked to recommended a gaming pc with a budget of £500. They have sent a link to a few they are looking at on Amazon, but all unknown brands and most are making use of the Radeon onboard graphics. I know this has come on a long way in recent years, but can't see it being great for any current gen games, although happy to be told I'm wrong! Obviously never going to run current gen games at full res on any £500 pc, but should be able to get something ok ish?

 

I can sort them out a monitor, which means budget only has to pay for the pc. Must be a pre-built system - it's not someone who I could support with building / ongoing support.

[RLR]

I don't think you'll find a decent gaming pc for £500. Even 2-3 year old graphic cards are going for £300 2nd hand. It will depend on what games they want to play tbh. If it's just minecraft then you can probably get a cheap gaming PC but if you want anything like Fortnite or CoD then you will need to spend a lot more.

[hardtailstar]

I wouldn't buy it from Amazon. Go to a proper online site/computer shop to get something built.

 

https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/ have a load of options of building computers.

[ICTDirect_Dave]

Take a look at something like this:

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fast-Intel-Core-i5-9400F-Desktop-Gaming-Computer-PC-2TB-16GB-6GB-GTX-1660/293268465308

 

9th Gen i5, DDR4, SSD - Quite affordable with the 1650 in there.

 

Won't be the highest quality components, but should work fine and you're covered by ebay and paypal if it turns out to be carp.

[synaesthesia]

Just specced up a 500 system for this very reason. 1650 graphics, ryzen 3300x, 16gb ram, 240gb nvme ssd & 1TB hard drive should be doable at that cost.

[Duranis]

£100 more but ebuyer has this:

https://www.ebuyer.com/989647-medion-erazer-x30-core-i5-9th-gen-8gb-ram-1tb-hdd-128gb-10023317

 

Not the best in the world and you could get better if building yourself. However at that price range for a pre-built system I don't think your going to get a lot better.

 

Overclockers have similar builds for the same price:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/pc-systems/gaming-pc?ckMin=49999&ckMax=63749&ckTab=0&sSort=2

 

Looks like £600 is about as low as you can get and still get a dedicated graphics card. Most seem to be using the GTX 1650 which isn't too bad.

[steveg]

It does seem like getting closer to £600 gets a considerably better system, £500 seems to make quite a few compromises. Specced this up on pcspecialist for £570, think it is fairly balanced system, any cpu upgrade jumps the cost up a fair bit.

 

CasePCS 6003B BLACK CASEProcessor (CPU)AMD Ryzen 3 3100 Quad Core CPU (3.6GHz-3.9GHz/18MB CACHE/AM4)MotherboardASUS® PRIME B450-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.1, 6Gb/s) - RGB Ready!Memory (RAM)8GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 4GB)Graphics Card4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1650 - HDMI1st Storage Drive1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE1st M.2 SSD Drive128GB ADATA SX6000 LITE M.2 2280 (1800 MB/R, 1200 MB/W)Power SupplyCORSAIR 350W VS SERIES™ VS-350 POWER SUPPLYPower Cable1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)Processor CoolingSTANDARD AMD CPU COOLERThermal PasteSTANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLINGSound CardONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)Wireless/Wired NetworkingWIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARDUSB/Thunderbolt OptionsMIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTSOperating SystemWindows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single LicenceOperating System LanguageUnited Kingdom - English LanguageWindows Recovery MediaWindows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online AccountOffice SoftwareFREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)Anti-VirusBullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer ModeBrowserMicrosoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)Warranty3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)DeliverySTANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)Build TimeStandard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days

[synaesthesia]

Up that RAM speed to 3200mhz, shouldn't go any less on a Ryzen. Tbh that's not a great price considering the components.

How about: https://www.awd-it.co.uk/awd-vengeance-3300x-quad-core-4.3ghz-radeon-rx-570-4gb-desktop-gaming-pc.html?fbclid=IwAR0zvA8CVHkfzzuCstJ15E6cXo4vVeIOvoOZb9f9rYoFbDi5_c2Fl1mH4XE

[steveg]

Thanks everyone, some useful advice and ones to look at. I think the one that synaesthesia has linked to above looks to be the best value, just going to add a 1tb standard hard disk for storage and then it's only £15 over budget.

[RLR]

Thanks everyone, some useful advice and ones to look at. I think the one that synaesthesia has linked to above looks to be the best value, just going to add a 1tb standard hard disk for storage and then it's only £15 over budget.

 

Just note that the computer has no operating system installed with it.

[steveg]

Just note that the computer has no operating system installed with it.

 

Hadn't noticed that! What is the cheapest you can (legally!) get windows 10 for now?

[synaesthesia]

About a tenner, it's not exactly expensive any more.

[steveg]

About a tenner, it's not exactly expensive any more.

 

Are the buy a licence and download it websites generally ok then?

[paulkerton]

I hate to be that guy, but price to performance, you're going to be better off ordering an Xbox Series X or PS5.

Not upgradeable, but performance wise they'll both blow a gaming PC at £449.99 out the water.

[steveg]

I hate to be that guy, but price to performance, you're going to be better off ordering an Xbox Series X or PS5.

Not upgradeable, but performance wise they'll both blow a gaming PC at £449.99 out the water.

 

They already have a console, but have seen sense and want to get into pc gaming :-)

[Primus]

They already have a console, but have seen sense and want to get into pc gaming :-)

 

It's only sense if you have the budget to back it up.

[Duranis]

It's only sense if you have the budget to back it up.

 

It's not always about performance to everyone. There is a lot more you can do on a PC than on any of the consoles. Even if you can get a game on both formats I personally would still prefer to play on the PC even if it means playing on lower settings. The mod options for most games just blow consoles out of the water.

 

Depending on what type of games you play the PC gives a better experience as well. The ability to switch between mouse and keyboard or controller for one makes a ton of games way more playable. Most the games I play are a lot better with Mouse and keyboard which is why I would never want to switch out to a console, no matter how much more pretty the graphics might look.

 

My PC is old as dirt and probably comparable to a £600 new PC but there hasn't been a game I couldn't play on it yet. I would never swap it for a console.

[paulkerton]

It's not always about performance to everyone. There is a lot more you can do on a PC than on any of the consoles. Even if you can get a game on both formats I personally would still prefer to play on the PC even if it means playing on lower settings. The mod options for most games just blow consoles out of the water.

 

Depending on what type of games you play the PC gives a better experience as well. The ability to switch between mouse and keyboard or controller for one makes a ton of games way more playable. Most the games I play are a lot better with Mouse and keyboard which is why I would never want to switch out to a console, no matter how much more pretty the graphics might look.

 

My PC is old as dirt and probably comparable to a £600 new PC but there hasn't been a game I couldn't play on it yet. I would never swap it for a console.

 

I just go with the convience of the console. Fires up. Plays my games. Don't have to worry about drivers or the like, and i'll know they'll perform. Just seems easier to me, long term. I've had gaming PCs and it wasn't too long before the top spec machine I had suddenly needed a new £400 card to keep up with games. Decided to cut my losses and stick to the consoles at that point.

[Jawloms]

I'm going to be after a gaming PC for my son for around £500 too soonish so this is a very useful thread. He will want a PC because he also does Blender, Video Editing, Streaming, and programming.

[simpsonj]

To be fair, you could look at a Chromebook/Cheap PC and a Cloud Gaming service: Geforce Now, Stadia, XCloud or Shadow. I suspect Sony will have a streaming service too soon, and I heard a rumour Amazon are looking at it too. Edited October 19, 2020 by simpsonj

[synaesthesia]

Are the buy a licence and download it websites generally ok then?

 

Yes they're fine, just stick with the reputable ones.

 

Got to laugh at the "just buy a console" - entirely defeating the point - TCO for PC gaming over the average device lifespan is something like half a current gen console.

[RLR]

It's not always about performance to everyone. There is a lot more you can do on a PC than on any of the consoles. Even if you can get a game on both formats I personally would still prefer to play on the PC even if it means playing on lower settings. The mod options for most games just blow consoles out of the water.

 

Depending on what type of games you play the PC gives a better experience as well. The ability to switch between mouse and keyboard or controller for one makes a ton of games way more playable. Most the games I play are a lot better with Mouse and keyboard which is why I would never want to switch out to a console, no matter how much more pretty the graphics might look.

 

My PC is old as dirt and probably comparable to a £600 new PC but there hasn't been a game I couldn't play on it yet. I would never swap it for a console.

 

I'm a PC gamer and don't really play on consoles unless I have to but modern consoles allow you to plug keyboard and mouse in these days.

[DaveTheTech]

I would suggest taking a look at Jayztwocents or LinusTechTips. LTTs forum is great at finding things like this.

 

LTT have a fairly recent build - pre Nvidia 3000 and Ryzen 5000 realeases. So prices should come down to what you are looking for:

[steveg]

Lets not turn this into console vs pc thread, both have advantages and disadvantages. They have certainly considered both, already have a console but are keen to get into pc gaming.

[CHiLL]

If it's a gaming PC for children, then you can definitely make one for £500. It won't have the performance of the new consoles, but children rarely care about looks until they're older, such as in their mid-teens. Linus of Linus Tech Tips did a video recently with a 90s Hot Wheels PC and his kids were engrossed in the games on it. 'Content is king' as he put it. If they're into Minecraft, Fortnite, etc and their friends play those, then PC is probably the way to go. If they're not into that, then console is probably the better option, unless you want to specifically get them into PC gaming (which is what you've said).

 

PC Part Picker is an excellent website to build and track prices of individual components, keeping compatibility. Though by the sounds of it, you're after a pre-built system? Scan, PC Specialist, Cyberpower, Chillblast, Overclockers and Box all offer the ability to configure a PC that they build and ship to you.

Edited October 19, 2020 by CHiLL