After attempting a major branding overhaul of several of its major PC lines last year, Dell appears to have reversed course and is reviving the XPS brand at CES 2026.

"We're getting back to our roots with a renewed focus on consumer and gaming," Dell Technologies vice chairman and chief operating officer, Jeff Clarke, said in a statement. "XPS is back, better than ever."

Among the first devices to sport the restored moniker are the new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16, as well as the return of the Dell XPS 13, which will come later this year.

More than just a name: Dell's redesign of the XPS is a welcome change

The new lineup is thoroughly redesigned, with a focus on premium materials, interfaces, and mobility. The new devices are sporting CNC aluminum and Gorilla Glass in their construction, along with a unibody base with structural side walls integrated into the body to boost rigidity and durability.

And, if only to really drive the point home for consumers, the XPS logo is moving to the front lid of the device for the first time, replacing the Dell logo that's marked Dell PC and laptops for many years.

The new Dell XPS design makes a number of changes that I've been hoping for since the launch of the Dell 13 Plus a few years back.

The ‘virtual’ function keys—effectively a touchbar with small backlit labels—used over the past few generations of the XPS 13, XPS 14, and XPS 16, as well as last year’s 14 Premium and 16 Premium, have been replaced by physical keys.

What's more, the touchpad isn’t hidden on the glassy chin of the laptop’s key deck as with earlier models, as the new XPS sports subtle lines around the touchpad, letting you know where it is.

Dell XPS 14 &XPS 16 Specs

The new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16 models will use Intel Core Ultra 300 series processors with Intel Arc integrated graphics featuring 12 Xe cores, and will no longer have options for discrete graphics. That said, Dell claims the new XPS models get more than 50% faster graphics versus the previous generation. There is also a redesigned thermal system to improve airflow in the thinner chassis to help keep the systems cooler and quieter.

Both models are very thin, measuring in at just 14.6mm thick, and the XPS 14 weighs in at about three pounds, while the XPS 16 weighs about 3.6 pounds, according to Dell. For the displays, there will be options for tandem OLED panels or 2K LCDs.

Perhaps most importantly, Dell claims up to 27 hours of use, or more than 40 hours of local video playback on a charge. If true, this would put the XPS ahead of even most ARM-based Qualcomm Snapdragon X laptops and MacBooks on the market.

Initial configurations go on sale in the US on Jan 6, starting at $2,049.99 for the XPS 14 and $2,199.99 for the XPS 16, with additional configurations and global availability to come. The Dell XPS 13 will launch later this year.

I know, I know – keyboard shortcuts are hard to remember, and most of them are so niche they're not even worth trying to waste memory on.

But some are incredibly useful, and I've put together this list of the shortcuts I actually use day-to-day for work, browsing, and gaming.

You may already know some of them – but I'm willing to bet you'll learn at least one new trick from this article that'll save you time and Windows-fueled headaches.

I put all of them in one quick-lookup table directly below, but if you want more in-depth explanations, use cases, and bonus shortcuts, read on.

These are the 10+ Windows 11 keyboard shortcuts I can't live without…

1. Windows + .

Windows + . is an incredibly handy little timesaver that not many users know about.

If you've ever Googled 'skull emoji,' tried to find an ASCII face like '( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°),' or realized you need the link you copied to your clipboard an hour ago, this shortcut, which opens the 'Emojis and more' table for you.

It's also invaluable for those who need to use special symbols like Em dashes (—), arrows (→), and various currencies ($ or £).

Windows + V will take you straight to your clipboard history, where you can see past text you've copied with Ctrl + C, and even recent screenshots you've taken. Clipboard history is disabled by default, but Windows + V will still get you there to enable it.

2. Windows + Shift + S

If I had a dime for every time I used Windows + Shift + S, I could buy Microsoft and get rid of Copilot.

Windows + Shift + S is far better than using PrtScn for screenshots because you can choose to grab either a rectangular area of your choosing, just the active window, your entire screen (taskbar and all), or even a freeform shape.

You can also use the toolbar at the top of Windows + Shift + S to switch to screen recording, a color picker that returns Hex, RGB, or HSL values, or a text grabber that allows you to quickly copy words from images or stubborn PDFs.

Plus, once you take a screenshot, you can paste it straight into chats or image-editing software with Ctrl + V.

Screenshots taken this way will be saved to the 'Screenshots' folder by default (not Downloads!)

3. Windows + Alt + Arrow keys

If you ever need to divide your screen up into halves or quadrants – so that you can read an article on the left side of your screen and take notes on the right half, for example – you can use Windows + Alt + Arrow keys for quick cycling between them.

4. Windows + Shift + Arrow keys

This one is for the multi-display users in the audience. If you kitted your setup with two or more of the best monitors, Windows + Shift + Arrow keys is a lifesaver.

You can quickly throw a full-screen video from your left monitor to your right one without having to exit full screen, drag the video over to the other monitor, then re-enter full screen.

It's also great for productivity, allowing you to quickly move spreadsheets or documents to your second monitor.

And for gamers, if a game starts on the wrong monitor you can move it to the correct one (though sometimes this will mess with the game's display resolution).

Plus, it comes in handy when Task Manager opens behind an unresponsive app and you can't access it otherwise.

5. Alt + Tab

Most of you with skin in the Windows game will be very familiar with Alt + Tab. It's a tried and true time-saver, letting you quickly flip through open windows without having to click around.

But it's so useful that I had to include it in this list just in case someone isn't already using it – if this shortcut were to disappear I might genuinely consider switching to Linux.

You can also use Windows + Tab to see all your open windows across multiple desktops, and it's better than Alt + Tab in some cases (for example when you want to look through your open windows without constantly holding down Alt).

6. Windows + Alt + G

If you want to capture highlights of your gameplay, share funny moments with friends, or have a replay to confirm your suspicions of a cheating enemy, Windows + Alt + G is the way to go.

You'll have to enable it before you can use it though, so be sure to open Xbox Game Bar with Windows + G (you do not need to own an Xbox), click the gear icon in the top nav bar to head to settings, then click Widgets and enable 'Record in the background while I'm playing a game.'

Once enabled, Windows + Alt + G will create a clip of the past 30 seconds of gameplay and save it to your Captures folder (in Videos).

You can also choose whether it records solely game audio, or desktop audio as well (which will capture mic inputs from Discord, for example). You can also use Windows + Alt + R to start an ongoing screen recording.

7. Ctrl + Arrow keys

Ctrl + Arrow keys is great for quickly navigating text. It jumps your cursor to the start or end of a word, and can be used in combination with Shift (Ctrl + Shift + Arrow keys) to highlight entire words or lines of text at a time.

It's perfect for grabbing certain sections of text to copy and paste or delete without using your mouse or Ctrl + A, which highlights all of the text on a page or in a text input field.

If you want to highlight text letter by letter, or line by line, use Shift + Arrow keys.

8. Ctrl + F

I've saved my friends countless hours with this one. If you're searching for a name, a date, or even just a certain letter in a document or web page, Ctrl + F will do the searching for you.

After using Ctrl + F to bring up the search field, simply type in whatever you're searching for and use the arrow keys to the right of the search bar to jump directly to the text you want.

It also tells you how many times a certain word, number, or phrase appears on the page, which is useful if you're writing a paper so you can see when it's time to sub in a synonym. I just used Ctrl + F to see that this is the first time I used the word 'paper' in this article (it just jumped to two).

9. Ctrl + R

Ctrl + R refreshes the browser tab you're currently on, which is great for getting fresh results on limited-time sales events, live-blog pages, and YouTube recommendations, among other things.

10. Ctrl + Shift + T

Ctrl + Shift + T will open recently-closed tabs on browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera.

This is a huge time-saver if you close a tab only to realize you need to look at it again, or if you accidentally close the entire browser and need to get your tabs back.

It reopens tabs in the order they were closed, so if you need multiple tabs open again just use Ctrl + Shift + T multiple times.

Got a favorite Windows 11 shortcut of your own? Let me know in the comments below!

Lenovo Yoga AIO 27: One-minute review

The Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 might make me a convert to the all-in-one PC, thanks to its sleek and ergonomic build, vibrant screen, and solid performance. The fact that it can be used as an external monitor is not only the cherry on top, but a point in favor of it being considered among the best all-in-one computers out there.

Of course, the lack of modularity, as with any all-in-one, can frustrate those who are used to digging into cases and upgrading parts, but as far as a hassle-free package, this is one of the best computers you're going to find on the market.

That said, even outside of its form factor, there are a few issues, such as the 'just okay' sound quality and a confusing array of configurations.

I will admit that if you go on the Lenovo website or Best Buy in the US (where my review unit can be purchased), you won’t be quite as confused as me. But UK and Australia shoppers will have some very different configurations available to you.

Whatever configuration you go with though, they're all more than enough to satisfy your general computing and productivity needs, so if you’re in the market for an all-in-one PC, the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 is a very easy recommendation.

Lenovo Yoga AIO 27: Price & availability

• How much does it cost? Starting at $979.99 / £1,020.00 / AU$1,149.00
• When is it available? Available now
• Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

Thanks in part to the continuing relevance of the Apple iMac and its current iteration, the Apple iMac 24-inch M4, every brand has some kind of sleek, attractive all-in-One computer on offer. And like the iMac, the hardware seems eerily similar to what you would get from a powerful Ultrabook or Macbook.

As such, AIO models like the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 are generally reasonably priced. The Yoga AIO 27 starts at $979.99 / £1,020.00 / AU$1,149.00, while the iMac M4 has a more expensive starting price of $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$1,999, plus it has a smaller 24-inch screen. On top of that, Apple’s upgrades, whether for RAM or hard drive space, come at a premium.

Another good benchmark as far as price goes is the HP OmniStudio X 31.5. Its lowest configuration is actually cheaper at $830.99 (about £620 / AU$1,270) for an Intel Core Ultra 5 CPU, 16GB RAM, and 256GB SSD, as well as a 1080p 27-inch screen.

It’s worth noting that there are some serious variations between what’s available in the US, UK, and Australia. The UK and Australia both have customizations (more on that below), unlike the US, with Australia actually offering discrete graphics.

So, Australians, at least, can probably game with this AIO, though everyone else will need to temper their expectations.

• Value: 4.5 / 5

Lenovo Yoga AIO 27: Specs

• Soldered RAM
• Configurations can vary widely by region

The offerings from Lenovo on the Yoga AIO 27 (specifically the 27IAH10 model) is pretty straightforward, however, there’s a lot of variance between territories.

In the US, you have two models available directly through Lenovo. The base configuration comes with a Intel Core Ultra 5 125H, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD.

The more expensive model is the same, but with a more powerful Intel Core Ultra 7 255H CPU and 1GB SSD. Best Buy offers a different model that’s similar to the more robust one, but without the touchscreen, which is what was reviewed here.

In the UK, you can choose CPUs including an even more powerful Intel Core Ultra 9 285H, between 512GB and a 1TB SSD, and you can choose between touch and non-touch screens. You are locked into 32GB of RAM.

Australia only allows you to choose the size of the hard drive, but is more powerful since it has that Intel Core Ultra 9 285H, 32GB of RAM, and actual discrete graphics in the form of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 GPU.

Regardless of what you choose (or have available to you), the RAM is soldered in, unfortunately.

As mentioned earlier, you are able to choose between a touch and non-touch screen, though the resolution (1440p), refresh rate (120Hz), and basically everything else about it is the same.

You can also choose whether you get an IR-enabled webcam or not for a nominal upgrade. Otherwise, everything on the exterior including the color called Luna Grey is the same regardless of model.

• Specs: 3.5 / 5

Lenovo Yoga AIO 27: design

• Sleek, attractive look with good ergonomics
• Good ergonomics
• Great looking screen that can be used with other computers

I remember when I first started seeing Windows all-in-one computers start to pop (long before I was a writer) and they were not pretty. The word I would probably use is egalitarian. So it was a bit of a surprise when I got the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 in all its Ultrabook glory.

Yes, in my opinion, this AIO is basically what you get when you take a Lenovo Yoga laptop and turn it into an all-in-one. It’s sleek, comes in a very attractive colorway called Luna Grey, and has a gorgeous screen (more on that later).

In fact, it’s so nice looking, I had to double check that it didn’t have an aluminum case. Instead, it’s made of 30% ocean-bound plastic – pretty cool for those worried about the environment. The box it comes in is also fairly sustainable as it’s all paper or cardboard.

Back to the computer, it has some good ergonomics. First, it has a round base that can pivot in either direction 90 degrees, while the screen itself can pivot and additional 45 degrees to each side. Its tilt is up 10 degrees and down 5, which I do wish was a little more. And it has a lift of 70mm. It’s pretty easy to adjust the screen to your liking.

Speaking of the 27-inch screen, its resolution is decent at 1440p, much higher than I'm used to seeing on AIOs. But what’s more impressive are its other aspects. It has a solid refresh rate of 120Hz, supports HDR (though Lenovo doesn’t specify to what degree), and has quite wide color coverage and accuracy.

In our benchmarks, it had a sRGB rating of 116.5% and DCI-P3 of 82.6%, meaning it’s great for colors but not as good for contrast. It does have an accuracy of Delta>0.21.

Other design details include two three watt tweeters and two five watt tweeters to support Dolby Atmos, dual microphones, and a five megapixel camera.

Some models have IR capabilities like the one reviewed and some do not, a feature useful for Windows Hello that unlocks the computer when you log in instead of having to type in a password or use a fingerprint reader.

If that’s worrisome, don’t worry. Among the buttons on the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 is an e-privacy shutter.

There’s also a power button, an OSD button for controlling screen settings, and a switch button as you can actually use the screen as a standalone screen for another computer or use just the computer part with an external screen.

That means that there are two HDMI ports, one out and one in. The port selection in general is pretty robust and also includes three USB-A and two USB-C ports along with an Ethernet and an aux jack. Some of them are on the back of the stand, while some of them are on the side.

Lastly, the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 comes with its own matching keyboard and mouse. They’re both wireless and work fine, but if you’re particular about your accessories, you might want to upgrade to one of the best keyboards and best mice, especially the mouse, as it doesn’t have any side buttons.

That said, I didn't have any issues with them during general use or even spending a bit of time working on them.

• Design: 4.5 / 5

Lenovo Yoga AIO 27: Performance

• Good performance for most work
• Using it as a monitor for another PC is seamless
• Sound quality is OK

I threw around the Ultrabook label earlier for the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27, and I mean it. The PC comes with the same CPU, integrated graphics, and RAM configurations that you would find on one of the best laptops that wasn't specifically for gaming.

In terms of day-to-day use, that means you can easily have a bunch of tabs open and do just about any productivity work you could think of. It can handle some creative work, such as photo editing, but is a bit underpowered for editing video or 3D design. That is, unless you like long rendering times.

It can do light gaming, but won’t be able to handle the latest AAA titles unless you can get your hands on a model with a discrete Nvidia GPU, which is currently limited to Australia.

Really, I find this best for having a large, pretty screen to do regular productivity work and maybe some streaming.

I’m more impressed by the fact that I can use the screen as a monitor for another computer. That 1440p resolution can be limiting if you have a souped up gaming laptop, but it does allow some device consolidation if you like to have one computer for productivity and one for gaming. Regardless, using it as an external monitor is pretty seamless.

While it’s nice that the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 can support Dolby Atmos, the sound quality is decent but not great. It’s a bit mid-heavy and doesn’t quite have the clarity that having the best computer speakers would.

• Performance: 4.5 / 5

Should you buy the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27?

Buy the Lenovo Yoga AIO 27 if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

If my Lenovo Yoga AiO 27 review has you considering other options, here are two other AiO PCs to consider...

How I tested the Lenovo Yoga AiO 27

• Tested for a couple weeks
• Used it for productivity, streaming, gaming
• Tried out its various features

I used the Lenovo Yoga AiO 27 for a couple weeks, mainly for productivity, and I also used it for some streaming and tried to do some light gaming as well, not to mention tested its various features.

I’ve spent the last few years reviewing tech gear for gaming and otherwise, where I’ve gotten a feel for what to look for and how to put a piece of kit through its paces to see whether it’s worth the recommendation.

• First reviewed November 2025

• Teenage Engineering has produced a new PC case
• The Computer-2 is a sequel to the Computer-1, but it's free
• It's made of plastic rather than aluminum, and unfortunately out of stock right now

Thinking of building a new computer? What if I told you that you could get the PC case for free - you probably wouldn't believe me, would you? Well, you can - with a couple of notable caveats, but this is still fundamentally a freebie.

The Verge reports that Teenage Engineering (more typically associated with nifty audio hardware) now has a sequel to its Computer-1 PC case. Can you guess what it's called? Yep: the Computer-2 case - in a stunning stroke of creativity.

The key difference is that, unlike the original case, which cost $ 149 in the US, the follow-up is free. Another notable change is that instead of aluminum, it's made of plastic, which is obviously a cost-saving measure.

In fact, it's a single sheet of semi-transparent plastic that folds into a PC chassis (using hinges and snap hooks). There are no screws needed, and the motherboard can simply be pushed and clicked into place, Teenage Engineering informs us.

It must be a (small) mini-ITX motherboard, mind, as this is a small form-factor (SFF) case for a compact PC build. It can fit an SFX power supply and a dual-slot graphics card (7 inches is the maximum length for the discrete GPU).

As well as the sheet of plastic that forms the chassis itself, you get the bits and pieces to go with it in terms of various power cables, fasteners, feet for the case to stand on, and so forth.

Analysis: What about those catches?

Okay, so coming back to the cost being a – literally – round figure of nothing - how on earth can this PC case be provided for free? Well, it can't, and Teenage Engineering is charging for the shipping to cover sending out the Computer-2 as you might guess (and likely a bit of that is to cover the cost of production). Of course, that's fair enough - it does mean you are getting the components themselves for free.

The other catch is that Computer-2 is already marked as sold out on the official website; you can only click to receive a notification when stock is back in. You can still examine the instructions, though, to get a better understanding of what construction involves, and exactly what you'll get.

By all accounts, the Computer-1 is a great case for a small PC build - and this new plastic take on the formula looks equally cool, especially given the price here (or lack of it). Anecdotally, I've seen a report of the shipping costing $16 (in the US) if you're wondering exactly what you might end up paying (when it's back in stock).

As for mulling over buying a cheap case in general, you can get some great products at the budget end of the market. Just be careful around airflow issues - especially if it's a gaming PC that you're building - and be sure to consult reviews to ensure you're not picking up a dud (and also our best PC cases buying guide will come in handy).

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Microsoft’s Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 7 Copilot+ PCs are finally launching, and, as it turns out, they are some of the most repairable laptops on the market.

According to a new breakdown of the laptops thanks to iFixit, they praised how easily technicians can service them. Shahram Mokhtari from the official YouTube channel walks through the process of detaching each component, including the motherboard, to demonstrate how straightforward it is to remove and repair them.

Under the case of each device are several labels and QR codes that feature a wrench symbol above them. Microsoft calls the labels ‘Wayfinder Markings,’ and they inform you how what kind of screws you need and how many of them to secure components in that area. Meanwhile, the QR codes bring you to Microsoft’s official service guides page for easy instructions.

The ease of parts removal has been greatly improved, which is especially a boon for laptops. For instance, batteries in the Surface Laptop can now be removed by simply removing the bottom feet and back cover, compared to older models that required nearly every other component to be taken out first. This was especially egregious when the battery was the only serviceable part of the laptop. SSD cards are also simple to take out. Unfortunately, memory is soldered to the motherboard, making it difficult for the average user to detach and replace.

The Surface Pro is just as easy to work on, with the SSD replaceable without disassembly, and removing the display is much simpler than other tablets. However, due to the adhesive securing the screen, replacing other components like the battery can be a bit more challenging.

The Surface Pro and Surface Laptop each receive a repairability score of 8 out of 10, a massive improvement compared to Microsoft’s disastrous scoring back in 2017, when iFixit gave the original Surface Laptop a zero out of ten score for repairability. It seems that after that, Microsoft was determined to turn over a new leaf, even partnering with iFixit in 2021 to start selling Surface repair tools.

Meanwhile, MacBooks and Chromebooks are among the worst laptops for repairability, according to a report called Failing the Fix, which was compiled by the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a consumer advocacy organization in the U.S. Sounds like Apple and Google should be taking a page from Microsoft’s book and overhaul their own PCs to be far more user friendly. 

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Microsoft is looking to set new standards for PC hardware specs, as the tech giant is apparently planning to set a 16GB RAM requirement for any AI PCs.

This comes from a TrendForce market research report (reported on by TechPowerUp), with the reason most likely being to push AI PCs – PCs that use built-in AI acceleration for several AI features native to Windows 11 23H2. 

This is especially true of Copilot, an AI chatbot that automates and generates work. Microsoft has been pushing this feature especially hard, including a dedicated Copilot key on Windows keyboards similar to the Windows key. 

Copilot and Microsoft’s other AI tools will require certain hardware requirements for local acceleration, with the first being the NPU (Neural Processing Unit) that’s used for dedicated processing and the second being memory. Hence why Microsoft needs AI PCs to have at least 16GB of RAM at a minimum for both native and cloud-based Copilot features to function.

16GB should be the standard going forward

There are plenty of other Copilot announcements like the dedicated Copilot key, the Copilot Pro subscription service that adds additional AI tools such as ChatGPT Plus, as well as a feature currently being tested that would tailor Copilot’s chat responses based on previous chats by saving them. 

And though the aforementioned reveals have been on the controversial side, the 16GB of RAM requirement for all Windows AI PCs is easily one of the best announcements related to Copilot and Windows AI in general. 

In fact, 16GB should be a RAM standard for any Windows laptops and desktops going forward. With the rising costs of laptops that started during the pandemic and haven’t shown any sign of slowing down, it’s honestly unbelievable that any PC could be released with 8GB or even an abysmal 4GB of RAM.

Hopefully, not only will AI laptops and desktops see a baseline of 16GB in 2024 and beyond (with commercial PCs seeing 32GB or even 64GB standards), but this requirement will spread to non-AI PCs in general.  As manufacturers see customers expect computers to have such a standard, the shift could very likely happen.

Fingers crossed that this reported initiative from Microsoft will be the kick the PC industry needs to stop releasing machines with such low RAM, as it directly harms the performance of said machines.

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Microsoft has begun informing Windows 10 and Windows 11 users about an automatic overhaul to the new-and-improved Outlook app. The built-in Mail and Calendar applications have made managing emails and planning upcoming events pretty easy since 2015 - but they’ll soon be gone, swallowed up by Outlook to place all those tools under one desktop icon.

Windows users can try out the new version of Outlook by enabling the toggle button in the top-right corner of the Windows Mail app. As it stands, Outlook lets you import all your settings from the Mail app directly, so the switch shouldn’t be too painful for users looking to embrace the new tool.

Windows Latest notes that in an exclusive document, currently available only to Microsoft 365 business users, Microsoft confirms the beginning of a mandatory migration process slated for later this year.

From August 2023, Microsoft will automatically migrate Mail and Calendar app users to the new Outlook. You’ll be able to opt-out and cling to your beloved apps for a little while by turning off a toggle in the top right corner of the app, but don’t expect Microsoft to let you keep them forever.

The document also reveals that commencing next year, all Windows 11 devices will come pre-installed with Outlook for Windows. You can still download Windows Mail and Calendar from the Microsoft Store onto your new device if you wish - at least, until the end of 2024.

The move signals a shift in Microsoft’s Windows mentality, with an apparent growing desire to consolidate the software users have access to and (hopefully) streamline the OS’s user experience. Could this be a sign of things to come in Windows 12?

To begin with, it is essential to understand that all-in-one (AIO) computers are typically considered desktop computers. However, they differ from the rest of the desktop PCs, such as tower, mini or stick PCs, in terms of several factors; portability, affordability, design, and performance to name a few. 

An AIO computer sports everything that is necessary as a desktop component. So, you’re getting a processor, memory, video card, monitor, and speakers – all in the same device. It even comes with an excellent webcam. On the other hand, all other types of desktop computers mentioned above are machines that host just the processing unit of a computer. They consist of a processor, memory, and a graphics card among other internal parts. Hence, they need to be paired with a monitor, speakers, keyboard, and mouse. 

Both AIO and non-AIO desktop PCs have their fair share of pros and cons. In this guide, we attempt to draw a comparison between regular AIO computers and all other kinds of desktop PCs. We have categorized the discussion below into sections on price, design, and performance. 

All-in-one computer vs desktop PC: price

• Desktop PCs offer more flexibility in terms of purchasing additional components
• AIO computers are far more expensive to repair

The flexibility that comes with purchasing a desktop PC makes it more affordable than an AiO computer. This means that you can easily upgrade your desktop PC with a recently released CPU or GPU instead of investing in a new machine. However, in the case of an AIO computer, you don’t have much of a choice. Since AIOs come as a complete package that a brand has already put together, there is little flexibility offered in terms of customization and upgrades. Therefore, you’d have to replace the machine as a whole when the components inside get obsolete. 

Desktop PCs are also more affordable to repair. Overall, it would cost far less to open up a desktop and fix the component that’s causing the issue. In the case of AIO computers, repairs can end up being fairly pricey as they’re harder to tinker with if they even allow for the issue to be fixed.

• Winner: Desktop PC

All-in-one computer vs desktop PC: design

• AIO computers feature better form factor and take up less space
• You don’t need any additional shopping with an AIO
• Desktop PCs are extremely hard to move but easily configurable and repairable

An AIO packs everything in a small body and doesn’t take as much real estate on your desk as a desktop PC does. Not only is the latter considerably bigger in itself, but all its various components take additional space too. You may end up finding a relatively slim and low-profile desktop, but you would still need ample space for all other accessories. 

Closely related to the point mentioned above is the form factor of an AIO computer. An AIO computer beats a desktop PC by a mile. Its body is slimmer and much more appealing than that of a desktop. This isn’t to say that desktop PCs are unpleasant in terms of looks. In fact, the modern ones come equipped with attractive RGB lighting that enhances their overall aesthetic. But if form factor means a lot to you, definitely go for an AIO. 

An AIO computer also takes away the burden of additional shopping. Since you’re getting everything in a single package, you’re not required to spend your time and energy looking up and buying accompanying accessories. This can be particularly helpful if you’re someone who has limited knowledge in this area and wishes to upgrade without delving too deep into research. Whether or not that’s true for you, feel free to check out our guides on the best computer speakers, mice, keyboards, and monitors for some additional help. 

Even though AIO computers aren’t exactly what many would call portable, especially compared to laptops, they’re still capable of being moved far more easily than other desktop PCs. Moving a desktop PC, if you ever need to, would be a hassle. Collecting its various peripherals, gathering all of its wires and cables, and managing the weight of it all isn’t easy. Hence, they heavily limit you to your workspace, way more than an AiO computer does. 

There are areas where other desktop PCs shine too. First of all, they offer an easily configurable design. As previously mentioned, it’s very simple to open a desktop and tweak the components inside. This can come in handy when you’re in the mood to upgrade. You can simply replace a specific part with the newest, most recent version of it. 

Whereas, with most AIOs, you’re pretty much stuck with the same body and configuration. You likely won’t have the flexibility to upgrade to newer components that are best suited to your needs. This could also result in problems when any of the features on your AIO gets outdated. 

The fact that an AIO computer is also much more difficult to repair is closely linked to the point above. In a desktop PC, there are several quick fixes that even a layman with little technical knowledge can manage. These include replacing a specific component, cleaning the fan, etc. An AIO, on the other hand, is quite difficult to open. In some cases, it doesn’t even allow the user to tinker with its inside parts. And when it does, its hardware is often extremely unreachable. 

The hardware inside an AIO is often soldered so well that it doesn’t allow tweaking. Moreover, opening up AIO computers is considered to go against the warranty in some cases. Repairs end up being a huge hassle, and the user has no option but to send the entire device to a technician. This doesn’t only cost the user significant money but also deprives them of a PC for a considerable amount of time, causing inconvenience. This also means that if there’s an issue with your display or the speakers inside, you’ll also have to send the whole thing out for repair.

• Winner: Tie

All in one computer vs desktop PC: performance

• Processing power depends on your device’s model
• AIOs are easier to set up and often offer brilliant displays with touch control

Performance-wise, both AIOs and other kinds of desktop PCs can be powerful or not depending on their model. For instance, most Windows-powered AIOs are not quite powerful in terms of graphics. This is due to the fact that they feature integrated graphics cards, instead of dedicated ones. These include Intel or AMD graphics, which tend to perform not as well as Nvidia’s RTX cards that you’ll find in more robust desktop computers and gaming PCs.

On the other hand, some Apple AIOs feature an extremely powerful processor chip, the M1, which is excellent for graphics-intensive tasks such as video editing, 3D graphic design, and photo editing. Hence, ultimately, the performance of a machine depends on the processing power and graphics of the model that you’re opting for. 

If your work requires using memory-intensive software or if you’re into hardcore gaming, an AIO computer with integrated graphics may be underwhelming for you. Even if you manage to run intense software on it, it may result in thermal throttling because of the lack of ventilation.

• Winner: Tie, depending on what you need

All in one computer vs desktop PC: upgradability

• Desktops are easier to upgrade
• Most AIO do not give you the option to upgrade their internals

AIO computers are also harder to upgrade as compared to desktop PCs. As mentioned already, desktop PCs are simple to open up, hence resulting in easier upgrades. Technology is constantly advancing and with newer versions being released every few months, you would likely want to get rid of obsolete components. This could include a speedier processor or an improved graphics card, among other things. 

In the case of an AIO, even if you invest in a system that offers the latest features and specs, they will, too, eventually start slowing down in a few years. Desktop PCs are incredibly simple to open up and tweak. You can simply take a graphics card out and install another. AIOs are more difficult to open up, and in most cases, they don’t allow the user to open them up at all. 

AIO computers are preferred over other desktop PCs in terms of how easy they are to set up, however. Offering a plug-and-play option, an AIO computer is practically ready to be used out of the box. In the case of a desktop PC, you’re supposed to pair a number of peripherals and manage several cables before you can use it.

AIO computers now offer quite advanced screen technology. Modern AIOs come equipped with premium displays offering rich colors and sharp picture quality. Often, they also sport touch control and pen support. This makes the device an excellent option for all your art and design-related needs.

• Winner: Tie

All-in-one computer vs desktop PC: Which one should you go for?

It’s a close competition between the two with desktop PCs winning by a slight margin. While there’s a tie in terms of design and performance, desktop PC aces in the price category. 

All in all, it ultimately depends on your workflow. If you have a very light workflow that involves MS Office and light browsing, then an AIO computer with integrated graphics may be sufficient for you. It would be able to manage your workload without heating up, and you wouldn’t feel the need to upgrade to the latest processor every few months. 

However, if your lifestyle involves playing intense games or your work requires you to use, for instance, professional video-editing software, then investing in either an Apple AIO or a desktop PC with dedicated graphics makes much more sense. It’s also easily configurable and simple to repair. 

Memory for your PC could soon get a fair bit cheaper according to an analyst firm, which has just revised its predictions to suggest heavier drops in the price tags of RAM sticks.

TrendForce tells us that the DRAM market is witnessing Korean manufacturers dropping prices to stoke demand from customers in the midst of oversupply, and these reduced prices are going to lead to considerably cheaper memory modules going forward.

While TrendForce had previously estimated a fall in pricing for consumer RAM sticks to the tune of 8% to 13% in Q3, that has been revised to a predicted quarterly decline of at least 13%, or maybe up to 18% – which is almost a fifth cheaper.

That’s quite a hefty drop down, and it’s a trend which is apparently set to continue into Q4, the analyst firm observes, where a further 3% to 8% drop is forecast (again, more than the original prediction which was for pricing to only fall at 5% at the most, and in the best-case scenario, price tags would remain the same in Q4).

Beyond that, TrendForce believes that the “possibility of sustained decline cannot be ruled out”, meaning we could see further downward movement as 2023 rolls around.

Analysis: Play a waiting game for RAM, if you can

The upshot of all this is that if you’re thinking of buying new RAM, it might be worth waiting longer for some decent further price reductions – particularly if it’s more expensive system memory, or larger capacity modules, that you’ve got your eye on.

The caveat here is that while this is very likely the case for DDR4 memory, at least if the analyst firm is correct – and all the signs point that way – price tags for the newest standard, DDR5 RAM, may not come down to the same extent.

That said, as DDR5 matures it’ll become less expensive (and more performant) anyway, so it’s worth holding off for a while yet purely on that basis. As you may recall, DDR5 has already witnessed some big price drops in the last couple of months, and there’s no reason to believe that won’t continue.

So, if you’re mulling a RAM upgrade, our advice is to try to stay strong and hold out a bit longer. And even those building a new PC might want to play a waiting game, not just for slightly cheaper RAM prices, but likely some fair old drops with GPU pricing which are likely in the cards (so to speak) right now. Indeed, with Ryzen 7000 and Raptor Lake CPUs, as well as next-gen graphics cards all coming soon, it’s surely a good time to be patient, anyway.

Via Tom’s Hardware

HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Two-minute review

The HP Chromebase All-in-One 22 is helping usher all-in-one PCs into the mainstream market, and it’s about damn time. Even now, most AIO PCs on the market are pricey and tend to target professionals who need a minimalist yet powerful solution for their demanding computing workloads. 

That isn’t to say that there aren’t all-in-one computers on the market that are affordable enough to the general public. But, you also have to dig deep to find them, as the likes of the iMac (24-inch, 2021) and the HP Envy 34 All-in-One tend to outshine them all.

Also, anything under $800 / £800 tends to feel slightly underpowered, especially when running a full-fledged operating system like Windows 11.

The HP Chromebase All-in-One 22 fixes all that by using similar specs, but utilizing the lightweight Chrome OS instead. Bridging the gap between the popular (and usually affordable) Chromebooks and the minimalist appeal of AIOs, it offers a snappier performance than its Windows 11 counterparts – not to mention, an attractive design – while keeping its price within easy reach of most consumers.

Among its many notable features are its 21.5-inch touchscreen display with portrait mode, a 2,592 × 1,944-resolution webcam with impressive noise reduction, a two-step privacy cover, and a pair of 5W speakers with plenty of volume. 

There are some compromises here – unsurprising considering its price – but there excellent premium features as well, namely its beautiful compact design and its browser multitasking prowess. Finally, users whose daily needs largely involve browsing, streaming, and sending emails now have a budget-realistic AIO option.

If you're looking for an all-in-one for everyone in your household, your work-from-home setup, or the matriculating member of your family, the HP Chromebase All-in-One 22 is a tough contender to beat.

HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Price and availability

• Several configurations on offer
• Limited availability in the UK

How budget-friendly is the HP Chromebase All-in-One 22 exactly? At the moment, it’s available in several configurations in the US, starting at $629 / £629. This base configuration comes with an Intel Pentium 6405U, Intel UHD graphics, and 8GB of memory as well as 128GB SSD. While that might sound a little underpowered, remember that it’s also running a lightweight operating system that doesn’t need robust specs. 

If you do need something more robust, the most kitted-out configuration – the same configuration that was sent to TechRadar for testing – will give you an Intel Core i3-10110U, 16GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, and the same integrated graphics for $699 / £699.

Unfortunately, consumers in the Australia would have to wait to get their hands on an HP Chromebase as it’s currently unavailable in the region. It's also currently unavailable in the HP UK store, but you should be able to find some configurations available at some UK online retailers. On the bright side, the UK HP store suggests that it will soon become available.

Value: 4 / 5

HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Design and features

• Beautiful, premium design
• Thoughtful design details

HP doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to the HP Chromebase All-in-One 22’s design. This is meant to be a space-saving, minimalist, and appealing all-in-one, and it succeeds in that regard with its 21.5-inch display, compact conical stand that stores all the innards, ports, and speakers, and beautiful white finish that makes it look pricier than it is. 

The display size might not be ideal for power users and multi-taskers, but it’s certainly enough for this computer’s target market. Plus, its touch capability is beautifully responsive, something you’d expect from pricier models.

There’s also a decent port selection that’s more than enough for the average user. Not that you’d be needing peripherals as it does come with its own Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, both of which get the job done. 

The keyboard is comfortable to type on, despite lacking some keys, including media keys (apart from the volume buttons). The mouse could be better – there’s a little more resistance on its buttons than we’d like – but it also does what it’s supposed to do. Users who aren’t very particular with their peripherals will be satisfied.

There are thoughtful design features as well, some of which even the iMac 24-inch doesn’t have, namely the pivot-capable display that will let you switch from landscape to portrait mode with just, quite literally, a finger. 

There aren’t any swivel or horizontal adjustments here, but if you require that vertical space to read news articles, work on your book, or help the kids with their essays, you’ll appreciate the fact that portrait mode is on hand and just a push of a finger away. There’s also some up and down tilt for more comfortable viewing.

Another thoughtful design feature is its webcam’s privacy shutter, which allows you to block any video feed and turn the mic off completely when not in use. 

Having this feature prevents hackers and other malicious people on the Internet from using your webcam and mic to spy on you, or worse.

Design: 4.5 / 5

HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Performance

• Browser performance is ace
• Speakers loud but not the best sounding

The Chrome OS doesn’t need powerful specs to run smoothly, so it isn’t surprising that when paired with an Intel Core i3-10110U and 16GB of memory, it runs snappier than ever. The HP Chromebase All-in-One 22 scores high in the Kraken JavaScript benchmark test, giving us a lofty 895.3ms, and a decent 134.5 in the Jetstream 2 test.

It proves that in practice as well. On test, we often have it run 20 or more tabs at the same time, several of which have Google Docs Editors suite pages and online publications open, as well as shopping sites and streaming services, and it handles those without signs of a slowdown. This is an all-in-one made for demanding browser needs and multitasking.

Meanwhile, the built-in 5W stereo speakers, which again are housed in the stand, are good as well. They aren’t as crisp and detailed as the speakers you’d find on pricier all-in-ones, but they get pretty loud with decent bass response to fill a room… or at least a small- to medium-sized one. 

Fair warning, however: pump that volume up to 100%, and they’ll sound as if tiny little ice picks are stabbing at your eardrums. So, best keep that volume under 90%.

Performance: 4 / 5

HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Webcam and mic

• Excellent noise reduction
• Crisp and clear mic

If you plan on using the webcam and mic for work meetings and video calls with loved ones, you’ll be happy to know that you’re getting a decently high 2,592 × 1,944 resolution here. It’s not the most detailed webcam we’ve used, and there’s not a lot of contrast or dynamic range. However, it excels in noise reduction, keeping that luminance and chromatic noise well-controlled even in low lighting.

The mic is also great, although it comes with its own compromise. Your voice will come out crisp and clear, but as will any background noise since there isn’t any noise rejection – not surprising since this isn’t a premium all-in-one PC.

Webcam: 4 / 5

Should I buy the HP Chromebase All-in-One 22?

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HP Chromebase All-in-One 22: Report card

How we test

We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.

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Choosing the best PC case for your build can be trickier than it looks at first glance. For newcomers to PC building, the sheer variety of sizes, styles, and features can feel overwhelming.

Do you go with a tried-and-true mid-tower, opt for the expansive real estate of a full tower, or lean toward a compact chassis that saves on desk space? The answer often depends on what kind of system you’re building, how much hardware you plan to install, and, of course, your budget.

To make the process easier, I’ve put together a list of our favorite cases based on hands-on testing and real-world use from members of the TechRadar team.

It’s worth mentioning that I’m currently in the process of revamping this buying guide with fresh recommendations from my testing lab, where I'll be doing more extensive analysis of the latest cases to hit the market. That said, the products featured here are still excellent choices that I can recommend with confidence. My personal favorite is the Hyte Y70 Touch, which earned a rare 5-star score thanks to its premium design, spacious layout, and innovative diagnostics display.

It does come at a higher price, though, which is why we also highlight budget-friendly alternatives such as the Fractal Design Meshify-C and the Asus Prime AP201—both available for under $100.

At TechRadar, we’ve reviewed thousands of computing products over the past 15 years, so we know what makes a case worth your money. Whether you’re planning your very first build or upgrading an existing machine, these recommendations are a solid starting point. And if you’re going all-in on a new rig, don’t forget to check out our companion guides on the best graphics cards, best processors, and best SSDs to pair with your new case.

Best PC case in 2025: Quick List

The best PC cases in 2025

Below you'll find my picks for the best PC cases of 2025, broken down by category, so you can find the right PC case for your needs and budget.

The best PC case overall

PC cases don’t come much more cutting edge than this one. The Hyte Y70 Touch has a cut-away design on one of its front corners that features a 4K interactive touchscreen, on which you can display system information, live backgrounds, and quick access widgets to launch programs.

Running on Hyte’s Nexus software, the touchscreen acts as a second Windows display for your PC; meaning it provides practical functionality, rather than just a gimmicky visual aesthetic. And once the software is up and running, configuring this gorgeous display is an intuitive affair that rewards you with time-saving substance to add to that style.

This premium case comes with a spacious interior as well, boasting room for up to 10 case fans, and three radiators. Its dual-chamber design conveniently allows for plenty of air circulation too, giving you a helping hand when it comes to keeping everything cool. Plus, the glass panels on either side of the touchscreen display are ideal for showing off your GPU as well.

It won’t come as any surprise that the biggest drawback with this remarkable mid-tower case is the hefty asking price. As impressive (and useful) as that 4K touchscreen panel is, you could argue that it’s an unnecessary extravagance, making it harder to justify the price point.

However, it’s hard to fault the case itself. Standing out from the crowd from a mile off, the Hyte Y70 Touch is going to turn heads, and then some. Packed with neat, quality-of-life features, all wrapped up with a 4K touchscreen bow, this is the PC case for you, if your budget can stretch to it.

Read the full Hyte Y70 Touch review

The best mid-tower PC case

It is extremely rare to see any PC case that even vaguely resembles the Fractal Design Meshify-C. Given that the front of the case is entirely made of a mesh material sectioned off into an array of polygonal shapes, the Meshify-C has a unique style – without compromising on function.

With two fans pre-installed, cooling is (forgive us) a breeze, even if the Meshify-C is held back by a number of obstacles, like the difficulty in removing the PSU dust filter and the front USB 3.0 cable being frustratingly short, making it difficult to plug into your motherboard.

The best small tower case

The Asus Prime AP201 is one of our favorite cases for microATX builds thanks to its tool-free access, 360-degree airflow, and surprisingly large capacity. It also helps aid in cable management thanks to the 32mm gap on the motherboard tray to help keep cables tucked away.

It can support both MicroATX and Mini-ITX motherboards, up to a 180mm power supply, and up to a 338mm long graphics card, so it can even hold an RTX 4090 Founders Edition (though definitely look into a GPU bracket, since one isn't included with this case). You can also fit in a 360mm AIO cooler, though only just barely.

Getting everything situated in the case is going to be a challenge given its size (no small tower case will be easy to configure with modern hardware), but the AP201 manages to make the process as relatively painless as possible thanks to a number of clever design choices, like mounting the PSU at the front of the case with an extension cable running to the back.

If there's a drawback, it would be the lack of a glass side panel option for those who want to show off the interior of their builds, but for those who want a PC that blends in rather than stands out, this just might be exactly what you want.

All in all, the Asus Prime AP201 is the ideal small tower case for anyone looking for a high-performance build with a smaller footprint. It might take time for some to fit everything they need inside, but if you're up to the challenge, this case will serve you well for a long time to come.

To save money on Asus products, check out our Asus promo codes.

The best DIY case

If your idea of building your own custom PC involves doing it yourself as much as possible, the Cooler Master Qube 500 Flatpack may be one of the most satisfying PC cases there is. This flatpack PC case puts you in mind of a certain Scandinavian furniture emporium, although luckily the instructions here are much more helpful.

Assembling the Cooler Master Qube 500 is a relatively straightforward and enjoyable process, thanks to the detailed instructions provided by Cooler Master’s YouTube Channel, which are clear and easy to follow.

The completed product offers excellent ventilation, and compact storage for all the essentials. Integrated carry handles on the top mean that repositioning the case is nice and easy, and you won’t struggle to find a handhold when lugging it around.

On the downside, this case is on the smaller side, so you’ll want to check that its dimensions can accommodate all the chosen innards for your build. In addition, the compact design restricts front fan placement, which could be an issue, depending on the type of PC you’re looking to put together.

That said, the Cooler Master Qube 500 Flatpack still manages to feel like a breath of fresh air. It’s the perfect choice for DIY enthusiasts, or first time builders eager to learn the ropes. It has a unique and colorful design options, a budget-friendly price tag, and the overall package makes it one of the best PC cases you can buy.

Read the full Cooler Master Qube 500 Flatpack review

The best PC case for a living room PC

When you first look at the Phanteks Evolv Shift 2, it looks more like a sound bar than one of the best PC cases, but this helps it vanish into any living area or studio setup.

It’s flexible to the point that it looks natural placed under a TV as it does on a desk, next to one of the best gaming monitors or best TVs. It may only be compatible with a Mini-ITX motherboard, but the Phanteks Evolv Shift 2 offers tons of space for components and liquid cooling loops.

If this case is a little small for your preference, you can get the larger Phanteks Evolv X for more room on the inside for a bigger GPU and other components.

The best PC cube case

The Antec Cube is without a doubt the best PC case for you Razer fans out there. While Razer hasn’t made its own desktop PC (not yet, anyway), you can build a Mini-ITX gaming PC, pretending it’s a Razer product.

You see, Antec partnered with Razer to bring its signature green-infused flare to the Cube, a small form-factor chassis. Complete with a deceptively high amount of space for future expansion, the Antec Cube is also compact enough to travel with.

The best PC case: FAQs

If you're looking to do a new PC build, finding the right PC case is essential, but it is also going to be determined by the components you plan on including in the PC. If you're going big on components, you're likely going to need at least a mid-tower case, but if you're keeping things within a tight budget, a mini-ATX case will likely be better.

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HP Envy 34: Two minute review

The HP Envy 34 all-in-one PC is arguably one of our favorite all-in-one computers we've ever used. And with it offering more performance and features than just about any competing PC in its class, honestly, it's not even close.

We're going to shake things up a bit and lead with what this computer lacks, just to get it out of the way so we can talk about everything we love about it. 

Aesthetically, the Envy 34 isn't much to look at. It doesn't have the pop of color you'll get with a new iMac (24-inch, M1), and it's easy to walk past the Envy 34 in an office and not give it a second glance. It's that kind of computer, at least at a distance.

It's also running an 11th-gen Intel processor, rather than a new Alder Lake chip. Alder Lake chips run very hot, so this might not be a bad thing in an all-in-one where cooling is an issue though. 

The GPU is a mobile chip though, but this is also probably unavoidable given that this is an all-in-one and not a desktop tower with a more robust cooling solutions with multiple fans.

And ultimately, the biggest issue you'll find is that the highest-spec model of the Envy 34 is pretty expensive, but that's a given if you go for a higher-specced anything.

All that said, from the spectacular design to the crispness of its display; its features, upgradability, and functionality; its relative affordability; and above all, it's performance, the HP Envy 34 is phenomenal in nearly every way that matters. 

We'll even say that it's better than an iMac, especially for creatives who aren't locked into Apple's sprawling ecosystem. If you're looking for the best all-in-one computer and aren't just looking for a budget, general use PC, this is the one you should put at the top of your list and see if its competitors can beat it. We doubt they will.

HP Envy 34: Price and availability

• How much does it cost? Starting at $1,999 / £1,999 / about AU$2,800
• When is it out? Available now in the US and UK. Not availability in Australia right now
• Price as reviewed? Review configuration MSRP $2,349/£2,499/about AU$3,380

The HP Envy 34 all-in-one PC is available now in the US and UK, starting at $1,999 and £1,999, respectively. It is not available in Australia at this time, but we have reached out to HP for a possible release date in Australia and will update this review if and when we hear back from the company. Wherever you buy, check out the HP promo codes out there to see how you could save more.

The starting configuration in the US and UK are the same, with an 11th-Gen Intel i5-11400, an Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD for $1,999 / £1,999.

The configuration sent to TechRadar for review features an 11th-Gen Intel i7-11700 CPU, an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU, 16GB RAM, and 1TB SSD. This configuration is priced at $2,349 / £2,499. The top-level spec features an 11th-Gen Intel i9-11900, an Nvidia RTX 3080, 32GB RAM, and 1TB SSD for $3,429 / £3,499.

Compare this to the 24-inch iMac, which has a starting price of $1,299 / £1,249 / AU$1,899 and comes with an Apple M1 chip with a 7-core GPU, 8GB RAM, and 256GB SSD storage. 

While the Envy 34 is $700 / £750 more expensive, its base configuration comes with double both the RAM and SSD storage. It also comes with a discrete GPU with its own dedicated video memory and an ultrawide 5120 x 2160p display with 500 nits max brightness and 98% coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut. 

Meanwhile, the fully-specced iMac will set you back $2,499/£2,449/AU$3,699, and that comes with an M1 with an 8-core GPU, 16GB RAM and 2TB SSD storage. The configuration we reviewed has half the storage capacity, the same amount of RAM, an RTX 3060 with dedicated VRAM, and an ultrawide display, making it by far the better value for creatives, especially when you take into account the upgradable storage and memory and more than double the number of ports as the iMac, including an SD Card reader. 

• Value: 5/5

HP Envy 34: Design

• Display doesn't swivel
• Excellent number and placement of ports
• Moveable 16MP webcam

While the HP Envy 34 isn't flashy at all it is a veritable Swiss Army Knife when it comes to functionality.

The PC comes in a single color, Turbo Silver, and comes with a thin, wireless full-sized keyboard and wireless mouse. These are generally decent enough to use, and while the keys have a bit too shallow a profile for our liking, anyone coming from Mac will be right at home. They are incredibly responsive for wireless devices though, and we have yet to experience a drop in connectivity with either the mouse or the keyboard after prolonged use.

The height-adjustable, 34-inch, 5K 21:9 display is simply gorgeous to look at. With 500 nits of brightness, anti-reflective coating, and 98% coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut, you're going to be hard-pressed to find a creative all-in-one display at this size, resolution, and color fidelity for this price. While height adjustable, the display doesn't swivel, unfortunately.

Ports on an all-in-one PC can be a pain to access, and that is still the case for some of the ports on the Envy 34, particularly the ports on the back. But this is greatly negated by the Envy 34 putting two USB Type-A and one USB Type-C ports on the computer's stand within easy reach of the user. 

Better still, the stand also has a media memory card reader, so popping in an SD card full of photos takes as much time as it takes you to sit down in front of it. 

• Design: 4/5

HP Envy 34: Features

• Upgradeable RAM and storage
• 15W Wireless charging built into the base of the stand
• Moveable webcam with physical privacy shutter 

The HP Envy 34 is as feature-filled as any all-in-one we've seen. 

The two integrated 2W Bang & Olufsen speakers aren't going to compete with the best soundbars any time soon, but they still offer decent sound for integrated speakers. If you're an audio professional hoping to use this for audio mixing work, though, you're definitely better off with headphones or external speakers. Otherwise, they are perfectly fine for everyone else who isn't an audiophile.

Many all-in-ones feature some degree of upgradability, but others don't; particularly the Apple iMac. The Envy 34 is upgradable to 128GB RAM and 4TB M.2 SSD storage, meaning that there is more than enough expandability for creatives processing heavy-duty multimedia content.

Then there's the 15W wireless charger built into the base of the Envy 34's stand. Is this really a necessary feature for an all-in-one PC? Of course not. Is it finnicky sometimes? Yes. Is it a fantastic thing to have on your work PC anyway? Absolutely.

And now the webcam. This isn't your standard 720p or even 1080p webcam, but a 16MP IR webcam, which offers incredibly sharp resolution for video recording. It is compatible with Windows Hello, making logging in as easy as sitting down in front of the computer. 

What's more, it's moveable and has a magnetic base that attaches to all sides of the display, so you can use it in any number of ways that you couldn't with a standard, integrated webcam. This does mean that you use up a USB port in the process, but with so many ports, you can afford it. 

Best of all, there is a physical, sliding privacy shutter on the webcam with diagonal-stripe pattern to clearly see when your camera shutter is in use. Not enough manufacturers do this, so we love to see it with the HP Envy 34.

• Features: 4/5

HP Envy 34: Performance

• 11th-Gen Intel Processor
• Up to RTX 3080 GPU with Nvidia Studio drivers
• GPU performance is underpowered

The HP Envy 34 features up to an Intel Core i9-11900 S-series chip, so even though it is a last-gen Intel processor, it is a full, 65W desktop-class processor. This provides some powerful performance in an all-in-one form factor, expecially when paired with an RTX 3080 GPU.

The main issue with the performance of the Envy 34 that we reviewed is that its GPU is a mobile chip, so it is underpowered for a "desktop." This means you are not going to get full desktop-class performance out of it that you might expect just looking at the specs. We can't imagine how you could without all but melting the PC, though, so this isn't surprising. Just understand that even though this is a desktop PC it doesn't mean it's coming with a GPU on par with the best graphics cards. That simply won't be the case.

The processor is also a last-gen Intel chip, so the ones just before Intel jumped in the Alder Lake and soaked everyone with its 12th-gen's phenomenal performance. You're missing out on that performance here, and in terms of CPU scores, even the 12th-gen Intel mobile CPUs nearly lap the desktop 11th-gen processor in the Envy 34.

But those chips lap nearly everyone, and they run so hot that it would honestly be impossible to operate them safely without throttling their performance in an all-in-one PC. The 11th-gen Intel chips in the Envy 34 are probably the right compromise here. 

They still provide excellent performance, going toe-to-toe with the 24-inch iMac in Geekbench and Cinebench R23, and the Envy 34 really pulls away when handling creative workloads like photo and video editing.

The Envy 34 scored an 871 in PugetBench Photoshop, compared to the iMac's 649. While encoding a 4K video into 30fps 1080p video, the Envy 34 accomplished the job significantly faster than the latest iMac, encoding 37 frames a second compared to the iMac's 24.5 frames per second.

This might not be the best gaming PC around, but for creative professionals, you now have a serious alternative to the iMac, and if you can afford the premium for the Envy 34, this is absolutely the all-in-one you should be looking at.

• Performance: 4/5

Should I buy an HP Envy 34?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

• First reviewed July 2022

Intel’s Raptor Lake flagship has been spotted again, with another engineering sample (ES) chip floating around out there which has been benchmarked, and is shown running with considerably faster clock speeds than the last sample CPU we saw.

VideoCardz flagged up this one, spotting it on Twitter, although it originates from the Chiphell forums over in China, a regular source of hardware leakage which has provided accurate rumors in the past – but we’d still say it’s territory that should be treated with a bit more caution than normal.

At any rate, the purported Core i9-13900K spotted is an ES3 chip (meaning a later revision than early ES1 and ES2 sample CPUs) that was benchmarked in CPU-Z.

What we’re shown is a processor which can boost to 5.5GHz (on a single core) and 5.3GHz (across multiple cores – these are the performance cores, not efficiency ones, of course). The chip achieved a single-thread score of 800, and multi-thread result of 15,000.

The leaker also has an ES1 sample (obtained on the Chinese black market, we’re told), for which a photo and screenshots were provided (we didn’t get the ES3 results screen grabbed, sadly), and that runs somewhat slower as you’d expect, with scores of 600 and 13,000 for single and multi-thread respectively. The ES1 only boosts to 4.5GHz, but again, as an earlier sample, that’s par for the course – clock speeds can often be way off the mark with this kind of pre-release chip.

As we mentioned at the outset, we recently saw spillage around a Core i9-13900K ES processor running with a slower 3.8GHz (all-core) boost speed, which suggested promising levels of multi-core performance compared to the existing 12900K (not surprisingly, as the Raptor Lake flagship is set to double the number of efficiency cores on-board, no less).

Analysis: A closely fought battle for next-gen CPUs?

At this stage, we can’t read much into benchmark results for obvious reasons, and CPU-Z is hardly the first pick for a sterling performance metric anyway; although it does at least give us something of a ballpark idea. More telling are the clock speeds recorded here, with the Core i9-13900K sample already reaching 5.5GHz boost, and the finished product will presumably be quicker than this.

At 5.5GHz, the Raptor Lake flagship is already level pegging with the Core i9-12900KS (special edition of the 12900K flagship), which also boosts to 5.5GHz by default out of the box (remember that overclocking can push these unlocked ‘K’ CPUs harder than this).

Rumor has it that the 13900K could reach up to around 5.8GHz for its final boost speed, and it’s looking like that could be a realistic piece of speculation (some rumors have even suggested 6GHz of late, but we’d be wary around expecting Intel to be able to drive that hard with the 13th-gen flagship).

Overall, this points to Raptor Lake’s performance looking like a promising step up from Alder Lake – which has already impressed us – and for gamers, we shouldn’t forget about the cache boost which is going to be served up by 13th-gen silicon, either.

Should AMD be worried by Raptor Lake? Well, yes and no – while Intel’s next-gen CPU performance certainly looks strong from these rumors, particularly from a gaming angle, Zen 4 is shaping up to be something pretty special as well, from what we’ve seen.

In some ways, the battle of the next-gen CPUs is becoming quite the race to push clock speeds, with Zen 4 processors also seriously ramping up frequencies. AMD already demonstrated a pre-release Ryzen 9 7950X (16-core flagship) hitting 5.5GHz boost (with no overclocking), and that’s across multiple cores, not just a single core. And again, this isn’t the finished product yet…

In short, both generations are looking highly promising, and ultimately we can hope that’ll mean the big winners later this year will be the consumers. Ryzen 7000 CPUs might be out as soon as September or early October, with Raptor Lake also rumored to be looking at an October launch – so not only might performance be a closely fought battle, but release timing could be very tightly pitched, too. Exciting times in store…

DDR5 RAM has technically been available on mainstream computing platforms since the release of Alder Lake and the Z690 chipset, though most PC gamers and building enthusiasts were put off buying early because of astronomical prices. Luckily, the cost of DDR5 RAM is rapidly dropping, falling by 20% in just four weeks.

As reported by VideoCardz (with reports from ComputerBase), DDR5-4800 memory is now available for under €5 per gigabyte (around $5 / £4 / AU$7.50), a huge improvement from the €15 per gigabyte (around $16 / £13 / AU$22) average we were seeing at the end of 2021. 

In practical buying terms, this means that where a standard 32GB kit of DDR5-4800 memory was priced at €470 ($500 / £400 / AU$700) at the end of 2021, it will now set you back a more reasonable €154 ($165 / £131 / AU$230).

For transparency, the study lists 200 different DDR5 kits, though It goes without saying that given the initial report was in Euros, and prices may not reflect other regions with complete accuracy, but we are seeing a similar fall in DDR5 prices across the wider market. 

Supply was expected to improve in the second half of 2022 which was expected to have a positive impact on prices, so this news is coming a tad earlier than anticipated but it'll be especially welcome for anyone planning to build their first PC or upgrade their current system in the coming months.

Nvidia is planning to announce its next generation of graphics cards in the coming months, including the likes of the GeForce RTX 4070 and GeForce RTX 4080, and Intel already has motherboards that support DDR5 on the market thanks to the launch of its Alder Lake series of processors. 

AMD isn't far behind with its Zen 4 Ryzen 7000 series, which will require an AM5 socket platform motherboard, though there is concern that AMD hasn't confirmed DDR4 support alongside DDR5.

Still, if you were planning for a full next-gen upgrade, chances are you could achieve this by the time Lovelace hits the market...if you're quick enough to snap up a new GPU in the inevitable rush.

Analysis: Cheap-ER doesn't mean 'cheap'

All of these next-gen releases do present a problem though – you might need to upgrade most of your existing system to support them. It's a small, but frustrating circle: If you want to use DDR5 RAM, you'll need a new motherboard, and to use that new motherboard you'll need to upgrade your processor.

DDR5 becoming more affordable should certainly take the edge off, but it's still not ideal for folks who just want to keep their system relatively up to date, especially with the rumors that AM5 might not support the current DDR4 generation of memory for AMD fans.

To rub a bit more salt into those wounds is the current state of DDR4 prices. It was widely believed that as DDR5 starts to gain more notoriety and market share that the previous generation of memory would start to see a significant reduction in price...only we haven't seen any indication of this yet.

If you're not in a hurry to be an early adopter of next-gen tech then be reassured that DDR4 will still be relevant and capable for a few years – after all, it took around three years for DDR4 to overtake its predecessor, and processors don't need to be updated as frequently as you'd think.

Knowing how to disable Windows services is an extremely handy yet surprisingly easy task all Windows computer users should know. 

Although Windows 10 and Windows 11 are incredibly efficient operating systems, they can still experience performance slowdown. One way to make sure that your PC delivers its best performance, especially when tackling vital but demanding tasks, is by disabling all the Windows 10 services that aren’t essential. 

Windows services are small tasks and programs a PC runs, usually in the background, to ensure that all the other tools, applications and software run smoothly. That includes everything from basic ones like spooling print jobs to a printer to the more complex ones like monitoring various sensors on your display.

A lot of these services are essential to your day to day. Others, however, aren’t, which means they’re utilizing vital resources that your computer should be allocating to more important tasks. That’s where disabling Windows services comes in handy, and we’ll show you exactly how to do it.

Why should I disable Windows services?

The more applications and programs taking up space and using your PC’s resources, the less likely it’s able to perform at its best. But, some of the Windows services your PC is running aren’t essential, which means they can be disabled without interruptions to its day-to-day operations. 

When you disable some of these non-essential services, you’re essentially freeing up the RAM, CPU, cache space and other system resources they’re utilizing. Your PC can then use those resources on tasks that are more crucial or demanding, which allows it to improve its performance.

There are different ways for your PC to stay at its peak performance, but disabling Windows services are among the easiest ones you can do. So, whenever it starts to struggle running applications, lag or even boot up slower, this is one of the things you can try first.

On top of that, disabling a Windows service can also help you troubleshoot an issue or a problem that your PC is experiencing. 

What Windows services can you disable?

While it is easy to disable a service, you should ensure that what you’re disabling isn’t something important. Otherwise, it’ll just cause issues. 

This isn’t a one-list-fits-all kind of thing, however.  The Windows services you can safely disable without disrupting your PC’s operations or preventing you from doing vital tasks largely depends on you and your typical day-to-day needs. There are services that an office manager or an administrative assistant can disable that a photographer or a video editor must not. Similarly, a remote worker who does all their work online probably won’t be needing Windows 10 services that might be vital to a family’s home computer.

A good example is the Print Spooler service. Someone who relies mostly on digital documents and doesn’t regularly print from their PC can disable it. On the other hand, someone who does print often or on a daily basis will need this service enabled and running.

Before you disable a service, find out first what it actually does. How you can do that is by clicking on the particular service you’re looking to disable in the Services window and reading its description. That should give you a better idea of what it does and what happens if you disable it.

How can I disable a Windows service?

To disable a Windows service is easy. Just follow these simple steps below:

1. Press Win + R to open the Windows Run Dialog.

2. In the text bar, type services.msc then press OK. This should bring up the Services window.

3. In the Services window, you can scroll through the different services to figure out which ones are safe to disable or simply look for the one you want your PC to stop running.

4. Right-click on the service you want disabled, and select Properties. A smaller window should pop-up.

5. Click Stop under Service status.

6. Select Disbled in the drop-down menu for Startup type.

7. Click Apply then OK.

Gigabyte announced a partnership with Maingear to develop Project Stealth, a computer assembly kit meant to make PC building more hassle-free.

Project Stealth combines the technologies of Gigabyte and Maingear to tackle the difficulties in building PCs with the assembly kit composed of three products: the Z690 Aorus Elite Stealth motherboard, RTX 3070 Gaming OC Stealth graphics card, and Aorus C300G Stealth case.

The kit works by shifting all motherboard connectors – like ATX power, CPU power, fans, USB, audio, front panel, etc. – to the back, which opposes the current layout of having them in the front of the motherboard.

According to Gigabyte, the assembly kit will be particularly helpful for those who have trouble with general cable management, inserting USB, audio, PSU connectors, and front panel headers due to the standard location of the motherboard connector.

Meanwhile, Maingear is also offering its own product, the Stealth Gaming PC, which will feature the Project Stealth motherboard cable management. Each PC will be hand-built and come with DDR5 memory and high-speed PCI-E Gen 4 NVMe storage.

 Analysis: The future of PC building

It’s no secret that PC building is a very technical and precise process that requires knowledge of PC component placement as well as how to connect cables for each component to the motherboard. 

And just as Gigabyte pointed out, because the motherboard connectors tend to be in the front, this makes the process that much more difficult since computer cables can be very difficult to work with.

The products that Gigabyte and Maingear are providing are two ingenious ways to make the PC building process much easier. And if this ends up being successful, it could set a precedent for other tech companies to offer similar services.

• Touring Maingear: the hypercar auto shop of gaming PC builders

New reports suggest that Intel may be pushing manufacturers to only support DDR5 memory with 700 series motherboards, which are expected to release later this year alongside Intel’s 13th gen Raptor Lake processors.

If these rumors, which were first reported on by TechPowerUp, are correct, then this could be a blow to people who were hoping to build a budget PC, as DDR5 RAM prices are still incredibly high.

Intel’s Raptor Lake processors will ship in Q3 of 2022 with support for both DDR5 and the older DDR4 RAM. With DDR5 being both expensive and quite hard to get hold of, including DDR4 support should make the upgrade easier for a lot of people.

If you have a current-gen series 600 motherboard, you’ll be able to switch to the 13th generation Raptor Lake processors when they launch and still use your DDR4 RAM after a BIOS update.

This will make upgrading to Raptor Lake processors a lot more affordable for many people, as they’ll only have to buy the new processor. However, if you’re building or buying a PC from scratch, and want to use the new 700 series motherboards, then it looks like you may have to also buy new DDR5 RAM, and that could seriously jack up the price.

Why?

While the push to only support DDR5 RAM on new motherboards may seem counterintuitive – as DDR4 support is one of key features of Raptor Lake for upgraders – there is some logic to this move (assuming this isn’t just a rumor, of course).

DDR5 offers a lot of benefits over DDR4, including vastly increased speeds, so any PC that uses DDR5 is going to perform much better. By going DDR5-only for 700 series motherboards, manufacturers will be able to concentrate on getting the absolute best performance out of the new memory, and pushing speeds higher than ever.

This could also help the adoption of DDR5 when it comes more readily available. With AMD Zen 4 CPUs also expected to launch later this year, and which are also said to support DDR5, the new RAM has a chance of becoming more mainstream. However, there’s quite a big issue it needs to overcome…

Analysis: Bad news for budget PCs

The move to DDR5 RAM is certainly welcome for people who want the best possible speeds, and are happy to pay for it. However, this may cause an issue for people who were hoping to build or buy a budget PC, as DDR5 remains very expensive.

Coupled with higher than normal component prices due to the global chip shortage, this could make the days of budget gaming PCs numbered.

Hopefully, DDR5 prices will start dropping. It may take a while, but if and when they hit DDR4 prices, mainstream adoption will likely dramatically increase.

Until then, if you’re looking to build or buy a budget PC, you may have to stick with previous generation parts for now. The fact that Raptor Lake will support DDR4 and can be used in older motherboards for 12th generation Alder Lake is also welcome, and a nice example of Intel following its rival AMD’s lead, as AMD CPUs are often backward compatible with previous-generation motherboards, taking the financial sting out of upgrading.

Not everyone wants, needs or can afford cutting-edge high-end PCs, so we really hope that this new push doesn’t spell the end for budget alternatives.

• These are the best PCs of 2022

Via PC Gamer

NZXT has announced that its iconic H1 PC case is being relaunched as the H1 V2, offering a built-in power supply, AIO CPU cooler and riser cable within a compact design that can free up precious space on your desk or floor.

The H1 V2 will go on sale on Feb 21 for $399.99 / €399.99 / AU$599.99 (roughly £340) on the NZXT website and is available in either white or black to match other products within the monochromatic NZXT family. 

While this feels pricey for a PC case, it's certainly not unheard of as specialized cases can cost a pretty penny, and it's worth noting that you're also getting a 750W Gold rated SFX power supply, Gen 4 PCIe Riser cable and an AIO CPU cooler included for that price. 

It's also worth considering that this will take most of the frustrations out of building into an unusually-shaped case, negating the need to carefully look up dimensions for a CPU cooler, as well as the lack of market variety currently available for small-form-factor power supplies. Better yet, this new version of the H1 is slightly larger to offer improved airflow and allows the installation of most of the best graphics cards on the market despite that compact size.

The H1 V2 still retains most of the stylings that made it so desirable when it first launched back in 2017, with a compact 'tower' style build that many have compared to the Xbox Series X console. That version had to be recalled due to issues with the PCIe riser cable, but its absence was sorely felt by those who appreciated its unique design and compact size.

To put your mind at ease, NZXT addressed this within the official launch press release, stating: "We have reworked the original riser design from the H1 and learned a great deal from the original case and listened to community feedback. The H1 features a custom-designed PCB and we worked closely with a new vendor, using a more rigorous QA process to make sure each H1 upholds high quality and safety standards."

Opinion: full tower cases are old news

If you've been present in the PC gaming or building scene for a while, then you're likely familiar with hulking full-sized ATX cases. These used to be more prevalent back in the early 2010's as people prioritized space for expansion and airflow, as well as just being the favored style of the time.

Fast forward to the last few years though, and you'll notice that PC cases are getting smaller and more modular, allowing enthusiasts to create compact builds without having to sacrifice thermals or performance. Motherboards and power supplies are getting smaller to accommodate modern demands too, leaving full-tower PC cases looking a little dated.

They still have their place of course – it's easier to build custom water-cooling loops into a larger case, but even mid-sized towers are capable of that kind of modding. As Covid has pushed more of us into working from home, space is becoming a precious commodity.

I'm willing to bet that more brands are going to start releasing small-form-factor cases to appeal to this new market that wants to cram the full power of a PC into a discreet build, especially one that can accommodate a full-sized GeForce RTX 3090 and suitable power supply to run it. 

• The best gaming PCs

Ghostwire: Tokyo is set to come out in a little over a month, and the developer has just released the system requirements for the PC version of the game. 

The system requirements are listed on the Ghostwire: Tokyo Steam page, and they're incredibly easy-going for a game that's only coming out on PS5 and PC. The game only has an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or Radeon RX 5500 XT listed as its minimum specs, and lists the 9-year-old Intel Core i7-4770K as its minimum CPU option. 

The only high barrier to entry for most modern gaming PCs is going to be the memory requirements. The developer is recommending a minimum of 12GB of RAM to run the game, and a recommended 16GB of RAM. The store page doesn't say what resolution or graphics options these configurations will be good for, but it's a lot more reassuring than something like Dying Light 2 trying to recommend users spring for an RTX 3080 for 1080p. 

When Ghostwire: Tokyo comes out on March 25, you can bet we'll be going hands-on with the PC version of the game to see how well the developer handled the port, just like we did with Dying Light 2.

Here are the full system requirements and recommended specs for Ghostwire: Tokyo.

Minimum:

• CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K or AMD Ryzen 5 2600
• RAM: 12GB
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT
• Storage: 20GB
• SSD Recommended

Recommended:

• CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 or AMD Ryzen 5 2600
• RAM: 16GB
• GPU Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 or AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT
• Storage: 20GB SSD

Analysis: a relieving PC port, maybe?

One of the things that has been bothering me a lot about the latest AAA games to hit the PC lately is that system requirements are extremely high, in a time when it's never been harder to get your hands on a graphics card. 

With Ghostwire: Tokyo, though, you should be able to get by with a GTX 1060, and that's still the most popular graphics card out there. Just by virtue of making this PC game easier to run, Tango Gameworks instantly expands its potential player base. And it's not even like this isn't a next-gen game. 

Ghostwire Tokyo is being exclusively released on PS5, so the developers didn't even really need to consider last-generation hardware on the console side. 

I can't wait to get my hands on this game to see how well it runs, whether it's on the older GPUs listed on the store page, or seeing what it takes to run the game maxed out at 4K with the maximum graphics. And if Ghostwire: Tokyo is anything like The Evil Within and its sequel, it's going to be a gruesomely beautiful game. Hopefully the framerate doesn't add to the fear. 

Via KitGuru

The curse of being a PC gamer who loves building and upgrading your computer is that you’re obsessively keeping an eye on the latest components and thinking about how to cram them in your rig.

It doesn’t matter if your gaming PC is incredibly powerful already, booting Windows 11 in seconds and playing any modern game with ease. There’s always going to be something that’ll come out that’s better than what you’ve currently got, which can make your PC that little bit faster.

While we’d all love to constantly upgrade our machines like an ever-evolving RGB-lit Frankenstein’s monster, as we all know, the real world sucks, and there are certain realities that can kill this dream: money and hardware.

While upgrading your PC is certainly cheaper than buying or building an entirely new one, it can still be an expensive endeavor, especially when swapping out certain components. Your budget, then, can limit your upgrading ambitions.

Then there’s the hardware. After a while some of your essential components will become outdated, and unable to support the latest technology, which limits what you can upgrade. This means making upgrades to core components, such as the motherboard and CPU, that can be far more expensive and time consuming.

Aging mobo blues

This is the position I’ve found myself in. My main gaming rig remains an absolute beast and I have absolutely no issue with its performance. But… I am also a sucker for new hardware. I have several SSDs installed, two speedy M.2 PCIe 3.0 drives, one for Windows 11 and intensive apps, and the other for game installs.

I also have a larger SATA III SSD for storing files, lighter apps and generally anything that doesn’t need super-speedy file transfer speeds, due to SATA III being a lot slower than PCIe 3.0.

This setup has worked pretty well for a while, with Windows 11 loading in a few seconds, and games generally starting up quickly as well.

However, as is always the way with PC gaming, there’s a few annoying quirks, and also room for improvement.

For some reason, both Steam and the Xbox Game Pass on PC no longer let me install games on the M.2 SSD. It’s a particularly frustrating state of affairs, and I’ve tried a few things to fix it. It seems like the only option would be to format the drive, but the problem there is that other apps, such as Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store, have no issue with it. Formatting it would mean having to redownload a lot of games.

Another issue is that at 1TB, it’s starting to fill up. My options, then, are to install games on the slower drive (no thanks) or start filling up my boot drive with games (eew).

Or… I could install a new drive.

Obviously, that’s the route I decided to take. However, this is where the hardware limitations I spoke about earlier come into play.

I’d been eying up the speeds of the new breed of PCIe4 M.2 SSDs that promising incredibly high speeds of 7,000MB/s. These drives are transforming the way many people play – and design – games. The PS5 has been built around having a speedy SSD of that quality, and an increasing number of games are now being designed with those kinds of speeds in mind.

However, my rig has the Intel Core i9-9900K, a fine 9th generation processor, but it is limited to PCIe 3.0. A quick benchmark of my current gaming M.2 drive gives me speeds of 3,402MB/s read and 3,319MB/s write. Sure, that’s not bad, and it’s much faster than any SATA III drive would be (they top out at around 600MB/s – see why I wouldn’t want to install a game on that?), but it could be faster.

Of course, with my current hardware setup, PCIe 4.0 drives are out of the question, unless I upgrade both my CPU and motherboard. That’s not just an expensive upgrade, but an absolute pain as well. At that point it’s almost worth just buying a new PC.

So, was I out of luck? Actually, no. Western Digital have a rather unique product that could help solve my issues…

The power of RAID

Enter the WD_Black AN1500 SSD add-in card. Looking a bit like a slim graphics card with no video outputs, the AN1500 pops into an empty PCIe slot, and promises speeds close to that of a PCIe 4.0 SSD.

How does it do this? Well, within the metal chassis of the AN1500 are two WD SN730 NVMe SSDs set up in RAID 0 with an enterprise-grade controller. Unlike some types of RAID configurations where several drives are used together as backups, RAID 0 is all about speed.

Essentially, the AN1500 uses RAID 0 and two SSDs to split data into blocks (also known as ‘stripes’). These stripes can then be simultaneously written and read to the SSDs, drastically speeding up the performance of the drive.

This is how the AN1500 offers much faster drive speeds, but there are drawbacks, primarily with price. The AN1500 comes with two SSDs, but it's treated as a single drive in Windows.

That obviously adds to the price compared to a single large SSD, and the AN1500 is definitely an expensive addition. However, it’s still cheaper than replacing the CPU and motherboard of a PC.

The WD_Black AN1500 SSD has been out for a while now, but I’ve been intrigued by it for a while. Using RAID 0 for performance isn’t new, but the WD_Black AN1500 SSD is preconfigured for ease of use. As with other WD_Black devices, it’s got a cool-looking metal chassis, and it packs RGB as well. What’s not to love?

Installing it is also very easy. I love M.2 drives, but they are often located in difficult places to reach on the motherboard – sometimes even on the rear side. This can make installing them tricky if the motherboard is already in the PC case.

PCIe slots are much easier to reach, though due the GPU I have installed, the Nvidia RTX 3090, being SO HUGE, there was still a bit of fiddling about. The WD_Black AN1500 SSD has a PCIe 3.0 x8 interface, so you need to make sure you don’t put it into a PCIe 3.0 x4 slot, which some motherboards have. If you do, the SSD will still work, but performance is impacted.

With the slick design and RGB lighting, it looks  great installed alongside the GPU, and when I powered up my PC I ran a quick benchmark to see how it performed. The results were impressive, with read speeds of 6,154MB/s - twice that of my other SSD, and a write speed of 4,441MB/s.

I also wanted to try out a game on it, so I moved Far Cry 6 over. On the older SSD, it took 1:03.97 (one minute, three seconds) to load the game and get to the main screen (skipping the opening cinematic).

On the new drive, it took just 58 seconds to load. Not a huge difference, and loading into the actual save game took around the same time, 10 seconds. But in a large open-world game, the WD_Black AN1500’s faster speeds allowed for faster texture streaming, which led to less pop-in of surfaces and textures when traversing the world.

It’s still early days with the drive, but already I’m impressed. I’m looking forward to trying out more games on it, and so far it feels like it’s given my PC a new lease of life.

• These are the best PC games

The best Corsair PC cases are known for their solid build quality, elegant design, and efficient airflow – as well as the spectacular smart iCue RGB lighting on some of them. 

That makes one of these PC cases an excellent choice for most PC and gaming PC builders and those looking to upgrade from their run-of-the-mill setup.

Corsair PC cases do tend to have that same sleek, classic cuboid shape, which means that if you want one that’s more unique or funky looking, you’ll have to look elsewhere. Otherwise, the best Corsair PC cases cover all types, sizes, price points and even colors, so whatever you’re looking for, you’re likely to find one that’s perfect for you below.

A tempered glass case is just the ticket for showing off your high-end internals and RGB lighting, but you also want something that’s affordable, spacious, and has great airflow. 

The Corsair iCUE 4000X ticks off all of those and then some with its brilliant cable management,  iCUE Lighting Node CORE and CORSAIR iCUE software support, and a design that makes it effortless to upgrade later on. 

There’s so much space in this mid-tower ATX case you’ll be able to achieve optimum cooling and more than enough storage space for all your games and large files. And, of course, that elegant, minimalist design that comes in either black or white means you’re keeping things classy in your setup.

Just because it’s under $100/£100 doesn’t mean that you’re getting bargain-basement quality. In fact, the Corsair Carbide 275R is just the opposite with its clean and sophisticated aesthetic, edge-to-edge tempered glass side panel, and a whole lot of space for a powerful gaming PC. 

More specifically, you’ll be able to fit up to two 3.5-inch HDDs, four 2.5-inch SSDs, up six cooling fans (or 360mm, 240mm and 120mm radiators), and a dedicated cable routing compartment while still having enough space leftover for maximum airflow. The front panel is solid rather than glass so you won’t be able to showcase your RGB lighting up front, but that’s exactly what makes this appealing for the right users, especially those who want their gaming PC in their work set up.

At more than $200/£200, the premium Crystal Series 680X might not seem like it's for the budget-minded. After all, at that price, you’d be able to upgrade something crucial inside your gaming PC. 

Still, it’s worth it if you’re willing to save or have the money for the 680X, thanks to its two chambers that allow you to separate your components whichever way you want and Corsair’s Lighting Node Pro which turns it into a smart RGB case that syncs up all your iCue RGB lighting. There’s also a whole lot of room, which makes it perfect for those who want to go all out on components, with space for up to 8x 120mm, 7x 140mm fans or up to 4 radiators to keep all those innards nice and chill.

For a proper, full-tower setup, look no further than the towering Corsair iCUE 7000X – an appropriate choice for PC builders who continually upgrade and expand their gaming PC. There’s not just enough room here for up to 12x 120mm or 7x 140mm cooling fans or up to three 360mm radiators, and up to nine storage drives. There’s enough room to fit all that and still make it easy for users to tinker in there, especially with its tool-free setup and swing-out tempered glass side panels. 

There’s even a hidden compartment for cable management so that everything comes out neat and attractive. However, for all that, it isn’t surprising that the price tag is steep. Luckily, it’s more than worth it, especially with Corsair’s Commander Core XT smart controller thrown in.

Those with a smaller gaming desk space should go for the Corsair Crystal Series 280X whose small form factor is just perfect for more compact setups. Don’t judge this PC case by its small, albeit adorable, cover, however. 

There’s still more than enough room for most people - specifically, up to six 120mm cooling fans or three radiators and up to two 3.5-inch drives and three 2.5-inch drives. It even has a dual-chamber set up so you can organize those innards the way you want. And, it’s feature-rich as well, with Corsair’s Lighting Node Pro digital RGB lighting controller and dust filters included.

• Want something portable? These are the best gaming laptops

Dell upgraded its Alienware Aurora gaming PC series in time for the 25th anniversary – as well as Black Friday deals hunting – which not only means better specs but also a brand new design. The Aurora R13 and Aurora Ryzen Edition R14 will be the first desktops in the series released with a redesigned look.

This new design features 50% more internal chassis space than previous editions of each model, while seeing an overall 5% increase in graphics performance. There’s also an optional scratch-resistant and EMI shielded clear side panel that will become available globally.

Both the Aurora R13 and Aurora Ryzen Edition R14 are out now, with the former at a starting price of $1,479.99 and the latter priced at $1,249.99. They’re also both available in Lunar Light and Dark Side of the Moon colors. 

It’s too soon to say for sure whether the new models will be included in the flood of Dell Black Friday deals over the next few weeks, but given past experience, we’re expecting to see even better prices on these newly redesigned desktops than the ones we’re seeing now. They’re definitely going to be some of the most sought after Black Friday PC gaming deals we’ll see, if so.

Analysis: What’s inside the chassis?

The Alienware Aurora Ryzen Edition R14 includes up to AMD Ryzen 9 processors, as well as the best graphics cards available, up to either the AMD Radeon RX 6900XT or NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090. It also includes DDR4 XMP RAM (up to 128GB 3600Mhz), and 4TB NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD Support (with 2TB Boot and 2TB Storage).

The Aurora R13 is the more powerful model and includes up to 12th-Generation Intel Core i9 processors. Like the Ryzen Edition R14, the R13 comes with graphics cards up to either the AMD Radeon RX 6900XT or NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090. It also features DDR5 RAM (up to 128GB 3600Mhz or 64GB 4400Mhz), and PCI-Express 5.0 support.

Both models come with two 120mm fans and can be equipped with up to two more, with the R13 model also featuring a liquid cooling option.

Pre-built dedicated gaming PCs are always a good choice for gamers who want something future-proofed immediately, with options to customize parts in the future. These PCs are also solid options for those suffering from the ongoing GPU and CPU shortages, with great specs all around.

Once you begin to add on extras, however, those starting prices can get a little steep. But there are sure to be some Black Friday computer deals this year, and we anticipate that Cyber Monday will also have some great sales.

After spending weeks coming up with a list of PC components, waiting anxiously for them to go on sale, and getting them delivered to your door, it’s time. You’ve got a phillips head screwdriver in hand, and you’re ready to go.

For the purposes of our PC building guide, we’ve used the following parts as an example of how to build a complete computer. These components are also exactly what you need to construct an modest – if a little last generation – gaming PC. 

Quick steps for how to build a PC

• Assess what you need your PC for (gaming, content creation, streaming etc) and ensure that required components are compatible with each other.
• Check you have all required tools and a clean work surface
• Start the build, following each step from mounting your motherboard to connecting case accessories and fans.
• Switch on the PC to make sure it works and launches into BIOS
• Install the operating system of your choice

Tools and Requirements

• A philips head screwdriver (though a set of screwdrivers is preferable)
• A clean work surface
• A monitor, mouse and keyboard to complete the setup
• A USB flash drive with at least 8GB of storage
• Zip ties and an anti-static wrist wrap (optional)

Step by step guide

Alienware’s Aurora desktop gaming PC has been redesigned to celebrate the gaming brand’s 25th anniversary.

Yes, Alienware really has been around since the days when Quake was released (1996), and to celebrate, the Aurora – the firm’s gaming PC which was first introduced a little more recently, in 2004 – has been graced with an (optional) transparent panel on one side that lets you see through and admire the innards of the mid-tower case.

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Accompanying this window to the internals is more customizable lighting, as the PC now has eight lighting zones (twice as many), to make the view inside prettier now that you can actually see in there.

The shape of the case has been changed somewhat, so it’s now curvier, and angled upwards – plus it has that optional see-through panel – but it still keeps the same basic design themes as the existing Aurora. It also still comes in white and black color options (or Lunar Light and Dark Side of the Moon, as Alienware bills them).

Another big design change comes not with the external appearance, but with the internal layout and what Alienware describes as a new ‘open air’ design.

Essentially, we are talking about better airflow (and neater cable management), with improvements in thermal performance therein. Alienware reckons that the revamped Aurora has 50% more space inside to allow for more room to breathe, without increasing the actual chassis size by much. Cooling is facilitated by up to four 120mm fans, and the base configurations of the Aurora will have two of these, with higher-end models upping the ante (with liquid cooling options also).

There’s a claimed noise reduction, too, with the new Aurora managing to be 16% quieter than the old model when idling (and 15% less noisy when overclocked).

A final design touch worth noting is that there’s now an optional (magnetically-attached) cover that slips over the rear of the case to hide all those ports and cables, for a smarter appearance around back.

Analysis: Alder Lake inside, maybe – plus thoughts on that redesign

While Alienware waxed enthusiastic at great length concerning the new case design, nothing about the actual spec of the next-gen Aurora was mentioned. The smart money is on Alder Lake processors, though, given that these are imminent from Intel (and theoretically will be here in just a few weeks). If running with Intel’s 12th-gen CPUs, then we can expect DDR5 RAM too (just like the Predator gaming PC which Acer just revealed – it seems like the time is ripe for Alder Lake-toting machines to be announced).

As for the new design, it’s a definite improvement in our books. We still aren’t fully sold on the overall aesthetic of the Aurora, even with this new incarnation, but it certainly looks a step up from the current model, which is, well, okay, but we’ve always felt it’s a little yawn-inducing. (Although we’re aware that others have a different take on that, finding the existing Aurora stylish and unique, which is fair enough; it’s certainly the latter). As ever, appearance is a subjective thing, but we feel this new design is a positive development for sure.

The transparent side panel is a plus point to be in the mix as an option, although that said, hardly an innovation, as gaming PCs have had these forever. It’s the apparent steps forward with thermal performance that’ll really count, of course, and if the new Aurora does indeed have Alder Lake chips, it’ll be very interesting to see how that cooling works in tandem with Intel’s purportedly promising 12th-gen silicon.

• These are the best graphics cards of 2021

Samsung has announced that it has started mass producing what it claims is the ‘industry’s smallest’ 14-nanometer (nm) DDR5 DRAM, offering drastically improved speeds over the previous generation DDR4 RAM (which is what most of our PCs are currently using).

By utilising the pretty awesome sounding extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology, Samsung has increased the number of EUV layers in its DDR5 chips, allowing them to be smaller, but with a higher density.

• Full speed ahead with DDR5: faster RAM is on the horizon
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This looks set to bring a range of exciting possibilities. For a start, Samsung says its 14nm DDR5 DRAM will be able to hit speeds of 7.2 gigabits per second (Gbps), which is over twice the speed of DDR4, which peaks at 3.2Gbps.

By being smaller and denser, power consumption could be cut by up to 20%, and Samsung also hopes this will improve overall wafer productivity – essentially meaning it should be able to create more usable chips using this process – particularly important whilst we’re in a midst of a global chip shortage.

In Samsung’s announcement, Jooyoung Lee, Senior Vice President and Head of DRAM Product & Technology at Samsung Electronics, explains that “multi-layer EUV… has enabled extreme miniaturization at 14nm — a feat not possible with the conventional argon fluoride (ArF) process.”

So, Samsung is making RAM that’s drastically faster, more power efficient and should hopefully be in plentiful supply? Sign us up.

When can I shove it in my PC?

For anyone keen to upgrade their PC with Samsung’s new memory, how soon will they be able to? Sadly, it may be a while. In Samsung’s announcement, the company doesn’t give any consumer release dates.

Instead, Lee talks about how this new memory is helping Samsung to address “the need for greater performance and capacity in the data-driven world of 5G, AI and the metaverse.” So, this memory looks like it will be aimed – primarily at least – at data center, supercomputer and servers.

However, we’d love to see this come in some form to consumer RAM as well.

We are starting to see DDR5 RAM hitting the shelves, however, so that RAM upgrade may not be too far off. However, you’ll need to make sure you have a CPU and motherboard that support the new memory – Intel’s Alder Lake processors will be the first to do so, and we hope to see them before the end of 2021.

Of course, with any brand-new technology, it may be worth holding off for a while. DDR5 RAM will initially be very expensive (plus there’s the expense of buying new processors and motherboards to factor in), and by waiting a while you should see prices drop as more options come to market.

It’ll also allow new advancements – such as Samsung’s 14nm process – to arrive, hopefully offering noticeably improved performance over the first wave of products.

When you’re keen to upgrade, having to wait may be hard, but in this case it could really be worth it.

• We show you how to build a PC

Desktop PCs are dead, or at least dying. This is a claim that, rather ironically, won’t die in itself, and we’ve regularly been hearing these kind of assertions throughout the last decade or so. Every now and then another article or opinion piece will surface tolling the bell for the humble desktop.

So we thought we’d re-examine the picture as of 2021, and consider what kind of health the desktop PC market is in right now. Are there any signs that these trusty machines are finally being pushed towards extinction and are perhaps in danger of dying, as many pundits have claimed in recent history?

The short answer remains a curt ‘no’, but the longer answer and in-depth discussion follows.

Fresh growth

Any evaluation of the state of the desktop PC arena needs to look at the latest sales figures, and the market is booming right now – it’s pretty much on fire, in fact. This year and last have seen a big uptick in overall PC sales, and while a lot of buyers have been picking up new laptops, desktop computers have been gathering serious momentum as well.

Indeed, in the most recent figures we’ve reported on from IDC, the analyst firm found that in Q2 of 2021, “elevated demand for PCs combined with shortages that greatly impacted the supply of notebooks led to desktop growth outpacing that of notebooks during the quarter”.

Gartner, too, observed that in the second quarter of 2021, it was a global trend that “desktop PCs saw stronger growth than mobile PCs [laptops]”, and the likes of Dell witnessed desktop computers secure “particularly strong growth”, actually in excess of 40% better than Q2 last year (compared to single-digit growth for laptops).

Of course, this current desktop PC surge is in part down to the aforementioned component shortages interfering with laptop supplies, but the fact remains that sales are strong. The other glaringly obvious caveat, though, is the pandemic spiking hardware sales in general as many more folks work from home, requiring new devices (or upgrades) to do so.

While there’s impressive growth currently, then, there are unprecedented reasons for it. Still, this sales spike is very much larger-than-life right now, and with a good deal of folks likely to continue working from home in the future, or shifting to a model of hybrid working (remaining remote working to some extent), this demand is not likely to go away. That said, IDC does observe that the growth surge is trailing off somewhat, and there are some early indications of “consumer demand slowing down as people shift spending priorities after nearly a year of aggressive PC buying”.

At any rate, pandemic-fueled sales aside, looking to recent times before coronavirus hit, IDC reported that over the course of 2019, PC shipments grew by 2.7%, ending a run of seven years of market contraction. The analyst firm said in a press release: “This year [2019] was a clear sign that PC demand is still there despite the continued insurgence of emerging form factors and the demand for mobile computing.”

So there you have it. Given these figures, the desktop PC most certainly isn’t dead or dying, even if you roll back the sales charts to pre-pandemic times.

Chutes and ladders

Of course, while the PC industry might be in good health in recent times, this wasn’t always the case historically. All that talk of the PC dying didn’t come from nowhere, naturally.

If you cast your eyes back over the past decade, there have been times when PC sales were wobblier, rather up and down, or even seriously shaky. There’s a good reason for this, though: namely that as time has progressed, PCs have made considerable progress on the life expectancy front.

As hardware components, primarily processors, have become more powerful over the years, they’ve rather outpaced software and games. Meaning that as time marches on, any given chip is good and can run most things just fine for an increasingly longer duration. This, in turn, means folks don’t need to upgrade their PC as often, which obviously has a dampening effect on sales.

Crucially, though, the impact of this can only be felt so much, because there is still a steady enough flow of demand and upgrading activity. And for that matter, as we’ve seen in recent times, an entire reversal of the situation with a turnaround in demand, even before the pandemic.

There are a number of good reasons why desktop PCs have been, and remain, a wanted computing commodity, so let’s explore those points next.

Why are desktop PCs sticking around like glue?

In any debate about the staying power of the PC, one of the central thrusts of an argument that these desktop beasts won’t be dying off anytime soon will inevitably be the necessity for these kind of machines to handle certain heavyweight tasks.

If you’re into, say, video editing, or 3D rendering, the PC offers unrivalled performance that you just can’t get from a laptop (or any portable device). This is simply a matter of size and form factor, temperatures and cooling. There’s no way a giant top-tier graphics card can fit into a notebook, or more to the point, for multiple powerful and power-hungry components to be kept cool without a big airy case and some seriously sizeable fans (or indeed a labyrinthine liquid cooling system).

Power users looking to tackle heavyweight computing tasks and run multiple demanding apps will always need the beefiest PC going, and that’s a desktop, possibly with a multi-monitor setup to boot.

Much the same is true for gamers. Sure, you can get some impressively powerful gaming laptops these days, but if you want the speediest rig, offering the fastest frame rates – not to mention a big 4K (or ultra-wide) screen – it’s the same deal with the components, cooling and space offered by a big old PC case. You’ll need that for enthusiast-level overclocking, too.

Another compelling consideration is that desktop PCs simply offer much more bang for your buck. With a laptop, you’re paying for the privilege of the manufacturer packing smaller components into that slim chassis. Desktop PCs are just a straight-up better value proposition, and you can see this by looking at the spec of any laptop, and getting the same components in a desktop, then comparing the price (although exorbitant cutting-edge desktop GPU price tags are making any gap closer than it normally is, right now, but that situation shouldn’t last with any luck).

Of course, with a desktop PC you also get the flexibility to be able to choose exactly which components you want, and not just pick from a short list of a few options (if any). And if you’re buying standalone pieces of hardware to build your own PC, that works out even cheaper – not something you can do with a notebook, obviously. Customization options are endless with a desktop machine.

Not only that, but the versatility of the desktop is an obvious plus point when it comes to upgrading. If your graphics card starts to feel behind the times playing the latest games, simply swap it out for a newer model. That can give your PC a whole new lease of life for several years. Similarly, if a component goes wrong in a desktop computer, it’s (generally speaking) relatively easy to switch it out for a replacement part.

With laptops, when it comes to upgrades or repairs, you’re very often left in the lurch. Many portables don’t offer any realistic way to perform either of these feats, at least not yourself, with components all being soldered directly onto the motherboard. Some notebooks allow for upgrading the system RAM or storage, but that’s about as good as it gets usually. Otherwise, in the case of faults, you’re looking at an expensive third-party repair, or buying an entirely new device; the latter can sometimes make more financial sense than the former, sadly.

Are desktop PCs dead?

For all the above reasons, and looking at the current climate of PC sales – or even pre-pandemic shipment levels – the answer seems pretty clearly to be no, desktops aren’t dead, dying, or even sickly for that matter.

As we move forward into the future, it’ll likely be the case that the desktop PC once again flirts with troughs in terms of sales, and the kind of ups-and-downs or wobbly patches we’ve seen over the past decade. However, while sales may dwindle, they won’t die.

The desktop PC is just too important for those who really need a seriously powerful machine to meet their needs – content creators, professionals whose computing time directly translates to money, and gamers who need the kind of power on tap to have a crack at 4K all-bells-and-whistles or high refresh rate gaming. Not to mention people who want to build their own rigs, and have full control over the spec of their PC, and the potential to upgrade (or repair) it going forward. In short, the ability to get the most for their money.

In the longer-term future, the situation around desktops could eventually change, most likely due to a continued shift to a cloud-based PC, or ‘PC as a Service’ model, where users may be able to tap into all the power they need remotely, and ‘stream’ their desktop (like game streaming, and speaking of which, Shadow already offers a complete cloud PC solution). There could be other issues around that transition, though, in terms of control, privacy and security, not to mention shifting demands to your net connection, and the internet infrastructure required to make all this work widely and slickly.

For now, though, and certainly for the foreseeable future, the desktop PC remains in good health. It’s not going anywhere, anytime soon.

• Check out all the best desktop PCs we've tested

Growing up, I was always slightly envious of friends who had built or bought their own PCs, for a number of reasons. PCs are obviously superb for gaming, but they also provide a space for you to discover hobbies and work on that creative project that’s been burning a hole in your brain. 

The allure of gaming at higher frame rates, plus faster load times and the ability to use powerful creativity and streaming software like Clip Studio Paint, Streamlabs and Adobe Premiere all contributed to my purchasing decisions. When I finally bought a PC of my own a few years ago, I found out that all the hype I’d built up for myself wasn’t misplaced.

Until recently, though, I’d actually put off the idea of upgrading my PC. The horror stories of builds going wrong and essential components sporadically breaking or malfunctioning if installed incorrectly were enough to get me thinking it was too much of a risk for the cost involved. That, and good old-fashioned laziness, obviously.

But did you actually build it?

Okay, so in order to address the elephant in the room, I first have to introduce it. No, I didn’t build my PC from scratch. Instead, I used a specialist website to pick the parts I wanted and had the final build sent to me. 

As someone who had absolutely no experience building a PC from scratch, the option of a custom build created by a third party allowed me to have my PC built in a risk-free environment, as well as giving me the choices of which components I wanted (read: the ones I could actually afford at the time).

So I didn’t know the first thing about building a PC from scratch back then, and it’s something I’d still be uncomfortable with now. And I bet I’m not alone there. However, what I will say is that acquiring a custom build in this way is a fantastic starting point for anyone interested in learning about what makes PCs tick.

Custom builds are, in essence, a fully functional template for you to eventually improve upon through upgrading. A few years ago, my then new custom build was a capable mid-range PC, able to confidently run demanding games like Gears 5 and Resident Evil 2 Remake at 1080p 60fps, with the caveat of messing around with some of the graphical settings, of course.

When the time came to actually look at upgrading, then, I was in a far better position than I otherwise would have been. From motherboards, GPUs and CPUs to SSDs, fans and cooling processes, spending a healthy chunk of time with a custom-built PC gave me an introduction on what components PCs need to function properly, as well as where processing bottlenecks can occur as technology inevitably exceeds the capabilities of the machine.

A custom-built PC is what I’d recommend as your starting point, then, if you’re a total beginner like I was. Websites like Chillblast make the process phenomenally easy, breaking down your selection by component type and price ensuring you won’t miss anything crucial, as well as allowing you to realistically pick parts based on your budget.

What was upgrading the CPU like?

While it’s true that I didn’t build my PC from scratch, upgrading it was where the training wheels had to come off. At this point, I still had practically zero experience altering the inside of my machine. In fact I’d previously only ever open the case to clean out dust.

Let’s just pretend that I already have an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 graphics card and I’m past the phase of staring out of a rain-soaked window wondering when it will be mine. Been there, done that, got the unnecessary anguish. So let’s move on!

One of the most crucial upgrades I made was with my CPU. The processor I started with was the Intel Core i3. This wasn’t a particularly great CPU even at the time I got my initial build. If the CPU is the brain of your PC, then the i3 definitely wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, and struggled to maintain a passing performance with a handful of programs opened. This wasn’t helped by my lack of an SSD, but more on that later.

Things certainly got better when my Intel Core i9-9900KF CPU arrived. This unlocked processor gave my PC a much-needed performance boost, and I immediately noticed improvements to how my PC handled resource-heavy programs like Google Chrome and Steam, but the process of replacing the old Intel i3 was a daunting one. However, after doing some research, it ended up being a pretty simple affair.

The beauty of modern PC builds - barring an unlikely rogue issue cropping up - is that they’re mostly foolproof. Swapping a CPU is a little more complex than the plug-and-play nature of components like GPUs and sticks of RAM, but it’s still simple enough if you’re careful and follow the steps.

This isn’t a tutorial piece, so I won’t attempt to break down the process when others on TechRadar have already covered it so thoroughly, but what I will say is that changing the CPU is far less intimidating when you realize that most modern motherboard are designed to make the swap as painless as possible.

So, about that SSD…

Now here’s something that I made to be far more complicated than it actually was. The humble SSD was deceptively even trickier to install than my new CPU. But why? Isn’t it just extra storage space? Well, yes and no.

When my SSD finally arrived - the very capable Crucial MX500 - my friend asked if I was planning on migrating my operating system, to which I replied something along the lines of: “eh?”

Yup, I had no idea that one of the most common applications of an SSD was to migrate your OS over to it. What? I did say I was a beginner. But with this knowledge fresh in mind, I enthusiastically connected the SSD to the motherboard via SATA cable, and then came arguably the greatest PC upgrade of them all.

Once my OS had been migrated to the SSD, the performance difference was shocking to me. All this time, I’d been running the OS from my hard drive, and was used to boot times upwards of three to five minutes. On the SSD, though, minutes became mere seconds as my system booted at a lightning fast pace.

This extended to games installed on the SSD, too. I play a lot of Final Fantasy 14, and its load times definitely leave something to be desired. The game’s running on a fairly old engine at this point, and has to support pretty detailed environments as well as the hundreds upon thousands of players exploring them (not to mention the bags of data each of these players store on their person). 

Load times in Final Fantasy 14, then, can range from anywhere between thirty seconds to around a minute depending on the area and activity. Not so on an SSD, which again acted like it ate load times for breakfast. 

In fact, I even got a bit existential as I teleported between areas in a matter of seconds: just how much time do we lose to loading screens? A considerable amount, I’d wager. 

Games with similarly glacial load times, like Warhammer 2: Total War and the early access title Baldur's Gate 3 fared much, much better on an SSD. I was used to both taking potentially minutes to load simple scenes, implying that these games were almost certainly designed assuming the player already has an SSD installed.

That’s why I can’t recommend an SSD enough as a vital PC upgrade. If you’re a beginner like me, it might not be the first upgrade you think of, but it’s certainly one of the most essential.

Where we stand today

Since upgrading my PC successfully, I’ve gone from a total beginner to...well, okay, I’m still a total beginner - I only swapped a few parts, after all. But my big takeaway from the upgrades I made was that I really had nothing to be afraid of, and neither should you. Nothing spontaneously combusted, the parts weren’t irreparably damaged, and my PC runs better now than it ever has.

Right now, I’ve got my eyes set on the pièce de résistance: the GPU. As much as I’d want it to be the case, the prospects of upgrading to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 series card looks increasingly unlikely - Nvidia itself admits it’ll be hard to nab one of its top-range graphics card until 2022 - so the search continues for a powerful card that’ll go hand in hand with my new upgrades.

If you’re similarly daunted by the process of upgrading your PC, as I was, you’ve really got nothing to fear. So long as you exercise the required amount of caution, upgrading your PC by swapping out components is far less intimidating than it looks.

• Best graphics cards: the best GPUs for gaming

NZXT is recalling more than 30,000 H1 PC cases after receiving reports of circuit boards overheating or catching fire.

The formal recall, confirmed by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Canadian government, covers all CA-H16WR-W1 white cases and all CA-H16WR-B1 black cases sold in the United States and Canada. 

NZXT told the CPSC it has received 11 reports of circuit boards overheating or catching fire - six of which occurred in the US. As a result, roughly 32,000 H1 PC cases will be recalled in the US, and at least a further 1,000 in Canada.

• Check out our roundup of 2021's best gaming PCs
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The issue with the H1 was first highlighted by Gamers Nexus, which revealed that the dangerous fault was the result of a badly designed printed circuit board (PCB) used in the PCIe riser cable, which placed a 12-volt power plane too close to a screw hole. This screw hole wasn’t properly plated to prevent the screw from eating into the PCB and eventually causing a fire.

This has since been confirmed by the CPSC, which notes: “Metal screws that attach the PCIe riser assembly to the chassis can cause a short in the printed circuit board and overheating, posing a fire hazard due to the circuit board’s design,” the CPSC recall said.

NZXT inititally responded to reports of the risk by sending out replacement plastic screws to reduce the risk of fire, before pausing all sales of the Xbox-influenced PC case in November. 

At the time time, the company offered to replace PCIe riser cables with a new design and offering a full refund to those who purchased the case.

“We are working closely with the CPSC and the proper global authorities to ensure that we are doing everything we can to help NZXT customers,” the company said in its latest update. 

“The CPSC’s function is to help people use products safely and we have been adhering to their strongly recommended schedule for releasing information to our suppliers and to the public. We’re taking this issue seriously and are working as quickly as we can to address it.

As per the CPSC’s website, anyone with a H1 case should call NZXT toll-free at 888-965-5520 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, by email at h1support@nzxt.com, or online at https://info.nzxt.com/h1-recall/.

• This RTX 3080 powered Sneaker PC from NZXT is giving us a real kick 

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 graphics cards are harder to find than gold dust right now, but a collaboration between computing hardware maker NZXT and virtual sneaker designers Artefact Studios has resulted in a concept gaming PC that's worthy of displaying such a rare piece of tech.

Upon inspection, this isn't a wearable piece of gaming hardware, so unfortunately you can't have your toes warmed by overclocking the inbuilt RTX 3080. In fact, a full spec list hasn't been released for the build so it's anyone's guess as to if this will be made available to the public or not.

• Follow our guide to build your own gaming PC
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The product appears to feature two NZXT Kraken Z63 AIO liquid coolers, displaying popular characters from anime such as Yu-Gi-Oh! and Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection 'F', though given the size of the build it's likely that the exterior LCD screen is purely for display. Glimpsing inside of the sneaker case, you can see what appears to be a fully functioning small form factor PC, and the video goes on the show that this bizarre custom build can connect to a display.

There are many other questions left unanswered here: what kind of connections does it have, and how many ports are available? Is this intended for actual, practical gaming? What are the rest of the hardware specifications?

Regardless of how ridiculous the build or collectible, it certainly got our attention. Weird and wonderful custom PC builds are hardly a new concept so it isn't a stretch to believe that this is a genuine functioning rig (make sure you check out the crazy PC builds seen at Computex for more of that), though we can't feel comfortable putting any kind of shoes on the table, even if it is a fashionable gaming computer in disguise.

• Nvidia to fix RTX 3000 GPU stock issues by launching...the GeForce RTX 2060?

Via PC Gamer

Intel has a new CEO, as you probably noticed, and Pat Gelsinger has firmly set out his stall to begin with – with Apple apparently very much in his sights.

As Apple Insider reports, Gelsinger told Intel staff: “We have to deliver better products to the PC ecosystem than any possible thing that a lifestyle company in Cupertino makes. We have to be that good, in the future.”

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The reference to Apple as a ‘lifestyle company’ is a telling one, and the statement can certainly be read as an indication that Gelsinger is serious about shaking things up at Intel.

In recent times Apple has made big waves with its M1 chip which has been very well-received and is quite a remarkable piece of engineering. The M1 will replace all Intel chips in MacBooks over a two-year transitional period – which has already begun – so in that respect it’s no doubt a doubly sore point for Intel.

Intel innovation

Perhaps above all, the M1 has been heralded as seriously innovative, and it’s in that department that Intel needs to shine again.

Intel does have something up its sleeve, though, in terms of a big change in the form of Alder Lake. These 12th-gen CPUs – which will arrive later in 2021, or that’s the plan, to follow next-gen Rocket Lake desktop processors – do things very differently, employing a model of two different core types (full power ones, accompanied by low-power ‘little’ cores to run the show much more power-efficiently in less demanding scenarios).

If that sounds familiar, it’s because this is the way that ARM’s big.LITTLE architecture is built. And the M1, of course, is an ARM-based chip (of Apple’s own design). Indeed, ARM’s CEO has recently been arguing that ARM silicon is on the verge of making a challenge to the dominant PC powers (namely Intel and AMD).

At any rate, Intel has already promised that Alder Lake will be a ‘significant’ breakthrough. Although if Intel is looking towards Cupertino, Apple won’t be standing still either – and big things are already expected of the M1’s successor, going by the rumor mill.

Gelsinger was VMware’s chief executive and will replace Intel’s CEO Bob Swan when he steps down in mid-February.

Check out the best PC components for your rig

Fortnite has a new ‘performance mode’ which is designed to let the battle royale run far more smoothly on older hardware.

While the new feature is in the game now – at least for the Battle Royale and Creative modes – it’s still marked as alpha functionality, and an experimental change, so bear in mind it may still need work.

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The theory is, however, that older or lesser-spec PCs will be able to run the game with much-improved performance levels, although these frame rate boosts don’t come out of thin air.

Fortnite’s performance mode trades some visual quality to put less of a strain on the processor and graphics card, and also to drop memory usage, all of which can provide a pretty major performance boost.

In the example scenarios given by Epic, which test the mode on laptops with integrated graphics, when playing Fortnite in 720p, frame rates are more than doubled (considerably more, in fact).

The test case with an Intel Core i5-8265U CPU and Intel UHD Graphics 620 (with 8GB of system RAM in the notebook) shows Fortnite running at 24 fps (frames per second) normally, and then a hugely improved 61 fps after performance mode is turned on (that’s an increase of just over 2.5x).

That’s night and day, really, and means that this lowly notebook is now providing a frame rate above the magic 60 fps, which is widely regarded as the standard for smooth gaming.

Aim game

While there is a visual trade-off, as mentioned, being able to track and aim at an enemy smoothly is obviously going to be a far more important consideration for gamers who have underpowered hardware that might otherwise be very jittery in that respect.

Epic notes: “Users running on older hardware will see a prompt pushing them to the mode to try it out as the recommended way to experience the game. Performance Mode can be enabled or disabled at any time through the in-game settings menu and restarting the game.”

A further change alongside the launch of performance mode is the ability to opt-out of high-resolution textures, and that will save you 14GB of drive space (taking the Fortnite install size down to 17GB at minimum, with all optional bits removed). If you’re running at lower resolutions like 720p anyway, the difference with ditching these textures and turning on performance mode won’t likely be all that noticeable, anyway.

Remember that it wasn’t so long ago that Fortnite weighed in at a hefty 90GB install, so the game has certainly got a lot more drive space-friendly, and spec-friendly too.

Check out the full Epic post on this change and the instructions for removing high-resolution textures right here.

• Check out all the best gaming PCs

The HP Omen Desktop PC proves that power and price can, in fact, go hand-in-hand. While souped-up machines can cost a small fortune, and budget ones can have too many compromises, mid-range machines such as this one offer the most ideal value, balancing price and performance that most gamers will appreciate.

If you’re looking for bargain-basement price tags, make no mistake. The HP Omen Desktop PC isn’t going to be the cheapest. Our review model, in fact, comes in at $2,300. However, it is relatively affordable for a potent gaming PC, and one that leaves plenty of room for expansion, making it future-proof. And, it will give you great performance for a lot less than other powerful options out there.

Price and availability

While many gaming PCs of its caliber will cost you an arm and a leg, the HP Omen Desktop PC boasts a reasonable price tag. It has several different configurations available, but since HP only has two i7 8th generation and one i7 9th generation processors on hand, you’re guaranteed a powerful machine no matter what you choose. 

The cheapest of the configurations is the base model that comes in at $1,369 at the time of this review and with the i7-8700 processor, an 8GB RAM, a 1TB hard drive, and the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 graphics card, as well as a keyboard and mouse (which we didn’t get to test during the review).

Even though our model’s GPU (GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB) was available at the time of the actual review, that was no longer the case at the time of writing. This graphics card, as well as the 512GB SSD plus 1TB HDD combo, are no longer available on the HP website. The closest configuration we could put together is one with the same CPU and RAM, but with a 512GB SSD plus 2TB HDD and a GeForce GTX 1080 8G, which will set you back around the same price, if only slightly expensive, at $2,335.

Furthermore, our exact  HP Omen Desktop PC configuration isn’t available in the UK and Australia. Similar configurations may be found, however. 

In Australia, the HP Omen 880-189a boasts the same processor and RAM plus an Nvidia GTX 1080 graphics card for AU$ 4,499. In the UK, the closest to these specs you can find is that of the £2,050 HP Omen 880-139na, which has the same processor but boasts a GTX 1080 Ti GPU, half as much memory and SSD storage with a 2TB HDD.

Design

Many folks have commented on the HP Omen Desktop PC’s not-so-appealing design, and we must admit, it isn’t the most attractive looking gaming PC on the market. In fact, its gamer’s look kind of reminds us of a flattened head of a Deception, especially with its red RGB lighting. 

It has a subtly textured casing with a rigid facia, the word OMEN etched on its top left-hand side, and the logo wedged front and center blazing red. The red lighting on the black chassis looks aggressive as if you’re going into combat every time you use it. This might be appropriate especially if you’re playing a lot of FPS games, but it doesn’t necessarily appeal to most consumers.

Inside, it isn’t the most attractive either, but seeing as the gaming PC doesn’t have a clear case, the inside isn’t really meant to be seen this isn’t such a big deal. Unlike most powerful gaming PCs, this one isn’t that huge, and will still take up a decent amount of desk space.

Attractiveness and size aside, what we do appreciate about this gaming PC’s design is its accessibility and upgradability, which are obviously far more important. It has been designed so that you can easily access what you need, whether it's the ports or the inside components you need, and you can easily upgrade or add to those components, and they’ve clearly succeeded in that regard. 

Thanks to its tool-less design, you can easily access the interior to add more hard drives with very minimal effort. There’s just a large switch in the back to lock and unlock the side panel, and an even larger button above that that you can easily push to pop it open. Additionally, the top front has a hidden compartment that pops open to reveal two HD bays. These bays are easily removable by pulling their red tabs, allowing you to add, remove, and replace extra hard drives, they also lock in place with a switch.

Besides those, there’s also a DVD-RW drive next to the logo in the front on the right-hand side that blends well with the design. You can also easily pop it out by pressing on the cover. 

Finally, the HP Omen Desktop PC also has a diverse number of available ports, both in the front on the top, right-hand side and in the back, giving you several options to connect your different devices. It even has an SD card slot up front, which is handy for photographers and videographers. 

Upgradability

The HP Omen Desktop PC future-proofing not only stems from its power, but its upgradability as well. It has three additional bays for extra hard drives, two of which can be easily accessed by those hot-swap bays we just mentioned, and four slots for RAM. You’ll also find configurations that add liquid cooling and Intel Optane memory. 

There’s not much in the way of customization, cosmetically at least. However, you can use HP’s software to overclock, boost your network speeds, and even stream your games from the Omen to a dinky laptop. 

The Omen Command Center software has four sections. The first one, System Vitals, allows you to monitor the CPU, GPU, and memory utilization, as well as the temperature. 

The next two – Overclocking and Network Booster – allows you to customize your processor and network’s performance. 

The Overclocking section specifically gives you an option to run a benchmark to see how the machine is performing. And the last one lets you stream your games from the Omen to any other Windows PC and a decent upload/download speed.

Performance

When it comes to performance, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a flaw. The HP Omen Desktop PC is a very powerful machine that can run anything on ultra, gaming-wise, without breaking a sweat. 

This thing comes with everything you need and more, which means that it can handle anything you throw at it, even the most demanding games, like a hot knife through butter, giving you the most optimal and immersive gaming experience.

We tested the HP Omen Desktop PC with three AAA titles – Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Far Cry 5, and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey – on ultra and did not encounter any issues. There were no perceived texture drops, glitches, or lags. 

That’s more than impressive performance, considering that all three not only came out within the last year, but are also open world games that require fast, continuous environment generation and are graphically hungry with lots of atmospheric effects. Even loading times at startup and during fast travel are blazing fast on this PC.

It’s all thanks to the top of the line CPU, graphics card, and RAM the HP Omen Desktop PC has been outfitted with. Our review unit had the Intel Core i7-8700k hexa-core processor, which is built to handle heavy loads, stream 4K UHD vids, and lots of multitasking. It was paired with a 32GB RAM and the NVidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, a graphics card capable of handling next-gen gaming demands, multiple monitors and ultra-high resolutions. 

With this top-tier GPU, you are most definitely guaranteed zero frame drops and zero stutters even with a monitor that caps at 60Hz. When testing a monitor that could be overclocked to 165Hz and has G-SYNC technology like the HP Omen 27 Gaming Monitor... well, just be prepared to be stunned.

That configuration offers a seamless and super immersive gaming experience well worth its price and is more than you’ll need to handle most processor-hungry games for the foreseeable future.

Final verdict

While we do agree that the HP Omen Desktop PC may not be the best-looking gaming PC out there, it has more than decent upgradability and most importantly, it is one of the best ones when it comes to performance. This powerhouse will run any processor- and graphics-heavy game like butter, giving you a gaming experience so seamless. You’ll feel like you’re part of the game.

This is especially true when it’s connected to the right monitor and running with a high refresh rate. And because it’s so powerful and easily upgradable, it’s also future-proof so it’s basically a long-term investment.

Need more convincing than that? Did we mention that it’s a great value too? Not that it’s the cheapest gaming machine – you can’t take home a high-end performance by being cheap – but its price does make sense for what it brings to the table. Even the budget-minded will appreciate this one.

Image Credit: TechRadar

• Check out our HP promo codes to get the best deal on your next purchase.

Intel’s next-gen NUC – the name the firm gives to its tiny PCs – will arrive later in December, or at least the mainstream model will according to the latest from the grapevine.

Panther Canyon is the name of the mainstream or ‘performance’ model – whereas Phantom Canyon is the more powerful ‘extreme’ variant – and the former is still on target for a December launch, Fanless Tech insists (in a recent update to an older story – apply the usual level of skepticism necessary around unsubstantiated leaks).

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As for Phantom Canyon, that version has apparently been pushed back to the first quarter of 2021, so could arrive between January and March, but obviously that too is speculation.

It’s theoretically good news for Panther Canyon, though, and further backs up an earlier rumor which featured a purported Intel roadmap that made no mention of the mainstream NUC, and therefore led some folks to start wondering whether Intel might have canned it.

Panther meets Tiger

Both of these compact PCs will feature an 11th-gen Tiger Lake-U processor. Phantom Canyon will pair it with a discrete graphics card – the GTX 1660 Ti (mobile GPU) has previously been mentioned, but that could have changed, and there will likely be other graphics configurations anyway – for more power (and obviously a heftier price tag, although there’s no hint yet as to what these models will cost).

Panther Canyon will rely on integrated Xe Graphics and will reportedly allow buyers to include up to 64GB of DDR4-3200 RAM.

Intel’s current Ghost Canyon NUC impressed us in many ways, although the pricing is a notable stumbling block. These machines are designed to nestle in your living room in a subtle and unintrusive manner, not drawing attention to themselves, hence the focus on a small form factor, with Panther Canyon likely being particularly compact, as it doesn’t require room for a discrete GPU.

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Via Tom’s Hardware

If you're looking to build your own PC, it's likely that you're thinking about making sure you've got the best PC components to get the job done. While the sheer number of options can make choosing feel more than a little overwhelming, this guide is here to help make that job a whole lot easier.

There's no doubt about it, learning how to build a PC is not for the faint of heart. It's a job that will really test your patience and endurance and there's likely to be times when you just want to throw in the towel, head to your local home electronics retailer and splash out on the best computer that money can buy. But, we guarantee that all that hard work of building your own is going to be well worth it when you feel the satisfaction of sitting back and looking at the finished product.

When it comes to PC components, there are a lot of parts that you're going to need. From the best graphics card to the best motherboard and everything in between, there's a lot to consider and the products you end up selecting will largely depend on the budget you've allocated to this project.

The good news is that we're here to help you score amazing deals on all the PC components you're going to need to get the job done. Having a good idea of what you want can make your PC building experience so much better. And, with this guide, we can help you get your planning and research started, and find the best PC components at a reasonable price. This way, you can get your rig up and running without the added stress.

From the best RAM to the best hard drives and every other part you'll need to create the PC of your dreams, here's our run down of what PC components to shop for and how to do it all without breaking the bank. 

The budget

Forget what anyone tells you, every build should start with two key things. A budget, and ambition. The budget is obvious, how much cash are you willing to drop on your shiny new rig. And ambition? Well that’s finding out exactly what you want to do with your brand new machine. 

It might sound crazy, but a dollar value of a system that costs 700 bucks is far higher than the value you can extract from a $4,000 monster. The lower the budget, the more you’ll have to stretch every dollar to acquire multiple PC components. However, seasonal sales can make budgets easier to adhere to.

We would advise that you set out to build a gaming PC that adheres to a single goal. Do you want one of the best gaming PCs? Or, would you rather have a home theater PC that can seamlessly blend into your living room? Do you want to edit video in 4K? All of these require different PC components to maximize savings and performance. 

Even though most PCs should be able to handle basically any task, it’s better to focus on the PC components you really need. Because, with the best computers, you don’t want a jack of all trades and a master of none.

Once you know exactly what you want to do with your new PC build, and you know what your budget looks like, you need to decide on your form factor, and whether to go with Intel or AMD. And, once that’s all out of the way, you’re ready to build.

Process this

We don’t call the CPU a central-processing unit for nothing, it’s literally the most essential part of any PC build and for that reason we’re starting here. Choosing the best processor starts with deciding between AMD or Intel as they’re the prevailing chipmakers in this category. 

From there, it’s a matter of picking the right part for your budget. AMD Athlon as well as Intel Pentium and Celeron are affordable and best suited for basic computing tasks, media playback and simple lifestyle applications. Meanwhile, Intel Core and AMD Ryzen serve the widest gamut of users looking to build anything from a cheap HTPC to an enthusiast gaming PC. Lastly on the high-end tier, there are the Intel Core X and AMD Ryzen Threadripper for more intense workloads like video production, 3D modeling and streaming gamers.

Intel Core i5 processors have traditionally been the go-to chip for gaming PCs. This is because most mainstream games (outside of the odd strategy title) are more graphically intensive than CPU intensive, so you don’t need the most baller silicon. However, this has been slowly changing over the last few years, with titles like Battlefield V leveraging the multithreaded performance of higher-end processors. Still, you should be fine in most games with something like the Intel Core i5-9400, as it’ll keep up with most games. 

And of course, because AMD is finally back in action, we absolutely recommend the AMD Ryzen 5 2600X as well. Both Intel’s i5-8400 and AMD’s Ryzen 5 2600X pack a phenomenal punch when it comes to gaming. Intel slightly edges out on in-game frame rates single-core performance, while AMD swings back in computational tasks, and more demanding workloads.

So what do we mean by that? Basically, the Ryzen 5 2600X packs multi-threading, meaning six cores and 12 threads of unadulterated Ryzen fury, and a whole ton of spare processing power for any and all applications you’re running on the side, making it perfect for streaming.

The mother of all boards

No good CPU goes without a good motherboard. Depending on what chip you choose, you’ll be locked into a selection of mobos with a variety of different chipsets available to you. But the first question we’ll help you answer is, what size motherboard is right for you?

ATX, E-ATX and XL-ATX boards are geared towards vast storage solutions, and hefty graphics card setups. And if you’re after a smaller system, Micro-ATX or Mini-ITX is your jam, providing a more compact size – though at the cost of fewer slots for graphics cards and other PCIe add-in cards.

From there your choice of processor will also determine, which motherboard will work with your system. This includes ensuring the CPU sockets lineup as well as having the right chipset. For example, Intel Coffee Lake and Kaby Lake chips technically plop down on the same LGA1151, but the former requires a 300-series chipset while the latter was launched with the 200-series chipset. Similarly, Ryzen and Ryzen 2nd Generation both share the same AM4 socket, but the latest AMD chips see the most benefit from the latest X470 platform.

Depending on the size of your chassis and if you’ve gone with an Intel processor, this ASRock Fatal1ty Z370 Gaming K6 (for ATX), Asus Z370-G (for Micro-ATX), or Asus ROG Strix Z370-I Gaming (Mini-ITX) all fit the bill perfect for a modern Intel-powered PC.

For our AMD builders, we’d recommend the Aorus X470 Gaming 7 Wi-Fi for an ATX build, the MSI B350M Mortar (a real fine budget board), for Micro-ATX rigs, and the ASUS ROG Strix X470-I Gaming for the mini-ITX lovers out there.

Ultimately, whether you go with our suggestions or not, it’s always worth remembering that your choice of motherboard will ultimately dictate your feature-set, memory and storage, your case, and how well your chip will overclock (if you invest in an unlocked part).

Graphics cards

Finishing out the trinity of every PC builds’ main components, graphics cards determines what your desktop will be able to visually render. While PCs can get away with just integrated graphics for simple tasks and even 4K streaming, creating your own media and gaming box requires the discrete graphical power that only an dedicated GPU can offer.

If you just want to play games at 1080p, you might want to take a look at the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, or the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660. Either of these cards will be a safe “bang for the buck” option, and they’ll easily hit 60fps in most AAA games at 1080p. Both of these cards should last you for at least the next 2 years. 

There are alternatives out there, AMD’s Radeon RX Vega 64, Vega 54 and RX 580(if you can find them), are fantastic combatants to this card, but they just can’t keep up on a pricing level. 

However, if you really want to go all-out and do some high-end 4K gaming, you’re going to want to drop some stacks on the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 or the RTX 2080 Ti – though AMD fans might want to go with the Radeon VII. Now, these are expensive cards, but if you want no-holds-barred 4K gaming that’ll make the PS4 Pro look like a cheap toy, you’re going to want the 11GB of GDDR6 VRAM and 4,352 CUDA cores only the 2080 Ti can offer.   

Memory

Exactly what is RAM? Memory or RAM (random-access memory) is practically the lifeblood of any PC and you’ll need an ample amount of it for a healthy running machine. Similar to your short term memory, RAM holds bursts of information for a limited time to quickly complete tasks, so literally all of your data will pass through this component of your PC.

With this in mind we’ve typically always favored capacity over speed when it comes to performance. After all, nothing says ‘killer rig’ like having 38 Google Chrome Tabs open, plus Discord, and a game of your choice all at the same time.

The Corsair Vengeance LED, HyperX Fury, and G.Skill Rampage V are all memory kits of choice that mix together a blend of affordability, speed and reliability. 16GB (2x8GB) of dual channel DDR4 running at 3200 MHz is ideal for gaming at 1080p for now, and should future-proof you for the next 3 to 4 years at least. 

For very basic gaming and web browsing 8GB is enough, but as a whole we recommend 16GB as the go-to for any build today. For video and photo editing, the more memory you have, the better.

It’s worth noting in regard to speed, that Intel CPUs typically doesn’t benefit from faster memory in day-to-day tasks, however Ryzen can see anywhere from a 10-15% performance increase, purely from utilizing faster memory. Ultimately anything close to or above 2,500MHz is golden – though you’ll find some modern RAM approaching close to 5,000MHz.

Keep in mind, motherboards don’t support unlimited memory speeds, so check the specification before buying incredibly fast memory. For example it would be a waste to get 4,000MHz speed RAM and find out it could only reach up to 3,000MHz because of the motherboard’s limitations.

Storage

If RAM is like short term memory, storage is essentially your computer’s long term memory. This is where all your data is stored, whether its a document, picture, movie, game saves, programs and even the operating system.

Likewise, storage comes in a myriad of forms and rated speeds. Hard drives are fantastic for holding a ton of data at a very low cost. Meanwhile, the best SSDs can be exponentially faster, but opting for massive capacities will cost you a lot.

Thankfully, SATA SSDs have become old hat at this point that an average Joe can find drives with one or more terabytes of capacity for little more than a much slower hard drive would cost. They’re all you need for a quick nippy system and we wholeheartedly recommend the Samsung 860 Evo. Install your OS on here, and some choice games and watch your load times and general user experience fly away.

NVMe drives are also all the rage as they can offer five-to-six times faster data transfer speeds and there are even some affordable options in the market now. The Adata XPG SX8200 is a fantastically affordable and quick drive. If you want to just jump into the top-shelf stuff, the Samsung 970 Evo and WD Black NVMe SSD are among the fastest drives you’ll encounter today.

For added oomf, we recommend picking up a 1TB old school HDD as well if you can. Western Digital’s Blue drives are usually a great place to start, and you can pick those up with a great deal most of the time.

Power supply

Investing in the best PC power supply is the most crucial part of your PC build as it’s responsible for supplying power to run any and all of the other components in your computer. Without this crucial foundation, your PC will fail to even start and a system built on shaky ground is also doomed for failure.

In the real world it’s unlikely you’ll ever need more than a 650W for a single GPU build like we recommend here. When shopping for a PSU it’s advisable to get one with 20% more capacity than you’ll need: 10% for overclocking, and another 10% so you’re not running your PSU ragged at all times. The higher the efficiency rating (from good to best; bronze, silver, gold, platinum, titanium), the less electricity you’ll waste as heat.

If you’re ever unsure how much juice you’ll need, head over to PCPartPicker, enter your spec, and take a look at the top of the page to see just how many watts the system will draw from the wall. 

Don’t skimp here. When a cheap PSU blows, it can take your whole system with it.

The PC case you choose shouldn’t just be pretty; it should be as tool-less as possible, offer tons of cable routing options and ample room equal to your PC building ambitions. As far as chassis choice, it all starts with what motherboard you’re using for your build. We’re not talking manufacturer, but size. Make sure you pick up a case with good airflow, and one that’s the correct size for your new system.

You can always scrimp here, but the more money you spend, typically the more enjoyable your build experience will be. Not to mention, you’ll be looking at this PC case everyday, so you might want to make sure it’s a looker.

Our current favourite is the NZXT Hx00i-series, as they come in a variety of sizes while all featuring exceptional airflow, a tempered glass side panel, integrated RGB lighting, and a fan controller.

 CPU coolers

You’re going to need one of the best CPU coolers to chill either the Ryzen or the Intel chip of your choosing. CPU coolers split into two main types: air-coolers and liquid-coolers. 

Air coolers as you might have guessed use air to push heat through an array of heat pipes and fins called a heatsink. These types of CPU coolers are generally affordable and easy to install, but can sometimes interfere with the installation of memory with tall heat spreaders or oversized graphics cards.

Liquid-coolers on the other hand are a bit more complicated as they use a closed loop of coolant to keep processors chilled. These are often more efficient and can keep your CPU running at lower temperatures than an air cooler. The only downside is these liquid-cooling units can be more expensive and intimidating to install at first.

Thanks to the advancements in technology and an obsessive pursuit of dead-silence, there are also a few passive coolers that are nothing more than cleverly engineered heatsinks.

Regardless of which type of CPU cooler you get, you’ll want to make sure the product you choose is compatible with your system. If you’re going Intel, you’ll need the standard the LGA 1151 socket that supports most mainstream Core processors. If you’re going with AMD, the AM4 socket is what you should look out for. 

Always make sure your cooler is compatible with your case, and the socket and processor that you’ll be mounting it to. Luckily, most coolers come with an assortment of accessories that make them compatible with either platform and even more.

The next step

Hopefully we’ve helped you create a complete list of components ready enough to construct a complete PC. The next step is building the actual PC and while it can be tricky, we’ve also created a complete step-by-step guide on how to build a PC to ease you through the process.

Since working from home these past few months, I've spent a lot of time at my computer desk. Normally, I'd only be seated at my desk when streaming on Twitch or doing a bit of design work – all of my actual gaming is usually enjoyed from the comfort of my couch.

Make no mistake – my desk is a bit of a behemoth, supporting not only my mouse and keyboard at a comfortable typing level, but also a digital piano and two monitors on a dual-monitor arm. It's a decent setup for streaming and for getting my work done, rather than tapping away on my MacBook while curled up on the couch (and eventually falling asleep). 

It's also a desk that I had custom built a little over two years ago, just because I couldn't find anything in the market that worked for me.

But all of that may suddenly change, for I have stumbled upon the whimsical and mildly terrifying world of desks – that are actually PC cases.

It's not an entirely new concept, to be fair – DIY enthusiasts have been turning literally anything into PC cases, including building desks that can house all of their PC components discreetly. 

I've only been recently introduced to 'desk cases' (as I'll call them) from a company called Lian Li, who innocently had emailed me regarding one of their newer PC cases, the Lancool 215. However my eyes took a bit of a wander, and I came across the Lian Li DK-04 instead – a massive desk that doubles as your PC case.

Why would you want one?

Well for starters,  it might just be the coolest thing in your apartment. Or your game room. Or your office, if you can sneak one in. 

Think about it – you're bragging to your friends about how cool your PC case is, and they're frantically trying to spot where your PC is hiding when suddenly – BAM! You turn on your desk, complete with all the 'ooohs' and 'aaaaahs'.

It's also an ingenious setup if you spring for one of the dual-system models, which are able to house two separate computers in one desk. So in theory you could have one PC setup for light tasks or office work, and the other PC can be used for gaming or video editing.

There's also support for all kinds of novel cooling methods, especially if you're into using water-cooling. There's enough space to move things around as you see fit, and with the right set of RGB lighting, you can really turn this into a work of art. 

Certain models also come with the ability to turn the top of the desk transparent or opaque, depending on when you'd like to show off your geeky internals.

Lastly, if you're a fan of standing desks, most of these models can be adjusted electronically, so you can go from a sitting to standing position with just a tap of a button.

What do you need to buy?

Well firstly, you need to decide on whether you want to have one or two PCs hidden inside. The two-rig setups are certainly much larger and will need a lot more space to accommodate comfortably. You'll need at least 100cm x 75cm of space to fit the one-PC desk, with sizing going up considerably if you get the larger models.

Next comes the fun part – selecting your components. Now with a desk this cool you'll definitely not want to scrimp on parts, so make sure you're picking something that's going to last you for a while. 

This desk case is best suited for water-cooling setups, so if you've never used one before, then now is the best time to do so. You'll not only keep your components at a low temperature, it'll make for some great visuals when everything's connected and lit up with RGB lighting.

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Speaking of which, while you may get some RGB lighting strips bundled with your desk, feel free to splurge on some RGB components to really bring your build to life. 

Everything from RAM, power cables, cooling blocks, and more all come with some level of RGB lighting, so you can really play around with a lighting system that you like.

The most important thing you’ll need to keep in mind is that this build is no easy task. You're going to need at least one or two other people to physically assemble the desk properly to begin with, and then spend a good number of hours (or even days) patiently fitting all the components and making sure everything works properly.

The end result is you'll be rewarded with a truly unique setup that probably none of your friends will ever have.

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Should you buy it?

The answer of course, is obvious. If you've reached this far then you're already thinking what furniture you can rearrange to accommodate one of these desks.

The truth is that this is going to be an expensive thing to build – the cost of the desk plus components is going to really sting, so only take up this project if you’ve got some cash to spare.

For those who do take the plunge, the Lian Li series of desk PCs is a very geeky thing to invest in, and is certain to draw plenty of attention wherever you set one up.

Do I need to get one? Perhaps not. Do I WANT to get one? Absolutely.

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There’s something surreal about using a PC that costs more than most people’s house deposits – but that’s exactly what’s possible if you take the plunge on Overclockers UK’s latest machine.

The 8Pack Orion X2 costs £33,000 – or around $43,000 if you’re in the USA, or AU$60,000 in Australia – and the system includes incredible, benchmark-breaking hardware. But, at first, it’s hard to get past just how absolutely, utterly outrageous it looks.

Daring design 

The interior is dominated by three water-cooling loops that are augmented with custom-made acrylic reservoirs, and the entire rig is themed with black, red and grey – from the coolant to the hand-sleeved cables. 

It's illuminated by BitFenix Alchemy RGB LED strips, and the colours carry over to the Phanteks Enthoo Elite case. The entire rig is 750mm tall, and it weighs more than 30kg.

At first glance the Orion looks utterly sensational. But it’s only when you get closer that the real work and attention to detail is revealed.

Take the water-cooling. There are three custom loops inside the Orion X2, and their huge 360mm and 480mm radiators are well-hidden and augmented with custom-made 8Pack fans. The loops all chill different components, and they’re color-coded with different coolants to match the red, black and grey theme used elsewhere. 

The loops converge in three pump units in the middle of the chassis, and the coolant then traverses a stunning reservoir that’s custom-made from acrylic in the shape of the 8Pack logo. 

Different parts of the block are filled with different coolants, and that’s not the only area where custom-made acrylic is used – there’s another slab of it at the bottom of the rig.

There are stunning details elsewhere in the build. Water-cooling hardware comes from the experts at EK. Mayhems coolant is used throughout, and the three loops are all managed by an Aquacomputer Aquaero 6 controller. It all makes for an interior that’s filled with pipes that course with coolant – and one of the most eye-catching designs that we’ve ever seen.

Buy one, get one free?

The Orion X2 looks spectacular. And then, once you get beyond the design, there’s the small fact that you’re not paying for one PC here – you’re actually getting two systems inside this one case.

The main PC is one of the beefiest consumer rigs that’s ever been assembled. Processing power comes from the 18-core i9-7980XE that’s overclocked to at least 4.6GHz, and it’s paired with 128GB of overclocked memory and three Nvidia Turing graphics cards.

The Asus ROG Rampage VI Extreme Omega is a huge slab of PCB that’s littered with high-end features, from all-board cooling and fantastic lighting to beefed-up wireless, Gigabit Ethernet and audio. It’s simply one of the best motherboards on the market.

Storage is handled by two 2GB Samsung 970 EVO SSDs and a 14TB Seagate Ironwolf Pro hard disk.

Record-breaking Hardware

Preliminary benchmarks reveal that the Orion’s main system delivers sensational speed. In the 3D Mark Fire Strike test the three RTX 2080 Ti cards scored 39,228 – which is around 12,000 points more than a single RTX 2080 Ti. The triple-card arrangement scored 29,706 in the Fire Strike Extreme benchmark – while single-GPU machines are regularly 13,000 points behind.

The three graphics cards do not deliver a clear tripling of the performance when compared to a single GPU, of course, but that rarely happens with multiple cards. 

Get beyond that fact, and the situation looks rosier. There is not a gaming task that this PC won’t handle: it’ll play every game, at every resolution, at top settings. 

It’ll run work tasks with ease, too. Whether you’re rendering, creating 4K video, operating CAD applications or doing anything else that requires lashings of GPU power, this PC will deliver it with aplomb. 

The processing power on display is also stonking. In Geekbench the overclocked Intel Core i9-7980XE scored 34,505 points – around 10,000 points better than a conventional, overclocked Core i7 CPU. In the tougher Cinebench test the Core i9 chip scored 4,451cb, which is nearly three times as fast as normal Core i7 components. 

As ever, heading up the CPU stack and having a higher clock does mean diminishing returns – the gap from a Core i7 to this Core i9 isn’t as broad as, say, the gulf between a Pentium and a Core i5.

However, the Orion’s main rig delivers fearsome CPU power, and that Cinebench score proves that this PC has the cores and speed to handle any work application. There simply is not a productivity task that this rig cannot cope with.

And, despite all of the power on show, the Orion X2 kept quiet throughout our testing. Aside from the low rumble of coolant and fans, this system was barely audible. It’s certainly quieter than most other gaming PCs.

It must be noted that the system we’ve tested used RTX 2080 Ti cards instead of Titan RTX GPUs. 

The three 2080 Ti cards aren’t slow, of course, but the trio of Titan RTX GPUs in the $40,000 version of this PC will deliver significantly more performance.

If you did want this PC with 2080 Ti cards, it would bring the price down by around $5,00/£3,600/AU$6,600. Overclockers UK allows for customisation in other departments too – the memory allocation can be halved, you can step down to two Titan RTX cards, and the hardware inside the smaller system can also be changed.

It’s also possible to alter the color scheme. If you don’t like black, red and grey, the cable sleeves, coolant and other aesthetic features can all be changed. 

Mini but mighty

The main rig, understandably, takes up most of the spec inside the Phanteks chassis. But, if you don’t need that amount of power, you can switch to the Orion’s second machine. It’s a mini-ITX rig that sits beneath the main trio of graphics cards, and it has its own fearsome specification: an Intel Core i7-9700K overclocked to at least 5GHz, an Asus ROG Strix motherboard, two Samsung 970 EVO SSDs and the same GPU as the primary PC.

The smaller PC is no slouch. It zipped through Cinebench with a score of 2,230cb, and returned a result of 30,028 in 3D Mark Fire Strike.

Those scores are better than most full-size gaming PCs with similar components, and they’re testament to 8Pack’s overclocking and part-picking skills. It also means that this PC can handle 4K gaming, high-end content creation, streaming and rendering with plenty of pace. 

Both rigs are powered by one PSU. It’s an 8Pack-branded Super Flower unit that delivers a monster 2,000W of power, and a rocker switch on top of the case switches between the two systems. 

8Pack a lot in

The Orion X2’s components don’t just impress because they’re high-end chips with hefty overclocks.

This machine is the flagship of the Overclockers UK range – which means it’s designed, built and optimised by Ian “8Pack” Parry – a world-champion overclocker who holds multiple world records when it comes to tweaking the latest silicon. 

8Pack picks the parts for these PCs himself, testing dozens of chips in order to find the fastest CPUs and GPUs with the heftiest amounts of overclocking headroom. It’s a process that generates extra performance and stability for every 8Pack machine, and it just isn’t used on more conventional PC builds. 

Every part inside this machine is hand-picked, hand-tested and tweaked to deliver exceptional performance and rock-solid stability, which does partly explain the huge prices. It also goes some way to justifying the 42-day lead time on these rigs. 

And then, when the machine has been built, it’s furnished with a plate that has 8Pack’s signature and your unique build number – and it’s delivered in a custom-made 8Pack flight case. 

Affordable alternatives

The Orion X2 is 8Pack’s flagship PC, but it’s not the only rig in the range. The Supernova costs £14,000/$17,000/AU$25,000 and includes an overclocked Intel i9-7980XE alongside two Nvidia RTX 2080 Ti GPUs, and the £11,000/$13,600/AU$20,000 Polaris MK2 has similarly spicy specifications. The Comet is a £7,000/$8,700/AU$13,000 mini-ITX machine with an overclocked Intel Core i9-9900K and an Nvidia RTX 2080 Ti. 

The 8Pack-inspired Infin8 range has prestige systems that aren’t quite as expensive as the machines that 8Pack builds himself, and the rest of the Overclockers UK PC range is far more conventional – and far more affordable. 

You won’t get the level of finesse or performance on these PCs, of course, but you will be able to handle the vast majority of games and work applications easily – and you won’t have to take out a second mortgage in order to afford one of the firm’s normal systems. 

The world’s best PC?

The Overclockers UK 8Pack Orion X2 is an absurd PC – an absurd pair of PCs, in fact. It’s fantastic, too.

We’ve never seen a PC with such eye-catching, intricate building work, from its three water-cooling loops to its extensive lighting, sleeved cables and custom-made acrylic. And, similarly, we’ve never tested a PC that’s this powerful. The main rig will handle literally anything, and the secondary system is still better than almost anything on the market. 

There’s no doubt that using a $40,000 PC is a luxurious and enjoyable experience, especially when the power on offer is balanced with incredible design and quiet operation. 

However, there’s also no doubt that most people just do not need this system. Instead, more suitable options can be found in the rest of the Overclockers UK range.

If you do have a vast bank account and a desire for the best, though, then knock yourselves out. Just don’t be surprised if we turn up to have a go on your PC as soon as its flight case arrives. 

TechRadar’s PC Gaming Week 2020 is celebrating the most powerful gaming platform on Earth with articles, interviews and essential buying guides that showcase how diverse, imaginative, and remarkable PC games – and gamers – can be. Visit our PC Gaming Week 2020 page to see all our coverage in one place.

• Check out our pick of the best gaming PCs of 2020

AMD has announced the launch of its new motherboards featuring the A520 chipset, providing a wallet-friendly solution for those building a PC where saving money is a priority.

A520 motherboards stay with the AM4 socket, and models will be available from the usual manufacturers across the globe.

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These boards support current Ryzen 3000 desktop chips, including the recently released additions to the CPU range which came in the form of ‘XT’ models.

They will also be compatible with the Ryzen 4th-gen (Zen 3) processors which are due to be released later in 2020. So even though this might be a budget choice, if you buy now and pair one of these A520 boards with an existing Ryzen chip, you aren’t going to be high and dry should you want to upgrade in the future.

A520 limitations

These A520 entry-level motherboards lack PCIe 4.0 support as provided by the new B550 boards (and indeed X570 products), sticking with PCIe 3.0. There’s also no support for overclocking with AMD’s A520 chipset.

A520 motherboards should be available shortly from manufacturers, with the likes of MSI, ASRock and Asus models being leaked via the rumor mill in recent times, with prices possibly being pitched as low as $100 (around £75, AU$140). Fingers crossed we’ll see some on sale very soon, giving cash-strapped PC builders some sterling fresh options for putting a rig together on a tight budget.

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Samsung's DeX technology, which offers compatible Samsung devices a desktop-like interface when connected to a monitor, TV screen or computer, has always seemed to fall just short of its full potential. 

The major reason for this is that it consistently required a wired connection for smartphones, meaning it needed an additional dock, adapter or cable in order to work.

Now, XDA Developers has discovered evidence within Samsung's own Tips app which seems to suggest that wireless DeX functionality is finally coming to the company's smartphones, with the very likely possibility that the cord-free feature will launch with the upcoming release of the Galaxy Note 20.

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Found in a section of the app titled 'Become a power user', Samsung's app now boasts the ability to "Use Samsung DeX on a TV without a cable", stating that users can simply "Start DeX from the quick panel and choose an available TV."

Of course, the functionality doesn't work yet, and combined with the title “DREAM_DEX_HEADER_USE_DEX_WIRELESSLY_M_TIPS”, we have to assume the information has accidentally been published early.

Interestingly, the information above is only available when viewed on Samsung's S20 Ultra and Galaxy Z Flip devices, the latter of which, as XDA points out, does not offer DeX support.

We expect that Samsung will make the wireless DeX announcement at its upcoming Unpacked event on August 5, where it will (presumably) launch the hotly anticipated Galaxy Note 20 series, and possibly the Galaxy Z Flip 5G.

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If you're lucky, a computer virus is one of the most annoying things that can happen to your PC or Mac. And if you're unlucky, it's one of the most devastating. While some viruses are little more than a pain in the backside, others can seriously damage your most treasured data – data such as your photos or important personal documents.

The good news is that if your PC or Mac has one, you don't need to be really techy to get rid of it. And it's really easy to prevent your computer from getting infected again in the future.

Let's discover how you can tell your computer has a virus, and what to do about it.

How do viruses get into PCs?

Computer viruses typically spread in two different ways. The most common way is by getting people to open infected files. Those files could be sent via email, downloaded from websites or on removable storage such as a USB stick: if you open the file, the virus sneaks onto your PC or Mac.

Viruses can also be transmitted via insecure software, which is when a program isn't 100% safe from infection: some viruses are written specifically to target vulnerabilities in specific programs.

How to spot the symptoms of a PC virus

PC viruses are like real-world viruses: they attack your PC and prevent it from working properly. So the first sign of a PC virus may well be your computer doing unusual things. Are you suddenly seeing stacks of pop-up adverts? When you try to search the internet, do you get weird results? Are you locked out of your computer altogether with a message demanding money?

These are all what computer experts call 'malware', which is short for malicious software. Each one is a slightly different kind, so the one that blasts you with adverts is called adware, the weird search results are the result of what's called browser hijacking and the locked computer is called ransomware.

In the case of ransomware, never, ever pay the ransom or even worse, give the criminals your card details or bank details: they probably won't unlock your PC but they'll definitely make off with your money.

Although many viruses are obvious, some of them aren't. Some of them are only obvious to other people. For example, if you get messages from friends, family or colleagues asking why you're sending them weird stuff, that's often a sign that a virus on your computer is sending out infected emails to try and spread to everybody in your contacts book.

The good news is that all of these problems are easy to fix.

How to remove a PC virus from your computer

To get rid of a virus, you need to do two things. First of all, you need get hold of some digital disinfectant. We use the term 'antivirus software' to cover all kinds of virus killers; the very best antivirus software can find and destroy all kinds of malicious software, from adware to ransomware.

Different suites will suit different people, but our top recommendations are Bitdefender AntiVirus, Norton AntiVirus and Kaspersky AntiVirus: we think these are the smartest, safest and most straightforward solutions for most people.

Once you've got it, update it immediately. The antivirus software will usually do this automatically, but it's a good idea to use its "Check for Updates" option to be on the safe side. 

New forms of malicious software are found every day, and the best antivirus apps are constantly updated so that they can destroy even the most recent viruses.

The second thing to do is to isolate the virus so it can't do any more damage. To do that, you can put your PC into something called 'Safe Mode'. 

This is a feature of Windows that runs with the absolute minimum of features. That means there are fewer opportunities for the virus to do anything or to spread to other computers.

• How to start Windows 10 in Safe Mode

Once you're in safe mode, run your antivirus software and put the kettle on: no matter how fast your PC, scanning everything on it can take a little while. Your antivirus software will identify any infected files and clean them if it can; if they're beyond repair, it will quarantine them so they can be safely deleted without re-infecting your PC.

In some cases you can also use Windows' System Restore to roll files back to their pre-infection state.

How to stop viruses getting onto your PC

The last thing you want is another infection, so it's important to practice the internet equivalent of social distancing: never open files you haven't specifically requested and never download files from places you don't 100% trust.

We'd strongly recommend good antivirus software no matter how careful you are. Many of the best antivirus software suites will automatically scan incoming emails, files you download and USB devices you connect – but they'll also protect you in other ways too.

For example Norton AntiVirus has anti-ransomware protection and virtual private networking (VPN) to prevent people from intercepting your data when you're using public Wi-Fi, and it has parental controls so you can ensure the kids browse safely too.

Not every virus is obvious and not every virus spreads in ways you can anticipate, and new viruses are discovered every day. Good antivirus knows about them too.

It's also very important to keep your copy of Windows and your other apps up to date. In most cases that should happen automatically via Windows Update and your apps' own automatic checking for updates, but not all apps do it for you so make sure you click those "check for updates" buttons.

We'd also recommend two other very important things. One, make sure you backup anything important. Viruses aren't the only threat to your important files: hardware can fail, laptops can be stolen and accidents can happen. If it matters to you, make sure you have backups of it.

And two, never use the same username and password twice. It's tempting, we know, but if you do and malicious software manages to intercept your password for site A, it can then try those details on site B, and site C, and site D, and site E, and… If the thought of trying to remember different, complicated passwords for lots of different sites sounds terrifying, look for an antivirus suite that also includes a password manager. 

That'll create really strong passwords for you, and it'll remember them when you need to use them.

Samsung has announced that its much faster DDR5 system memory will be revving up into mass production in 2021 – but as to when you’ll realistically be able to upgrade your PC to the new type of RAM, well, that could still be some way out beyond next year.

Samsung’s revelation came as the firm announced that a million modules of its initial EUV-based DDR4 RAM, named D1x, have now been shipped – with DDR5 set to benefit from the company’s advancements in terms of cutting-edge EUV manufacturing, too.

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EUV stands for ‘extreme ultraviolet’ and allows for a more streamlined, faster production process with better yields. It holds multiple advantages over traditional chip production, and as Samsung puts it: “EUV technology reduces repetitive steps in multi-patterning and improves patterning accuracy, enabling enhanced performance and greater yields as well as shortened development time.”

The issues lay in perfecting EUV technology to be viable, and feasible for volume production – a tricky challenge, and an effort which has been ongoing for a long time now (by Samsung, and others). But this is exactly what Samsung has achieved with the million milestone hit with D1x.

If you’re wondering about the performance of DDR5, it’s a major boost, ushering in a doubling of memory bandwidth.

With DDR5 RAM hitting volume production next year, it might not be long before we see the memory in more smartphones (it’s already in some, like Samsung’s Galaxy S20), as well as servers, and indeed high-end PCs – although exactly when DDR5 will realistically be available for PCs is a bone of some contention.

Support speculation

For desktop PCs, even if Samsung has the DDR5 RAM production lines churning away, either Intel or AMD needs to support it with their respective motherboards for the memory to be of any use in the computing arena.

When that support might come, exactly, we can’t be sure, but the rumor mill reckons that it might just be 5th-gen Ryzen on the AMD side. With Intel, Rocket Lake – that will follow next-gen Comet Lake, which still hasn’t arrived, but should be landing soon-ish – seemingly won’t support DDR5 either, but that’s all leaks and speculation.

On desktop platforms, it’s likely still some way out then, and even when DDR5 is initially available for PC enthusiasts to grab and use, it’ll be a niche proposition to begin with (certainly in terms of pricing, as ever with cutting-edge tech – and this initial form may effectively be as much of a marketing victory, as anything else, until performance is better honed).

Even at that point, your ‘plain old’ DDR4 system RAM will hardly become obsolete overnight, so don’t fret if you’ve just bought a new system with that kind of memory. It’ll still be good to go with contemporary CPUs going forward for a good long time yet, in all honesty.

And in the same vein, upgraders – at least outside the most fervent enthusiasts – will probably be waiting a fair time before it’s worth planning that move to DDR5 with their PC, before the price/performance ratio of that upgrade makes reasonable sense.

• Check out all the best gaming PCs of 2020

Via PC Gamer

Deciding when to upgrade your PC is as tough a decision as any. There is a constant flow of new PC components coming to the market, each leapfrogging the last, and computer upgrades aren’t always easy to afford.

But now is a pretty good time to give upgrading a shot. There are a lot of great parts on the market, with good prices on some of the best items, and there isn’t too much reason to hold out.

Let’s take a look at some of the particularly strong reasons for you to make sure your gaming PC is up to speed.  

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 The competitiveness of Ryzen 

We’re not just going to say that the latest Ryzen 3000-Series are reason enough to upgrade your computer. But, they’ve introduced a killer new platform and have helped bring down the prices on Intel’s products as well.

From AMD’s highest-end Zen 2 chips down to the lower end, like the Ryzen 5 3600, the new ecosystem offers incredible performance that scales up well with the number of cores. It’s even better for gamers, who can get great game performance even from the cheaper Ryzen 5 chips.

AMD’s new X570 chipset also works with the new CPUs to enable PCIe 4.0. This can double the data bandwidth for add-in cards, enabling much faster storage.

Best of all, many of AMD’s great, consumer-targeted Ryzen 3000-series chips have been on the market long enough that they’re starting to get great discounts. A perfect example is this Ryzen 5 3600X deal that doesn’t seem to have an end in sight.

Though AMD’s processors have been bad news for Intel, they’re good news for shoppers who want to buy Intel parts. We’ve seen some of the latest Intel chips get lower prices than their predecessors as Intel has real competition once again.

Intel’s Coffee Lake Refresh chips are offering plenty of power, especially when it comes to individual cores. We’ve even seen Intel drop the prices of its HEDT chips, as the Intel Core i9-10980XE launched at half the price of its predecessor. 

So, if you’re looking to pick up a new CPU and motherboard, you’ll find great options from both Team Red and Team Blue right now.

 RAM and storage prices are fairly low 

We’ve come a long way from the flash shortages of 2018. Now, it’s about as affordable as ever to load your computer up with memory and solid state storage. We’ve even seen 1TB of PCIe SSD storage cost little over the price of a new video game.

If your computer is running on a hard drive and has 8GB of RAM, now is a great time to make the upgrade.

You can find some cheap RAM to load up your computer, giving you plenty of memory for games or for Chrome to hog. Or you can go with the best RAM, giving your PC faster memory to work with.

The best upgrade would be to get your operating system and favorite programs running on an SSD. And no, we’re not even talking about an old 2.5-inch SSD. While those can offer a good boost in performance over a hard drive, a PCIe NVMe SSD offers even more throughput by skipping past the dated SATA interface used by hard drives and older SSDs.

You can find the best SSD at surprisingly reasonable prices. So, if you held out on adding an SSD (or three) to your computer because the price had always seemed too high, check again. 

 The affordability of performance monitors 

When you’re using your computer, you’re looking at your monitor. So, it’ll be a service to your eyes to make sure you’ve got a good one. This is especially true if you’re doing a lot of working from home or gaming to maintain social distance. 

While just a couple years ago 4K and high-refresh monitors were expensive and niche, they’re starting to become much more commonplace. And that means they’re also getting much more affordable.

Gamers can find many gaming monitors offering 1440p and higher resolutions while also smooth crisp 144Hz refresh rates. There are even affordable 240Hz monitors showing up. 

High-end monitors are also starting to push the limits with 4K and HDR. You can be sure you’re getting a brilliant monitor by looking out for certifications like G-Sync Ultimate, FreeSync Premium Pro or VESA’s DisplayHDR 1000, though VESA also has some lower level certifications that indicate a reduced level of quality.

With all of these upgrades you’ll be looking at a high-performance work-from-home machine or a modern gaming rig that’s ready to carry you through all of the exciting PC games coming out in 2020. 

• These are the best CPU coolers of 2020

Right now the coronavirus is sweeping the entire world, and it's truly a big deal. One of the things that's keeping it at the center of everyone's attention is the lack of specific treatments to help folks – particularly the elderly – get through it. 

In order for these treatments to be developed, scientists from across the world have a lot of work to do – but you actually might be able to help.

The folks at Folding@Home have published a blog post asking for people to run the F@H client in order to help scientists develop a treatment for coronavirus. We encourage you to read the blog post, as it goes into far more detail than simple tech journalists like us feel comfortable doing, but we can help you get set up and make sure you're offering the most computing horsepower. 

We've been running F@H on our PCs for about a week now, and we encourage you to do the same. If you get it set up right, you can even help out when you're working on your computer. 

Take stock of your computer's capabilities

This is good advice pretty much whenever, but if you're going to be seriously taxing your computer with something like Folding@Home, you need to be aware of what your computer can do. 

Particularly, you should get an idea of what kind of CPU you're running. The easiest way to do this if you're on Windows 10, is hit Ctrl + Shift + ESC, which will bring up Task Manager. Once you're in there, click the arrow on the bottom right-hand corner of the window labeled "More details", then go over to the performance tab. Here you'll be able to easily get a pretty good idea of the hardware in your PC. 

If you're on a Mac, you can also get an idea of what kind of PC you're running by going to the Apple logo in the top left corner of your display, clicking it and selecting "About This Mac." Unfortunately, Apple isn't exactly forthcoming with the exact specs if you're running macos High Sierra or earlier. But if you've got a MacBook Pro in the last few years, you can assume that the Core i7 is more than capable. 

Unfortunately, you'll have to look it up on your own to get the exact core count of your laptop – just google "MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2018) Core i7 specs" or whatever model you have to get more detailed spec information. 

Generally, if you're going to be running this program while working, you're going to want at least 6 cores and 12 threads or "Logical processors" – which will naturally rule out a lot of laptops (Don't worry, you can still help). 

You will get the option when you're setting up Folding@Home to choose how much of your hardware you want dedicated to fighting the disease, from 'Light' to 'Full'. If you are running on a laptop, or any other computer with a weaker CPU, we would advise against using the 'Full' preset when you're working, but if you want to offer constant help, the 'Light' preset should be relatively easy to run in the background. 

How to run Folding@Home

Once you're comfortable running Folding@Home, getting it going is actually fairly easy. Go to the Folding@Home page and select 'Start folding'. From there you can download it for Windows 10 right off the bat. 

If you're not running Windows 10, there's a link for alternative downloads, and you should click that.  From there you can download a client for macOS or several flavors of Linux. 

Go ahead and download the client appropriate for your system, open the downloaded file and follow the instructions on the screen. Once it's installed, it should run automatically (unless you specifically told it not to.) 

Once it's running, assuming you're running Windows 10, you should be able to see the Folding@Home icon in your system tray, which looks like a protein made of a bunch of different colors. When this is active in your system tray, it means that it's running. You can right click the icon to access various settings for the software, and even pause it if you're working on something particularly demanding. 

There are a lot of granular controls in the app, which you can use if you feel comfortable doing so. But, for the vast majority of people, you can essentially use the default settings, and everything will be smooth sailing. 

There are only two things we'd advise messing with at first. You should right click the icon, and select 'Web control'. From there, change the power slider to 'Medium' or 'Light' (unless you have sufficient cooling, which we'll go more into further on). Also, unless you don't have any heavy-duty computing workloads to work on, you should go to the column called simply 'When' and set that to "Only when idle". Otherwise, it will run in the background at all times, which may be problematic for less powerful systems. 

Keeping things cool

Because of the intensive workloads that your CPU is going to be spinning up on, your device will start generating a ton of heat – which is totally fine. Luckily, most processors these days have a ton of fail-safes in place to slow the CPU down when things get a little too warm, so you're not really in danger of damaging your device. 

There is definitely an argument to be made that running your PC at high temperatures for extended periods of time can diminish the lifespan of your CPU, and that's something you should keep in mind. This is why we wouldn't advise laptop users to run Folding@Home on a laptop with the 'Full' performance preset at all times, simply because you'll be up against that thermal limit for an extended period of time, and those temperatures can adversely affect other components in the laptop. 

However, if you have one of the best gaming PCs, equipped with a solid CPU cooler and decent airflow, you really don't have anything to worry about. If you can keep your CPU under 80 degrees C under full load, you should feel totally comfortable running Folding@Home for extended periods of time. 

Still, at the end of the day, you should only do what you're comfortable doing with your computer. Unless you know you have that thermal headroom, it's probably for the best to avoid the 'Full' preset, just to preserve the longevity of your PC – but, again that's entirely up to you. 

Idle or not so idle?

Here at TechRadar, we have access to some blindingly powerful computer hardware, so we've been able to have our PC running Folding@Home pretty much non-stop. With an AMD Ryzen 9 3900X, we can typically finish a project every 15 minutes with the performance setting on 'Full', without it really affecting our work. 

Now, obviously, not everyone will have access to that level of hardware, but many desktop processors will be able to contribute a lot to the cause. However, no matter what level of performance you have, you'll have to decide whether or not to have it running while you're actually working. 

Depending on what kind of work you have to do, you can totally get away with running it while working, but if not, you can set it to run only when your computer is idle. To do this, right click the Folding@Home icon in your system tray, select "Web Control" and then it will open a browser window. Once you're there, you'll see a column that just says 'When'. From there you can select 'Only when idle' or 'While I'm working'. 

If you select 'Only when idle', Folding@Home will only do its thing when your computer isn't working on other tasks. If your daily workload involves a lot fo computationally heavy tasks, this is what we'd advise. We'd only have it running while you work if you have a ton of performance headroom.

And, even if you do have it running while you're working, you can go into the advanced settings by right clicking the icon in your system tray and selecting 'Advanced control'. 

That will open a window called "FAHControl". From there, click the 'Configure' button in the top left corner of the window. If you go over to the 'Advanced' tab, you'll be able to change the Folding Core Priority. It will default to "Lowest possible", and we advise you to leave it there. 

This will basically allow any other application you're running take priority, so that your PC doesn't lose a ton of resources to Folding@Home while you're working. Again, with this enabled, we were able to keep working with F@H running, but your mileage may vary. 

• Here are the best processors

Intel has redesigned PC power supplies (PSUs) to make them more efficient, not to mention more affordable, while shrinking down cabling and connectors to make the internals of the computer neater and tidier in general.

Sounds like a great idea, right? Well, it might not be quite that straightforward in practice, but certainly the intention is a laudable one, and there are many potential benefits as mentioned.

• Here’s why you should never skimp on the PSU
• Check out the best graphics cards money can buy
• The best gaming PCs of 2020

Intel’s new type of PSU uses its ATX12VO spec, which stands for ATX 12 Volt Only. As that name indicates, it will employ a single rail (12V) as opposed to the multiple rails in existing power supplies for PCs.

As PC World, which reported on this, points out, contemporary power supplies have pretty much shifted over to using 12V for the vast majority of the time, not using the other rails (like 3.3V and 5V) nearly as much as in the past.

Those other rails aren’t being ditched entirely, though, as they are still needed – 5V powers your SSD(s) and USB ports, for example – so they will instead be located on the motherboard rather than the PSU.

Intel observed that this is about making a move for much better efficiency with power supplies, telling PC World: “Existing ATX multi-rail power supplies (5V, 3.3V, 12V, -12V, 5VSB) are not very efficient at low loads of today’s desktop computers when at idle.”

That’s because all those multiple rails have to be fed with current, leaving efficiency levels at something like 50% to 60%.

Intel adds: “By converting to a single rail power supply, the conversion losses can be minimized, reaching up to 75% efficiency at the same DC Load levels.”

The cost-savings come into play because power-efficiency means that the PC will use slightly less electricity over time, and these PSUs should be much cheaper to make, and therefore far more affordable off the bat.

Corsair’s director of research and development, Jon Gerow, agreed with Intel that this should not only boost efficiency, but should reduce costs, and another power supply manufacturer said it would make PSUs ‘drastically’ cheaper to produce, no less.

A further boon will be neater cabling inside the PC, because the new PSU design means thinner cables and a smaller connector to the motherboard. Instead of the giant (and ugly) 24-pin affair which currently plugs into the motherboard, there’s a much tidier and more compact 10-pin connector. And less cluttered innards mean slightly better airflow in the PC, too.

Not all smooth sailing

It’s not all good news, though. The shift of those rails to the motherboard will potentially make mobos more costly, and could come with issues of its own – particularly in terms of thermals for particularly high wattage PSUs.

While initial motherboard offerings might be quite pricey, cost issues in that respect should settle down in the longer term.

There’s also the fact that both PSU makers and motherboard manufacturers will need to adopt the ATX12VO standard, because both of these pieces of the puzzle are obviously required. But will mobo makers implement the new spec if PSU companies haven’t, and vice versa…

Initially, it seems that ATX12VO is focused on PC manufacturers who will be able to incorporate the whole shebang in their machines themselves, as opposed to being available in the form of individual components for PC builders.

However, with any luck, the latter will come to fruition before too long, and folks building their own PC will get the choice of going the ATX12VO route, or sticking with existing multi-rail PSUs – which aren’t going away, in case you were concerned about that.

The chip giant said: “Intel plans to continue to publish the ATX Multi Rail spec to maintain compatibility with existing motherboards and power supplies to provide the most options for our OEMs and customers.”

More choice is, of course, a good thing, especially if it ultimately means more affordable and less cluttered PCs.

We should see the first use of these ATX12VO power supplies in prebuilt PCs from OEMs in the near future.

• How to find the best parts to build a PC

Just a day ago, we spotted some system requirements for Doom Eternal that were way higher than we expected. But they almost immediately got taken down, leading us to believe that they weren't quite right – and, it turns out, they weren't. 

Official Doom Eternal system requirements have now been revealed on Bethesda's blog, and they're much more reasonable than the brief requirements that surfaced earlier. That earlier post suggested that you would need an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 at the minimum, along with 8GB of RAM and an Intel Core i5 processor. 

• We'll show you how to build a PC
• Check out the best graphics cards
• Here are the best processors

But, luckily, you can get away with much more modest hardware. If you just want to run the game at 1080p and 60 fps, you can get away with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti or an AMD Radeon RX 470 – a much more accessible level of hardware. We listed out the full Doom Eternal system requirements below, but it's a relief to know that more people can go to Hell (if they want to).

The only thing that really sticks out to us is the CPU requirements. For the recommended and the 'Ultra-Nightmare' settings, Bethesda and id Software give specific CPUs to aim for, which we'll dive into more below, but for the minimum just has a clock speed as a target. This may not be super helpful for people looking to see if their CPU meets the minimum requirements or not, as "Intel Core i5 @ 3.3GHz" could theoretically go all the way back to the Intel Core i5 2500K, if it has a nice little overclock on it. 

Either way, if you want to download the game early, you're in luck. You can preload the game up to 48 hours before the game launches on PC, and it will unlock at 12:00 AM in your local time zone. 

Minimum specs (1080p/60 fps/ low quality settings)

• CPU: Intel Core i5 @ 3.3GHz | AMD Ryzen 3 @ 3.1 GHz
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 | AMD Radeon R9 280, AMD Radeon RX 470
• Memory: 8GB 
• HDD: 50GB
• OS: Windows 7/Windows 10 (64-bit)

Recommended specs (1440p/60 fps/high quality settings)

• CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K | AMD Ryzen 7 1800X
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060, GTX 1080 | AMD Radeon RX Vega 56
• Memory: 8GB
• HDD: 50GB

Ultra-Nightmare specs (4K/60 fps/Ultra-Nightmare settings)

• CPU: Intel Core i9-9900K | AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti | AMD Radeon VII
• Memory: 16GB
• HDD: 50GB

What kind of PC do you need to run Doom Eternal?

The Doom Eternal system requirements are kind of all over the place, and it's hard to nail down the perfect system to play the game. Now, we obviously haven't got our hands to test performance like we have with Red Dead Redemption 2 or Halo: Reach – yet – but we can get a pretty good idea of the right kind of hardware to run the game. 

Because the game at a minimum requires an Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 3 at 3.5 GHz or 3.1GHz, respectively, we can safely assume that the game isn't heavily threaded. For instance, the AMD Ryzen 3 1300X has a 3.5GHz base clock and just 4 single-threaded cores. That means that even old quad-core champs like the Intel Core i5-3570K should theoretically be fine. But, again, IPC (instructions per clock) performance has come a long way since either of these processors launched, so you can't be 100% sure. 

Things get a little more confusing when you go up to the Ultra-Nightmare specs. It calls for an Intel Core i9-9900K or an AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, which may both be 8-core, 16-thread processors, but perform very differently. Intel's processor has stronger single-core performance, thanks to its high 5 GHz boost clock, whereas the Zen 2-based 3700X smokes it in heavily threaded workloads (at a cheaper price). 

The confusion continues when you look at the GPU requirements for this level, too, as it calls for either an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti or an AMD Radeon VII – two GPUs that are definitely not on equal footing. 

At the end of the day, we won't actually know what performance will look like for Doom Eternal until we're able to actually run it through some testing ourselves, but for now we can help you make sure your system is up to date, using currently-available PC components. 

If you just want to play at 1080p with high settings, this is the system we recommend:

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 3200G or Intel Core i5-9400
• GPU: AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT or Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660
• Memory: 16GB 
• HDD: 50GB SSD

However, if you want to really embrace everything this game has to offer, soaking in the high-fidelity graphics, we recommend the following hardware: 

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X or Intel Core i7-9700K
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
• Memory: 16GB
• HDD: 50GB SSD

You may notice that we recommended the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super instead of the RTX 2080 Ti, but that comes down to the fact that Bethesda is recommending the Radeon VII for the same level of performance. Because the RTX 2080 Ti is so much more expensive, it's hard to recommend if you're able to get a similar level of performance out of a card that costs nearly half as much. 

Then again, it's entirely possible that Doom Eternal is going to be a huge VRAM drain, necessitating the 11GB of GDDR6 on the RTX 2080 Ti or the 16GB of HBM2 on the Radeon VII – but we seriously doubt it. 

If you need to make an upgrade your hardware to play Doom Eternal when it hits the street, we went ahead and included convenient price comparison widgets down below so you can find the best price on admittedly expensive PC hardware. 

Via PC Gamer

Backing up your PC is a very important task, but one that’s very easy to put off. It would only take one hardware failure, theft, accident or ransomware attack for you to lose access to all the important files on your PC.

Thankfully, creating a backup doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming, and if you set aside a little time for it now, you can automate the process so you never have to worry about it again. Then, if disaster strikes, everything will be right there waiting to be restored.

Our preferred software for the task is Easeus Todo Backup. There are free and premium versions of the software available, but the free one will be enough for most standard home users.

The premium version includes a disk cloning tool, the ability to transfer your system to a different PC, Outlook mail backup and recovery, and event-based scheduled backups (when you power on your PC, for example), but you can still schedule backups by time using the free software, and restore then when necessary. 

Backup types

There are three main ways to back up your files, and all have their pros and cons. A full backup is a complete copy of everything that you’ve chosen to back up. It takes longer than other backup types and requires more storage space, but it’s faster to recover in the event of an emergency.

The first backup you make will need to be a full one, but after that you can save time by making either incremental or differential backups.

A differential backup is a copy of the files that have changed since your last full backup. This means you’ll always have to backups on the go: a full one, and a differential one. When you need to restore your files, these two backups are combined. It’s quicker than making a full backup, and requires less space, but isn’t as fast as an incremental backup.

An incremental backup just backs up the files that have changed since your previous backup – whether it was a full one or not. Incremental backups are the smallest and quickest to make, but take longer to restore than differential or full backups.

How to make and schedule backups

1. Get the software

Download and install the free version of EaseUS Todo Backup. You’ll need to enter an email address, but you can opt out of receiving newsletters. During installation you can also choose whether or not to take part in the EaseUS customer service improvement program. Run the software and skip the option to enter a license code when prompted.

2. Choose your files and destination

You can now either click ‘System backup’ to back up your entire PC, or use the buttons on the left-hand menu to select a particular drive or just certain files. Here, we’re going to back up a selection of photos. Use the top window to navigate to the files you want to copy (My Documents, Favorites and Deskktop will be selected by default, but you can uncheck these).

Choose a destination for the backup. Ideally this should be an external drive that you can store somewhere separate from your PC, though a separate internal drive will also work. It’s best not to store backups on the same drive as the originals.

3. Set a regular schedule

Click ‘Schedule’ and choose how and when your files should be backed up in future – this can be just once, or daily, weekly or monthly. Entering your Windows username and password will allow EaseUS Todo Backup to wake your PC from sleep to perform the backup, which is a handy feature and means you won’t be interrupted by backups taking place when you want to start working.

4. Manage your backups

Click ‘Save’ to make the first backup and set the schedule for future ones. You can set up multiple backups to happen at different times, for different files. These will all appear on the software’s main dashboard, which you can use to edit, delete or restore them.

A small pop-up at the bottom right of your screen will inform you when a backup is in progress.

• Check out our full guide to the best free backup software

Picking out all the components for your dream computer is one type of fun, but picking out the best PC case for your needs is another type of fun. You get to choose how your rig will look, how it will fit in with the rest of your decor, and how easy it will be to use.

But, you can't choose just any case just because you like how it looks. There are some important considerations to take into account when choosing a PC case. Here's what you need to know when picking a PC case.

1. Consider your motherboard size

Your first and most important consideration is whether or not the computer you want to build will even fit inside the case you're getting. Generally, this process will be somewhat simple. That's because case manufacturers are targeting very specific, standardized motherboard sizes. 

Computer cases will list what motherboard sizes will fit from E-ATX all the way down to Mini-ITX. In general, a case that supports a larger motherboard size will also fit a smaller motherboard, though you should double check if you don't see your motherboard size specifically listed in the case's specs. It's possible that the case will not have posts for you to screw your motherboard in if the chassis is specifically targeted toward larger motherboards.

2. Make sure there's room for your CPU cooler

Some CPU coolers can stand up at a considerable height from the CPU itself. If you get a narrow case, there may not be enough room for your cooler. Fortunately, case manufacturers regularly list the CPU cooler clearance in their specs, so you'll be able to find this information easily. Similarly, CPU coolers will list their height so you can compare that spec with the one listed for the case. 

If you're using a liquid cooler, you'll need to make sure the case has room for your reservoir and radiator.

3. Make sure there's space for your graphics card

Just like your CPU cooler, your graphics card is going to take up extra space, except it's going to take up space in even more directions. You'll need to confirm that your case has room for the length and height of your graphics card. You'll also need to confirm that the back of the case has enough expansions slots for your graphics card. Most popular graphics cards take up two slots.

4. Confirm a proper fit for your power supply

Are you sensing a theme here? The PC case you pick has to fit all of your components, or you have to pick parts that will fit in the case. Either way, you need to confirm your PSU and case will work together. In this instance, you'll need to make sure not only that there's room for your power supply, but also that it will be able to mount in the correct orientation. Some cases support only power supplies at the bottom, while others may support PSUs that mount at the top of the case. 

Your power supply needs to get proper airflow to work, so be sure the case you pick is fully compatible. Some cases will simplify this step for you by included a power supply, so you'll just need to make sure the PSU has the wattage and connectors you need for your computer.

5. Consider the drives you want

If you want a computer with a CD/DVD Drive, a Ultra HD Blu-ray drive, six 3.5-inch hard drives, and four 2.5-inch SSDs, you're going to need a very different case from someone who wants to a computer with no optical drives and strictly PCIe NVMe SSDs. PC cases will list the number of drive bays they include, and whether any of those are the type of front-panel ports you'll need for optical drives. So decide what you want, or what you may want to add in the future, and choose a case that can fit the drive you want. (Note: Some cases may appear to have more drive bays than they actually have if they can pull double duty, such as 3.5-inch drive bays that can also hold 2.5-inch drives.)

6. Determine the front-panel I/O you want

Front-panel ports can make your life a lot better, giving you easier access to plug in peripherals or external storage. So, when you choose your case, you'll want to consider what kind of ports you want to have available at the front and how many. You'll also need to make sure your motherboard provides the connections needed to actually enable those ports. You won't be able to have four USB 3.2 ports at the front of your case if your motherboard only has headers for a pair of USB 2.0 ports.

7. Think about fans

Your CPU and GPU have their own cooling, but the rest of your computer may need some cooling as well. That's where case fans come in. Many cases will come with some fans, though some won't. You'll want to decide how many fans you want, and what size fans, then check to see if the case will support them.

Another important consideration is air filtration. If you live in a dusty environment or have hairy pets, you'll likely want to find a case that has air filters. You can then put any intake fans where there are filters, and put exhaust fans where there aren't filters. A ton of dust and pet hair clogging up your computer is a great way to end up with an overheating, unreliable system.

If you’re worried about the spread of coronavirus, you're not alone, but rather than merely fret, there is something positive you can do to help fight the virus: contributing your PC’s processing power to the search for a way to defeat the threat.

Folding@Home is an initiative from Stanford University which is asking for your spare computer resources to help researchers better understand coronavirus, and how it infects – and thus how to potentially defeat it.

• Google is hiding 'coronavirus' apps from the Play Store
• Entire mobile industry could be disrupted by coronavirus
• E3 2020 is still going ahead this year, says ESA – for now

This is a similar usage of collective computing resources as seen in the likes of SETI@Home, a project that you’ve probably heard of, which is part of the search for extraterrestrial life (incidentally, SETI@Home is being wound up at the end of March, so this fresh anti-coronavirus initiative looks like a great alternative use of your PC’s resources).

Therapeutic antibody

The researchers behind Folding@Home explain that they are looking at how the infection actually occurs in the lungs, and methods of blocking the way in which coronavirus binds itself to a receptor protein on a lung cell.

The wider goal is to develop a therapeutic antibody which can stop the virus from binding and infecting, similar to what was achieved with SARS coronavirus.

In a blog post, the researchers noted: “The data you help us generate will be quickly and openly disseminated as part of an open science collaboration of multiple laboratories around the world, giving researchers new tools that may unlock new opportunities for developing lifesaving drugs.”

If you want to use your spare PC processing power to help, simply download the Folding@Home Windows application here, install it on your computer, and set it to work.

In other tech-related coronavirus news, it seems that PC sales will be affected through 2020, with pretty considerable drops set to be witnessed, according to analyst estimations.

• Best processors of 2020: the best CPUs for your PC

Via Tom’s Hardware

Anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock for the past two months is well aware of the impact the novel deadly coronavirus has had on everything, including the computing world.

• Entire mobile industry could be disrupted by coronavirus
• China cracks down on VPN use following coronavirus
• Samsung confirms coronavirus case at South Korean factory

Entire factories in China have already been forced to shut down, halting production of not just tech products, but also parts and components needed for those items. Companies like Apple have been closing retail stores due to the outbreak. And, tech trade shows and events are either getting cancelled or seeing exhibitors drop out at the last minute.

That’s not the end of it, however. As Tom’s Hardware reports, IDC’s latest forecasts predict that the COVID-19 outbreak may actually hurt the first half of 2020. 

IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker, which covers everything from desktops and workstations to laptops and tablets, shows a considerable decline in PC shipments. That’s not just in the first quarter, but for the rest of 2020 as well, especially H1.

IDC predicts even bigger shipment decline

These forecasts show 6.4% and 10.3% drops in shipments of traditional PCs year-over-year in Q1 2020 and Q2 2020 respectively, as well as a 11.8% and 17.5% decline in shipments of tablets. 

Considering IDC’s November 2019 forecasts for the same quarters, which only predicted a 6.8% and 10.7% fall for Q2 2020 for traditional PCs and tablets respectively, there’s a massive difference. Though it’s also worth noting that there are other smaller factors at play, including Windows 7’s end of life.

There have already been reports of a significant drop in demand due to consumers avoiding public places. But, IDC is also expecting depleted inventory in the second quarter from Q1’s production halt. 

As Linn Huang, research VP, Devices & Displays, IDC, said in a statement, "the existing inventory of components and finished goods from the first quarter will have been depleted by the second quarter.

Many critical components, such as panels, touch sensors and printed circuit boards, come out of these impacted regions, which will cause a supply crunch heading into Q2."

And, there’s still a long road ahead even after the factories reopen. "We have already forgone nearly a month of production given the two-week extension to the Lunar New Year break,” says Huang. “And, we expect the road to recovery for China's supply chain to be long with a slow trickle of labor back to factories in impacted provinces until May when the weather improves."

• Some Apple stores in China to reopen following coronavirus fears

Two minute review

When we sit down and imagine the purpose of boutique PC builders in 2020, it's to create some of the most gorgeous custom PC builds that you can't do yourself. The Origin Neuron Carbide arrives in a time where building your own PC is easier than ever before and other custom PC manufacturers are creating unique chassis and custom cables that are a sight to behold - you only need to take a look at the Falcon Northwest Talon to see that.

So the Origin Neuron Carbide is basically a complicated case, and while it is genuinely a pretty decent gaming PC, you're paying a huge premium for what amounts to a pretty nice build. For instance, the configuration listed to the right will set you back $2,505 (about £1,930, AU$3,750). When you compare that to the $1,821 (about £1,400, AU$2,700) we got on PC Part Picker for the same parts, you're paying a premium of $684 (about £530, AU$1,023) to have the computer built for you. That's a huge chunk of change.

Now, sure, there are more expensive custom built PCs out there, but the fact is that a lot of those are using custom-built PC cases that you legitimately can't get anywhere else. The Origin Neuron uses the Corsair Carbide 175R, a case you can likely find in your local Best Buy.

The case does get the job done, though, even if it's nothing really to write home about. It has a nice tempered glass side panel, and plenty of room for future expansion. The only problem the case might run into is the completely closed front, which could cause issues with airflow further on down the line. Aesthetically it's basically just a big black box, with the only branding being the Origin 'O' on the front of the chassis.

The Origin Neuron we received was packed with an AMD Ryzen 9 3900X, 16GB of RAM and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super. These are respectable specs these days, to be sure, and are more than capable of playing the best PC games at 1440p without issue. Playing Red Dead Redemption 2 is a breeze even on our 3,400 x 1,400 display, as is Doom (2016). In fact, even at that high ultrawide resolution, this PC is capable of reaching more than 150 fps in Doom on the highest quality settings.

The benchmarks largely tell the same story, too. In Cinebench R20, the Origin Neuron scored a nice score of 7,199, which is actually slightly higher than the 7,101 we got on our test bench equipped with the same processor. Then, in Geekbench 4.3, it scored a single-core number of 5,429 and a multi-core of 46,195, which is about what we'd expect from the CPU in here.

Then in game, this is a solid performer, too, with the PC hitting an average of 64 fps in Metro Exodus at 1080p, which is higher than the 61 fps that the 2070 Super in our test bench received with equivalent hardware. The differences in performance aren't super high, but they do indicate that performance definitely isn't being crippled by the case or cooling.

But, the configuration isn't all sunshine and roses. The motherboard chosen for this build simply shouldn't be in a PC that costs nearly three grand. There's nothing wrong with the MSI X570 Gaming Plus, of course, it's an excellent mid-range board after all.

However not only does it lack any RGB - and who wants a non-RGB motherboard in 2020 - but it's missing Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Now, obviously a more luxe motherboard with these features is going to be more expensive but you're paying that $866 extra. A PC that is this expensive that's sold as a whole product needs Wi-Fi and Bluetooth these days. There's nothing wrong with picking a motherboard like this for your own build, as you're likely going to understand the features you'll be missing, but folks that aren't familiar with PC hardware don't have that same knowledge - and those are the people who will be buying this machine.

At the end of the day, the Origin Neuron is fine. If you don't take price or the current gaming PC market into consideration, it's actually a pretty capable gaming rig. However, we simply can't ignore these things. Not only can you save a huge wad of cash by building your own rig with the same hardware, but you can find the same hardware from more prestigious builders for less - you can get the Maingear Vybe with equivalent hardware for $2,406. It's simply difficult for us to recommend this system to anyone.

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

In a major blow to Microsoft, the Chinese government will be replacing all PCs that run Windows by 2022, and could instead use a Chinese-created Linux distro, such as Kylin Linux.

The order comes from the Chinese Communist Party Central Office, and is part of a drive to replace any computer that runs non-Chinese software, partly in response to the US government’s blacklisting of Chinese hardware.

• Microsoft gave a recent Windows 10 update to the wrong users
• These are the best Windows 10 laptops out there
• And the best Windows 10 antivirus apps of 2019

Chinese government services have been ordered to replace 30% of Windows PCs by the end of 2020, a further 50% in 2021 and the final 20% by the end of 2022.

According to China Securities (as reported by MSPowerUser), this will mean that around 20 to 30 million PCs could end up being replaced.

Bad news for Microsoft, good news for Linux?

That’s a huge number of Windows devices that could end up being ditched. However, there is a bit of a relief for Microsoft, as the Chinese Communist Party Central Office’s directive is only aimed at government services, not private Chinese companies, and they still make up the bulk of Microsoft’s Chinese revenue.

However, it’s likely that even private companies will feel the pressure to ditch Windows and move to a Chinese-created operating system.

Microsoft has in the past tried to hold on to its Chinese customer base by offering a Chinese Government Edition of Windows 10 back in 2017, but that doesn't appear to have been enough. Instead, the Chinese government will switch to a Chinese-developed operating system, and Linux could be the natural choice.

There are several Chinese Linux distros in existence already, or the Chinese government could make its own.

This could bring an influx of new users to Linux, which would be a boost for the open source operating system, though it’s likely that any distro the Chinese government uses would be heavily modified and restricted.

On paper, this could be good news for Linux. However, any OS the Chinese government uses will likely be heavily regulated and censored, which is contrary to what the Linux and open source communities stand for.

The process of moving millions of users from Windows to Linux – or whatever operating system the Chinese government decides on – will also be a time consuming and complex task. However, if it means that US software is not being used by the Chinese government, this is a price the Chinese Communist Party Central Office will see as worth paying.

• These are the best Linux distros of 2019
• And the best working VPN for China

Via Financial Review