For many people, buying a gaming computer can be a challenging task. There is so much you need to know about computers and gaming before you can shop online at TechFast. In order to play the newest video games, your rig should at least have a good graphics card in addition to the typical hardware specifications. So, before you decide to spend a chunk of money on a gaming desktop, here are 7 things you need to consider:
- Your Gaming Desktop Budget
Determine the amount of money you want to spend on a gaming desktop. When you are thinking about buying a computer, it is highly unlikely that you want to spend an unlimited amount of money on it. As such, it makes perfect sense to determine the maximum allocation for the new computer you wish to acquire. But even as you are factoring cost on your list of concerns, bear in mind that there are other factors that could mitigate it because though you want the computer for gaming purpose, you can still use it to perform other tasks.
Setting a budget ceiling enables you to determine the computer components you can afford. For instance, if for a $900 budget you run two graphic cards in CrossFire or SLI mode, that would not work. By comparing your budget to the gaming specifications you want, you’ll quickly realize the dual graphics component can’t be part of the mix.
- The graphics and display you need
Graphics are an important component of gaming and knowing the kind of games you will be playing will enable you to think clearly about the GPU. This means you need to get the best
Graphics card that your budget can allow, so you don’t spend too much money. The graphics card and the amounts you spend should be sensible – you don’t want to get two top-notch graphic cards to run on a single 1080p monitor, then have most games running on default settings.
This does not mean you cannot opt for high-end cards – you may want to go for these to enable anti-aliasing of titles. You’ll also need high-end cards if your interest is in stereoscopic 3D as these require almost twice the amount of graphics horsepower. Even so, you need to be clear about what you want to achieve. Getting a costly graphics setup and not making adjustments to your game settings will be a waste of money. To be on the safe side, allocate a third of your budget to graphics. At the back of your mind, know that the cost of cards that use similar graphics chips can fluctuate.
- The Size of Gaming Desktop
You’ll find gaming desktops of different sizes – some are full tower, other mid or mini tower as well as small size hence they have varying desktop requirements. On average, a full tower desktop such as Maingear Rush Super Stock has a 24-inch height and needs to stand vertically on the floor while an Alienware Alpha can be packed in a cranny or nook. The desktop you pick such as the ones at https://www.vssmonitoring.com/best-32-inch-gaming-monitor/ should be determined by the size of room you have or plan to keep your PC.
- The games you want to play
Before you buy a gaming desktop, consider the computer games you like to play. If you have a preference for first-person shooters, the graphics hardware you choose will be a top priority compared to CPU performance. On the other hand, turn-based war games require a fast CPU to enable them process AI fast hence CPU performance will be a priority over high-end graphics. For real-time strategy games, you will need to balance between CPU performance and graphics.
- Ability to Upgrade
Bearing in mind the current cycle of GPUs, RAM, storage, and motherboards, you will need to swap a part or two in the future to keep your desktop updated. When that time comes, you’ll most likely want to spend a little as possible to have that shiny, new Nvidia or AMD card instead of paying for a whole configuration process. When buying your gaming desktop, ensure that it is possible to access its interior including the fans, GPU, RAM, motherboard and drive bays. This will make it easy for you to upgrade it when you find yourself needing to do so.
- Presence of Ports that you Need
When buying a gaming desktop, the more ports available the better. Between the monitors, VR headsets and peripherals, you’ll want your system to come with at least 6 USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI port, and 3 display ports. Also, check whether the system has Thunderbolt and USB Type-C ports to enable you utilize them for fast transfer speeds.
- CPU Performance
While many high-end gaming desktops run on intel 6 core processors, you don’t always need to for such processors to enjoy playing games on your desktop unless you want to utilize the PC to do extra work like video or photo editing. If your intention is just to play games, you are better off scaling down on the CPU and improve your graphics card.
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