Gaming Desktop Review

High-performance computers for gaming and more

The average computer user doesn't need to spend thousands of dollars on a top-performing desktop. Computers under $800 (covered in our report on desktop computers) provide plenty of performance for surfing the Web, sending emails or composing office documents. However, power users like serious gamers -- as well those who need serious power for work, such as video editors and other creative professionals -- will benefit from the extra oomph under the hood of a gaming desktop.

Compared to traditional desktop computers, gaming desktops have fast, top-of-the-line processors, lots of memory, huge hard drives and discrete graphics. You'll pay more for this type of desktop -- some hardcore gaming rigs go for more than $7,000 -- but you'll also get excellent gaming, graphics and multimedia performance. Not all gaming desktops cost thousands of dollars, either. It's now possible to find a good gaming rig for less than $1,500, although more serious gamers will want to look into the $2,000 to $3,000 range, where you'll find better graphic cards and processors. 

In the past, all-in-one desktops (which combine the computer and monitor into one unit) weren't a good choice for intensive tasks like gaming or video editing. That's starting to change with the latest crop of all-in-ones, especially the Apple iMac. Although they can't match the performance of a traditional gaming desktop, some of today's all-in-ones achieve very playable frame rates for most modern games. They also put forward excellent performance for multimedia tasks.

For most, the reviews at sites and publications such as CNET, PCMag.com, ComputerShopper.com and Maximum PC provide terrific insights. Although you will find more detail at enthusiast sites, such as HotHardware.com or AnandTech.com, these reviews still provide more than enough information to help readers gain a clear appreciation of a computer's pros and cons. These reviewers look at lots of systems, and some -- particularly PCMag.com -- do an excellent job of making comparisons among the desktops they review. Reports are backed by testing, and conclusions are clearly explained. ConsumerReports.org also tests a number of recent desktop computers. Although systems are rated and ranked, discussion is woefully short. User reviews for these expensive systems can be hard to come by, but check out Amazon.com, BestBuy.com and Newegg.com to see what's available.

One complication in buying a high-end desktop computer system is that most vendors -- particularly online sellers -- offer a multitude of options, and any changes from the system as reviewed can help or hurt performance. These changes also greatly impact the bottom line; it's easy to increase price substantially -- sometimes by thousands of dollars -- as you add performance and other upgrades.

Customer satisfaction surveys can help identify which major computer makers are most likely to produce a system that will satisfy, however lots of gaming rigs are made by smaller but high-quality vendors that typically don't draw enough responses to even register. In addition, while surveys report on brand reputation in general, even the best maker is capable of producing a desktop computer that's a lemon, and the worst maker can crank out a champ on occasion. Among the large reliability surveys, ConsumerReport.org's effort is highly regarded and helpful, but PCMag.com's annual survey is more valuable because it covers more aspects of the computer ownership experience.