Reviewed on February 26, 2008With its second full-fledged gaming PC, Dell shows that it understands the mainstream gaming desktop as well as the high-end. The Dell XPS 630 delivers everything a gamer would want in a sub-$2,000 PC, from its components, to its case, to its powerful software. We've seen no better system in this newly competitive category.TAGS:Velocity Micro, quad-core, Dell XPS, Intel Core 2 Duo, CPU, Gateway Inc., dual-core, video card, games, hard drive, Intel
Reviewed on September 5, 2007HP's Blackbird 002 earns the highest rating this editor has ever given a desktop PC. Its design rivals the Apple Mac Pro, it takes risks that benefit your upgrade path, it's fast, and it's competitively priced. If you can afford it, and you want a high-end gaming PC, buy this one. End of story.TAGS:Voodoo, latch, media card reader, video card, DNA, power supply, HP, gamer, hard drive
Reviewed on July 8, 2003Strong performance for a low-end graphics card makes the PNY Verto GeForce FX 5200 Ultra a good choice for gamers on a budget.TAGS:warranty, video card
Reviewed on November 21, 2007Despite the usual caveats of an ever-fluctuating 3D market, for the moment, at least, ATI's new Radeon HD 3850 graphics card delivers the best bang-for-the buck in PC graphics hardware. Until now we haven't had an acceptable sub-$200 option for PC gaming this year. Thanks to AMD, now we do.TAGS:Radeon, DirectX, ATI Technologies, PCI Express, PCI, Nvidia GeForce, card, motherboard, video card, NVidia, games, PC
Reviewed on August 2, 2007If you're looking to build a home theater PC, we recommend ATI's Radeon HD 2600 XT as the midrange card to use, thanks to its nearly perfect HD video image and its no-fuss installation. But for 3D gaming, you'd be much better off looking for a good deal on a faster, older graphics card.TAGS:Radeon, NVidia, ATI Radeon, ATI Technologies, Nvidia GeForce, card, DirectX, video card, generation, 3D, games
Reviewed on April 11, 2008Regardless of the exact configuration, HP's budget-conscious Pavilion a6400z desktop is attractive and affordable. HP also offers a reasonable array of options for configuring a basic budget PC.TAGS:HP Pavilion, HP, video card
Reviewed on July 11, 2007The HP Pavilion Media Center m8120n boasts a quad-core Intel processor and outstanding overall performance, particularly for the price. Media consumers and creators alike will love its speed and AV connections but may rue the lack of a next-gen optical drive.TAGS:quad-core, HP Pavilion, Media Center PC, PCI, HP, slot, video card, TV, hard drive, video, PC, games