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The $999 PC that out-gunned the Mac Pro

Review of the Velocity Micro Edge Z5

Rich Brown Former Senior Editorial Director - Home and Wellness
Rich was the editorial lead for CNET's Home and Wellness sections, based in Louisville, Kentucky. Before moving to Louisville in 2013, Rich ran CNET's desktop computer review section for 10 years in New York City. He has worked as a tech journalist since 1994, covering everything from 3D printing to Z-Wave smart locks.
Expertise Smart home, Windows PCs, cooking (sometimes), woodworking tools (getting there...)
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Rich Brown

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The Velocity Micro Edge Z5 Sarah Tew/CNET

We'd already acquired the Velocity Micro Edge Z5 for review purposes prior to the release of Apple's updated Mac Pro desktops, but it sure made a handy comparison even before we finished writing it up. The Edge Z5 is the desktop we used earlier this week to show that while the Mac Pro is a great digital content creation tool, and even a decent gaming system, its relative value as a gaming box falls flat compared with the stalwarts of the PC gaming world. After giving the Edge Z5 the full review treatment, we've also determined that it's a gaming star among its Windows-based peers.

You can read the full review of the Velocity Micro Edge Z5 here. The short version is that it's the fastest gaming desktop we've seen for less than $1,000. Interestingly, despite the Edge Z5's overclocked Core 2 Quad Q9400 CPU, it's application test scores fell behind a $999 system from Dell with a Core i7 CPU on some cases. Even with overclocking that's perhaps to be expected given the Dell's more up-to-date Intel chip, but Velocity Micro also lists the Edge Z5 explicitly as a gaming box on its Web site. For that task the Edge Z5 is the clear winner.

Read our review of the Velocity Micro Edge Z5.