Desktops may be bigger and bulkier than laptops, but their strong performance and easy-to-upgrade nature gives them advantages that noteboo...
Desktops may be bigger and bulkier than laptops, but their strong performance and easy-to-upgrade nature gives them advantages that notebooks simply can’t compete with. Desktops undoubtedly offer better gaming performance than laptops at the same price, and their superior cooling and fast hardware also make them excellent options for work.
Key Features You’ll Want
When shopping for a desktop, the most important factor to consider is the system’s processor. This part more than anything else will determine the overall performance of the system, and it can also be used to pin down a rough age for the machine. To best determine the performance of a system you should look for reviews of the processor inside of it.
However, you can also roughly gauge the performance of the CPU based on its name. Both AMD and Intel use numeric identifiers in the names of their processors that make it easy to identify their age and relative performance. For example, let’s compare Intel’s Core i7 7700 with the company’s Core i7 8700 and Core i7 9700 processors. The first part of the product name, “Core i7,” designates the product line that the part belongs to, whereas the first digit in the four-number sequence identifies the processor’s generation. Knowing this, we can conclude that the Core i7 8700 is newer and more modern than the Core i7 7700, and the Core i7 9700 is the newest of these three products.
This also holds true for AMD’s products, with AMD’s Ryzen 7 1700x being older than the Ryzen 7 2700x and Ryzen 7 3700x. It should be noted, however, that AMD and Intel processors cannot be directly compared in this way.
Other parts, such as RAM and storage devices, are also important features to consider and also play a role in the system’s overall performance. For RAM, in general, more is better. When it comes to storage devices, the most important factor to determine is what type of storage device is used. HDDs offer a lot of storage space, but are relatively slow compared with SSDs, which typically offer significantly less storage space. Due to their faster performance, however, SSDs tend to make systems feel faster and more responsive, and as such it’s often better to have an SSD than an HDD, and the best solution is typically to have one of each.
The processor, RAM, and storage devices all have a significant impact on the price of the system, and as such it’s often necessary to balance performance among these parts to achieve the best possible configuration. Systems that are oriented towards gamers also come with graphics cards and will also have a strong impact on price. It should be noted, however, that some parts such as RAM are easily upgradable. Adding more RAM to a computer is often no more difficult than plugging in a USB port, and it’s also usually fairly inexpensive to perform this upgrade yourself. Adding an extra storage device is also relatively simple. Upgrading the processor, however, is typically more difficult and more expensive, which gives all the more reason why you should pay the most attention to this part when purchasing a desktop.
Top PC Makers to Consider
There are numerous companies that produce desktop computers today, far more than we could possibly cover here, but a few of the more notable companies include Acer, Dell, HP, and Lenovo. These four companies represent the bulk of computer sales worldwide in terms of volume. Among these four, Acer tends to offer the best performance relative to how much you pay. HP systems are also budget-oriented. Dell and Lenovo tend to target the business sector of the market more than the consumer market. While both also produce consumer-oriented products, they tend to focus on producing higher quality products than Acer and HP that also raises their price tag.
This list is in no way inclusive of all worthwhile desktop manufacturers with other key notable companies including Apple, Asus, Corsair, CyberPowerPC, Gigabyte, iBuyPower, and MSI. Although it would take too long to discuss each of these companies individually, just know that desktop computers from any of these companies will typically be researchable with most of them being of decent quality.
Featured Desktops this Week
Dell XPS 8930 Intel Core i7-8700 Desktop w/ 16GB DDR4 RAM and 1TB HDD ($699.99)
Dell’s XPS 8930 desktop comes with an Intel Core i7-8700 processor with six CPU cores that can operate at clock speeds as high as 4.6GHz. The system also comes with 16GB of DDR4 memory, and it should perform exceptionally well for those that like to multitask. You can get this system marked down from $999.99 to just $699.99 from Dell with promo code AFF300XPS.
Acer Aspire TC-885-UA92 Intel Core i5-9400 Desktop w/ 12GB DDR4 RAM and 512GB SSD ($429.99)
Right now Acer’s Aspire desktop is one of the best systems you can buy for everyday use. Equipped with a quad-core Intel Core i5-9400 processor, 12GB of DDR4 RAM, and a 512GB SSD; this system offers excellent performance for work and multi-tasking. The system also comes with a keyboard and mouse, and it has a built-in DVD drive.
Acer Predator Orion 3000 Intel Core i7-9700K Desktop w/ Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080, 16GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB NVMe SSD ($1,699.99)
If you’ve been in the market for a high-end gaming desktop then look no further. This system with its Intel Core i7-9700K processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card has plenty of power to run the latest games with maxed-out settings.
Dell PowerEdge T30 Intel Xeon E3-1225v5 Mini Tower Server w/ 8GB DDR4 RAM and 1TB HDD ($299.00)
Dell’s PowerEdge T30 system was designed as a mini-server that’s perfect for running a webserver. It would also work well as a data server for a small business. Use promo code BF299SERVER at checkout to get it for $299.00.
More Desktop Deals
- NEW Dell PowerEdge T30 Intel Xeon E3-1225v5 Quad-core Mini Tower Server for $299 at Dell (use code: BF299SERVER – list price $778)
- NEW Dell XPS 8930 Intel Core i7-9700 8-core Gaming Desktop w/ NVIDIA RTX 2060, Dual Storage and 16GB RAM for $967.99 at Dell (use code: SAVE12 – list price $1599.99)
- NEW Alienware Aurora R8 Intel Core i5-9400 + GTX 1660 Ti Gaming Desktop w/ 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM for $835.99 at Dell (use code: SAVE12 – list price $1399.99)
- NEW HP Pavilion Intel i5-9400H 6-Core GTX 1660 Ti Desktop for $579 at Walmart
- NEW HP Pavilion 690 Intel i5-9400F 6-core + GTX 1660 Ti Gaming Desktop for $579 at Walmart (list price $899)
- NEW Dell Vostro Small 3470 Intel Core i5-9400 6-core Desktop for $499 at Dell (list price $927.57)
- NEW Acer Aspire TC Intel Core i5-9400 Desktop w/ 512GB SSD, 12GB RAM for $429.99 at Amazon (list price $499.99)
- NEW Acer Aspire TC Intel Core i3-9100 Desktop w/ 512GB SSD, 8GB RAM for $356.99 at Amazon (list price $399.99)
- NEW Acer Predator Orion 3000 Intel i7-9700k + RTX 2080 Desktop w/ 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD for $1699.99 at Amazon (list price $2153.41)
- Dell XPS 8930 Intel Core i7-9700 8-Core Performance Desktop w/ 16GB RAM for $649.99 at Dell (list price $999.99)
- Acer Aspire C24 Intel i5-8250u Quad 24″ All-in-One 1080p Desktop for $509.99 at Amazon (list price $599.99)
- ZOTAC ZBOX CI660 Intel i7-8550U Quad-Core Nano Plus Silent Mini Barebones PC (Dual Display 4K Ready) for $579.99 at Amazon (list price $699.99)
Note: Terms and conditions apply. See the relevant retail sites for more information. For more great deals, go to our partners at BestBlackFriday.com.
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