The $500 Gaming Machine

[Steve]

Bargain alert!

Instead of the newest killer rig from Alienware, Falcon Northwest, Voodoo, etc... how about a system for the rest of us with a realistic budget starting from scratch? We set out to build a reasonable gaming system that will get you through today's game titles without breaking the bank for around $500. That's less than some of the top-of-the-line video cards on the market at any given time. Of course, the normal laws of economics--and even physics for that matter--apply. This system won't allow you to play Half-Life 2 at 1600 x 1200 at 16AF, but you may be surprised what you can do within a reasonable budget.

[Tom's Hardware]

[YorkieBen]

interesting but a couple of points: no operating system and no case for starters

so its not really a system is it? I wish magazines and sites who do this would include stuff like this which you kinda need

p.s. I priced a very similar system at scan and it came to £360 (no os or case)

[kalniel]

Agreed - needs case and OS. But otherwise good article. Just needs some benchmarking to complete the picture (especially if they take I think it's HardOCP's approach of reporting the best playable settings of the game, rather than the framerates).

[zulander]

Would they not have been better choosing an ATI x800 gto2 card? Maybe cause its they were strictly at last generation stuff they dident choose it. Could be a bit mis leading for anyone not really up with what graphics cards are out and what u can do with them. Plus y just get a standard 6600, may as well go for the gt

[Smokey21]

Would they not have been better choosing an ATI x800 gto2 card? Maybe cause its they were strictly at last generation stuff they dident choose it. Could be a bit mis leading for anyone not really up with what graphics cards are out and what u can do with them. Plus y just get a standard 6600, may as well go for the gt

GT02 is around £150 isn't it? The 6600 is like under £100

[zulander]

yeah but theres a pretty big difference oin what u can get out of them when u clock the gto2 and seeing as they went over $500 anyway i thought they may as well have stretched. But i spose they are looking at keeping costs as low as possible.
Its one of them things anyone who reads that article will have their own ideas off to get more for less etc, theres no real right or wrong answer to it

[Smokey21]

Indeed, you keep upping the budge, you might as well get a 7800GTX.