published on ClutchPoints.com
From accessories, games, and hardware equipment, the PC user is blessed with a plethora of options for the holiday season. Not everyone will remain with the traditional route of looking for the usual accessories whether it’s as basic as an A4 Tech mouse or keyboard or as grandiose as a Hyper X keyboard, an Elgato Wave microphone, or a Logitech C930 webcam, as there are diehard PC gamers who would shop for parts. The numerous options serve as a challenge for PC users to decide on their spending spree and we’re hoping that this guide will transform your PC setup into a Christmas tree.
BUILDING A PC VS. LAPTOP
The choice between building a PC and buying a laptop will depend on your gaming needs. If playing games is your only intent, you may either choose between a laptop or a PC setup. If you plan to play games, stream online, create content, and edit videos, building a PC is the preferred option. It’s highly discouraged to stream with a laptop, as viewers from either Twitch or YouTube are more inclined to watch a streamer with the best production value.
There are other factors to consider beyond your gaming needs. Is your work from home experience limited to Microsoft Office applications? If that’s the case, a laptop is preferable. Are you a graphic designer, video editor, architect, or interior designer where your digital outputs consume a huge chunk of your storage? Go for a PC setup. You may use a laptop in producing these digital outputs, preferably gaming laptops as they can cater to high performing tasks.
However when choosing between building a PC and laptop, one should realize that the PC will always trump the laptop in overall performance. PCs offer better resolutions which will depend on your choice of monitor as well as graphics card and they likewise offer a faster loading times. In addition, PCs are malleable as the parts can be easily replaced. Setting up your gaming PC may also be cheaper depending on the prices of its components.
The laptop’s convenience is the only advantage over the PC as you can carry it in your holiday travels. It also offers a minimalistic appeal as it doesn’t consume a lot of desk space. Laptops are also best for gamers that don’t like to overthink on hardware options.
CHOOSING THE BEST LAPTOP
If you’re tired of the limitations caused by your MacBook or basic Windows laptop, then these options could benefit your gaming experiences. If you’re tight on budget, the following options could suit your gaming needs. These laptops cost less than $1,500, yet they still pack a punch courtesy of their long battery lives and their CPU performances.
Dell G5 15 SE ($900 – $1,400)
Acer Nitro 5 ($700 – $900)
HP Gaming Pavilion 15 ($700 – $1,000)
MSI GF65 ($799 – $1,000)
Lenovo Legion 5i ($1,100 – $1,500)
However if you’re willing to go all in with the best equipment, then perhaps the following options would suit you. These selections have better graphics and lighting display which explains their hefty price tag. The Alienware and Razer Blade both feature 17-inch screens which will definitely produce the best graphical output.
Alienware Area 51m ($2,000 – $2,700)
Asus ROG Strix GL503VS-DH74 Scar Edition ($2,300 – $2,500)
Razer Blade Pro 17 ($1,700 – $2,700)
BUILDING YOUR IDEAL GAMING SETUP
1.) PROCESSOR
The first question that needs to be addressed is the choice of processor. So far only two have dominated the market as Intel and AMD have released their respective products. Both offer the best performances in the CPU market, however AMD currently has the edge with their Ryzen 9 5900X processor that boasts the most powerful performance. With 12 cores and 24 threads, your video rendering and most importantly your gaming experience will just be a walk in a park.
But with great power comes a huge price tag as it costs $549.
There are other alternatives to consider. AMD’s Ryzen 5 5600X or Intel’s Core i7 10700K may not be as powerful as the 5900X, but they’re still capable of delivering your high-end gaming needs at a lower cost. Both cost around $299-$410. If you want something closer to the 5900X, then AMD’s Ryzen 7 5800X could bring you that safe haven, amounting to $499.
There are other cheaper alternatives than the ones aforementioned above, but be aware that these options might not bring you the best overall performance. For beginners, the AMD Ryzen 3 3100 could be your best bet given its affordability at $99, but it wouldn’t offer the fastest loading times as compared to those mentioned above.
2.) GRAPHICS
Picking the best graphical cards could also be a major dilemma. Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3090 is the most powerful graphics engine which also makes it the most expensive, valued at $1499.
Instead of going for the big guns, why not focus on alternatives? Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3080 could be your ideal option as it costs $699. If you want something cheaper, try the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070. It may be outdated in terms of performance, but it’s still considered to be one of the best graphics engines in the market amounting to $499. AMD’s Radeon RX 5700 is the most affordable graphics engine amounting to $389.99, but it will only limit your output to 1440p which is still an excellent experience to begin with.
3.) HARD DISK DRIVE
Whether you choose to build your own PC or purchase a laptop, it’s a magna carta to purchase an internal or external hard drive as the additional storage space will allow you to constantly download every game in the market. Ideally, anything from 1 terabyte and beyond is the preferred option.
For players that enjoy low storage games that will only consume 50 gigabytes and less, a single TB may be sufficient. Anything beyond a single TB is applicable for players that enjoy ridiculously massive games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Quantum Break, or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
Seagate’s BarraCuda offers the best combination of performance and affordability. It covers 2-3 TB of storage, processes data with ease, and it could cost lower than $50. Seagate likewise has an HDD + SDD hybrid from their Firecuda Desktop product which covers the same storage capacity as the BarraCuda, albeit more costly at $119.99-$199.99.
WD’s Blue Desktop could be an alternative as it offers numerous options ranging from 500GB-6TB of storage. The lowest storage is priced at $36.99 while the largest currently costs $119.99 courtesy of the holiday sale.
GAMES
One advantage that PC gamers have over console users is the amount of games in their disposal. Exclusivity deals from consoles don’t really affect the PC user. If PlayStation users are left to envy at Xbox players for having access to the Halo franchise, PC users can only laugh as they are capable of playing Halo. Unfortunately, there are some games that aren’t accessible for PC users like Spider-Man: Miles Morales. This doesn’t limit the PC user’s scope as they could still play the critically acclaimed alternative known as the Batman Arkham series. It’s possible that these exclusives could end up being transported to the PC in the mere future as seen when PS2 classics and other exclusives started appearing on Steam.
Steam is the ultimate library collection for PC gamers. Besides the free to play gems like DOTA 2, Apex Legends, and Destiny 2, there are other important titles worth considering. You might be forced to spend on some, but it will definitely be worth it.
Here are some titles that are worth browsing.
Fallout Series, New Vegas in my opinion is the best.
Resident Evil Series
The Final Fantasy Series, specifically the iconic ones namely IV, VII, IX, X, XII, and XV. Skip the XIII.
Red Dead Series
Borderlands
Batman: Arkham Series
Doom: Eternal
CYBERPUNK 2077!
Just open Steam.
These underrated titles may be worth looking at.
Amnesia: The Dark Descent
Cold Fear
Vampire: The Masquerade
Or the all time classics which includes:
Half-Life
Age of Empires
Fable
Left 4 Dead
And the list goes on and on. I might miss some important entries so you’d better check it out.
But Steam isn’t the only gaming hub for PC fanatics as Blizzard Entertainment and EA’s Origins have options as well.
CONCLUSION
The PC is without a doubt one of the most flexible gaming equipment due to its list of games and the plethora of options when accessorizing your hardware. When buying PC parts or a laptop, it’s best to consider which will bring you the most fruitful experiences in the holidays. For some, maximizing the gaming experience matters more thus hardware becomes a priority, while some would only rely on the game to define their holidays.
The prices indicated above may change due to the holiday sale, so it’s best to keep an eye on them. There could be cases when some of these parts would run out of stock, so it’s best to look at the alternatives mentioned above.
Merry Christmas and I’m hoping I could see your Christmas stream setup based on the hardware indicated above. Don’t forget to leave a shoutout if you have to.
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