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Buying Guide: What's the best desktop PC for you?

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20241/PCF241.w_rev3.w_rev4-200-200.jpg"/>Getting the best desktop PC can be a struggle, and despite the domination by laptops, desktops still represent the best value for money in terms of performance vs budget. Desktop PC users can reap the benefits of the best graphics cards, the fastest processors and a scary amount of storage, and serious gamers will never be swayed from this stalwart of computing. What's more, desktop PCs are upgradable, expandable, and offer fantastic value compared to similarly powered laptops. So let us take you through the best desktop PCs around. 1. Palicomp Excalibur 6300c35 - £599<img alt="Palicomp pc" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20239/PCF239.w_rev6.storm-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>The gaming performance of the Excalibur though is definitely down to the impressive £100 5770 thrumming away in the sleek CM Storm Scout chassis. Being able to chuck polygons around at 2560x1600 is not what this machine is all about, and yet it still manages playable frame rates only a little short of the 30fps milestone.Our only real issue with the Excalibur though is that much of its components are based on last generation hardware. The Athlon II X4 is a thoroughly reasonable quad-core, but is lacking in the more modern cache memory side. The use of DDR2 memory and the 770-chipset motherboard also means that there's little chance of future upgrades. However, for £600 you'd be hard pushed to find a machine as well specified and as quick off the blocks as this.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/palicomp-excalibur-630oc35-682973/review">Read our PalicompExcalibur 6300c35 review</a>2. Scan 3xs i3 OC - £680<img alt="Scan 3xs" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20239/PCF239.w_rev7.cooler_master-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>It may only be a dual-core chip, but with Intel's HyperThreading technology, it should better the four cores of the AMD chip. It's also overclocked to a huge 4GHz, over 1GHz faster than the stock speed of the chip. That, paired with the DDR3 memory installed in this rig, should put it head and shoulders above that AMD rig. The Scan system also looks great from a purely future-looking standpoint. With the H55 motherboard, you've got the option to drop in anything up to a socket 1156 Core i7 and have the vast realms of DDR3 memory at your disposal. <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/scan-3xs-i3-oc-683002/review">Read our Scan 3xs i3 OCreview</a>3. Cyberpower Ultra Scylla - £725<img alt="Cyberpower ultra" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20241/PCF241.w_rev3.w_rev4-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img> 
The 1055T in this machine comes pre-overclocked, operating at a sturdy 3.5GHz, and eats up processing tasks without breaking a sweat. This rig boasts some seriously impressive Cinebench scores, proving AMD's hex cores capable of breaking up the party for Intel's mid-range i7 chips.The Ultra Scylla has processing power to spare, given the lack of apps that fully use all six cores. As an out-of-the-box, everything-you-need setup it's fantastic value for money for gaming and processor-heavy tasks like video encoding.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/cyberpower-ultra-scylla-692928/review">Read our CyberpowerUltra Scylla review</a>4. CyberPower Infinity i5 Achilles XT - £999 
<img alt="Cyberpower infinity" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20235/PCF235.w_rev7.cyberpower-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img> 
A formidable system which is rammed with great quality components, the Achilles XT packs in an eight threaded Core i7 chip. Gaming benchmarking was slightly disappointing, with the HyperThreading doing little in terms of game speed, but this is still a system which eats up the latest games and spits them out in the form of gaming joy, and more intensive non graphical tasks really show why this i7 chip is worth the money.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/cyberpower-infinity-i5-achilles-xt-657150/review">Read our CyberPower Infinity i5 Achilles XT review</a>5. AdvanceTecAT-FX Khaos- £1,532.36<img alt="AdvanceTecAT-FX khaos" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20241/PCF241.w_rev7.w_rev7a-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>It's a machine that's been put together on a smart budget, with a fantastic array of componentry. It ticks pretty much every box in almost anyone's PC wish list.AdvanceTec, though, has gone down the Nvidia route, securing a GTX 470 to do the graphical grunt work. We checked out the card last issue and an impressive beast it turned out to be. The GTX 470 is a quality bit of silicon and twinned up with the Core i7 930, clocked up to the 4GHz it is here in the Khaos, makes for a rather impressive gaming rig.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/advance-tec-at-fx-khaos-693306/review">Read our AdvanceTecAT-FX Khaos review</a>6. CyberPower Liquid i7 Charybdis - £1889<img alt="CyberPower liquid" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20244/PCF244.w_rev8.cyberpower_1-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>The Bloomfield combo of the Core i7 970 and fantastic Asus P6X58D-E motherboard gives you 12 threads of the most advanced CPU cores available, and this is a truly lightening quick machine.CyberPower has opted for the cheapest 1GB GTX 460 currently on offer so that's almost a compromise, but then when you realise it's dumped two of them in there, and overclocked the pair, it's plain to see you're losing nothing in-game. £2,000 is a massive amount of cash to drop on a rig, especially one without a screen. But you get way more for your money than in systems asking more than a grand extra.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/cyberpower-liquid-i7-charybdis-713246/review">Read our CyberPower Liquid i7 Charybdis review</a>7. Apple Mac Pro - £1,999<img alt="Apple mac pro" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//classifications/computing/mac/images/mac-pro-2-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img> 
The mid-2010 refresh's entry-level Mac Pro is a very capable machine, and a worthy investment for anyone looking for desktop power, but isn't a hardcore gamer. Its 2.8GHz quad core Intel Xeon CPU boasts Hyper Threading and Turbo Boost features that help it make the most of its processing power. Off the shelf it boasts an ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory, allowing you to connect up to three displays. And although even a high-end Mac will never be the gamers' computer of choice, if you like the odd blast, this new Mac Pro is quite capable of pushing around the polygons with the best of them.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/apple-mac-pro-2-8ghz-718967/review">Read our Apple Mac Pro review</a>8.Cryo PC Hydro Nemesis - £2295<img alt="Cryo pc hydro nemesis" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/Review%20images/PC%20Format/PCF%20240/PCF240.w_rev1.cryo1-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>The Hydro Nemesis has got something beating in its silicon heart that makes it a much speedier beast: Intel's brand new Core i7 980X Extreme processor. Yup, six-core processor has found a home in Cryo PC's liquid-cooled gaming behemoth. Along with the twin HD 5870 graphics cards, that makes this one of the fastest gaming PCs available today. CryoPC, doesn't think that's quite good enough and has gone to great lengths to install a full watercooling loop to take care of this monster CPU and give it a fairly hefty factory overclock. It's also crossed the 4GHz threshold, clocking the i7 980X at a lightening 4.2GHz, almost managing to up the clockspeeds by a full 1GHz.

Buying Guide: What's the best desktop PC for you?

Getting the best desktop PC can be a struggle, and despite the domination by laptops, desktops still represent the best value for money in t...

In Depth: Fusion, ARM and x86: what's Nvidia's next move?

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//classifications/computing/upgrades-and-peripherals/processors/images/amd-llano-200-200.jpg"/>With AMD tooling up to give the market a <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/computing-components/graphics-cards/amd-radeon-hd-6000-what-to-expect-902180">second masterclass in DX11 graphics</a>, the spotlight will soon turn on Nvidia, its main rival in the graphics business.Nvidia has a few things up its sleeves in terms of new graphics chips. But even if the mooted update to the troubled Fermi graphics architecture is successful, that won't secure Nvidia's future.<ul><li><a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-components/graphics-cards/amd-radeon-hd-6870-902549/review">Read our AMD Radeon HD 6870 review</a></li></ul>The problem for Nvidia can be summed up in a single word. That word is fusion. Both AMD and Intel are committed to fusing most, and eventually probably all, of their PC processors with graphics chips. A single chip will handle all the computationally intensive work inside future PCs.Facing up to fusionNvidia, of course, doesn't make PC processors. It only makes the graphics half of the fusion equation. More to the point, it lacks the licences required to produce a PC processor. At least, it lacks the all-important x86 licences required to make processors compatible with AMD and Intel's x86 chips. Processors that will run software like the desktop Windows operating systems natively.Nvidia itself has more or less admitted it will eventually have to face up to fusion. In early 2009, senior Nvidia suit Michael Hara told investors that it was more a case of when than if Nvidia would want to get into the general purpose processor business."I think some time down the road it makes sense to take the same level of integration that we've done with [the ARM-based] Tegra...someday it's going to make sense to take the same approach in the x86 market as well," Hara said.Of course, the problem with that analogy is that British-based ARM is very much in the business of licensing out entire processor architectures to third parties. It doesn't make any chips itself.Sleeping with the enemyHistorically, however, Intel and AMD have done precisely the opposite, manufacturing everything in-house. Recently, AMD has shifted to a slightly different model, spinning off its manufacturing arm into a separate company. But arguably, even that caused ructions regarding its licenses to produce x86 chips. Flogging designs off to a third-party like Nvidia would be even more problematical.What, then, can Nvidia possibly do? In terms of directly licensing an x86 processor design, there really only seems to be one option, Intel. The good news is that Intel is indeed looking to get its Atom processor core into as wide a range of chips as possible.That includes for the first time farming out production to Taiwanese chip fab TSMC. Intel realises that custom chips are often needed for mobile devices like smartphones. The best way to serve that need is to allow third parties to cook up solutions based around Atom but including IP from other companies.In theory, that could include Nvidia. The catch is that relations between Nvidia and Intel are not exactly amourous. In fact, you could say that the very last company Intel would licence out Atom cores to would be Nvidia. At best, therefore, Nvidia would be a bit player providing graphics IP for someone else to knock out an Atom-based chip.There is, however, one last hope for an Nvidia x86-based fusion processor. Rightly or wrongly, America's Federal Trade Commission appears to have its sights set on Intel. Having already forced Intel to pay AMD one billion dollars for behaviour relating to CPUs, the FTC is now saying <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-10416699-64.html">Intel is engaged in anti-competitive behaviour</a> in the graphics.To cut a long story short, it's just possible legislators and regulators in the US will force Intel to give Nvidia an x86 licence. Code morphingIf that doesn't happen, there is one possibility left, although very remote. Theoretically, Nvidia could produce a chip that implements some kind of translation technology to run x86 code non-natively.This approach isn't without precedent. A small startup known as Transmeta had a stab at this in the early to mid '00s with its "code morphing" Crusoe processors. The business failed. But its chips did work well enough to provide proof of concept.Rumours involving an ARM-based Nvidia chip with x86 codemorphing have indeed been circulated. Given that power efficiency is increasingly crucial, however, a non-native x86 processor and all the overheads that come with it seems rather implausible.But perhaps even more telling are recent comments made by Nvidia's head honcho Jen-Hsun Huang. "ARM will be the most important CPU architecture of the future and it already is the fastest growing processor architecture," <a href="http://www.eetimes.com/electronics-news/4208752/Nvidia-ARM-smartphones-will-bury-x86-PCs">Huang said</a> in September.Intel and ARMIn fact, Huang claims ARM will replace x86 as the dominant processor architecture in PCs. It is indeed probable that Intel will face increasing competition from ARM-based architectures, even in its core PC market. Mobile devices are rapidly taking over the computing ecosystem and ARM rules mobile. ARM might even eventually come out on top.But that battle has only just begun. What's more, Nvidia's own ARM-based Tegra chip has so been a bit of a flop. So, even if ARM wins, Nvidia may still lose. However you slice it, in other words, Nvidia will need to up its game.

In Depth: Fusion, ARM and x86: what's Nvidia's next move?

With AMD tooling up to give the market a second masterclass in DX11 graphics , the spotlight will soon turn on Nvidia, its main rival in th...

Buying Guide: What's the best all-in-one PC for you?

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/HP-200-200.jpg"/>Finding the best all in one PC isn't so easy any longer - there are now so many options available. The choice used to be more limited - between expensive high end machines such as the Apple iMac or the HP TouchSmart and low-cost 'net tops' like the Asus Eee Top. Now there are all-in-one computers at a range of budgets, enabling consumers starved of space in offices or bedrooms to find a PC that suits their needs. Here we look at the best all-in-ones on the market, and put them in price order.1. Lenovo C200 Atom DC 2 320 - £411<img alt="Lenovo c200" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/lenovo-420-90.jpg" width="420"></img>If you're looking for an entry level all-in-one, for basic web browsing and email, then the Lenovo C200 is a fantastic system. The 18.5" touchscreen means you can work without a keyboard and the Atom Processor and 2GB of RAM mean that it will easily handle basic tasks, and the small body and desktop footprint mean that it will fit in pretty much any space. What's more, it's packing the NVidia Ion graphics chip, so video playback won't be a problem either.2. Asus Eee Top ET2010 - £599<img alt="Asus eee top et2010" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/OWV46.big_test.asus_comp_sml-320-100.jpg" width="320"></img>The 20-inch Asus is certainly a looker and the first impression of the hardware is superb. Presumably to make its 'nettop' dulynimble, Asus has employed Intel's Atom processor – usuallyused in netbook PCs. While the chip is still dual-core,there's a bit to be desired in terms of poke. You'll be fine forgeneral web surfing and video streaming – graphics areboosted by nVidia's Ion graphics chip and there's even anHDMI port to output video to an HDTV – but seriousgaming is completely out of the question and there simplyisn't enough power to edit video, for example.3. Packard Bell OneTwo M D-6020 - £630 <img alt="Packard bell onetwo m d-6020£630 " src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/OWV46.big_test.packard_back-320-100.jpg" width="320"></img>Packard Bell's computers have improvedimmeasurably over recent years in terms of lookand feel. This attempt at an all-in-one computer is worthconsideration and would make a great kitchen PC, forexample. However, the Packard Bell suffers from a lack of power in the processingdepartment. The Pentium processor is still used in thinand-light laptops where battery life needs to be conserved. The graphics, too, are disappointing and thePackard Bell is the only model in our test not to featurededicated nVidia graphics.3GB of memory and a large 640GB hard drive mightimpress some, as might the crisp 20-inch display, TV tuner and beefed-up Dolby Home Theater audio.4. MSI WindTop AE220 Hi-Fi - £760 <img alt="MSI windtop" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/OWV46.big_test.msi_sml-320-100.jpg" width="320"></img>Hardly a budget choice, this is a souped-up version of MSI's WindTop line and features a 5W integrated speaker system. The MSI is pretty powerful, packing nVidia's Ion graphics technology as well as a reasonable 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo in addition to that beefed-up sound – ideal for gamers who want a computer that doesn't look out of place in a living space. Memory and storage isn't lacking either, with 4GB of memory and a 640GB hard drive. It's all finished off with an integrated TV tuner should you want to use it as a spare TV. This PC doesn't hold an overwhelming advantage over the other models here, but it does just enough to edge out more expensive or lesser-equipped competition. 5. Samsung DP-U250 - £900 <img alt="Samsung dp-u250" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/OWV46.big_test.samsung1_sml-320-100.jpg" width="320"></img>This is the closest thing you'll get to an all-in-onecomputer that looks just like a monitor. Performance isn't state of the art,but compares roughly with the MSI, with a decentlypoweredCore 2 Duo and nVidia GeForce 310M graphics aswell as 4GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive.Sadly, though, there's no TV tuner – for such anentertainment-orientated machine, this is a big miss. Thereare plenty of connectivity options, though, with six USBports on the rear and Wi-Fi built in. This is how atouchscreen Windows 7 PC should be, and the quality of the finish is typical of Samsung. If you're buying an all-in-onebecause of the appearance, this model is clearly aheadof the pack. But it's costly, and for this price you should begetting the finest performance and the latest in hardware.6. HP TouchSmart 600-1210uk - £1,122All-in-one PCs don't come much more powerful than the latest in the TouchSmart range, a series which has led the all-in-one charge from the beginning. Driving the 23" touchscreen is a 2.13GHz Intel i3 processor, with 4GB of DDR3 and a huge 1TB hard drive. The HP TouchSmart is designed with entertainment in mind, and it comes with TV in ports and a dedicated graphics card for video playback. There's no Blu-ray included which is a shame, but HD movies will look fantastic on the 23-inch display.<img alt="HP touchsmart" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/classifications/computing/computer-hardware/desktop-systems/images/bestallinones/HP-420-90.jpg" width="420"></img>7. Apple iMac 21.5-inch - £1,209<img alt="Apple imac" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/Review%20images/MacFormat/MAC%20217/imac%2021.5%20inch/main-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>All iMacs now use Intel's new Core i-series processors, with the mid-2010 upgrades retiring the ageing Core 2 Duos. Three of the four new iMacs use entry-level Core i3 CPUs, with the most expensive in the line giving you a quad-core Core i5. The move to the new Core-i processors is very welcome, as the Core i3's Hyper Threading facilities mean the iMac is great at multitasking, and running applications that use more than one core. Discrete graphics is very welcome, with the machine's ATI Radeon HD 4670 adding much to its multimedia and gaming capabilities. The screen is as excellent as ever, and can be viewed from almost any angle without the colours shifting, and iLife remains a very useful software bundle.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/pc-mac-desktops/apple-imac-21-5-inch-core-i3-711003/review">Read our Apple iMac 21.5-inch review</a>8. Apple iMac 27-inch SSD - £2,114 <img alt="Apple imac ssd" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/TechRadar/iMac%2027-in/10imac27_photo-420-100.jpg" width="420"></img>If you buy online through Apple's online store, you can opt for a 256GB solid state as well as the standard 1TB hard disk drive. So given that this particular model of iMac costs £1,649 off the shelf, which is already a very considerable investment, and the solid state drive pushes this price up to over £2000, is it worth the extra? Are the very real benefits offered by solid state storage worth pushing up the price of an already-expensive computer by £600? Using the solid state drive as the boot volume made everything run very quickly. Applications opened in an instant, and the processor hardly ever stalled while waiting for data. The quad core Intel Core i5 processor is excellent, and makes light work of even the most intensive tasks, and having an ATI Radeon HD 5750 graphics card on top makes this a stunning all-in-one.

Buying Guide: What's the best all-in-one PC for you?

Finding the best all in one PC isn't so easy any longer - there are now so many options available. The choice used to be more limited -...