It's been reported this week that the world's three biggest RAM manufacturers, Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix, are all being sued for purported price fixing. The lawsuit claims that the trio has been lessening supply in order to profit collectively from the current AI-induced memory pricing nightmare (y'know, RAMageddon). What's flown under the radar, however, is that the best RAM for gaming could already be doomed to stay price-hiked for another five years thanks to a new business model from Micron.

In a Q3 earnings call, Micron's CEO, chairman, and president, Sanjay Mehrotra, detailed how the company was going to proceed in the current climate. "Even as we expect industry supply to improve gradually in 2028, we currently do not have line of sight as to when memory supply will be able to catch up with increasing demand," he explained.

Then he revealed that Micron has signed "strategic customer agreements" with its partnered RAM suppliers, ensuring a price bracketing system that will span the next five years.

"Micron has been a pioneer in our industry in creating a new class of strategic customer agreements, or SCAs, with very robust terms. We are pleased to announce that we have completed 16 SCAs with customers across the data center, consumer and auto market segments. These SCAs accelerate the transformation of our business model, enhance partnership in technology and innovation, and provide customers with contracted supply assurance."

An SCA will mean that businesses that utilize Micron's manufactured RAM (any consumer brand that sells RAM under its own name, but uses Micron's wafers) will need to pay pre-determined fixed prices based on current market trends, or established price bands based on Q2 prices from this year (ie, when RAM has been at record-breaking highs).

I suspect these agreements have been made out of fear from Micron's "customers" that RAM could continue to climb, as the latest research points to prices rising another 40-50% in Q3 2026. If that continues to be the case, agreements that lock in a fixed pricing bracket could be alluring for brands in the memory space, but guarantee prices remain high on consumer fronts.

"For our SCAs with price bands, the floor price enables a very robust gross margin for Micron, well above our peak quarterly margins in any past cycle," said the CEO.

Micron exited the consumer space in February by shuttering the Crucial brand and has since announced record-breaking profits from AI data fab manufacturing contracts. These are the main cause of the RAM shortages we've seen in 2026, but construction partnerships were only slated to last until ~2028, when we all expected prices to potentially level out a bit. With Micron's new SCAs, we could be looking at locked prices until 2030.

"Fourteen of the 16 SCAs that we have signed have a cumulative revenue at minimum price per our contracts of approximately $100 billion over the remaining agreement term," Sanjay announced. "They also strengthen our long-term financial performance, margins and free cash flow expectations, with higher visibility and improved stability in our business performance.

"Under the SCAs we have signed so far, we project to receive cash deposits and related financial commitments of $22 billion. This further demonstrates customer commitment to this new business model."

It's unclear how, if at all, the class action lawsuits against the big three RAM suppliers will impact these agreements, since they seem almost like a paper trail that points to an attempt to keep prices high instead of waiting to see how the market could level out.

More specifically, the new lawsuit being filed in California claims that the big three have illegally coordinated a restricted supply of DDR3 and DDR4 RAM in order to ensure profit from record-high DDR5 prices (Garciaguirre et al v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. et al)

Back in 2005, during a separate price-fixing lawsuit, the three companies were found guilty, with Samsung and SK Hynix both pleading guilty and paying fines as a result. Meanwhile, the story goes that Micron avoided fines by providing information to prosecutors. The modern-day lawsuit is the third major memory price-fixing scandal in 30 years, as it happened again in the 2010s.

It's unclear whether or not Samsung and SK Hynix have also begun to spin up SCAs with their customers, but we know from Micron's earnings call that its agreeing partners span from automotive to consumer, to data fabs, and the SCAs run through 2030. Micron suspects that when completed, approximately half or more of its overall revenue will be under SCAs from all areas of the market.

For more on computing markets, check out the best gaming PC, the best CPU for gaming, and the best graphics card.

PC and mobile accessory and case maker dbrand was forced to cancel and refund all sales of its Steam Machine Companion Cube case after realizing and publicly admitting that it never got permission from Valve to make the dang thing.

In a Reddit post you'll be redirected to from the Companion Cube case's now-defunct listing page, dbrand confirms the product "was eviscerated from our website" and won't be coming back.

The Portal-inspired case began as a joke posted on the heels of the Steam Machine reveal, dbrand says, but a wave of real consumer interest sparked some hasty development and, "in the months that followed, we built the idea into something real without ever asking Valve if we could."

"We're going to regret that decision for a very long time," dbrand says.

Across seven months, dbrand says "more than a thousand hours went into engineering" the case, with 44 sets of injection molding tools created. "By the end, we were losing money on every $99 Poverty Cube sold, but it didn't matter," the company says. "This had turned into a passion project for the entire organization. Unfortunately, being proud of the thing we made did not give us the right to make it."

Dbrand even took pre-orders for the case beginning June 22. It became "the second-fastest selling product in our 15-year history," but those pre-orders will be refunded today, as this was what finally triggered alarms and action at Valve.

"Shortly after, Valve's legal team reached out," dbrand adds. "They stated that the Companion Cube is Valve intellectual property, for which dbrand does not have a license. They requested we take down the product and launch film immediately. This was entirely within their rights, and they were direct, fair, and respectful throughout."

Dbrand did try to salvage the work put into all this by finally asking Valve for permission, but the company "said no." Dbrand admits that, "given our backwards approach of building first and asking permission later, it was a fair answer." It also stresses that "Valve didn't do anything wrong here," and concludes by saying, "We should've asked first."

Rarely do companies publicly take eggs to the face so willingly, especially companies this established. But I suppose it is also rare for experienced manufacturers to forget about licensing for seven months.

Journalists often have to dig to get even modest acknowledgements of blame from large companies. In this case, a Reddit user responded to dbrand's statement and said, "You guys are fucking stupid, you know that?" The company replied, "Yes."

On Steam Machine, Valve engineers say "the cheaper the better," but a price drop is unlikely "any time soon."

The Steam Machine costs upwards of $1000. PS5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles are hundreds of dollars more expensive now than they were at launch almost six years ago. Even the Nintendo Switch 2 is getting a price increase. But surely hardware costs won't keep ballooning, right? Surely, at some point, hopefully, the RAMpocalypse will come to an end and we can all go back to comfortably buying pieces of plastic-metal to play games on.

Well, that's not about to happen any time soon, according to electronics firm Lenovo. As reported on by ComputerBase, the company held a presentation at the ISC 2026 where executive director Martin Hiegl apparently told the audience that we're now in a new normal for DRAM and NAND prices.

The tech company explained that DRAM companies are upping their production capabilities to make more memory components, but those efforts probably aren't going to result in lower prices or, at least, prices that match their original levels for the foreseeable future. Hiegl then explained these inflated prices will become somewhat of a new normal until at least 2030. (Good spot, VGC).

In case you've had a look at hardware prices recently, that's, uh, not great news. Valve has blamed the Steam Machine's eye-watering price on high component costs that keep going up. Hot off increasing Xbox Series X|S prices once again, the console maker explained "storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027." All signs point to consoles getting even more expensive and more people being priced out of the hobby.

PlayStation also raised PS5 prices earlier in the year, pointing to the vague "global economic landscape." The entire tech world is seemingly being plagued with RAM shortages as AI slop factories lay claim to these components in massive quantities.

On Steam Machine, Valve engineers say "the cheaper the better," but a price drop is unlikely "any time soon"

The big news this week in PC gaming was the reveal that Valve's Steam Machine PC-console hybrid costs $1049 for the cheapest model, a figure that sent shockwaves through the gaming community despite the fact that component and thus hardware prices have been historically high for quite some time.

The rapid proliferation of AI data centers has driven the cost of memory through the roof, and when you couple that with global economic instability and high inflation, well, you have both video game consoles and gaming PCs with exorbitant price tags both on store shelves and on the second-hand market. Still, $1049 for the entry level model in a lineup of PC-only gaming consoles is a tough pill to swallow no matter how much we've all got used to everything being ridiculously expensive, but don't expect Steam Machines to drop in price any time soon.

Talking to Digital Foundry, Valve engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais is asked if there's any chance Steam Machine costs will drop when the current RAM shortages are resolved, and he dodges the question but argues that from a business perspective, the current price doesn't make sense.

"There's no point for us to keep hardware at a high price," he says. "It's meant to be an enabler of a stronger connection between people and their games, and not something that we're trying to sell to people for other reasons... [For us], the cheaper the better."

Meanwhile, another Valve engineer on the Steam Machine's hardware team, Yazan Aldehayyat, straight-up downplays the idea of a price drop any time in the near future.

"It's obviously hard for us to predict the future, but we're not optimistic it's going to happen any time soon. Other people in the industry have said as much.

"Obviously, we would love to be able to make the Steam Machine more affordable and reach more people, but I don't want to promise to people that it's coming soon," adds Aldehayyat. "I wouldn't say that this is something that's going to resolve very soon."

If you want something slightly more concrete, or at the very least specific, Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra recently estimated that the ongoing RAM shortage will likely continue through 2027 before "gradually" improving in 2028. That doesn't help much if you're looking to lock in a Steam Machine pre-order soon, but it's good to have some idea of when things might start to normalize... well, in terms of the cost of gaming hardware anyway.

$1,049 Steam Machine is still a "good value," Valve engineer says, even though it was supposed to be $789 like the Steam Deck

The event may end today, but the good news is that there are still plenty of Prime Day PC deals live right now. And honestly, as a fellow PC gamer highly recommend checking them out while you can, since they are the best option if you want to grab the computer specs you're hoping for this year. Let's face it, 2026 is likely the worst year to upgrade your gaming PC since 2020, thanks to the RAM shortage. However, not all hope is lost.

After tracking Amazon's store page as well as competing sales events from brands such as Newegg and Best Buy all week, I've managed to find a handful of very decent, cost-effective deals this Prime Day season. These discounts include one of our picks for the best gaming PCs of 2026, and a bunch more savings on both high-end and mid-range machines. Component shortages, AI datacenter demand, and spiralling RAM costs (not to mention rigs and graphics cards) mean that sales like Prime Day may be your only chance to get all your PC gaming bits for a good long while. So, as we enter the final day of the event, I will say the discounts below are well worth your consideration.

It's also worth noting that the team at GamesRadar+ spends hours testing everything from the latest components to the best gaming handhelds that run PC games. We also regularly update these deal pages to ensure you are getting real savings rather than inflated prices. So read on below for a complete and curated round-up of the best Prime Day PC deals to pick up before it's too late.

Today's best gaming PC deals

• Amazon: RTX 5060 rigs for under $1,500
• Dell: up to $1,330 off Alienware Aurora
• Best Buy: up to $300 off MSI, HP, and more
• Newegg: $1,000 off mid-range rigs

Prime Day PC deals: FAQ

Make sure to check out the best Prime Day monitor deals for display discounts. Or, if you're a console player, swing by Prime Day PS5 deals and Prime Day Nintendo Switch deals for system savings, games, and accessories.

The Steam Machine's base price will set you back $1,046, but it's not entirely Valve's fault. Companies manufacturing PC memory components apparently left the negotiating table and ghosted Valve altogether when they tried to haggle for better RAM prices.

The pre-built PC with console comforts is now available for pre-order, but its almost eye-watering starting price has been a big sticking point for days. The culprit, as Valve engineers have been alluding to for months now, is the ongoing RAMpocalypse (knife found in kitchen).

Speaking in an interview with GamerNexus, Valve engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais is pretty clear about what went on behind-the-scenes with RAM dealers: "Look, there's no contracts. There's nothing. Like, those guys… they are… they give us a price every month or something and they say 'You can buy that many' and it's yes or no. And if we say no, then they never talk to us again."

The RAMpocalypse or RAMflation or RAMtastrophe is having a pretty disasterous effect on prices for gaming hardware across the board. Memory components are getting gobbled up by generative AI companies months in advance, all to power their very needy data centres. And to somewhat satiate the always hungry beast, lots of RAM-producing companies are reserving their supply for AI companies that order in massive amounts - leaving ordinary consumers in the dust.

Anyone on the market for a new gaming PC has likely watched prices go up in real time. All three console makers have upped their prices in the last 12 months, too. Xbox Series X|S consoles went up by almost $200, all PS5 machines saw a big hike, and even the Nintendo Switch 2 is facing slightly higher costs come September - and the console's barely been out for a year.

Valve's been pretty transparent about its RAM-related problems in the lead-up to Steam Machine's launch, however. Engineers previously implied the hardware faced a similar price bump to that of the Steam Deck, meaning the company was probably thinking it could sell the Steam Machine for $300 less than it currently is. Months before launch, Valve practically pleaded for RAM supplies.

$1,049 Steam Machine is still a "good value," Valve engineer says, even though it was supposed to be $789 like the Steam Deck

The Steam Machine costs $1,049, and that's not entirely Valve's fault. The publisher had originally wanted its mini PC-console hybrid to be priced closer to the $789 Steam Deck, but ongoing component shortages swiftly killed that dream. Still, its engineers hope you're happy.

Engineer Yazan Aldehayyat tells Eurogamer in a new interview, "It's hard because I don't think we ever really had an official price or anything like that – I think we had some ideas – but it's really difficult to quantify it." He says the Steam Deck price serves as "a rough estimate" for Valve's original plans, but he nonetheless believes $1,049 is "a good value."

Aldehayyat explains, "It's still competitive with similarly specced machines, especially pre-built machines." That's a fair analysis – GamesRadar+ hardware editor Phil Hayton recently tried estimating a reasonable alternative to the diminutive Steam Machine that you could build yourself, and it still came out to $1,265 for a slightly chunkier, yet more powerful PC. Right now, no one is spared from RAM shortages caused by virulent AI data center development.

Steam Machine user interface designer Lawrence Yang muses, "I'm very curious to see how people react to the price." He, like anyone else who's bought a video game or bottle of Tylenol in the past few months, knows "all the prices are going up, things are going out of stock, something's happening to the point where everyone is impacted by it."

"I'm guessing that people – or hoping that people – will understand," Yang says.

"It is more expensive than we wanted it to be, for sure," he reiterates. "But we think that compared to what you could build with the same price, it is kind of commensurate, and we think that we're bringing something extra with the small form factor and all of the other stuff that we built into it."

I can only speak for myself: I understand why the Steam Machine costs over $1,000, or why rent for a one-bedroom in Brooklyn is more than $2,000, or why a plate of lobster spaghetti at a fancy restaurant is $48 when I'd rather just hunt the lobster myself for that price, but that doesn't mean I like it. Am I supposed to?

Valve says Steam Machine is $1,049 because it "doesn't align with our beliefs" to subsidize the cost.

It's summer sale season, which means that during this awful, RAMpocalypse-ridden year, we finally have the chance to make the most of Prime Day gaming PC deals. Of course, all the retailers are at it, and since Valve has just finally launched its Steam Machine, PC gamers have a big choice ahead of them.

I haven't gone hands-on with the Steam Machine yet, but I've been tracking the prices of proper prebuilt gaming PCs for over three years now, reviewing them, building my own systems, and testing out a slew of components and upgrades. I can see the price of the Steam Machine, assess its specs, and I can comfortably tell you that even during RAMageddon, you can do better. PC gaming isn't the cheapest, but if you're going to spend that sort of money on a PC for your living room, trust me when I say that you might as well invest a little more in something that's upgradeable and has a discrete GPU to enhance your gaming performance.

So that's my mission this Prime Day. I'm going to be sifting through as many deals as humanly possible across all the retailers to secure you the best value. Newegg, Best Buy, Walmart, and of course, Amazon could hold the key to your living room PC gaming dreams, which offer better long-term value, gaming performance, and style than Valve's Steam Machine. I'll be looking for prebuilt systems, smaller upgrades you can make to your existing rig, and even the foundational blocks you need to build your own living room gaming machine.

Quick Links

• Amazon: RTX 5060 rigs for under $1,500
• Newegg: Loads of deals in the FantasTech sale
• Dell: up to $1,330 off Alienware Aurora builds
• Best Buy: up to $300 off MSI, HP, and more
• Walmart: Component and prebuilt deals

UK:

• Amazon: Prime Day deals, component upgrades
• CCL: Save 10% on a build-your-bundle combo
• Overclockers: Component bundle deals with 20% off
• HP: Discounts on HP Omen builds
• Very: Save up to £450 on prebuilt desktops
• Currys: Acer, HP Omen, and MSI discounted here

The best Prime Day gaming PC deals

Live updates

Let's get going (and talk about sizes)

Okay, let's get this show on the road. First up, let's go over some info you might find helpful when reading this live blog.

PC sizes are a bit odd and can be confusing if you're new to talking about them, so let's define some stuff.

Valve's Steam Machine is technically a mini-PC. These often use a mix of mobile/laptop parts, one processor known as an APU that combines central and graphics processing into one. Desktop PCs are a bit different - and they come in the following sizes.

Mini ITX - these still get pretty small, but they do often have a separate GPU that still allows for great gaming performance. They can be a little quirky to build due to compromises on space and cooling, but they still use a full suite of desktop components.

mATX - this is my personal sweet spot. This is what you see in the image above. It takes a slightly smaller motherboard, but is essentially a conventional gaming PC in a smaller package. There can still be compromises when it comes to part sizes and cooling, but mostly you have access to everything larger PCs do.

ATX and EATX - these are larger sizes. These form up the bulk of the prebuilt gaming PC market because they're the most popular sizes. Most are regular ATX motherboards and cases, but more and more of the cases I saw at Computex this year were massive EATX ones.

It's good to know this stuff, because it will help you narrow down and classify the components and size of PC you want to shop for.

Smaller desktops like this could be the answer to the Steam Machine's price-to-performance

The issue with the Steam Machine's price is that without a swappable GPU, it's comparing itself to consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Although all technology has gotten more expensive this year, Valve has been the most honest with how much a gaming PC actually should set you back, which has landed the Steam Machine with a higher price tag.

The issue is that it's the same price as entry-level desktop machines that do have higher performance thanks to dedicated graphics cards, and swappable components on a conventional PC motherboard.

I wouldn't usually recommend you opt for a DDR4 system right now, but if you're looking to get a smaller size of PC that can sit to the side of a living room TV, you don't want to spend more than the cost of a Steam Machine, and you want the kind of gaming frame rates that a full-sized ATX gaming PC can give you, this is the sort of solution you should be looking to.

This Stormcraft Sirius PC at Newegg is packed with great specs and sits inside an m-ATX case. It's discounted down to $900, which is really solid for the parts within.

Specs: Intel Core i5-14400F, RTX 5060, 16GB of DDR4, 1TB SSD, 650W PSU

Stormcraft Sirius: $1,099.99 $899.99 at Newegg

Quick reminder: It's not all Valve's fault

Just in case you're directing your gamer rage at Valve for the high price of the Steam Machine, I just want to point out that the price inflation is AI's fault, and that it's impacting the entire tech sector at the moment.

Case in point, an RTX 5070 gaming PC like this MSI Codex at Amazon would have set you back ~$1450 this time last year. If you want proof, check out this roundup I did last November on RTX 5070 gaming PCs. In a Prime Day deal, this one is currently discounted down from $2,052 to $1,829.99 at Amazon.

If you're going to build your own living room rig, try one of these smaller cases

These cases won't sit on your TV unit in the same way that a Steam Machine will, but for me, an m-ATX case is the sweet spot to allow you to build a gaming PC that will perform brilliantly and allow you to use a wide range of components, while also not stealing up loads of real estate.

Here are a few of my favorites:

NZXT H3 Flow: $69.99 $59.99 at Amazon
Fractal Design Epoch: $129.99 $120 at Amazon
NZXT H2 Flow: $149.99 at Amazon
Cooler Master Q300L: $44.99 $39.99 at Amazon

Living room PC gamers need to know about this couch desk

Couch PC gaming can be tricky to navigate, especially if you want to still play FPS games or aren't a big fan of playing with one of the best PC controllers.

For me, this is the perfect solution. It's a couch desk that assembles over you as you sit. I've used mine for hundreds of hours at this point, and the memory foam cushions still feel as great as they always have, and the desktop surface doubles as a USB hub for whatever accessories you want to plug in.

Admittedly, these are a tad pricey, especially if you go for the gaming-tilted Cyon3. Couchmaster does have smaller options which are more affordable though, so if you aren't too fussed about surface space you can also go for one of those. Annoyingly, none of them are discounted right now, but these are good to know about while we're on the topic of PC gaming from the couch.

Couchmaster Cycon3: $224 at Amazon

Couchmaster CYBOT: $169 at Amazon

Does size really matter?

Get your mind out of the gutter, firstly.

Living room PC gaming would be nice if it were through a machine that was on the smaller side - that's the appeal of the Steam Machine in the first place. But would it be such a problem if your living room rig was full-sized ATX? If you can fit it at the side, or even behind your TV unit, what's the issue?

The ASUS ROG G700 isn't a smaller build, but Best Buy is offering a pretty reasonable price on it at the moment, considering you get an RTX 5060 and a DDR5 configuration.

I'm just saying, if you're deadset on the living room PC idea, does it really have to be a smaller build?

Specs: Intel Core Ultra 5 Series 2, RTX 5060, 16GB of DDR5, 1TB SSD

ASUS ROG G700: $1,499.99 $1,199.99 at Best Buy

Looking for bundle benefits?

Since the Steam Machine is available bundled with its controller, you might be more drawn to a desktop PC if you also get the benefits of some accessories. Brands like CyberPowerPC and iBUYPOWER are great for this, because sometimes if you buy one of their prebuilts, you'll also get a mouse and keyboard in the box.

That's the case with this CyberPowerPC Gamer Master at Walmart, which is pushing for the title of cheapest DDR5 RTX 5060 machine across the board this Prime Day.

Specs: AMD Ryzen 5 8400F, RTX 5060, 16GB DDR5, 1TB SSD, 600W PSU

CyberPowerPC Gamer Master: $1,289.99 $1,099 at Walmart

One benefit of leaving the Steam Machine behind? No 4K60 limitations

If you're looking for a 4K GPU upgrade amidst all of the deals going on right now, the RX 9070 XT might hold the best bang for your buck, and best of all, you're not going to be limited to the 4K60 limitations of the Steam Machine.

US:

PowerColor Reaper AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT: $799.99 $649.99 at Amazon
ASRock Challenger Radeon RX 9070 XT: $741.99 $699.99 at Newegg (with FantasTech promo code offering you an even better price)

UK:

Asus Prime Radeon RX 9070 XT (white): £614.99 £543 at Amazon

Intel's "fastest gaming processor ever" is currently more affordable than its older version

It felt like Intel turned a new page when it launched the Intel Core Ultra Plus processors this year, and its original pricing was pretty good.

In the days after launch, though, the two new CPUs started seeing fluctuating pricing, which may have turned people away. I'm slightly shocked at the price of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus today though, because it's bagged a banger of a Prime Day deal. In fact, it's actually some $10 cheaper than the original Intel Core Ultra 7 265K it replaces.

Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus: $357 $264.99 at Amazon

Here's another smaller build that would sit pretty next to a TV

Again, this is a DDR4 system, so I'm not crazy about it, but it's another smaller PC with solid specs that would beat the Steam Machine and would look a million dollars next to your TV.

Interestingly, this one opts for an Intel CPU as opposed to the RTX 5060 that's been seen in every other entry-level build so far this Prime Day. Newegg does have deals on other configurations of this build as well, so it might be worth checking through to see if your desired specs are there.

Specs: Intel Core 5 120 (slightly boosted 12th gen processor), Intel Arc A750, 16GB DDR4, 1TB SSD

ABS Flux II Aqua: $1,099.99 $849.99 at Newegg

For your consideration, the Zotac Magnus one

This year at Computex, I saw the Magnus One Ultra at the Zotac booth, it's an updated version of a mini ITX build the brand already makes. The idea is similar to the Steam Machine, but it's working with full-sized graphics cards which will give you more of a 4K gaming oomph.

I'm not seeing any discounted ones for Prime Day or rival sales, but it might be worth knowing about if you're turned off by the price-to-performance of the Steam Machine. Zotac also offers a barebone model which comes without the RAM and SSD so you can try and find better deals than it can offer.

Zotac Magnus One at Zotac
Read more: The Zotac Mangus One Ultra at Computex

Want the Steam Controller kick?

I get you; the novelty of buying the Steam Machine also rests with the charm of getting its bundled controller. I also review gamepads, and I can tell you that there's nothing else quite like the Steam Controller. Its trackpads make it fully unique in the market for navigating a PC from the comfort of a couch. But as a gamepad? There are better, and more affordable options out there.

That's especially true during Prime Day, and I can already think of a few off the top of my head that would be worth investing in while you can get them for cheaper. If you want novelty, look at something like the Manba One, which has an interactive screen and lets you control all of its customizable elements without the need for companion software. It's currently going for cheaper than usual:

Manba One: $69.99 $55.99 at Amazon

If you want my personal favorite controller at the moment, look at the Flydigi Apex 5, which isn't seeing a Prime Day deal, but you can save on it thanks to a 20% coupon.

Flydigi Apex 5: $159.99 at Amazon

You can also buy the Steam Controller separately, of course, but a lengthy waiting list might make you want to seek out some budget controllers you can buy instead.

Here's what to be careful of...

...And not for the reasons you think. Shopping for gaming PCs has gotten trickier as RAMflation has become worse because we've started to see more and more that configurations will house older components in them and think they can still charge more.

Example: this rig at Newegg, which is going for $829.99 and apparently saves you... checks notes... $770.

Just take a look at the specs:

Specs: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X, RTX 3050, 16GB of DDR4, 1TB SSD

That's right, this rig (which I do not recommend, by the way) has an RTX 3050 inside it, and an AM4 motherboard, and yet this retail page is still trying to claim it's discounted from $1,599. I don't think so.

If you are shopping for a new gaming PC this Prime Day, be on your toes because there are definitely some bad deals out there.

For the record, these specs aren't bad if you just want a budget-friendly, entry-level, or even spare PC, but this should barely cost $600 with RAMflation taken into account.

Builders, take note: motherboard bundles are the way to go

Buying all your components for a PC build can be a nightmare on your bank balance right now, so if you are going the build-your-own route, work smarter, not harder.

Motherboard bundles are honestly the saviour of the market in my eyes right now. They're not a get out of jail free card, but being able to grab a motherboard with some components (ideally some RAM) will save you money where you need to save it right now.

Annoyingly, the example I'm giving here isn't RAM-inclusive, but there are bundles out there, including this motherboard bundle I covered last week, which could really spare you some memory costs.

For now, this is just a dang good deal over at Newegg. You can get an AMD Ryzen 5 9600X processor, a 1TB Samsung 990 Pro, and a Gigabyte B850 AORUS Elite motherboard for an overall cost of $429 (saving you $249.99).

That's the base of a really great gaming rig, and a great example of why motherboard bundles like this are ones to look out for if you are building this summer.

Gigabyte motherboard bundle: $429 at Newegg

If you're building, one of these could come in handy

A few hours into your first PC build, you'll learn the value of a good quality screwdriver. Preferably, you want a magnetic one. Ideally, you'd like a ratchet one.

Magnetic screwdrivers are massively useful for PC building because you'll need to lower a lot of screws down into your case and onto your motherboard, and if they aren't magnetic, you can assign an extra hour or two to the process just for trying to fish tiny screws out of your WIP computer.

Ratchet ones are safer for PC building because if you overtighten things, you can risk damage to your components and especially your motherboard.

I've used an Amazon Basics one with 12-in-1 head attachments. This is honestly all you're really going to need, but if you want to go heavier duty on it, I'd recommend something like the Yinsan kit in the image above. It has what seems like every screwdriver and allen key attachment you could ever need (120-in-1), as well as some applicator goodies for all sorts of techie DIY jobs.

I'm not seeing the Yinsan kit at Amazon anymore, but similar kits will likely do just as well.

Amazon Basics 12-in-1 Ratcheting Magnetic Screwdriver: $9.44 $8.49 at Amazon
Precision RARTOP screwdriver set: $26.99 $22.94 at Amazon

Shop all screwdrivers at Amazon

Why do I think conventional desktops are better value than the Steam Machine?

If you're going to spend more money on a "normal" gaming PC, why would I argue that's better value for money than buying a more convenient system?

Good question, I'm so glad you asked.

There's a conversation to have around the Steam Machine being a console or a PC, but in my eyes, and in Valve's eyes, it's a PC. It may be the brand's take on a console, but it has a PC operating system in the same way the Steam Deck does; it's just smaller than a regular computer. Certainly, when you look at its price, there's no mistaking it; this thing isn't competing with the Switch 2 or even the PS5.

So when you consider that Valve is charging close to a grand for what is essentially a PC, I'd argue that you're spending almost the same as you would for a decent current-gen desktop system, but getting fewer of the benefits. Funnily enough, it's the same arguments I use to tell you why the PS5 Pro isn't worth your money: just buy a gaming PC instead.

For starters, the Steam machine doesn't have a discrete GPU, which is the thing that's going to allow you to unlock the best frame rates and graphical power in games.

Secondly, you're going to have a lot more trouble upgrading the Steam Machines innards, which is arguably one of the best things about a gaming PC. You can swap out parts and upgrade as needed, you're not locked to just one APU that's running the show.

Thirdly, faceplates are nice, but with a modern-day rig, you'll be able to customize its look through RGB or components you've chosen, or even LCD displays on your case or CPU cooler. There are loads of ways to personalize with gaming PCs, even if they don't have the cutsie look of Valve's console.

Lastly, connectivity is a big one. With a desktop PC's motherboard and GPU, you have scope to connect loads of devices, whether they're controllers, mice, keyboards, displays; you name it. The Steam Machine's backside doesn't have that sort of connectivity, which may not be an issue for living room gaming, but it's not ideal when you're spending almost the same amount as you would on a full-sized machine.

I'd recommend Newegg's prebuilt selection over Amazon's

If you search for gaming PC deals at Amazon, it'll pull up more affordable options than you'll see at the other bigger retailers, but you can scroll for miles without seeing a DDR5 build. This is definitely an issue with the other retailers too, but at least the futureproofed options are there for you to find.

If you're shopping for a prebuilt system this week, here's the order I'd look in:

Newegg
Best Buy
Walmart
Amazon

I say this based on my first day of sifting through the deals, but also based on years of covering sales between all of these retailers for three and a half years now. Overall, Newegg tends to have the best selection and offer the best value for money. Best Buy and Walmart can have great prices but a slightly more limited selection, although occassionally they'll pack rigs from HP, MSI, CyberPowerPC, or iBUYPOWER that are excellent deals. Amazon has great selections for components (obviously), but its prebuilt selection is not the greatest.

My favorite thermal paste isn't discounted, but it's pretty cheap anyway

For some reason, Noctua is not coming out to play this Prime Day. I've tested a few different thermal pastes now, but none of them have been as easy to apply, as reliable in performance, or as easy to clean as Noctua's NT-H2 paste.

While you can find cheaper thermal paste at Amazon that is discounted, I'd still consider Noctua's option. You get three handy wipes with the syringe, which I can't praise enough.

Noctua NT-H2: $14.95 at Amazon

Shop all thermal paste at Amazon

This is a great Ryzen X3D deal, but it doesn't compare to the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus

You can get the Ryzen 7800X3D for a good price at Amazon right now. It's still not its lowest price ever, but it's a good deal nonetheless. Down from an MSRP of $449, it's currently selling for $376 at Amazon, with an additional $28 coupon bringing the price down to $328 at Amazon. That's close to its historical low at the retailer of $319.

That's an amazing price for a CPU this good, but considering it's older and has fewer cores and threads than Intel's latest "flagship" option, I'm still going to point toward it as my favorite processor offer this Prime Day.

AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D: $328 at Amazon
Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus: $269 at Amazon

That's all for today, but I'll be back in the morning

That's my shift done for the day, but bookmark the page if you're finding the coverage useful and you want to keep up with the deals I find in the coming days. I'll be back in the morning (UK time) to find all the best offers I can.

Need some RAM? Of course you do

With Duncan away for the evening, I (Rollin Bishop, US Managing Editor) am here to help keep an eye out for any meaningful gaming PC deals and goodies. There are still plenty of offers to be had, especially if you're looking further afield at other retailers beyond Amazon like Newegg.

Any deal on RAM is particularly noteworthy, and this Team Group Vulcan DDR5 RAM isn't what I'd call inexpensive – but it is a "deal" in the sense that RAM is overall wildly expensive. If you need to upgrade, and sometimes it really is a need, the two 8GB sticks here might go a long way. There's even an added promo code, FTTF4657, that brings it down even further.

Team Group Vulcan DDR5 (16GB) | $239.99 $199.99 at Newegg

Everybody wants to have a case

My general advice on PC cases is: if it gets the job done, it's good enough. And this Zalman i3 NEO case? It gets the job for for ATX, mATX, and Mini-ITX boards. Dropping big cash on cases has never made any sense to me; my preference has always been function over form. IT doesn't hurt that it looks OK, but that's the least of my worries when I'm building something that's going to sit in a corner nobody looks at.

Zalman i3 NEO case | $57.99 $48.99 at Newegg

Sometimes it's nice to just buy the whole thing

One thing the Steam Machine and other pre-built gaming PCs have in common is an appeal to a core impulse: sometimes it really is just nice to buy the whole thing. (This is one impulse I share; the first time I ever built a PC out of parts, I somehow fried the power supply and then the motherboard.)

Take, for example, this Thermaltake LCGS build with a 1TB SSD, RTX 5070, Intel Core i5-14400F processor, and a whole 16GB worth of DDR5 RAM. Considering the rising costs of basically everything associated with PC gaming, $1,399.99 is one heck of an offer if you're in the market.

Thermaltake LCGS RTX 5070 PC | $1,799.99 $1,399.99 at Newegg

More tomorrow!

That's me done for the day too! The Prime Day deals, as always, continue – and it's worth keeping in mind that if nothing caught your fancy today, there's still plenty of time for something to come along that does. If you're investing the kind of money that's required to get a nice gaming PC, especially something that might be a better value or comparable to the Steam Machine, you'll want to really weigh your options.

...including all the extremely cool ones we've presented! Duncan knows what he's talking about, and I know enough to know that. So, y'know, y'all come back now.

The Steam Machine is now available for pre-order under what some are acknowledging as the shocking starting price of $1,049, partly because Valve says this is the cost that best reflects its core values.

Company spokespeople tell The Verge in a new report that Valve isn't interested in subsidizing the cost of its Steam Machine and selling its hardware at a loss the way other companies do, since "it doesn't align with our beliefs about how healthy ecosystems are built."

Valve explains in its statement, "If there's anything we're religious about at Valve, it's our belief that open systems are better in the long run, for ourselves and customers. The openness of the PC ecosystem in particular has enabled it to be the primary driver of hardware and software innovation, because anyone with an idea for a way to do something better was able to take a shot at it.

"When companies sell their hardware under cost for competitive advantage, or buy exclusive content for it, they're doing that to build a more closed system, one where you don't get to choose what software you want to use." In its announcement post for the Steam Machine's launch, however, Valve instead bemoans the fact that "our original goal for the price of Steam Machine is no longer viable" due to factors like RAM shortages and the US' constantly shapeshifting tariffs.

So "the prices we're sharing today reflect the state of the world for manufacturing," says Valve, "or, more accurately, it reflects the price of the components as we've secured them over the past 6 months." This official statement suggests Valve is mournfully selling the Steam Machine for as much as it costs to produce it, and Valve Steam Deck developer Pierre-Loup Griffais confirms to The Verge that, "We're being more aggressive with margins and things to be as close to cost as possible now."

That's not an unreasonable decision for Valve to make; it still isn't necessarily whipping up a profit on the Steam Machine, after all. But it argues in a more confident tone in its statement to The Verge, "When companies sell their hardware under cost for competitive advantage, or buy exclusive content for it, they're doing that to build a more closed system, one where you don't get to choose what software you want to use."

This is the kind of company-first speak I'm skeptical of. Subsidized hardware prices may obscure manufacturing costs, but should manufacturing cost be my concern as a consumer?

We've had games industry experts warning us for months now that console prices could pass the $1,000 mark. Well, now they're right, and inflation around the globe is also impacting everything from gas prices to a dozen eggs. It feels like the burden of change keeps getting placed on the individual buyer, or worker, rather than the big, expensive company. The people who make up the games industry keep getting barbecued by mass layoffs, for example, and yet the industry itself has just soared past the historic $200 billion in revenue, a 9.1% year-on-year increase.

With this in mind, I can accept that the $1,049 Steam Machine (not including accessories) is part of Valve's beliefs. But it certainly doesn't represent mine.

The Steam Machine just landed for an eye-watering $1,049, so I'm tempted to build a modern Shuttle XPC that looks like my compact 2000s rig instead.

PC gamers hoping to upgrade their rigs are staring down the barrel of a very tough Prime Day. Deals are set to arrive next week, and competing sales at Newegg have already started. But with the RAMpocalypse dooming stock levels and pricing of all kinds of components and rigs, Prime Day PC deals are looking lean.

If you're trying to build the best gaming PC possible in these trying, trying times, Newegg's motherboard bundles might just be your best hope of securing the new specs you desire. I've already spotted two bundles in the retailer's FantasTech early offering, which gives you a price guarantee that things won't get cheaper for the remainder of the sale.

Not only does this offer give you some of the best RAM for gaming from one of the biggest and most popular brands, but it gets you a damn good motherboard at the same time.

About a year ago, I helped a good friend of mine build his very first gaming PC, and he had chosen this motherboard as the foundational bedrock. I was absolutely delighted with it, because having worked with a lot of boards that seemingly didn't care about the ease of building a PC, MSI had thrown tonnes of quality-of-life issues into the mix.

For starters, it has an easy-to-access M.2 port that came off at the push of a button. As someone who's reviewed loads of SSDs and is pretty sick of using a screwdriver just to take a simple heatsink pad off, this was a big relief. Similarly, the GPU release catch wasn't located next to the PCIe slot; it was moved around to the side so that, y'know, you didn't have to squeeze your fingers under a GPU in order to press it.

These two things are becoming more normalized on a lot of gaming motherboards, but they're still uncommon enough that I'd point to them as a reason to shoot for this bundle. Not only that, you get great value for money, and solid rear IO connectivity compared to similarly priced options from other brands.

With an X870 chipset, you'll have access to AMD's Ryzen 7000, 8000G, and 9000 CPU series, which gives you loads of scope to grab a decent DDR5 processor, and room for upgrading later since support for AM5 has been extended through 2029.

If you're on the Intel side of things, and you're up for spending even more on a mobo bundle, I also spotted one that gets you an ASRock Z890 Pro RS board, 32GB of G.Skill Trident RGB RAM, and an Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus CPU, all for a price of $769.99 at Newegg (saving you $229.98 in the process).

RAM Shortages are certainly making these bundles more pricey, but they might hold the key to letting you get that upgraded PC you've been hoping for. If there's one bit of advice I can offer to PC builders this Prime Day, it's that smaller components for your build are the thing to try and save on. Fans, AIOs, cases, and even motherboards might just be the thing to focus your spending at while offers are around, because even if you can't upgrade your RAM and storage right now, smaller modifications to your PC can still help it feel new.

Hunting down other components? Check out the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best computer speakers.

Cooler Master showed off the updated version of one of its most popular and accessible PC cases at Computex, and lo and behold, it's now hit the shelves. The updated Q300L V3 holds onto the line's previous mATX form factor, but it brings some quality-of-life updates and more modularity into the mix for your next gaming PC build.

Straight from the off, I'll say that perhaps the most impressive thing about this case is that it's still got a super affordable price tag, which tracks from the V2 and V1 models of the Q300L. At just $44.49 at Amazon, you're certainly off to a good start meeting your building budget, especially right now during the RAMpocalypse.

But beyond the price, Cooler Master has done a great job of issuing updates to this case. For starters, because it's something I'm a big fan of, you can swap the position of the front IO to suit your preferences. If you don't want it down on the bottom of the front panel, you can move it up to the top of the front panel, the front of the top panel, or even the rear of the top panel if you wish.

Speaking of that front IO, Cooler Master has updated it so that it now has a high-speed USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C connection, dual USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports, and a combo audio jack. That could be a huge boon for people using this size of case, because with mini-ITX and mATX motherboards, you can sometimes lose out on connectivity in the rear.

The Q300L V3 has grown 12.5% from the original version, now giving you space for higher-spec components. The refreshed model has CPU cooler clearance of 178mm, GPU clearance of 366mm, and radiator support for AIOs up to 240/120mm. On cooling, the case comes with one 140mm rear fan pre-installed.

For some extra utility though, Cooler Master has allowed for 3D printable add-ons thanks to the dot-textured chassis panels. With this design, you could attach a headset hook, some handles, or potentially even some mounting systems.

So far at Amazon, I'm only seeing a black version available, but back at Computex I saw a white and wood-finished version which may be coming later.

I'm always a fan of innovative cases on the smaller size (my own personal build is an mATX built inside the NZXT H3 Flow), so I really like the look and feel of the Q300L V3. I especially love the versatility it could bring for PC builders who want to lay the case down on its side, or just folks who want an affordable box that isn't going to take up an entire desktop.

That said, if there's one shortcoming here, for me it's the lack of a hidden PSU tray. I don't have anything against PSUs in general, but most cases hide them away for a reason; there are very few ways to make them look neat and tidy, because they have loads of spindly cables coming out the back of them. Opening up the PSU tray does allow for better access to the airflow of the main PC chamber, but with a large tempered glass panel on the side here, you do invite that cable mess into the vibe of the build, which isn't my favorite.

Still, for the price of the Q300L V3, you're still getting a lot of functionality and style other brands would charge you more for.

If you're still seeking out the other parts of your new build, check out the best CPUs for gaming, the best graphics cards, and the best RAM for gaming.

Noctua is working on a long-term solution to the annoyances of CPU thermal paste, and it might just be onto something. Although thermal pads and certain graphite pads have been a fringe alternative to thermal paste for the best CPUs, for the most part, we're all stuck with messy and often impractical paste that's wrought with opportunity for human error.

At Computex last week, Noctua shared its vision for the future, which it calls the NT-CP1 Carbice Carbon Nanotube Thermal Pad. That's a bit of a mouthful, and that's because this little workaround takes some explaining. Essentially, instead of squirting out some thermal paste on the face of your CPU to mush down underneath your cooler, you'd instead place down one of Noctua's tiny wafers, and you wouldn't need to touch it ever again if you didn't want to.

Noctua has designed its thermal paste alternative as a long-term solution. Unlike thermal paste, it isn't going to dry, crack, or need replacing over time, so if you're not really interested in upgrading your CPU (ever), then this might actually be a better alternative for you.

Noctua has tested the Carbon Nanotube Thermal Pad for up to 100K thermal cycles, saying that it'll "outlive your system" without dropping its cooling ability. Where the performance of thermal paste degrades over time, Noctua found that its new solution takes around 2,000 cycles to reach maximum efficiency, but then stays at that level from then on. By comparison, Noctua says 10,000 cycles is when thermal paste typically starts to really see performance drop-offs, but that isn't the case with carbon nanotubes.

The reason the new thermal pad is so long lasting is that it uses the same nanoscale polymer design as the cooling solutions in satellites and other space-grade technology - ie, why it's prepped to outlive your system.

Within the thermal pad (which is very thin; it looked like a small patch of seaweed up-close), there are vertically aligned carbon nanotube "forests". These are supported by an aluminium backbone that makes them more robust than similar graphite alternatives we've seen in the past. A nanoscale polymer coating then makes the pad non-conductive, and also prevents slipping during installation - a constant bugbear with thermal paste when you secure a CPU cooler on top of it.

The only reason the Carbice pad has a "break-in" period is that it takes some time for the polymer layer to activate and wet the contact surfaces on either side. Then, the carbon nanotubes slowly "wick" into the surfaces of your cooler and CPU. Once these are properly activated, they then help to funnel the heat transfer process to keep your processor working efficiently.

As you can imagine, something like this would be far easier to install than thermal paste that can very easily be a messy job that can go wrong. Slip, or somehow drop thermal paste onto your motherboard or into your CPU socket, and you could be looking at some expensive problems. With a pad that you simply peel and stick, you also don't need to enter the ancient debate of how much thermal paste you should use, and in what pattern you should lay it down.

The current ETA for Noctua's new thermal paste alternative is September 2026 and is tailored for AMD's AM4 and AM5 processors; meanwhile, AMD itself also had its own version of a thermal pad like this that it was handing out at its Computex booth, so we could see this as a more commonly used solution in years to come.

For now though, I'd only really recommend certain PC builders look into this type of cooling for their CPU. For starters, if you know you're not going to be upgrading for a long, long time, ie, if you have a top-rate, flagship processor and you don't really have an upgrade path, then look into Noctua's NT-CP1.

On the other hand, my tour guide at the Noctua Computex booth told me one of these will set you back roughly ~£20/$25 (although this is unconfirmed at the time of writing), and you only get one wafer in a package. Moreover, these aren't reusable, so if you do unpeel it from your cooler so you can upgrade something or swap out a motherboard, then you'll need to pay that same amount again.

Meanwhile, thermal paste is a sub-$20 purchase, and even the smaller tubes will give you enough for a couple of CPU upgrades and installations. One thing I like about modern CPU architecure, especially the AMD sockets this cooling solution has been designed for, is that there's more availability for upgrading down the road. AMD has just extended support for the AM5 platform until 2029 at least, so chances are, you're bound to see a processer that could outperform and offer more value for money than your current one before too long.

If you're old school, and you don't want to upgrade your desktop components for as long as possible, or you're just happy with what you've got, a thermal pad like this might be a better option for you. If not, I'd be sticking to traditional paste for any Prime Day PC deals you're hunting for this month.

• check thermal paste prices at Amazon

PC builders should also seek out the best gaming PCs, the best graphics card, and the best RAM for gaming.

Valve says the Steam Machine will release this summer, and I could have my ideal living room rig parked under my TV as soon as this month. I've been trying to create the perfect "PC as a console" setup for what feels like aeons, but I'm starting to wonder if I'll be better off revisiting historic plans to build a compact Shuttle XPC instead.

Of course, if the latest Steam Machine release date rumors hold true, I might not have time to cobble together an alternative. FCC listings highlighted by wayTooManyBugs on Reddit suggest the mini PC could launch before the end of June. Effectively, the filing includes public regulatory documents that are set to be released on the 29th, which could suggest that's when the box will land.

I'd naturally take all that with the usual grain of salt, but if it does pop up before June is out, you might have to make some hasty decisions. By that, I mean you'll have to finally get hold of Valve's MSRP and work out whether you can afford the box, as there's every chance it'll cost way more than a PS5 Pro. That's why I've started properly thinking about compact DIY options, and I've been firmly inspired by a Windows XP Shuttle XPC that just came into my life.

Okay, let me back up and explain myself. If you keep up with my coverage, you'll know I cover all the best retro consoles and setups alongside modern tech. That naturally means I'm into PCs of the vintage variety, and I recently got my hands on a Shuttle XPC from 2003 that very much falls in that category. The company has been crafting "barebones" systems for years that serve as space-saver machines that still theoretically support full-size components, and it turns out they're still very much in the game.

I should note that even modern Shuttle XPC builds are not entirely Steam Machine alternatives. For starters, Valve's 3.8-litre box is still a fraction of the size of the case I'm eyeing up (the 13.4 litre Cube SH610R4 that's $435 at Amazon), and by the time you add a CPU, RAM, and a graphics card, you'll be looking at the same levels of pricing as a conventional PC.

Still, the 2000s Shuttle box I have to hand should be roughly the same size as the newer XPCs, and it honestly feels small enough. I'll likely get a shock when I see the real-life size of the Steam Machine outside of promotional materials, but I'll take a slightly larger footprint if it means better upgradability.

I've got no solid plans for a Steam Machine Shuttle XPC alternative right now. These ideas are more inspiration-driven by the aforementioned 25-year-old Windows PC rig and the fact Prime Day gaming PC deals are on the horizon, as if discounts help combat RAMagddon inflation, grabbing parts that can provide an experience on par with Valve's box could be easier.

If I were to try and roughly match some parts compatible with the Shuttle XPC that'll perform similarly to the Steam Machine, I'd probably opt for an Intel Core i5-14400F ($189.99 at Amazon), 2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 RAM (an upsetting $149.99 at Amazon), and a relatively compact Radeon RX 9060 XT (like this Powercolor model for $349.99 at Newegg).

Throw in a 512GB M.2 SSD for $139.99 (URGH), and you're looking at a total build price of just under $1,265. Yes, that price is making me queasy, and my theoretical and relatively low-spec Shuttle XPC would be under a grand if AI datacentres weren't decimating pricing. Still, if the Steam Machine sits anywhere near that price, putting together a larger, but compact and more powerful living room alternative might be an attractive prospect.

Coincidentally, while the 2024 Shuttle XPC case looks amusingly close to the 2000s version I have, it still looks pretty contemporary. In fact, retaining the removable transparent faceplate means it can play the Steam Machine at its own customizable game, as you can dress up the front with custom inlays. You'd have to source the artwork yourself, and swapping things out requires dealing with four front screws, but it still feels like the same vibe that Valve is going for.

I'm still hopeful that the Steam Machine can usher in a new era of compact, living room-friendly PC gaming that blurs the line between rigs and consoles. If my time with my old 2000s Shuttle XPC and the realization that new versions exist has taught me anything, though, it's that a similar genre of hardware has been available the whole time, so if prices for Valve's box get out of hand, exploring alternatives beyond the thousands of mini PCs with similar guts to a gaming handheld inside will be worthwhile.

• Mini PCs at Amazon
• Steam Deck accessories at Amazon

Upgrading your current rig? Swing by the best CPUs for gaming and the best RAM for vital components and parts.

There's a cheaper AMD Radeon RX 9070 GPU in town, as the GRE edition has landed in the US. FYI, that stands for "Golden Rabbit Edition", but while the previously China-exclusive graphics card has an alluring name, you might be able to snag a superior model over Prime Day for near the same price.

The situation with the RX 9070 ahead of Prime Day gaming deals is pretty irritating. AMD originally released the card with hope in its eyes and a $549 MSRP, but that was before the dark days of RAMageddon. Now, the GPU will typically set you back over $600, and the lower spec "GRE" model has effectively replaced it on the pricing tier list.

Yes, I'm calling shenanigans, as many players won't be aware that the GRE wields 12GB GDDR6 VRAM instead of 16GB, a narrower 192-bit memory bus, 48 Compute Units versus 56, and 3,072 Stream Processors in place of 3,584. Considering you can get the beefier original for $50 even without Prime Day, that means the Golden Rabbit has little value on its bones, and the sales could make choosing the original a no-brainer.

At the same time, I get why AMD has opted to release the RX 9070 GRE worldwide, as RAMageddon is holding up. In theory, it lets the original model sit as a middle option between the new, cheaper version and the RX 9070 XT, which now costs a chunk above $600. If the $50 gap between the two vanilla 9070 variants persists or gets narrower, though, then it'll mean that you should just pay slightly more for a superior card.

Where things could get interesting is if the GRE model gets a Prime Day discount. I'm not placing any bets on that happening, but I wouldn't shun the new RX 9070 for close to or even just under $500. We're still talking about a card that's a tier above the Nvidia RTX 5060 Ti, although you can grab the 8GB version of the latter for under $370 if you're not fussed about VRAM.

My advice is to keep a close eye on both Nvidia and AMD's mid-range offerings over Prime Day. If the RX 9070 or GeForce RTX 5070 hits anywhere close to $550, then the Golden Rabbit is destined for the stew. The AI-fuelled RAM shortages mean that it's less likely to happen this year than ever, as margins are already slimmer. Still, all we can do is hope that gaming PC parts end up somewhat reasonable during the sales, even if we should all be paying way less.

• Graphics cards at Amazon
• Gaming PCs at Amazon

Building from scratch? Swing by the best CPUs for gaming and the best RAM for crucial components tested by experts.

Looks like Nvidia GeForce RTX 50 Super graphics cards are back on the menu, boys, as fresh rumours point towards an early 2027 release date. The latest insider tidbits contradict adjacent claims that the GPUs will land this year, but I've got a funny feeling most players aren't really keeping track.

The latest RTX 50 Super leak by Benchlife specifically states that the refreshed GPUs will come armed with 3GB GDDR7 VRAM modules and arrive "as early as the beginning of 2027." While the report disputes information by MEGAsizeGPU that the cards will arrive in 2026, it corroborates claims that the lineup includes an 18GB RTX 5070 Super and a 24GB RTX 5080 Super, alongside an apparent RTX 5060 with 12GB VRAM instead of 8GB.

Naturally, the above RTX 50 Super release timeline is anything but confirmed, and it should be ingested with the usual grain of salt. Benchlife's information is potentially based on board partner expectations, and MEGAsizeGPU has clarified that they don't know of a specific release window.

The main question on my mind is whether most players will wait for RTX 50 Super GPUs. Yes, they should provide an fps boost thanks to refreshed specs and slightly more VRAM courtesy of the new 3GB modules, but the overarching issue of PC upgrade pricing is still looming. If Nvidia manages to release the new models with the same MSRP as before, or perhaps even slightly lower, then that would serve as a lure, Otherwise, the new line-up may simply drive people towards vanilla SKUs if they receive resulting discounts.

In any case, you've potentially got a while before you'll even need to think about the RTX 50 Super series. If you're still rocking an RTX 20-series or something older, new GPUs might be on your mind. That said, if you haven't made the jump to the base 50-series yet, chances are that you're still able to run most games reasonably on your current card, and that may inspire you to wait a bit longer for next gen RTX 6000 options instead.

• Graphics card deals at Amazon
• Gaming PC deals at Amazon

Looking for more components? Swing by the best CPUs for gaming and the best RAM for vital upgrades.

HYTE didn't come to Computex to play around this year. Not only is it launching a competitively priced gaming PC case in five distinct colors that packs loads of great building features, but it's also coming out with some absolutely stunning RGB fan frames. Perhaps the thing from HYTE's Computex booth I was most impressed with however, was its updated Nexus software.

Companion software for PC components can often be cumbersome, demanding, and intrusive. HYTE, sort of like NZXT or BeQuiet! has its own software to let you manage its fans, case lighting, or performance metrics, but now, with a Nexus 3.0 early preview, HYTE is really pushing the envelope, and it led to a pretty fun demonstration when I visited the booth.

With Nexus 3.0, you don't need to download anything - it's all controllable from a browser tab. That also means that you can scan a QR code with your phone, pair it, and control your PC's lighting, fan speeds, and display panel configurations on one of the brand's touchscreen cases. Alternatively, you can just track performance metrics on the go and tweak remotely as needed.

I linked up my phone, switched between three different lighting modes that switched within three seconds or so of me tapping between them on my phone. I then activated turbo fan modes, and within about 5 seconds, the case fans in the demo build were whirring at top speed.

Then, another tour guide came over wanting to demonstrate the same Nexus 3.0 feature to someone else. "We're stress testing this thing right now!" said the HYTE rep as he paired his own phone with the same PC I was already playing around with. Sure enough, he could also make changes at the same time, and the PC remained really responsive to both devices as we essentially tried to break what HYTE had to show off.

According to Jeff Cheng, HYTE's co-founder and Director of Sales and Marketing, who walked me through the booth, this is the first app of its kind that's fully cross-platform.

He also added that it could be a huge boon for HYTE's sibling brand, iBUYPOWER too. "With a simple way to access performance metrics and system settings," Cheng said, "I could easily use this software to determine that a single fan is failing, and send them a new one", saving any need for shipping an entire PC back and forth to work out an issue.

For folks who do want to download the desktop app, Nexus 3.0 will see a much lighter install size, and HYTE has informed me that it'll be open source so people can build their own configurations of case lighting or touchscreen settings. The folks at HYTE mentioned having to compete with the likes of Corsair when it comes to software like this, and how building a sense of community is really important for HYTE's software approach going forward.

Maybe the best bit besides all the fun phone controls is that Nexus 3.0 will also let you export your settings so that if you need to change PC, perform a system reset, or you're putting together a new build that still uses HYTE's products, you can instantly apply your saved settings back without reconfiguring it all.

Also at the HYTE booth this year was a stunning RGB single-frame fan dubbed the FR12, which, unlike a lot of other single-frame fans I've come across in the last year, has super bright RGB arrays that run on the inside and on the blades themselves, and the result is stunning for the $44.99 price HYTE is charging for it.

Perhaps the flagship announcement at the HYTE booth was the Y50 RGHB case, which the brand is saying is its most plug-and-play compatible case it's ever built. Costing $99.99, it's compatible with Project Zero motherboards, comes in five colors, has a three-pane glass design, includes four RGB fans as standard, and has a 3D micromesh for improved temperature control.

Looking to build fresh? Check out the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best RAM for gaming.

This year's Computex marked some milestone birthdays for a number of the biggest brands in the gaming PC world. Zotac celebrated 20 years, MSI celebrated 40, and Asus, perhaps loudest out of all of them, was celebrating 20 years of gaming products from its ROG brand. Having spent a week in Taipei covering the show, the presence of Asus was loud and clear, and it seemed to be received well from exhibitors and visitors alike.

Split across the central intersection of what was maybe the main gaming hall at the event, Asus had two massive booths, one for the wider Asus brand, and another dedicated solely to ROG. From my experience of racing around the show floor on the way to different booth tours and generally rushing around like a headless chicken, the ROG booth was maybe the busiest one I came across every time I passed it.

The outside of the booth was like a modern art exhibition for ROG's new 20th anniversary gear, its black and gold color scheme drawing in seemingly anyone who passed by. As inviting as this shiny (and expensive) gaming hardware was, it was really just a small part of what Asus had to show off at this year's Computex. From motherboards and RAM to its newly bundled and upgraded OLED Ally X, to an entire Esports section with collabs for new mouse pads and keyboards. There was a lot to see at the ROG booth, but here are the bits that really stuck out to me.

The Anniversary ROG Destrier Chair

I reviewed the original Asus ROG Destrier Ergo Chair, and although it was impressive at the time, it didn't stick around as something I wanted to recommend to many gamers. It was pricey, its design was a little too gaudy for my tastes, and honestly, compared to other ergonomic mesh chairs, it was just more of the same.

I had heard the chair had been updated as the years went on, but I hadn't gotten to try it out until I saw the 20th Anniversary edition at Computex. Sure, the black and gold colorway was impressive, maybe suiting the outlandish design of the chair more than the standard black and red theme ever did. The gold spinal column and accents on the backrest in particular look a lot better.

But the refinements Asus has made to the actual chair are legit. The seat cushion is now a proper... well, cushion. It's not a mesh netting that does nothing to protect you from the rigid metal frame of the chair. The armrests on the modernized version were smaller than I remember, but more pliable, with an almost completely rubberized texture that I actually really liked. The acoustic guard around the headrest still seems functionally pointless to me, but it did feel smaller and less bulky around the top of the seat.

The Anniversary version will no doubt set you back more than you really need to spend on a good mesh chair - the standard version will set you back $649-$700, but the birthday model certainly inspires me to want to take it for a spin to see how it compares to more of the best gaming chairs.

ROG certified RAM

Just recently, Asus announced it was starting a ROG-certified program that guarantees strong compatibility for tried and tested DDR5 RAM with its gaming motherboards. The news came along with the announcement that Asus is launching its own DDR5 modules for the first time. The ROG-certified RAM won't gain the additional overclocking speed boost like its homemade kit will, but it will guarantee onward compatibility with an Asus motherboard, which, in times like these, will give you more confidence you're buying the right (very expensive) memory.

I didn't expect to see each of the initial certified batch of RAM to adorn an entire wall of the ROG booth like some kind of trophy case, but there it was. I'm shocked this particular part of the booth didn't need armed security to prevent gamers trying to nick the RAM sticks off the wall, because there it was, taunting anyone who was hoping to build a new PC this year.

In times like these, when DDR5 RAM is so hard to come by, it was a real sight for sore eyes to see some of the biggest and best RAM brands in the industry all in one place.

The Asus ROG Ally X20 and its bundled AR Glasses

As a user of the original Asus ROG Ally X, I've been insanely jealous of folks who waited until the Xbox version dropped. With those additional grips, things are a lot more comfortable, and now, a refreshed 20th Anniversary bundle brings it together with the Asus ROG XReal R1 glasses. Yes, the pricing of this bundle is silly, and no, I don't think you should need to buy the glasses and the handheld together just to get the updated OLED X20. I was prepared to not like either, but it's hard to argue with crystal clear visuals.

I tried both the handheld and the glasses at the ROG booth at Computex, and I was surprisingly impressed with both. The handheld's OLED display was super vivid up close; meanwhile, its comfort and weight felt right up there with the new Acer Predator Atlas 8 handheld.

I'm not the biggest fan of AR glasses because they're usually pretty bulky, uncomfortable, and their use cases always feel a bit surplus to requirements, but with a mini OLED level of clarity and a high refresh rate, the ROG glasses are ones I'm actually really looking forward to testing more thoroughly.

The ROG G1000 desktop and its holographic fans

I initially covered the ROG G1000 gaming PC back when it was shown off at CES at the start of the year, and although its holographic fan displays certainly sounded cool, it was something I wanted to see before properly believing in. This is still pretty new technology, so I figured it'd be pretty weak lighting in reality, or just wouldn't look quite as good as it sounded.

Oh boy, I was wrong. Not only is the G1000 an absolute monster of a PC, but its holofans put it up there with some of the best-looking gaming desktops I saw at this year's Computex. The lighting was extremely vivid, the colors bold, and the motion of the displayed graphics really smooth and clear.

Obviously, I've only seen it working with the standard ROG logos, and I wasn't able to customize it with different GIFs and images to see how that compared, but if it's a sign of what's to come from Asus and its holofan tech, sign me up because this could turn out to be an even bigger trend than LCD displays on AIO coolers.

The 20th Anniversary mouse and keyboard

Two things I had seen before arriving at Computex were the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 and the Asus ROG Azoth Extreme Edition 20. Both are refreshed takes on the brand's flagship mouse and keyboard, adorned with black and 24K gold metal plating. These two accessories have been making my desk at home look so much more flashy for the last few weeks, but it was another thing entirely to see them in situ with the rest of the 20th anniversary and Esports gear.

I have to admit, I think the entire range looks stunning - even if it's so expensive I have no idea who'd be able to afford it all. The desktop components, for example, can only be bought altogether, and the mouse I reviewed costs $359, and the keyboard $549.

Still, there's a reason this booth was drawing crowds at Computex every single day: the black and gold designs on show are a truly alluring way to mark this milestone in the Asus history book - even if people were crowding to look and never get their hands on it all.

You can see more of Asus by checking out the best Asus gaming laptops, the best Xbox Series X controllers, and the best gaming handheld.

Zotac has shown off its latest mini PC at Computex 2026, and anyone who has reservations about the potentially limited performance promises of the Steam Machine might want to take note. Zotac's newly updated Magnus One Ultra will sport a full-sized desktop RTX 5080 inside it, giving you massively increased 4K gaming PC performance in such a small machine.

The mini PC in question is an update to the brand's Zbox offering, which has been on the shelves for a little while now. While a recent version crammed an RTX 5070 Ti into a tiny chassis, the updated "Ultra" model will grow in size by only about 20-30% while seeing big gains in graphical performance.

Even with a slight growth spurt, Zotac claims the Magnus One Ultra is still the world's smallest computer with an RTX 5080 inside it.

To counter volume and cooling worries, Zotac tells me that the brand has installed a more substantial cooling system for the CPU inside the Ultra, which filters airflow better and dissipates it from the CPU more efficiently.

The Magnus One Ultra will still have socketed, upgradeable components. In times like these, it will come in a "barebone" version as well as a full build, to counter massive RAM and storage costs - which is certainly a method of beating Valve's lengthy delays. The barebones model comes without the RAM and SSD, costing less so you can upgrade with parts you currently have or source them yourself, potentially for cheaper.

Compared to the Steam Machine, the Magnus One Ultra won't be so limited to 4K60 promises. The RTX 5080 unlocks plenty of native 4K performance, but also has access to Nvidia's latest DLSS wizardry thanks to its Blackwell architecture. Valve's new mini PC/console, on the other hand, uses a custom AMD APU, which combines the CPU and GPU into a single chip. In other words, it won't use a discrete graphics card like the majority of gaming PCs do. As a result, it'll likely see similar performance to the PS5, which also uses an APU and is based on similar 4K60 frame rate promises (even if it can boot up to 120fps in certain games and performance modes).

While the Steam Machine will run on Steam OS and offer "gaming PC" settings in your games, it hasn't put such an emphasis on an upgradeable design this time around. An alternative small form factor build in something like the Zotac Magnus One Ultra might be a more alluring alternative for PC gamers on the hunt for a living room setup they can upgrade as time goes on.

Just keep in mind that an RTX 5080 inside will almost certainly make it substantially more expensive than what Valve's got in the oven.

For more on gaming PCs and components, take a look at the best graphics card, the best CPU for gaming, and the best RAM for gaming.

If you've been keeping up with Computex news, you may have already heard that Cooler Master and G.Skill have teamed up to produce DDR5 RAM that has integrated fans built straight into the memory modules. I have to admit I figured it was a classic Computex gimmick, when I first heard about this. After seeing it in action on today's show floor, however, I can officially confirm this best RAM for gaming contender is no joke.

I watched as my Cooler Master booth tour guide aimed a small smoke machine at the RAM's fans, and while operating almost silently, it managed to dissipate the stream of smoke at least a metre away with serious oomph - it was honestly really impressive power for such a small form-factor fan.

Perhaps what was even more impressive was that the RAM doesn't take a load of faff in order to work. There are no annoying little cables you'll need to find a header for on your motherboard; there are no PWM connectors or anything like that. Just slot the RAM into your DIMM slots, and you'll benefit from increased airflow.

Of course, it's not the best time to be innovating with memory thanks to global RAM shortages that are causing unheard-of spikes to DDR5 RAM prices. You won't be able to buy these memory sticks separately for a while, at least while the market stays in its current state, but Cooler Master will be including it in its upcoming full system builds.

You might be asking, why does RAM even need to be cooled? Well, according to Cooler Master's data, there's an unforeseen amount of thermal throttling that happens when it comes to DDR5 RAM performing at high speeds, and since no one ever thinks about RAM when it comes to thermal control in a gaming PC, there's a lot of performance that can be impacted if RAM isn't cooled properly.

Since no one else is making RAM with integrated fans, you can see why a brand like Cooler Master wants to own that innovation. The clue is in the name.

Particularly for the higher-end RAM kits that come from DDR5 brands like G.Skill, overclocking can cause some serious heat that won't always be handled by a simple RGB heatsink panel that's engineered into standard memory design. Cooler Master's fans, on the other hand, will ensure stability in performance during really demanding speeds and workloads.

The new RAM kits feature support for AMD EXPO up to DDR5-6000 CL26 and extreme-frequency DDR5 CU-DIMM up to DDR5-8400 with Intel XMP 3.0. Each stick still manages to operate under 35dB, while offering an improvement of up to -15°C in cooling. As I say, it's no joke.

For more on PC components, check out the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best SSD for gaming.

Looks like the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE could make its way outside of China, as global packaging for the mid-range graphics card has leaked. The specific Sapphire Pulse model's box uses English branding and text, but does appear to be the specific 12GB "Golden Rabbit Edition" card that was previously a regional exclusive.

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE image shared by Videocards doesn't come with any revelations. Yes, the box design is slightly different from the Chinese version since it's got English text, but that aside, we're still looking at the same retail packaging that houses a card with a Navi 48 GPU, 12GB GDDR6 RAM, and boost clock speeds up to 2790 MHz.

I should note that despite the fancy "GRE" moniker, this version of the card packs less of a punch than the standard AMD Radeon RX 9070. That's to be expected given the latter boasts 16GB VRAM, a wider 256-bit memory bus (versus 192-bit), and a cut-down version of that aforementioned Navi 48 silicon. However, it is a much closer match to the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070, and the extra pressure could help influence lower prices.

Ideally, I'd like to see the RX 9070 GRE launch for a chunk lower than its non-rabbit friend's MSRP. In theory, you should be able to grab a vanilla third-party GPU for $550, but the cheapest model I can see at Amazon right now is the ASRock Challenger for $599.99. That's technically the base price for the beefier Radeon RX 9070 XT, but that will unfortunately set you back $699.99. Those figures are less than at Newegg, where you're paying over $600 for even the base non-XT model.

AMD sometimes likes to release Chinese-exclusive cards globally, so there's nothing unprecedented about giving the GRE a worldwide launch. I'd also take the leak with the usual grain of salt since a packaging mockup isn't direct evidence of the latter, but the timing is curious. A mid-range GPU option for say $500 could help combat any Nvidia variants should they rear their head this Summer, and I suspect Super contenders won't be hitting those sorts of prices.

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Maingear, one of the best configurators of prebuilt gaming PCs out there, is currently running a Memorial Day sale. During a pricing apocalypse in the PC market thanks to AI-induced RAM shortages, the discounts are certainly relative, but Maingear has left a notice at the top of its sale page with a worrying message.

"Due to industry-wide flash memory shortages effecting GPUs, RAM, and SSDs, all pre-configured MG-1s and laptops will soon incur a $150+ price increase," says Maingear. From my experience with this brand, this doesn't seem like an underhanded sales tactic to make people engage with its seasonal sale, but it's certainly brought some pretty decent discounts to the table (for today's economy, at least).

"We’ve held off these increases as long as we responsibly can and will continue to hold them until the end of the Memorial Day Sale," continues the sales notice. "We encourage you to consider your purchase now to secure current pricing and discounts before these unavoidable increases take effect.

The biggest draw to the sale is Maingear's Apex, which you can get up to $2,000 off for Memorial Day if you use codes. These are ludicrously expensive custom liquid-cooled PCs though, and the price will vary on what components you put in them. That $2,000 off, for example, is only if you spend $14,000 of more, so like I say, it's all relative.

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For us mere mortals who can only dream of affording Maingear's regular flagship PCs, the Classic MG-1 range is taking a $200 discount across the board, as you'll see from the deal I highlighted above. This spans from the entry-level $1,249 RTX 5050 "Bronze" PC all the way up to the Champion and Ultimate builds, which go for over $5,000 and house RTX 5090 GPUs.

As much as I'm a fan of Maingear when it comes to customer service and the premium, luxury quality of its builds, it's undeniable that its gaming PCs tend to be on the most expensive side compared to other brands. In my experience, you're paying for a higher level quality of parts, customer service, and warranty, as well as peace of mind that your next gaming PC is being put together by some of the best builders in the industry. That said, if a higher-end configurator is saying it's about to up its prices, that's a sign of the times.

RAM shortages and shortages of other PC components are hitting the consumer market hard right now, and so if you've been thinking about grabbing a new gaming PC, I would take Maingear's word for it and spend during the Memorial Day sale while you can. It's unclear what discounts and deals will arrive later in 2026 for gaming PCs and components, but RAM shortages aren't forecasted to end until a couple of years down the line, and these sorts of price increases will probably happen to more than just the higher-end builders.

Of course, these price increase warnings certainly don't bode well for the newly launched Mk.II version of the Maingear MG-1.

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It looks like Nvidia could soon have a new graphics card rival in China, as tests confirm the Lisuan LX 7G100 can actually run games. The 12GB model isn't the first attempt at a gaming GPU to come out of the region, but this card seems to boast way better support for your PC library than previous attempts at a GeForce or AMD Radeon alternative.

The Lisuan LX 7G100 performance revelations are thanks to a review by Chaowanke, with the Chinese YouTuber sharing various benchmarks for the supposed RTX 5060 rival (via Videocards). Before you get hyped for a change to the two-horse Nvidia and AMD race, I should point out that the vendor wants 3,300 RMB for the GPU, which is roughly $480.

That's too much for even a GPU that could theoretically match the RTX 4060, but the fact that there's a sizable gap between Lisuan and Nvidia's cards adds salt to the price wound. Still, the LX 7G100 represents progress within the Chinese graphics card scene, and the frame rates it produces aren't what I'd call unplayable.

Chaowanke's benchmark results show off the LX 7G100 hitting an 88fps average in Cyberpunk 2077 with medium settings at 1080p. Hardly slideshow figures, but nowhere close to the RTX 5060, which hits 232fps with Frame Generation enabled. Weirdly, the YouTuber's testing shows the Intel Arc B580 boosting fps slightly higher to around 243fps, whereas the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT sat slightly lower at 220fps.

The narrative is pretty much the same across every game tested, including Black Myth: Wukong, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, and various other benchmark favorites. Rather than focusing on the obvious performance gaps, it's worth noting this is a first-generation card. Yes, it has barely any driver options and zero ray tracing support, but this model very much sets the stage for future updates and a second-generation GPU that fills in all the gaps.

Effectively, wheels are in motion for a future Nvidia GPU rival, one that is ahead of any attempts before it. That's not to say GeForce cards won't be sitting at the top in the future, it's more that China is closer to having its own gaming solution that could end up adding some much-needed competition to the market.

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Asus is celebrating 20 years of its ROG gaming brand at the moment, and during an in-person ROG Day event in China, it has unveiled its first-ever ROG-branded DDR5 RAM kit. In usual circumstances, a new brand entering the best RAM for gaming arena would be cause for celebration, but beyond the ROG anniversary, it's hard to ignore the truly awful timing for the brand's latest launch.

To be clear, the new ROG RAM kit isn't being manufactured by Asus in a homemade fab, but it's the first ROG-branded memory kit to bear the company's own design and logos, and be sold directly from Asus. By all accounts, the new memory kit has been developed in partnership with BIWIN and uses SK Hynix memory.

It's unclear in what kind of supply the ROG 20th Anniversary RAM kit will be available in, especially with ongoing RAM shortages at the moment due to never-before-seen manufacturing demands from AI companies. It's also unclear what range of speeds and capacities Asus will make available. From the teaser images shown, it looks like the initial batch will be enthusiast-grade and won't exactly be the most affordable memory on the shelves.

To wit, Asus has shown off a 48GB (2x 24GB) kit that's clocked at 6000MT/s, with timings of CLS26-36-36-76. The sticks sport a black, gold, and red design that appears to have some RGB arrays within. As you can imagine, at a time like this, RAM of this sort of capacity, speed, and likely rarity, will not come cheap. Asus has announced that it will retail for $880.

The Asus ROG RAM will have both Intel overclocking compatibility (XMP and EXPO), but interestingly, a specialized ROG mode will allow users with an Asus ROG motherboard to unlock even greater performance. It'll apparently work like activating an XMP or EXPO profile with a simple one-click overclocking menu in your BIOS, and it'll boost the RAM performance up to DDR5-8000. That's a pretty hefty overclock, but it's most likely possible due to the SK Hynix M-die circuitry used.

The addition of a ROG mode does make me think a slide into the RAM market from Asus is to further expand its hold over the wider gaming PC building market, but also because of the brand's prebuilt gaming PC and laptop offerings. If it can offer a system that's not beholden to second-party memory, it will have better control over its own inventory and spec sheets, not to mention it can offer a gaming PC with almost entirely Asus-made components (minus the CPU and SSD).

That said, Asus has also launched the ROG certified program, which identifies partnerships the company has with other memory sellers. "The ROG Certified Program highlights select high-performance memory modules that ROG engineers have subjected to rigorous testing and validation to confirm compatibility with ROG motherboards", says a statement on the ROG website.

"Through close collaboration with trusted hardware partners, only products that meet ROG's strict standards for quality, performance, and stability earn the ROG Certified designation. This gives gamers and PC builders greater confidence that their components will work together smoothly to deliver a reliable and optimized ROG experience."

The list of 14 RAM makers includes names like Corsair, Klevv, XPG, Kingston Fury, T-Force, Lexar, and G.Skill, and it'll be interesting to see if that list grows in the coming years as all of these companies try to navigate a very tough consumer sector.

For more on PC components, check out the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best SSD for gaming.

I'm going to level with you: I don't even react to RTX 5090 price increases these days. Yes, it might be the best graphics card out there in terms of sheer power, but that means nothing if the average PC player has a better chance of seeing Nessie than adding the card to their rig.

However, things could now get a lot worse for the RTX 5090 thanks to board price increases linked to GDDR7 costs. A Board Channels post highlighted by Videocardz signals that the boards used by the GPU are set to increase by $300, but Nvidia hasn't announced any MSRP changes as of yet.

Instead, it'll likely be up to custom graphics card makers like Asus, PNY, Gigabyte, and many others to deal with the increased manufacturing costs. It's safe to say the board hikes will inevitably land on the shoulders of PC players, as it's unlikely that any brand will choose to absorb those costs. That said, third-party RTX 5090 models are already sitting at the $4,000 mark at Amazon and other retailers, so even enthusiasts might steer clear if that figure continues to go up.

AI data centre demand and the whole "RAMageddon" situation really are stifling the gaming PC scene right now. Everything from DDR5 RAM to the aforementioned GPUs and even storage is rapidly ramping up in price, and honestly? There's very little you can do about that. The wisest move you can make is to keep specs sensible, which means looking at the GeForce RTX 5070 as a more realistic buy, and trying to reuse any parts you can.

It's instances like these RTX 5090 board price hikes, that have me treating 2026 like a gap year from PC building. That's not actually a bad thing if you're into the idea of mini PCs like the upcoming Steam Machine, as while it's also going through some price turmoil of its own, it could be a good time to explore whether you're actually into using compact rigs that act like consoles.

I'm not saying don't buy components for your gaming PC. Instead, I'm trying to suggest that, rather than dwelling on absurd pricing, you can just not give the currently ravenous industry your money, especially when costs are unjustifiably spiralling. If that means dragging back out some of the best retro consoles and games from yesteryear, then so be it, but the point is that no one needs horrifying RTX 5090 price thoughts spoiling their day.

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I'm not exactly surprised that an AMD Radeon RX 9050 is apparently coming. Sure, we'd ideally be getting more SKUs in the middle tier at affordable prices with more than 8GB VRAM, but this latest graphics card seemingly has an edge over the RX 9060 when it comes to core count.

According to a report by Videocardz, the AMD Radeon RX 9050 matches the RX 9060 XT with a Navi 44 GPU and 2,048 Stream Processors. Effectively, it's acting like the non-XT version doesn't exist by borrowing specs from its beefier sibling rather than using a 1,792-core Navi 44 XL.

The catch is that you're getting the same 8GB GDDR6 VRAM and 128-bit memory bus as the RX 9060, although it's got PCIe 5.0 x16 support. Naturally, the clock speeds for this unannounced card are lower too, with insider information suggesting a 1,920 MHz game clock and 2,600 MHz boost clock speeds, respectively. For context, the RX 9060 XT offers up to 3,130 MHz, so you may feel a difference in some scenarios.

Other specs like board power are currently unknown, but the recommended PSU is 440W. I'd like to think AMD will aim for the lowest wattage possible with its base model, since it'll make an ideal GPU for tiny builds off the back of the Steam Machine. Hell, if it does end up mostly having a core edge over the RX 9060, packs the same 8GB VRAM, and can just about hit 4K 60fps leveraging FSR 4, I might make my own DIY Valve box.

Before you get all hyped up about that, though, I need you to chow down on that usual grain of salt. Videocardz specifies that the specs are "preliminary" and come from a single source, and GPU makers love to change their specs plans. That said, this could be the company trying to make a card specifically geared to mini gaming PCs that would theoretically rival the upcoming Steam Machine and even Xbox Project Helix, and we'll ultimately know if that's the case when more specs land.

If it's more on Valve's box you're after, a reservation page code suggests four Steam Machine bundles might be available at launch, which could save you grabbing it with the controller.

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According to the latest reports, some of the biggest motherboard manufacturers that service the gaming PC market are all adjusting their sales projections for the rest of 2026 as the current RAM and storage crisis impacts their year-on-year performance. Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, and ASRock are some of the brands struggling in the current gaming PC market.

This isn't the first knock-on effect that the AI-induced RAMageddon has had on the consumer PC market. Not only have prices been higher for memory and storage, but chip suppliers like Nvidia, Intel, and AMD have purportedly shifted priorities as they service AI infrastructure rather than consumers. Some headlines suggest that PCB, used for all sorts of tech production may be under supply chain issues too, due to the Iran war as well as AI development. For now, though, the main issue facing motherboard makers is fewer people buying.

Reported by Digitimes, it seems four of the biggest gaming motherboard brands are all adjusting their sales targets in response. According to the report, Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI are all seeing a decrease of 25% year-on-year, while ASRock is apparently exceeding a 30% drop in sales.

Asus is said to have shipped 15 million motherboard units in 2025, but in the first half of 2026 has only managed to shift five million. It's unlikely that the brand would be able to match its year-on-year performance from this point, even as bigger sales in the computer market tend to come with the discount season around Black Friday. In response, the brand will supposedly try to meet a target of 10 million motherboard sales by the end of 2026.

Meanwhile, Gigabyte, which sold around 11.5 million motherboard units in 2025, is trying to meet a goal of 9 million by the end of this year. MSI, which sold 11 million in 2025, will shrink to a goal of 8.4 million, and ASRock, which reached 4.3 million sold in 2025, will drop to a 2.7 million target.

These significant drops in sales go hand in hand with ~300% price rises among a lot of the best RAM for gaming, as well as price increases for SSDs. With components as costly as they are, you can understand why fewer people are choosing to build new or upgrade to more advanced gaming PCs right now.

Not only that, but CPU prices are starting to rise too, and even if that weren't true, processing chips are certainly seeing supply chain constraints as more agentic AI models are trained.

This no doubt has an impact on the GPU market too, which is still arguably a long way from recovering from its 2020 crisis. AI/enterprise GPUs are in high demand due to data center production as well, and don't forget that the best graphics cards also require memory in the form of VRAM, which will hamper production. That means a smaller supply of GPUs for consumers as AI proves to be the most important customer.

Of course, while consumer sales have shrunk, all of these brands will likely be pulling in plenty of revenue from deals with AI companies that offset the dropped sales targets. Hopefully, this doesn't result in a similar story to Micron, which shuttered its Crucial consumer brand to fully focus on AI and industry business. Either way, it's not the best time to be thinking about building a PC.

Also take a look at the best CPU for gaming, the best computer speakers, and the best gaming PC in the UK.

You probably don't need me to tell you that buying gaming PCs or their components right now is not so fun. Thanks to RAM going through an AI-induced pricing apocalypse and that having knock-on effects for the rest of the tech world, prices of the best gaming PCs are through the roof.

But while most gaming PC configurators have sneakily stuffed DDR4 RAM inside their current-gen entry-level builds, a few machines are staying true to consumers and offering actually good bargains. Newegg is my favorite place to look for gaming PC deals, and it has some prime examples in its May The Fourth Sale.

Meanwhile, other gaming PCs that are under or around a grand are all pushing ahead with DDR4 RAM that's not just going to give you worse gaming performance, but it's actively going to cripple the futureproofing of the PCs you're buying. For those who don't know (first-time PC buyers, ie, the ones looking for this sort of machine), you can't buy DDR5 RAM and install it on a DDR4 motherboard. The physical dimensions of the sticks are different, and so if you buy a DDR4 motherboard, you're stuck with older, slower memory.

You'll also be stuck on an older motherboard socket in the form of the Raptor Lake LGA 1700 Intel platform. That may or may not be getting refreshed CPUs again at some point in the future, but I'm asking what the point of adopting that platform is at the moment if you'd be stuck on a motherboard that wouldn't be able to pair the best RAM for gaming with it that can truly make the most of current-gen processing power.

Most of these PCs can be easily distinguished on their retailer listings by looking for the finer details. Newegg helpfully makes it pretty clear whether you're looking at a DDR5 or DDR4 system, but on other retailers, it might be harder to spot. If you're new to PC shopping, this is something that would be very easy to miss since you'll be looking for the graphics card and processor first and foremost.

I, for one, think every prebuilt listed should be required to detail its specific motherboard in the machine before someone buys it, because arguably it's just as important to know as the CPU and GPU. That's me on a soapbox though, so I digress.

Of course, opting for one of these DDR4 systems is cheaper than the DDR5 builds I've highlighted above, but that extra couple of hundred dollars will be so worth it in the long run. It's the difference of being able to upgrade your RAM and CPU if there's a fault or you find a deal on something that can unleash better performance, and having to buy an entirely new motherboard and start again, rebuilding from scratch. I know which one I'd prefer, even while shopping on a budget.

The only time I'd be hesitantly okay with recommending you a DDR4 system at the moment is if it comes on a hybrid motherboard that has both last-gen and current-gen DIMM slots. Yes, these do exist now. The thing is, they're so rare that there's almost no chance that these prebuilt brands are using them in their machines. I have heard whispers that there are going to be more hybrid motherboards like these hitting the shelves in the years to come, mainly because of the depressing projections that say the current RAM shortages aren't going to begin settling down until at least 2028.

If you are shopping for a new, or even your first gaming PC at the moment, you don't even need to go for the ones I've highlighted above. I do think these are good deals that I'd recommend to you, but they can also just serve as examples that you don't need to limit yourself to a DDR4 system at the moment, simply because you're working with a lesser budget. DDR5 PC deals are still out there, and even if you need to pay a little more for them, they're worth saving an extra month or two for.

Want to learn more about PC parts before you buy? Read up on the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best SSD for gaming.

If you've been experiencing slowdowns and stutters on your gaming PC in the last week or two, you may be getting increasingly frustrated and thinking, "maybe it's finally time to upgrade my RAM". Please, please, don't jump straight to that just yet, because it turns out that if you've had even one YouTube tab open, the website could be eating up 7GB or more of your existing memory and causing some big performance dips.

Especially amidst the current RAM shortages, when the best RAM for gaming can set you back more than a new CPU, you might be happy to learn that your current PC isn't giving up the ghost. In fact, it seems the YouTube bug has been causing problems all for a lot of people, with the first reports emerging on Reddit a few weeks ago.

From reading up on as many of the reports online as I can see, the memory-hungry glitch seems to be happening due to UI elements on YouTube video pages rearranging themselves behind the scenes. You may have encountered this if, like me, you frequently put your YouTube tabs on a second monitor, especially a vertical one where the usual space for a video window is less than usual.

When you resize a YouTube page, or just refresh it, the site's interface will start to repeatedly check if all of the buttons for its UI have space on their appropriate bars. But as more and more buttons have been added to these UI elements (like, dislike, hype, video settings, closed captions, clip, and more), they've begun having to hide themselves to prevent overlapping on the bars. When they then try to appear again, they enter a feedback loop which rapidly starts to use more and more of your PC's RAM, and even steal CPU power as well.

This has been noticed on multiple browsers, including Firefox, Edge, Chrome, and more, and isn't an indication that your RAM is giving out, or even that your CPU for gaming isn't capable of keeping up with modern-day demands.

This could, however, impact your PC's gaming performance if you like to have some YouTube tabs open in the background, or on a second monitor while you play games. Alternatively, people trying to livestream with some of the best streaming gear for gamers might notice some serious stutters and crashes if they have background music on while broadcasting.

It should also be said that while Mozilla's open-source bug tracking system found YouTube to be the culprit of this bug, and it is happening across multiple browsers, YouTube and Google haven't confirmed that the blame for it lies at YouTube's door. In fact, some early reports on Reddit point at a Firefox update causing stutters on other video services like Twitch, but given the widespread reports about YouTube being the culprit, this seems more likely.

I suspect this could be patched out of existence without a public acknowledgement, but it's worth knowing about the bug right now if you frequently leave YouTube tabs open while gaming.

If you do suspect your PC is slowing down, I regret to inform you that it is not the best time to go shopping for memory or storage devices. To make sure grabbing some new DDR5 is the right move for you, maybe have a gander at this article I wrote about when to upgrade your memory right now.

Also take a look at the best computer speakers, the best Alienware gaming PCs, and the best gaming PCs in the UK.

Valve's will still try to find a way to price Steam Machine competitively, but the company also knows that it won't be an easy feat to pull off while AI data centers have a chokehold on RAM and socioeconomic factors keep making affordable products a rarer occurrence.

Asked in a PC Gamer interview about how the state of the industry affected the Steam Controller, launching this month for $99, hardware designer Lawrence Yang says he's "not the expert on this" but knows the price of the accessory "has gone up from where we originally wanted it to be." And the product is only able to ship this soon because it doesn't have RAM in it, of course.

"There is some variance across regions so, depending on where a customer is gonna buy it because of imports and tariffs and duties, etcetera, the price is gonna vary depending on where you're purchasing it," Yang adds. "That is something that has changed a bit over time, too."

The conversation then turned to how those same factors might affect the price of the Steam Machine, the company's upcoming gaming computer that looks to offer a few console comforts.

"I mean, obviously, we're bummed that this is the state of things," Yang says. "At the very least, we're not the only ones in this boat. Everyone's kind of figuring out how to overcome these obstacles and challenges, you know, RAM shortages, memory shortages, price hikes, everything. It's unavoidable that it will impact basically anything we make that has any of those parts in them."

Despite the general state of the industry being a mess, Yang pledges, "we're doing our best to make sure that we can make the product and have it still available at as good and competitive a price as we can. Yeah, it's challenging for sure."

Back in March, Valve pleaded for a contact that could get it RAM because the memory that does exist is reserved for data centers propping up generative AI, and the RAM that doesn't yet exist is also probably reserved for the data centers that'll prop up AI.

Steam Machine could be partly to blame for PlayStation's reported plans to step back from PC, Bluepoint dev suggests, and it'd be ironic if "Valve ultimately ended up winning the console war"

Reviewing a custom-built gaming PC isn't the easiest. In many ways, I have two things to review here. Not only am I reviewing a gaming PC like I would any regular old prebuilt system, but that doesn't feel as important as it usually does, because the machine you create could end up totally different. In fact, the real job I have when reviewing one of Quoted Tech's custom builds is putting this brand's configuration menus through their paces to make sure it's offering you the best parts it can.

When the friendly folks from Quoted Tech reached out to me with the offer to build me a custom machine to review, I was obviously excited. That claim of being able to create a PC that suits me and my preferences would be alluring to any PC gamer, let alone a hardware editor who gets a little too giddy at the idea of being able to piece together components like a "create your own pizza" menu.

The TLDR for this review is that, while Quoted Tech couldn't match my dream PC exactly, it was able to make me something that held up functionally and can keep up with my demands (let alone the intensive benchmarking I've put it through for this review). Where Quoted Tech's builder might feel slightly more limited than other brands I've scoped out when offering a custom selection of components, it makes up for it with a selection of parts from a few brands that are much better quality across the board. When making your pizza, would you rather have a selection of seven different okay cheeses, or three well-priced, delicious cheeses that offered you distinct flavours?

Picking the parts

The initial elevator pitch I was sent by Quoted Tech was pretty darn exciting, and I'm not sure if what I tasked the brand with in the end was less creative and just a bit boring, but I feel like what I ended up with for this review wasn't quite as novel as it could have been.

Quoted Tech told me about how the custom builder for its PCs was so thorough that it could offer anything I put my mind to, including a “'Retro RGB Revival' build showcasing custom aesthetics and cable art, a modular futureproof unit with easily swappable parts, open-frame design, minimal adhesives, and upgrade planning, or, a “living PC” that integrates terrarium elements or a nature-themed case".

I'm a pretty simple guy; I don't have much desire for a retro-style system or terrarium elements, but as my review of the Acer Predator Orion X will tell you, I do like desktop PCs that can actually fit on a desktop and don't take up the whole worktop. Besides that, I knew I wanted to test an AMD build that included the RX 9070 XT graphics card since I had yet to go hands-on with it. Those were really my main asks, and while I'm happy the specs were more than met, I am a little miffed that one physical ask I was not. If anything, this really shows the biggest issue and greatest strength with Quoted Tech's custom builder.

The motherboard and case for this system are both regular ATX size, and although they're not on the larger end of that weight class, a look through Quoted Tech's full custom parts configurator shows that there aren't any micro-ATX or ITX motherboards and cases to choose from. That's a shame, because for folks like me who'd say their dream build is on the smaller size, I feel like Quoted Tech can't really follow through on its promises.

While frustrating for me and my niche preferences, that doesn't really detract from what is a pretty conclusive custom builder menu with a solid selection of parts, aesthetics, and (a few) budgets. Cases span from Fractal's Pop Airs through to MSI's PANOs, to HYTE's colorful Y options, and even Corsair's Frames. There's a solid selection at play here, and I'm sure if you have more adventurous custom PC building dreams than I do, Quoted Tech will be more than capable of making something bespoke to them. And that includes chassis fans and cabling too. The aesthetics do feel yours to create if you build from scratch.

In terms of components, I'm a fan of the fact that there's a smaller pool of brands to choose from when it comes to memory and storage. Kingston memory and SSDs are tried and tested, good value (even with ongoing RAM shortages and inflation), and what's more, they're good quality. I'm not sure if Quoted Tech is planning on expanding its partnerships to other component makers in the future, but in this instance, I think a smaller pool of well-known brands (Kingston and Western Digital) is actually going to be more helpful for first-time PC buyers than a larger selection of lesser-known names they need to quality check online themselves.

Specs

So what did I end up with, I hear you ask? From recreating the build on Quoted Tech's website, it seems my build springs from one of the company's prebuilt-opt-up configurations, called the Horizon. There's also the Frontier and Great North, and with any of these, you can start with a platform of selected options and customize to your liking. Alternatively, you can start with noting and build what you like. The Horizon is Quoted Tech's middle tier of gaming PC, which is available from $2,272 and up when you begin to customize it.

From recreating my specs using the options on its website, I've come out with a build that currently costs $2,497, which might give you an idea of the kind of value for money you get.

From a glance at PCPartsPicker, the price of an equivalent DIY PC with these specs tops out at ~$2,137.94, which leaves a roughly $360 builders' fee that will presumably go toward shipping, warranties, and the company itself taking a cut. Take this with a pinch of salt, especially in 2026 when the cost of PC hardware is through the roof and fluctuating by the day, but that is one of the larger builders' fees I've seen from PC brands recently, so there are definitely cheaper ways to go about grabbing a gaming PC. That said, while it's a more expensive way to go about things, a custom build does get you the best of both worlds between not building and controlling what's inside your machine.

Where the smaller pool of parts does come into play is when you're trying to keep costs down. The benefit of having lots of different brands to choose from when configuring a custom build is that you can prioritise what's important to you. If you want a cheaper, budget brand SSD or RAM, you can choose those things. With a limited pool in those areas with Quoted Tech, the quality assurance does offset your ability to save where you feel you'd like to.

Design

Now that all of the Quoted Tech custom build stuff is out of the way, let's get onto talking about the actual PC I've been sent. Let's start with the MSI Pano 110R chassis, which has a transparent tempered glass panel on its front and side, with room for intake fans on the front of the opposite side. There's a generous PSU tray and plenty of space in the top for the 360mm AIO cooler, and overall, there's a decent use of space here. I'm always hesitant about the airflow in cases that pull air in through a side wall like this as opposed to straight forward front-to-back airflow, but as I'll come on to, cooling was excellent in this rig.

In terms of size, the Pano 110R feels fairly narrow, which may please folks like me who prefer a slimmer case, but it does feel tall, and that might present difficulties fitting it underneath your desk, or on top of a standing desk, depending on your setup.

There's some personality to this machine as well, with RGB highlights that frame the transparent borders. Quoted Tech's magnetic pump head cap on the CPU cooler gives it some identity as well, while not going too overt with branding, as you might see with some system configurators.

Connectivity isn't bad, but for the money, you could get better motherboard connectivity. On the rear IO, you have five USB-A ports along with two USB-C. On the front of the case, there are an additional two USB-A and one more USB-C.

In terms of build quality, everything is really neatly arranged, and everything worked out of the box. I do have one gripe, however, and I'm unsure if it's a result of a lack of testing before the PC was shipped, or something moved around in transit. The PC is louder than I'd like, and not because of the generous number of case fans included in the build. In fact, these are decent fans, and add loads of colorful RGB to the mix. What I noticed straight out of the box is that something sounds as though it's either not properly bolted into the chassis or something is ever so slightly caught in the fan blades. Either way, it's causing a very annoying whirring sound which, even when idling, is loud enough to be distracting.

It's hard to know what to criticize here, especially seeing as I've done the best I can to find the source of it and haven't been able to find a clear culprit. I must admit though, when paying this much for a custom machine, I wouldn't want to have to deal with this as an issue. Whether it's a packaging issue or a small dip in attention to detail, I hope it's a blip and not something you experience if you buy a Quoted Tech rig. It's tough not to bring up though, because rival brands like PCSpecialist in the UK and Maingear in the US have rigorous pre-shipping tests they put their machines through that they evidence in your packaging, and I'm not sure the same kind of customer service is present here.

Performance

Beyond a few out-of-the-box crashes and a bizarre case of Windows not defaulting to a fresh install when I first turned it on, this machine performed just fine. There was no bloatware to be found at all, and although some of those initial crashes and random restarts were fairly regular in my first day or two of testing the machine out, I'm confident Quoted Tech does a good job of giving you a clean slate to work from when you buy one of its computers. Don't fear prebuilt bloatware, because it isn't present here.

Having just gone back to test out the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX to see how it holds up in 2026, I was very keen to finally get my hands on the current-gen AMD flagship GPU. It very much forms the heart of this gaming PC from Quoted Tech. Combined with the Ryzen 7 9700F CPU, it's a capable 4K gaming build even without extending into the pricier X3D chip shelves. But how does it compare to the likes of the CyberPowerPC Ultra XT3D we tested on the UK side of the pond, or indeed the NZXT Player Three which houses the Nvidia RTX 5080?

When compared to those other systems we've reviewed with similar specs, this Quoted Tech build does come up just a little short, which, if anything, shows the value of an X3D processor. In both 3DMark and Cinebench tests, we can see dips in performance most likely due to the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, even when the CyberPowerPC build we reviewed used the same RX 9070 XT GPU.

What I was very impressed with though, was how cool the Ryzen 7 9700F stayed during these intensive tests. In Fire Strike and Time Spy (which are known for their ability to bring the best CPUs for gaming up to boiling point), the processor managed to stay cool and under 58 degrees Celsius. For a sub-$100 AIO cooler, that's really impressive stuff, but it does show one reason not to go for an X3D or an Intel CPU in your machine. I didn't tamper with any cooling controls when setting up the PC either, so it does show that at some point along the building process, Quoted Tech had set things up for success.

Where Quoted Tech's build does outperform both equivalent PCs is in its storage and RAM. Like I've been going back and forth on in this review so far, there are ups and downs with the brand's somewhat limited brand options in this part of its menu.

Performance is absolutely an upside. Usually, with any prebuilt machine, custom or otherwise, the SSD is the thing that lets the side down. On the NZXT Player Three, for example, read speeds were down at 4,239MB/s, and in the CyberPowerPC, a similar 4,990MB/s. Quoted Tech has opted for Kingston's NV3 range in this build, and for a 1TB model, it's performed much better. A read speed of 6,274MB/s is hardly going to win any awards in the best SSD for gaming category, but it's by far and away much closer to the sort of gaming speeds I'd want from a "gaming" PC worth this kind of money.

Similarly, Kingston's RAM has come up with faster speeds in the AIDA64 Extreme test. At 58,432MB/s, and with two AMD EXPO profiles registering in its BIOS, I'm impressed to see memory this good (at a time like this) in a system that's been pre-configured and not built at home. I did my benchmarking with the RAM dialed up to 5600MT/s, and although I did try to clock it up to 6,000MT/s, it wouldn't train properly, and I had to clear the CMOS. It's maybe not the best RAM for overclocking, but it'll certainly deliver what most gamers need.

Following those initial tests to get a feel for the rig, it was off to the gaming trenches. AMD has recently updated its FSR power for the RX 90 series graphics cards, and having spent plenty of time testing multi-frame gen capabilities on Nvidia 50 Series cards, I was keen to see how things would compare. My go-to test these days is Cyberpunk, since the 2020 RPG has been geared to heavily cater to Nvidia's DLSS tech. My annoyances playing this game with the RTX 5070 stemmed from MFG ramping up floaty latency the more multipliers you turn on. AMD's FSR doesn't have quite the same frame generation prowess, but it can generate frames and upscale to provide a crutch for the power-hungry ray tracing that Night City deserves.

I didn't feel that floaty latency when running around Night City in Quoted Tech's build though, and honestly, it's getting very difficult to tell the difference in upscaling fidelity between FSR and DLSS. Even without the multi-frame gen tricks, I think the benchmarking scores here do work in the RX 9070 XT's favor.

In fact, the rig was able to nail two of the trickiest benchmarks for any gaming hardware - full ray tracing and no upscaling in Hitman 3 and Cyberpunk 2077. I've seen gaming PCs fail to get 15fps in these tests, or even crash. Even if 34fps and 21fps respectively might not seem all that impressive, that's actually a pretty good score.

When I turned frame generation on in that test in Cyberpunk, it did bolster the score from 50fps using FSR to 93fps, so there's plenty of room to gallop if you're willing to turn just a few settings down to max out a 120Hz or even 144Hz monitor. Not using ray tracing might also help, since frame gen boosted the FSR score up to 162fps without the more realistic lighting.

Should you buy a Quoted Tech Custom Build Gaming PC?

More important than the performance of this specific configuration is how the rig as a whole performed, because that's a more reliable sign for you to either buy or not buy from this brand. I'll say it; I've used better pre-built machines than this, which you can tell have gone through copious amounts of testing and quality assurance before they even get put in a box. I'm sure Quoted Tech has a process for this, but it isn't demonstrated with solid communication like it is by other brands. Thankfully, there's a decent warranty should anything go wrong. But at the same time, I've also encountered worse prebuilt PCs than this.

If you're happy with the selection of parts that Quoted Tech can offer, I do think there's a lot of peace of mind and reliability to be had with this brand's custom build offering. It might not be the one to go for if you're trying to save money because you're limited to fairly premium parts, but then again, it's up to you what you'd prioritise.

The build I received is of a really decent quality; it's neat and tidy, and it works well under pressure. I would have liked the fan noise not to feel as problematic, which may point to issues with the build or less-than-ideal packaging. I'd have liked a bit more in the way of customer service and crystal clear communication on the customer-facing side, since this can be a massive boon for anxious first-time PC gamers.

I can definitely recommend Quoted Tech for its selection of quality parts and its easy-to-navigate building menu. It's simple to configure your build down to the last spec in just minutes, and you won't suffer choice paralysis from all the options at your fingertips. If you're in the market for a prebuilt PC you have control over, I'd point to Quoted Tech. If you want the widest possible choice of parts to configure so you can truly save money where you feel like it, maybe look elsewhere.

How I tested the Quoted Tech Horizon Custom Build PC

I used this Quoted Tech Custom PC on and off for around a month before this review was written and published. In that time, I used it for work, benchmarking, gaming, and other tasks. I put it through all the same testing processes as other prebuilt machines I've reviewed.

I also evaluated the brand's custom building menu by using it to configure multiple different PCs. I used PCPartsPicker to evaluate the cost offsets of building from scratch to get an idea of the price. I also used other system configurators' custom builders to compare against.

For more on how we test gaming PCs, check out the full-length GamesRadar+ hardware policy.

For more on gaming PCs, check out the best gaming PCs in the UK, the best Alienware gaming PCs, and the best graphics card.

Valve will launch the new Steam Controller on May 4 for $99.00, and hardware engineer Steve Cardinali says the gamepad is coming before its console-like partner, the Steam Machine, because it doesn't have to contend with the ongoing RAM crisis or similar production hurdles.

Speaking with Polygon, Cardinali notes that the Steam Controller "doesn't have RAM in it, and it's not as complicated to start getting out the door for us." Steam Machine, meanwhile, had to go back to the drawing board earlier this year as Valve works to navigate a challenging environment for manufacturing components.

A rush to invest in AI and generative AI technology, and to erect a zillion data centers to support it, has consumed a significant chunk of the memory in the market. Knock-on production effects have impacted pricing and availability of myriad hardware, with gaming hit especially hard at a time when prices are already rising across the industry, especially in the US post-tariff complications.

Valve joked last month that "if you have a line on a bunch of RAM, we are in the market and would like to buy it," as it works to make Steam Machines in a volume and at a price point that will suit the market.

The Steam Controller, at least, sounds ready. I mean, Cardinali even says so. "We're ready for it," he continues. "We wanted to build up quantity so that we could try to address everybody who wants one at launch, but it's possible that the demand for it far exceeds our expectations." Indeed, Valve seems to have a boatload of Steam controllers on hand – good thing, too, because there won't be any pre-orders ahead of May 4.

Additionally, he stresses that the Steam Controller and Steam Machine were never inextricably linked. The controller is good for all manner of PC and laptop play, though it's a "pair made in heaven" for the Steam Machine as a couch gaming package. If anything, Valve was worried about the reverse launch order.

"The really only hard deadline is we didn't want to ship the Steam Machine before the Steam Controller," Cardinali says. "We want to have that out for the Steam Machine… It wasn't really ever the plan to ship them together unless it landed nicely that way. So there's no point in holding it back while we work through the other stuff."

As Phil said earlier this month: Valve is now sitting on lots of Steam controllers, so releasing them before the Steam Machine is a no-brainer.

Valve is still settling on a final Steam Machine price, but it could end up selling the mini PC at a loss. That's if rumors surrounding the storefront giant using the strategy short-term ring true, but if it does take the hit, it could help inspire console makers to prioritize lower MSRPs to ensure players can actually afford systems.

In a report by Insider Gaming, Executive Editor Mike Straw says that, by his understanding, "Valve is getting closer to confirming everything" Steam Machine-related. That suggests we'll get a launch price and release date soon, but he also claims Valve has "been going back and forth internally on pricing and whether they would be willing to take a loss on the cost, at least in the short term."

Straw caveats that "it's unclear if a decision has been made", so don't get too hyped up about affordable Steam Machine pricing just yet. That said, he adds that, whatever the decision, the "internal belief is that an announcement on a release is getting closer," and that's backed up by all the recent controller leaks.

On that note, a now-deleted post by 4Gamer states the Steam Machine controller will arrive on May 4. I've already expressed why launching the gamepad before the mini PC is a no-brainer, but thanks to a review highlighted by Vice that leaked ahead of schedule, we now know it'll likely cost $99 (you can still watch it via Streamable).

Yes, nearly $100 is far from the Steam Controller MSRP I was expecting, but I reckon it backs up the idea of a cheaper Steam Machine. If Valve does decide to sell its mini system at a loss, selling accessories like the gamepad for more could help recoup some costs. Traditionally, console makers sell hardware at a loss to get players on their platforms who will then buy more profitable games and add-ons, and that could be the plan for the pad.

When you think about it, the Steam controller makes for a perfect way to reach players who aren't invested in the storefront. Sure, most players with a gaming PC will primarily use Steam accounts, but some out there will be more using Xbox Game Pass or even a DRM-free platform like GOG. If the Steam Controller proves to be an experience-enhancing hit thanks to perks like compatibility aids like Steam Input, that could inspire people to adopt the platform or even eventually swap their rig for a Machine down the road.

All of this starts to sound like a convincing master plan when you consider Project Helix, the current name for the next-gen Xbox that plans to run PC and console games. If Microsoft's next system also ends up being a tiny rig, Valve will have a chance to make money from that player base via the controller, and aiming for $99 should yield something profit-shaped.

Of course, taking any and all Steam Machine and controller rumors with a big grain of salt is mandatory. It sounds like Valve will be crunching numbers and deliberating on MSRP right up to its next big reveal, but if it does decide to keep high hardware prices at bay by covering the losses, it could benefit PC and console players alike. At the same time, Sony has pulled away from releasing PS5 exclusive games on PC, so it's hard to say whether it'll rise to the pricing competition or stay in its own expensive little bubble where mid-gen price hikes have already made it to the table.

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Things are rough gaming PC land thanks to RAMageddon, and while parts like graphics cards sitting at MSRP should be the norm, they are extremely few and far between. It's for that reason that, despite not being massively into Nvidia's 8GB 60-class cards, it feels like the GeForce RTX 5060 Ti is worth a look while it's under $400.

The model in question is the MSI RTX 5060 Ti 8G Ventus, as it's currently down to $379.99 at Amazon. Keep in mind that custom card MSRPs are a bit bananas compared to Nvidia's recommended price, so the "90-day low" is based on the specific model's full $439.99 ticket. Still, I'm certainly not seeing any other cards like this for under $400, and even the non-Ti versions are only around $30 less.

Ideally, this is how much the GeForce RTX 5070 would cost, but the days of grabbing a proper mid-range GPU, especially by Nvidia, are long gone. As someone who took picking up a GTX 970 ten years ago for granted, that reality stings, but given the modern landscape, I do think the RTX 5060 Ti is a decent option for what could still be described as "reasonable PC upgrade money."

The version I've personally tested is by Palit, but the MSI version should provide similar benchmarks to what I experienced during my review. The TLDR is that it can masquerade as a 4K-capable card if you leverage AI upscaling tools like DLSS, and Frame Generation will boost fps to figures that look impressive. In reality, though, this GPU's comfort zone is 1440p, and when it comes to ray tracing, you might find that 1080p settings are more sensible.

Yes, that's all very lacklustre given the PS5 and Xbox Series X have normalized 4K this generation, and even the Switch 2 is using DLSS to make UHD happen in docked mode. Ultimately, your mileage will vary depending on whether you max out settings or tweak things to hit comparable frame rates, and since cards like the GeForce RTX 5080 are going to be out of reach for most players at over $1,000, there's no shame in dialling things back to achieve better results.

If you're gunning for an AMD build and need an extremely competent alternative, the GPU you're after is the RX 9060 XT. Like Nvidia's 60-class card, the Radeon equivalent can be hard to find for under $400, but there's thankfully an XFX Swift model at Amazon for $339.99.

Just like with the Radeon RX 9070, the RX 9060 XT follows the trend of providing better native performance than the RTX 5060 Ti, but lacks the same AI upscaling oomph. That's in part because AMD is only just considering bringing multi-frame generation to its GPUs, but for some players, not relying as much on what some call "fake frames" is a selling point.

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The decision between the two really comes down to features. If you would use DLSS 4.5 to boost frame rates without a second thought, the RTX 5060 Ti is a no-brainer. If you're of the belief that native rasterized performance should be the norm, go for the RX 9060 XT. The important thing is that both are around the price they should be, and while I'll always criticize GPU makers and vendors alike for not aiming for lower, I'm not turning my nose up at more affordable cards when they do pop up.

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Maingear is known for its limited edition, luxury gaming PC releases that disappear almost as soon as they're announced, but the brand's consistent bread and butter over the years has been the MG-1. It's appeared on many a best gaming PC guide from various outlets, and now, it's receiving an all-new redesign that modernizes many of its aspects.

The aptly-named Maingear MG-1 Mk. II is available now in various pre-configured and custom variations that start from $1,999 at Maingear. The new rig launches alongside AMD's Ryzen 9 9950X3D2, but you can also throw in an Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, an RTX 5090, or even an AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT.

Maingear's CEO and Co-Founder, Wallace Santos, said: "The MG-1 set an extremely high bar. We knew refining it wouldn’t be easy, but we’re proud to say we’ve taken it further in every measurable way with the all-new MG-1.

"We went through everything from the top down, airflow, thermals, build quality, materials, and made real, measurable improvements across the board. Every upgrade reflects our pursuit of the ultimate gaming experience. Space has been optimized. The magnets are stronger. The air intake is larger. The RGB is brighter. The panels are thicker. The frames per second are higher. At the end of the day, this is the kind of system we’d want on our own desks, and I think it's going to raise the bar once again."

Some Maingear fans will be keen to learn that the MG-1 Mk. II continues the build's custom aesthetics legacy. For those who don't know, the faceplate of the MG-1's chassis was magnetic, allowing a slew of swappable options to be introduced. The new model has the same collectible appeal, with 60% more powerful magnets for a tool-free, easy-to-use swapping experience. An expanded library of custom faceplates is also now available, allowing you to choose the look you prefer when buying an MG-1.

Maingear has increased the RGB potential of its flagship PC too, with a fully diffused system whereby no diodes can be seen shining from within. This leaves the lights to create that atmospheric, hazy effect that adds a touch of class compared to a lot of lesser builds that utilize RGB. What's more, it can be controlled natively through the motherboard's software without the use of a complex hub to plug things into or annoying third-party bloatware.

Something I'm interested to hear about is that just like the Maingear Zero Ruby I tested a while back, the MG-1 Mk.II apparently has "no visible motherboard cables" because it supports Maingear's patented MG-RC reverse connector system if you pair it with a compatible motherboard like the MSI Project Zero ones, which route all their headers on the back. If you opt for a non-Zero motherboard, Maingear's engineers will hand-manage the cables for as clean a look as possible. This is certainly intriguing to me, since the brand's Zero builds have been out of stock for a little while, so I'd be eager to know if it plans to replace these or integrate these niche motherboards into the new MG-1 chassis.

Amidst the current RAMpocalypse, Maingear has taken a clever tactic to support the MG-1 with its BYO RAM program, which means you can opt to buy a system without RAM to save costs, then buy your own separately, and it'll be validated by Maingear's builders.

In terms of cooling, Maingear's new MG-1 chassis sports three 140mm intake fans behind the front panel. There's a top-mounted 360mm AIO for exhaust, and the press release I've received says that thanks to innovations with a more generous bottom air scoop combined with unobstructed airflow routes inside the chassis, during in-house testing, the new MG-1 had more efficient cooling than an open-air test bench.

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AMD is still running in the best graphics card race, but it's not quite on the same track as Nvidia's Multi-Frame Generation GPUs. However, changes to the tech company's ADLX FidelityFX SDK imply that its strategy of sticking to standard Frame Gen could soon change, in turn opening its cards up to the same "fake frames" criticism as its AI-obsessed rival.

The new additions to AMD's ADLX 1.5 (Device Library eXtra) SDK used to control new GPU and hardware changes add a feature dubbed "IADLX3DFidelityDXFrameGenUpgradeRatioOption" (via Wccftech). An extremely catchy name indeed, but it refers to an interface that provides "ratio" options via an interface.

That hints towards an option to change the number of AI frames generated using FidelityFX Super Resolution to more than just two, effectively adding in the "multi" element that arguably gives Nvidia's graphics cards, like the GeForce RTX 5080, a performance edge. The GPUOpen page also suggests that Adrenalin driver releases will mean FSR 3.1.4-supported games can tap into Multi-Frame Generation, but you might require an RDNA 4 card with Machine Learning capabilities.

Effectively, whether older Radeon GPUs like 7900 XT and XTX will gain Multi-Frame Generation support remains to be seen. Various DIY projects and third-party apps like Lossless Scaling suggest the GPUs are capable, but it all boils down to caveats tied to potential latency.

The real question is whether PC players want Radeon GPUs to gain Multi-Frame Generation. If the AMD brand's subreddit is anything to go by, some fans of the cards are cautiously optimistic about the AI-powered tech, albeit signalling that existing frame pacing issues should be ironed out first.

Others still seem to be on the side that sees the lack of MFG on Radeon as a selling point. Even players who are not actively against the tech have indicated they're not particularly interested in anything about standard x2 generation, and there's at least one mention of the phrases "AI slop" and "Fake Frames" in there. Whether you think those accusations of the tech are warranted, it's still a narrative that's driving some players towards AMD cards over Nvidia options, and if the red team launches the feature before addressing other existing driver issues, the response could be particularly frosty.

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Nvidia's GeForce RTX 3060 12GB graphics card is rumored to launch this June. No, this isn't an article from 2021; the gaming hardware scene has apparently just started peddling backwards. Rather than releasing the RTX 5050, the company is apparently planning to use Ampere to fill the gap, and having also just covered SNK's '90s Neo Geo console making a return, I feel like I'm in a tech hot tub time machine.

Fresh leaks by MEGAsizeGPU suggest the "Post RTX 5050 9G is delayed," and they describe Nvidia's future launch plans as "pretty uncertain now." The insider's latest tweet then throws a curveball by suggesting "the newly produced RTX 3060 will fill the gap, ETA June 2026."

This ties to existing rumours that the RTX 3060 had re-entered production, but the new rumours somewhat help illustrate why. If the RTX 5050 is being pushed back due to RAMageddon-related costs linked to its suspected 9GB GDDR7 VRAM, it will be easier to make another Ampere GDDR6 12GB card at a reasonable price. Plus, while the memory will be a generation behind, you'll technically get a higher CUDA core count.

It might feel bananas substituting a five-year-old graphics card for what would have been a more affordable generational jumping on point. However, the strategy makes sense once you realize that has already set the stage. Back in January, all GeForce cards gained DLSS 4.5 tricks, albeit minus elements like Frame Generation that need the FP8/FP4 support provided by new-gen Tensor cores.

Effectively, whether you remotely have any interest in using new AI upscaling models or tapping into Ray Reconstruction, you can technically do it on an RTX 3060. That's not to say it won't come at a performance cost, though, and the GPU could sweat far more than RTX 40-series models or new-gen options like the RTX 5070 and 5060 due to the older architecture. I guess if you do go for the Ampere card, the horrors of DLSS 5 and its questionable can't reach you, right?

I should point out that while bringing back the RTX 3060 is weird, this isn't the first time Nvidia has resurrected an old GPU in times of trouble. In fact, back in 2021, a refreshed version of the RTX 2060 12GB showed up just before the RTX 4090 and its kin as a stopgap, so you could all this all business as usual.

I'm just slightly worried that I'm actually rapidly falling through time and that I'll be talking about the OG Nvidia RIVA GPU re-launch next week. What's that? Sony is also going to try and take on Nintendo with a console? Good luck chumps.

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We all know RAM is expensive, but we all also know that price isn't going to come down any time soon. If you're in the unenviable position of requiring an upgrade right now, though it's worth double checking if you actually do need to buy RAM today, Newegg has a couple of discounts that are going to, somewhat, soften the blow.

Corsair Vengeance LPX sticks are the kits you'll need to be watching closest. From all our RAM price tracking, these sets are frequently available for slightly less than the rest of the market's inflated rates. Newegg can send you home with two 8GB sticks of the best RAM we've tested in the budget category for $144.99 (saving you just under $15). Bigger discounts are reserved for the 32GB kit, which is down to $209 (was $249).

Is that still expensive? Absolutely. If you can get away with sticking to your current setup for another year or so I would recommend doing so. If you're in a bind and running an older board hungry for some DDR4, this is where you should be looking.

How's the rest of the market for scale?

A quick look at Amazon shows prices similar to Newegg's, though rates are typically trending higher than that $209 sales price on 32GB sticks. In fact, the exact same kit is up at Amazon for $10 more right now.

Things can get a little cheaper if you're looking for 16GB. Obviously less RAM = less beans spent, and if you're hunting for a particularly cheap 'n' dirty solution there are kits available for less than $100 at Amazon. Most mainstream brands are hovering at between $130 and $170 right now, though.

Of course, that's all with the caveat that we're talking about DDR4 here. While this slower solution hasn't seen the same kind of price increases as newer DDR5 kits, it's still heavily ballooned since this time last year. While current RAM shortages seem to have steadied themselves (at least from where we're looking at a pricing standpoint), those rates aren't expected to actually fall until some time next year at the earliest.

If you're working with a newer board that needs DDR5, you're a little more stuck. All of our go-to recommendations are hovering at about $500 right now. A 32GB T-Force Delta RGB set will run you $499.99 at Amazon.

We're also rounding up the latest SSD prices for more tough-to-find savings, but check out the best CPUs for gaming and the best graphics cards for more upgrades.

Valve's exact Steam Machine release date plans remain a mystery, but the controller has just entered US soil. That's according to a shipment manifest that suggests the gaming PC giant just received a delivery of "wireless PC controllers" that weighs 12,970 kg, and if it's not a sign that the mini system is finally ready to launch, the gamepad could keep us preoccupied.

First highlighted by hardware analyst Brad Lynch, Valve seemingly received its "first large quantity" of Steam Controllers last week. The shipment specifically applies to the USA, but while it's currently unknown whether the best PC controller contender has arrived in other territories, documentation shared by Videocardz backs up the gamepad shipment claims.

The shipping manifesto doesn't outright say that it includes boxes of Steam Controllers, referring to the pads as "wireless PC controller" and "Xbox wireless gaming controller". That might make it sound like someone at Valve just really likes generic pads that will work with rigs and Microsoft's console, but I suspect the document is actually referring to boxed retail stock and units designed to be included in a Steam Machine bundle.

I don't want to get anyone too excited, as it's been a rough year already for gaming hardware thanks to RAMageddon. Even the Steam Deck OLED is still MIA thanks to AI-fuelled component shortages, but the new Steam Controller stockpile could suggest the Machine will arrive on schedule in 2026. The fact that there are two gamepad listings on the manifest implies there are two separate batches, and I'd like to think one of them is destined to ship with the mini rig.

If the Steam Machine is ultimately delayed, though, Valve may still launch the controller to keep spirits high. Keeping the conversation surrounding the living room-friendly mini PC could be key to its success, and by giving players a taster of the experience through the gamepad, it could save the box from drifting into irrelevance. Keep in mind, we're not talking about a proprietary accessory, so the pad is ready to serve as part of a rig setup or alongside a Steam Deck dock to create a makeshift Machine.

While it's incredibly likely that Valve is now sitting on Steam Controller stock, you should still take the shipping leak with a grain of salt. Logic would dictate that the delivery is related to the new gamepad, but the company hasn't announced any solid arrival dates for the Machine or its pad. However, from where I'm sitting, it feels like plans for the mini PC launch are falling into place, and if all else fails, we might at least still have a fun new set of buttons in 2026.

Oh, and if it's specs you're worried about, you'll be pleased to hear the Steam Machine could pull some pretty big moves with just 8GB VRAM thanks to a Valve engineer's recent efforts.

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I'm not the only one sweating about the Steam Machine featuring just 8GB VRAM, but it might not actually be a big deal. At least, it won't be if a new Linux memory management proposal by Valve engineer Natalie Vock is anything to go by, as it could help GPUs with entry-level specs and the company's own devices boost fps thanks to good old optimization.

Currently working within Valve's Linux graphics driver team as an independent contractor, the 21-year-old developer has developed two kernel patches and accompanying utilities that specifically combat memory management. In her blog post, the computer science student jokes that "Carnage erupts inside the kernel driver as every application fights for as much GPU memory as it can hold on to," before jokingly proclaiming, "That is, until now. Because I fixed it."

Vock explains that Linux normally uses a dubbed eviction in "kernel land", which effectively ditches data to prevent crashes when maxing out VRAM. The issue is that if you're running a demanding game like Cyberpunk 2077, evicting related data results in big performance dips, prompting the engineer to come up with a preventative measure dubbed "dmemcg-booster."

That's the main solution proposed by Vock that makes use of cgroups (short for Device Memory Control Groups), which can instruct Linux to protect specific processes. That saves anything gaming-related from being evicted from VRAM and sent to a system memory reserve known as GTT (Graphics Translation Table), which is far slower to access (256GB/s bandwidth vs 16GB/s at best).

In tests, this resulted in Cyberpunk 2077 using just 6GB VRAM rather than the full 8GB available. That's because it was spilling 1.37GB into that slow GTT bucket, but after putting dmemcg-booster and the kernel patches into action, the RPG has access to 7.4GB GPU memory.

Simply put, the kernel updates mean that game-related processes take priority when it comes to VRAM, just as they probably should when running anything on a gaming PC. You might not notice that when using something like AMD's Radeon RX 9070, but it's absolutely an issue that can crop up when using something like the upcoming Steam machine or even a new, lower spec card if running releases with high-res textures.

Originally, I figured the proposal could also benefit some of the best gaming handhelds out there, like Valve's own Steam Deck OLED, but Vock admits she doesn't know if the patches will benefit iGPUs or APUs. Since the Steam Machine is set to pack a semi-custom RDNA 3 dedicated GPU, though, the idea could really help when running games at 4K without dialling back settings or going all in on AI upscaling.

Right now, the patches are being implemented in the performance-optimized Arch Linux distribution, CatchyOS, but should be merged into the main kernel. The question now is whether SteamOS will also gain the perks through its optimised kernel, but I can't help but think that anything that'll optimize and boost Steam Machine performance is a no-brainer.

Ultimately, if the Steam Machine does gain Vock's memory optimization patches, it might provide far better Linux performance than originally anticipated. Whether it'll actually be a 4K 60fps capable box remains to be seen, but if you also throw the expected AMF FSR tricks into the mix, it makes Valve's performance pitch sound more believable.

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I sometimes feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone when it comes to the best graphics cards today. The price of premium Nvidia and AMD GPUs is bad enough, but the fact that there's a market for power supply cables that are less likely to melt when connected to the latter is just ludicrous.

That's not to say I blame Asus for creating the ROG Equalizer, a freshly announced 12v-2x6 PCIe power cable that expands its GPU load capacity from 9.2 amps to 17A, but I've no idea how we got to this stage. For context, the situation stems back to issues with graphics cards like the RTX 5090 and Geforce RTX 5080 overheating due to 12v pins being supplied with too high a wattage, leading to extreme overheating.

This is an issue that's been haunting Nvidia GPUs since the RTX 4090 introduced the 12VHPWR connector and replaced the standard 8-pin port. AMD is still using the old-style connector in new cards like the RX 9070, so it's primarily GeForce users who'll be considering whether they should pick up the ROG Equalizer.

Asus says its new GPU cable "ensures balanced current delivery from PSU," by achieving lower wattages across the six pins. That in turn produces cooler temperatures when your GPU slurps a full 600W, with the wiring itself featuring a solid copper core accompanied by tin shielding and a protective etched sheath.

Of course, it's worth underlining that while Asus says its cable is compatible with GPUs by other manufacturers, it does caveat that results are dependent on socket quality. I suspect you'll also have to remember the previous advice of making sure the cable is inserted properly with a reassuring "click", otherwise you could still end up with burny nonsense occurring.

Asus hasn't announced a price for the ROG Equalizer, but it is set to come free with ROG Thor III and ROG Strix Platinum PSUs. If you already grabbed a supply, you'll seemingly be able to grab the cable at a discount, and while I think the need for it is bizarre, it's worth thinking about if you've got a GPU that's well over a grand within your rig.

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YouTube's copyright system is daft, so I'm not really surprised to hear that it blocked Nvidia's own DLSS 5 announcement video off the back of a claim. The blip will likely bring a smile to the face of anti-AI gaming PC players far and wide, but while the mix-up made me snigger, Beavis and Butthead-style, I can't help but feel we're not remotely prepared for more complex gen-AI copyright situations brought on by Nvidia's latest form of upscaling.

Highlighted by NikTek in an X post, the whole DLSS 5 copyright strike incident was initially sparked by La7, an Italian television channel that decided to use Nvidia's footage. Following a broadcast, the TV company issued copyright strikes to any YouTube videos using the same footage, which just so happened to include the original "Announcing NVIDIA DLSS 5" clip from three weeks ago.

As a result, Nvidia's DLSS 5 unveiling was unavailable in Italy for over 24 hours, and plenty of creators were hit with the same strike. The OG clip is now back online, and it's safe to assume the whole affair was likely sparked by automatic processes of some kind. I'd usually just do an "Oh you!" meme head tilt at YouTube's Content ID system and get on with my day, but honestly? I'm now feeling pretty neurotic about the idea that these systems aren't remotely prepared for future incidents sparked by gen AI.

Artists and content creators already have a massive fight on their hands when it comes to AI. While bodies like the UK Government have backtracked on their original plans to allow AI companies to train models using copyrighted content, we're still sailing towards a reality where other people's work could be used to generate other pieces of media that may, in turn, look like an uncanny version of the original source material.

How does this tie back to the DLSS 5 copyright situation? Well, if companies that like to push around their copyright-holding powers, like TV conglomerates, start using more generative AI, we could end up in a situation where the original material suffers the same fate. Yes, the current situation is just a classic instance of YouTube's Content ID system defecating the proverbial bed rather than anything directly linked to video generation. Nevertheless, there's a degree of unfortunate irony here in that the company currently at the receiving end of the hiccup is at the forefront of tech that could spark weirder copyright strikes in the future.

I'm naturally hoping that if gen AI use becomes more of a norm, it won't exacerbate flawed systems like YouTube's Content ID in the future. I mean, if a TV station can spark a bunch of copyright strikes just by using some footage under fair use that doesn't even belong to them, I'd hate to see what might happen in more complex situations where people are generating content based on other work and assets.

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Former Call of Duty producer Jason Blundell has about as much intention to stay dead as the zombies he helped shape for developer Treyarch. It's only been a week since Sony suddenly closed his last studio, Dark Outlaw Games, and the FPS legend is already back with another one.

Blundell just announced Magic Fractal Studios alongside former Dark Outlaw dev and YouTuber JCbackfire, who says during a new stream, "I really am excited for the future." In addition to Sony closing Dark Outlaw last week and laying off 50 of its staff working on a fresh AAA IP, Blundell's first venture, PlayStation partner Deviation Games, flatlined in 2024.

"Third time's the charm," Blundell hopes. "And if not, it's the fourth time."

JCbackfire, who's been working with Blundell in some capacity since he was 19, affirms that, "We definitely are going to try our best to make a damn video game. Whatever it takes." Magic Fractal's official Twitter account and website are currently both empty, and neither Blundell nor JCbackfire wants to give any hints as to what might eventually fill them.

"I'm trying to be careful what I say a little bit," JCbackfire explains on stream, "but I just love that we were able to make that [Twitter] account."

I can't fault him for his excitement. Devs are right to celebrate their small wins, even if they take place on a website as unholy as X-formerly-Twitter. Everything else is in ruin – studios are collapsing, talented developers are getting laid off by the thousands, and none of us ever seems to have any money.

It's a difficult time to do anything, including convincing investors they need another expensive video game. But it only seems fair that Blundell's stubborn persistence and goodwill from fans over his Zombies work should bring the developer a win. Eventually.

PlayStation and Xbox's most-played games of 2025 were the same as 2024's in the US, data suggests, with newcomers unable to dethrone the likes of Fortnite, Roblox, and GTA 5.

Despite us being almost two weeks out from the Crimson Desert launch, players are still figuring out how massive the game is, with some having not even left the first region.

Crimson Desert is doing super well so far with the game selling three million copies in five days and fans raving about it online. But it also seems to be literally, overwhelmingly massive. Pre-release, many were wondering how the developers at Pearl Abyss would pull it off, considering the sheer amount of stuff that seems to be included in the title, on top of a huge world to roam around. But they were wrong – some of those who are really into it still haven't seen most of the game, from the looks of things.

Over on Reddit, one player says, "I'm 136 hours in the game so far and STILL haven't left Hernand," and despite their claim – which works out to an estimated 13 hours a day since launch, and thus, could maybe be a joke – demonstrating some wild dedication to the game, the first Crimson Desert area is certainly big enough to hang about in for a while. Elsewhere on the game's subreddit, players joke about the titular "Crimson Desert," since they've spent so much time in Hernand instead, with one post reading, "Hey look at this red desert. I wonder if they will add it into an expansion. I am loving Hernand!"

These memes have even reached the game's PR director Will Powers, who posted an edited piece of boxart that reads "Hernand," commenting, "Show of hands, who's still in the first region?"

While this shows an impressive amount of game content in Hernand, it also makes me more reluctant to play Crimson Desert, knowing there's no way I can finish it as someone who is easily distracted in open-world titles (I still haven't finished Shadow of the Erdtree).

At the very least, I definitely won't be finishing it before GTA 6, which I imagine will be similarly massive – and that's assuming Rockstar delays it even further.

Crimson Desert is "a cynical amalgamation of borrowed mechanics," says Baldur's Gate 3 publishing lead: "Expect a lot more of this in premium."

Intel's Arrow Lake refresh CPUs launched just four days ago, but their prices are already seeing increases as all sorts of tech pricing inflates. It's a particularly tumultuous time for gaming hardware. The AI-induced RAM shortages and SSD inflation are raging on, Sony has just introduced price hikes for the PS5, and now, it seems like the best CPUs for gaming are next on the docket.

One of the reasons I was so excited for Intel's new Core Ultra Plus desktop processors was for their value for money, but it seems that their dynamic pricing is already getting the better of them, less than a week into their shelf life. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus was pitched at $199 by Intel, but it's seeing a price tag of $219.99 at Newegg and $249 at Amazon.

The faster Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus has it even worse - its MSRP is $299, but it's already sitting at $349 at Newegg, and $357 at Amazon at the time of writing. Based on estimates and rumors I reported on last week, it seems CPU pricing from all brands, and at all ends of the price spectrum, could be about to see price increases, as we've seen already in 2026 with the global RAM shortages.

AI-caused inflation is hardly ideal when a product has just launched, but if you were planning on grabbing one of the new Arrow Lake Refresh processors, I'd do it sooner rather than later to avoid any further price hikes.

Admittedly, it's a terrible time to shop for any gaming hardware. Thanks to AI infrastructure and data center construction, manufacturing demands are through the roof, which means a smaller supply of products for consumers, and pricing increases for all sorts of technology. We've already seen the PS5 getting more expensive in recent days, we've heard from Microsoft that the cost of the Xbox Series consoles is increasing, and even in the PC space, Valve is withholding its new Steam Frame and Steam Machine hardware despite an initial billing for early 2026 launches.

To be fair, it's easy to read into the price increases of these new Intel chips and see the doom of all future PC hardware. Things might not be that bleak in reality, as dynamic pricing is a depressingly standard practice in the PC market.

Intel's new CPUs aren't yet inflated to the same extent that the best graphics cards are this soon after a launch, so we're not in dire straits yet. Either way, if you were about to upgrade your CPU or PC to a new LGA1851-compatible chip anytime soon, now is safer than waiting to see if things get worse.

You can't yet get your hands on the cheapest "KF" (without a performance multiplier and internal graphics) models of Intel's new Core Ultra Plus CPUs, but some are available for pre-order. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is available and is sitting at the "correct" MSRP of $199 at Newegg.

It's also worth mentioning that the older-gen Intel Core Ultra 7 270K from the initial batch of Arrow Lake processors is still $100 more expensive than the newer 270K Plus model - even with these price increases. I haven't managed to test out the Plus variant yet, but by all accounts of early reviews, it offers faster performance for less money, so it's still a pretty good deal.

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The legendary 3DFX Voodoo, an accelerator card that ushered in a new era of 3D PC gaming back in the '90s, is ready for an FPGA comeback. That's right, while Nvidia likes to remind us it created the first dedicated GPU in the GeForce 256, the component that I personally credit with setting the stage for the entire industry might make its way to new devices in the big 26, and it could make for the perfect escape from the chaos of modern-day graphics cards.

Created by developer Francisco Ayala Le Brun, the "SpinalVoodoo" 3DFX Voodoo FPGA core is already sitting pretty at GitHub. Designed to use the same Terasic De-10 board as the popular MiSTer retro console format, the implementation aims to provide the same unique graphics as a vintage gaming PC armed with the add-on board, which in turn could help devices similar to the Commodore 64 Ultimate or Analogue 3D replicate a specific '90s rig vibe.

Of course, while development is coming along nicely, if the FBI (Frame Buffer Interface) is anything to go by, it could be a while before we see a proper 3DFX Voodoo machine comeback. The GitHub page does show off simulations of a few games, including Quake, Screamer 2, and Valley of Ra, but we're going to need a more powerful FPGA board than the current MiSTer options to actually run the core.

The end game should hopefully be being able to run a bunch of classic PC romps, like the above shortlist or even the likes of Tomb Raider, with 3DFX Voodoo graphics. Again, the card was an additional accelerator that paired with a traditional VGA card, so the vibe is very different from that of a dedicated GPU or something using DirectX. There were even some arcade machines, like Gauntlet Dark Legacy and San Francisco Rush: The Rock, that utilized the graphics tech, so the new FPGA core doesn't just benefit retro PC players.

Again, the current hurdle is that even once the SpinalVoodoo FPGA core is complete, it'll need something more advanced than a current-gen MiSTer with an Intel Pentium CPU implementation, which could help it mimic an old-school PC build. This specific project also appears to focus on Voodoo 1 rather than the later Voodoo 2 and 3 models, so if you're aiming to replicate a specific build in the future, it's worth keeping that in mind.

Still, I am extremely hyped at even the idea of 3DFX Voodoo making a comeback, and this project absolutely sets the stage for new components you could slide into an old rig or even an all-in-one system. The timing is pretty spectacular, considering Nvidia, the company that swallowed the graphics brand back in the 2000s, is coming under fire by devs for trying to make adding generative AI overlays a thing with DLSS 5, and honestly? Ditching dedicated GPUs for old 3D add-in accelerators would make for an amusing protest.

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It seems the worst of the AI-induced chip shortages is not behind us. We've been seeing a limited supply of RAM and storage devices around the world in 2026, as well as massively inflated prices on both. Now, it seems that CPUs are the next chip to fall, with reports from PC building brands detailing a smaller supply than usual. If the best CPUs for gaming start to see the same kinds of inflation as memory and storage, consumers could be in for a really tricky time.

New reports come from Nekkei Asia by way of our friends at Tom's Hardware and PC Gamer, but no matter who you read it from, things don't look good for consumers. Granted, a lot of the claims so far are seemingly hitting server builders first, but just as RAM for gamers uses the same building blocks as RAM for data centers, server CPUs and gaming PC processors share the same types of raw parts.

One server manufacturer that remains nameless in the reports told Nikkei Asia that "Previously, the average lead time for a CPU was around one to two weeks, but now the wait time has prolonged to an average of eight to 12 weeks."

The knock-on effect seems to be hitting prebuilt gaming PC makers too, with one brand telling Nikkei Asia that "The CPU shortage is getting more serious day by day, no less than the memory chip situation.”

The signposts do seem to have been pointing to a potential CPU shortage for a while. Back in February, Intel and AMD warned Chinese customers about delays for server CPU shipments: "Inventory [is] at [its] lowest level in Q1, but we are addressing aggressively and expect supply improvement in Q2 through 2026," Intel told Reuters.

For reference, I've seen 32GB of DDR5 memory increase from circa $100 before RAM shortages happened to now costing upwards of $300 in places, and a vastly lessened supply of stock on the shelves. If shortages on CPUs hit in the same ways as memory and SSDs, we'll likely see bigger price hikes on "flagship" and higher-end processors first, so if you're planning an upgrade any time soon, I'd recommend buying sooner rather than later.

In brief, RAM and storage products have been impacted due to AI infrastructure. With so many data centers and new facilities being built all over the world by the biggest players in AI, all of the world's manufacturing power is going into supply contracts with them, leaving hardly anything behind for consumers. If CPUs are also hit with this, it could mean the cost of all sorts of gaming hardware starts to skyrocket. We've already seen a shortage of memory impact Valve's upcoming hardware plans. If processors are implicated too, the manufacturing of even more technology will see troublesome times.

This news may hit Intel the hardest as it's just launched a new range of refreshed Intel Core Ultra processors. Not only that, but its processors utilize more cores and threads than AMD's competition, meaning supply issues will hit its wares harder. That said, it may have been a wise decision from the brand (and potentially forward-thinking) to not launch a refreshed "Ultra 9" flagship. Intel outlined in a press briefing I attended recently that it wanted to focus on enthusiast products that had good performance per dollar, and that's why the most powerful CPU it's launching in this new range is the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus.

I now wonder if it's partly because the engineers and decision makers at Team Blue could see a potential supply chain issue on the horizon.

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I'm not remotely surprised that more Indie developers are pushing back against DLSS 5 and Nvidia's gen AI graphics card tools. However, New Blood, a publisher with a focus on retro-style games, is urging devs to push back on the tech while comparing the situation to the rise (and fall) of NFTs and crypto, all while providing player insights that I wholeheartedly agree with.

In a conversation with PC Gamer, New Blood's CEO Dave Oshry and David Szymanski, the developer behind Dusk, Gloomwood, and Iron Lung, delve into their concerns with DLSS 5. The full, unedited comments have since been shared via Bluesky, but I feel like kicking things off with "first of all, who asked for this?!" really sets the stage.

"This isn't even DLSS! Please tell me what generative AI has to do with Deep Learning Super Sampling," Oshry exclaims before suggesting that using phrase "Nvidia Generative Upscaling" would result in instant backlash. At the same time, the CEO says that even if the tech does use DLSS 5 branding, "we all have working eyes and can see exactly what we think it is."

Oshry admits the more effective way to tackle DLSS 5 besides calling Nvidia out is "voting with our wallets" and "stop collaborating with them as developers." The Indie boss believes this might prompt the GPU maker to "go back to giving us what we want," before rhyming off a wishlist of more power and GPUs that should be "getting cheaper with every innovation, not somehow more expensive while we get less value."

These are pretty common concerns in the GPU scene right now, and when it comes to graphics card pricing, external forces have affected costs in the past. The CEO isn't shy when it comes to drawing comparisons, stating developers and players need to push back "just like we did with NFTs and crypto games and try in vain to do with predatory microtransactions, loot boxes, and battle passes."

These are naturally strong comments, but Oshry undertsands the separation between DLSS 5 and previous iterations. While they get a quick jab in at historic failed technologies like Nvidia 3DVision and the shield, he also admits that while elements like RTX and Path Tracing are expensive, "I'll be damned if they don't make Cyberpunk 2077 look good." The "jury is still out" on Frame Generation, though.

One element PC players might not consider is how much it'll cost developers to actually even use DLSS 5. Oshry jokes about how it sounds like you'll inject your games with realistic graphics for free, when really "it'll cost something like $5,000." Even if it didn't require premium GPUs like the RTX 5090, though, the CEO sarcastically asks the question, "At this rate, why make game art at all? Why not just draw some shapes and colours and let AI generate what it thinks it should look like?"

Developer David Szymanski confirms that he agrees with the New Blood CEO while criticizing the idea of DLSS 5 being optional:

"Optional like realtime GI? Optional, like any number of "optional" features that anyone who has played an AA game in the past half decade can tell you aren't really optional, because games are now built to lean on those technologies." Explains Szymanski. The dev also points out that while embracing features like DLSS and raytracing is starting to pay off, "It's been at an immense cost to the clarity, accessibility, and playability of the games that use them for years."

Szymanski's concerns largely tie back to the idea of players getting features they don't really need when the industry is crying out for "games that run at a consistent framerate and sharp resolution, with consistent lighting and art design, on hardware that doesn't require us to remortage out house, using technology that doesn't necessitate turning the world into a Mad Max wasteland." I couldn't have put it better myself.

As amusing as the above plea and Szymanski's comments about how "nobody wants their games to look like Italian brainrot" sound, the core point rings tremendously true. I've had the displeasure of working within the GPU scene during a time where decent midrange performance is locked behind what we used to call premium, and access to good, playable native performance is being swapped out for AI features that are drifting further away from an ordinary gaming experience.

The current PC gaming tech trajectory is pretty unclear, but from where I'm standing as a hardware reviewer, we're charging towards a future where simply running games on a console or rig will be a thing of the past. Between Nvidia pushing for a generative AI future where a model dreams up graphics, and even the idea of streaming everything from the cloud lingering in the shadows, it's easy to see why publishers like New Blood are urging everyone to push back in an attempt to course-correct.

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I'm still recovering from the very concept of DLSS 5 and adding Nvidia gen AI weirdness to the best graphics cards, and I was originally convinced it was an RTX 6090 feature. That's not to say it'd get a pass if announced alongside next-gen GPUs, but now that enthusiast sites like Igor's Lab are sharing similar speculation, I'm more convinced the tech was pushed forward to the here and now.

The article in question covers whether DLSS 5 was originally an RTX 6090 feature, but I want to stress that it's a conversation rather than an official confirmation. Again, I would have aired the same criticisms at Nvidia if it held back its gen AI shenanigans until a next-generation GPU reveal, but highlighting some current facts that hint at the behind-the-scenes thought processes can help illustrate how we got here in the first place.

Igor's Lab pitches the idea that cards like the RTX 5080 are laying the ground for future GPU features, and suggests DLSS 5 is "less of a product launch and more of a placeholder with symbolic significance." This adds up, considering the initial demo was apparently running on two RTX 5090 cards, and while Blackwell GPUs can technically pull it off, the jump from multi-Frame Generation to heavier gen AI elements feels pretty huge.

That begs the question, why would Nvidia decide to push what could be described as a "tech demo" awkwardly onto the stage? The Igor's Lab post suggests that the company "clearly needed a new AI statement in the consumer segment" that ties the GeForce brand with its overarching narratives. I can certainly buy into that as someone who views the whole situation as a bubble, and since the green team is arguably at the core, it'll be continually trying to avoid a pop.

There's also a chance that RTX 60-series GPUs won't show up any time soon, thanks to AI-fuelled component shortages. I do find the idea of Nvidia's next-gen plans being held up by the very tech it's planning to use amusing, and the concept of stretching existing generations isn't shocking, given that whispers of an RTX 3060 comeback are making the rounds.

The takeaway here is that while Nvidia hasn't officially confirmed that DLSS 5 was an RTX 6090 feature, the theory really adds up. Any potential original plans aside, the GPU feature is coming this fall, and if the green team really is trying to maintain a gen AI narrative and gauge consumer interest before going all in with its future-gen Rubin architecture, now is the time to make your feelings known.

Personally, I'll be switching DLSS 5 off on any graphics card that ends up in my gaming PC. Even placing the gen AI nonsense aside, I almost feel like Nvidia is hoping players will beta test a feature that, in another timeline, wouldn't be a thing on RTX 50-series GPUs.

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Since its launch last week, Crimson Desert has thrown up this message when PC gamers with an Intel Arc graphics card try to launch the game: "The graphics device is currently not supported". With that, the game hasn't been able to start, and it's caused outcry among gamers who aren't able to play one of the year's most anticipated games on their perfectly capable gaming PC.

Pearl Abyss didn't exactly seem like it was eager to support Intel Arc systems either, with one online FAQ on the studio's website asking if the game would be playable with this type of GPU said, "No, Crimson Desert currently does not support Intel Arc graphics cards," before directing players towards refund policies.

Seems pretty cut and dry, no? Pearl Abyss, for whatever reason, wasn't going to support one of the three biggest GPU manufacturers in its game. Thankfully, that seems to be changing, as the studio walked back on this on the game's Twitter (X) account:

It's a bit of an odd situation, especially when you take a statement Intel has provided about trying to work with Pearl Abyss until now:

"Getting games running smoothly is always a partnership between developers and hardware makers. Over the past several years, we’ve reached out to Pearl Abyss many times to help test, validate, and optimize support for Intel graphics, providing early hardware, drivers, and engineering resources across multiple generations," Intel told the press.

"We remain ready to assist Pearl Abyss however we can. For details on the choice not to enable Intel support at launch, please reach out directly to Pearl Abyss."

I'm sure there's a lot about the relationship between Intel and Pearl Abyss that we don't know about, but it's hard not to see from those statements that Pearl Abyss clearly misjudged how a lack of support for Intel components would harm its game.

It's not exactly the perfect, gold-standard evidence of what graphics cards are being used, but in the latest Steam Hardware Survey results taken from February 2026, 4.48% of users were reported to have Intel GPUs in their systems. Granted, that's nothing compared to Nvidia's 84.68% and AMD's 10.61%, but roughly 5% of Steam users is still a substantial amount of gamers to not support.

If there was planned support for Intel systems set for after launch, why wouldn't the FAQs explain that, instead of the pretty clear "no" that was posted until recently? Now, the answer to that question on Pearl Abyss's website has changed, reading similarly to the tweet that was published:

"We are currently working on compatibility and optimization support so that Crimson Desert can also be enjoyed on Intel Arc GPU systems. We are preparing to provide a smooth and stable gameplay experience, and we ask for your patience until the support update becomes available.

"We apologize for any confusion our previous FAQ wording regarding playability on Intel Arc GPUs may have caused. Please regard this as our latest official news on the subject."

Like I say, there's a lot that's unclear about why Intel Arc GPUs haven't seen support from the studio yet, but since the game's review scores weren't as high as expected and caused a drop in the studio's share price, the U-turn could be seen as an attempt to recoup good faith with gamers and investors.

As you'll imagine, the public outcry from Intel Arc users has been easily heard, and it's something I can relate to. My first gaming PC used an Acer Intel Arc A770, and although support has gotten a lot better since the early days of that card, it's still massively frustrating to see a "big" game just isn't supporting your budget-friendly components for seemingly no reason.

Hopefully, the support for Crimson Desert arrives sooner rather than later, but I imagine a fair few Arc users have already refunded the game thanks to that initial FAQs response.

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In the last few years, it really seems like increased competition in the CPU market has caught up to Intel. Not only has Team Blue been suffering from Raptor Lake PR issues, a lacklustre launch of the Intel Core Ultra line, but AMD has been firing on all cylinders and gaining a lot of momentum that has seen them take strides in the CPU for gaming market - at least as far as Steam Hardware Survey results and public opinion are concerned.

Intel now seems to be revitalised and refreshed to meet AMD's challenges though - and I'm not just talking about the brand's recent announcement of its refreshed Core Ultra Plus processors. In a recent interview with Club386, Intel's VP and GM of its enthusiast channel, Robert Hallock, said the thing I've personally been waiting to hear for years.

When asked if Intel might support its motherboard sockets for longer, and if he saw that as a possibility, he said: "I do. That’s it – I do".

"One thing I really would like users to understand," he added, "is that I, my team, we are ourselves, first and foremost, PC builders and enthusiasts. Every single one of us has built their own PC, games on that PC. That was not always the case at Intel.”

This could be huge; for Intel, for gamers and PC builders, and the implications could be huge for AMD and the CPU market at large. One of the biggest reasons, in my opinion, that AMD has been sweeping up some of Intel's market share in recent years is that it's much better at offering people a long-term investment.

AMD will release a new CPU socket and continue to support it with new generations of processors for years and years at a time. Conversely, a CPU generation for Intel has typically only lasted one or two waves of new releases.

If you're not up on your building processes for the best gaming PCs, let me put that in context. A new CPU socket means a new motherboard, which also means a new CPU. If Intel isn't giving you new CPUs for the socket you've already invested in, that means even more money spent to upgrade your rig - and with a new motherboard, that essentially means building a new one, not upgrading your current one. That's not ideal when one of the big draws of PC gaming is that you're supposed to have fewer console generation-style new platform purchases.

It's very much felt like Intel has been letting the business side of things and the need for increasing revenue take priority over offering people futureproofing and value for money. Not to mention that until recent years, AMD hasn't been that big of a competitor to Intel in the CPU market.

Last year, I reported that AMD represented over 40% of CPUs in the Steam Hardware Survey - and that was a big deal at the time. In reality, that being a big milestone for AMD shows just how much of a lead Team Blue has enjoyed, and with no serious competition until now, it's been able to control when people buy a new motherboard and CPU.

Meanwhile, AMD has supported its 2016 socket until very, very recently, and its 2022 socket is still being supported, outliving the Raptor Lake platform it was originally squared up against.

It seems like Intel is realizing this particular strategy is now working against them, as Hallock said: "There is a new product management team; there is a new business team; there is a new marketing team; there is a new engineering team for these gaming CPUs.

"And we are not ignorant of the feedback that comes in about our products. We watch it very closely… some of that feedback we can act on in a six-month time span, a year-long time span, a three-year time span. But we are listening, and that feedback matters quite a lot. It absolutely influences how we think about our products and our roadmap.”

Things certainly seem to be looking up already. I've certainly felt a difference in the way Intel is communicating with us gamers. In all of its recent announcements, things felt very tilted toward gamers, and I haven't heard any mention of AI at all, which is super refreshing. But even so, with the underwhelming launch of the LGA 1851 products, I didn't necessarily expect to see the Arrow Lake refresh actually happen. Especially because rumors have already been swirling around what Intel is moving on to thereafter, the LGA 1954 socket.

There have been a few whispers, as referenced by Club386, that the upcoming Nova Lake, Razer Lake, Titan, and Hammer Lake launches from Intel will all launch on that platform - which could be a massive way to show PC builders that Intel understands the need for longevity. Admittedly, that would be a huge departure from Intel's strategy, and it may dissuade people from investing in the LGA1854 platform for now.

Then again, it would match up with what Hallock is saying. I'd personally love to see Intel giving AMD a long-term battle instead of constantly shifting the playing field, but only time will tell.

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