Category Archives: Hardware

best pc components

What are the best pc components in 2023?

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When money is not a barrier, an extreme PC configuration is the best way to enjoy gaming. A rig like this can run games like Elden Ring at 4K without flinching. There’s almost nothing that stands in the way of the best gaming CPU and best graphics card combined in one rig. You’ll be future-proofed and equipped to play any game available today, and you should be prepared for the games of the future, too. How much is this gigantic computer going to cost? Well, about $4,000. Prudent PC gamers looking for a cheaper model, designed around value for money, can check out our standard PC build guide . On the other hand, for those who do not care about money, this is the configuration they need. If you’re looking for ways to save, though, a smaller SSD or slightly slower RAM can cut the cost by a few hundred dollars.

best pc components

The final price also doesn’t include any accessories or peripherals, so if you’re going to be gaming in 4K, you should buy a quality gaming monitor that takes full advantage of your GPU. Don’t let your high-powered components get bogged down with a very outdated gaming monitor. We’ve tested an inordinate number of components over the years, and we’ve rounded up the best of them here. This is a true monster of a gaming PC where cost matters little to nothing. It really is the PC of our dreams.

The best components to assemble an extreme PC gamer in 2023:

Processor: Intel Core i9 12900K

  • Cores: 8+8
  • Threads: 24
  • Base frequency: 3.2GHz P-core, 2.4GHz E-core
  • Maximum frequency: 5.2 GHz P-core, 3.9 GHz E-core
  • Overclocking: Yes
  • L3 cache (smart): 30MB
  • L2 Cache: 14MB MTP: 241W
  • PCIe 5.0 lanes: 16

The Core i9 12900K offers the best of Intel’s 12th generation desktop processors, and is the fastest processor currently available. Its hybrid Core architecture, characterized by Intel’s addition of Performance Cores (P-Cores) and Efficient Cores (E-Cores), gives it a huge advantage, with P-Cores being the most influential in gaming.

It ranks third on our best gaming processors list only because it’s a bit overkill, and because of that it can get quite expensive, making it the perfect recommendation for an advanced setup like this. You’ll need a decent motherboard, good cooling, and a powerful power supply to get the most out of it, but that’s what this build is all about. All in all, if you’re building a high-end PC not just for 4K gaming, but for more serious activities like 3D rendering and video editing, this is the processor you need.

Motherboard: Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Pro

  • Chipset: Z690
  • Memory: 4x DIMMs, 128GB, DDR5-6200 (OC)
  • Expansion Slots: 4x M.2 PCIe, 2x PCIe 3.0 x4, 1x PCIe 5.0 x16, 6x SATA 6GB/s
  • Video ports: 1x DisplayPort 1.4
  • USB ports: 20x
  • Storage: 4x M.2; 6x SATA
  • Network: Intel Wi-Fi 6; Intel i225V 2.5G LAN
  • Illumination: 2x aRGB (3-pin), 2x RGB (4-pin)

With support for DDR5, and space for up to four NVMe SSDs, the Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Pro motherboard is perfect for extreme building. It leaves hardly anything to be desired, with 13 rear USB ports and a powerful VRM to deliver clean, consistent power to your components.

And by limiting it to Wi-Fi 6 and Intel 2.5G wired network connections, as well as avoiding unnecessary frills like Thunderbolt 4 or another M.2 slot, Gigabyte has managed to keep the price at least relatively sensible. Overall, it’s a great performer, offering system and gaming performance easily on par with much more expensive boards we’ve also tested.

CPU cooler: NZXT Kraken X63

  • Size: 280mm
  • Fan speed: 1,800rpm
  • Airflow: 98.17 CFM
  • Noise level: 21dB(A)
  • Dimensions: 143 x 315 x 30mm
  • Socket support: LGA1700, LGA115x, LGA2011, LGA2066, AM2, AM3, AM4

This rig has a killer CPU, and yes, it does need some overclocking. Liquid cooling is highly recommended when it comes to getting the most out of Intel’s unlocked enthusiast processors, and 12th-gen Core i9 processors require it. The NZXT Kraken X63 is an impressive piece of equipment and works with all major platforms. It’s reasonably easy to install and features a large 280mm radiator with a pair of 140mm fans. Once everything is installed, having a small water block on your CPU instead of a huge air sink makes things look much cleaner. Naturally, you will need a large box capable of housing the radiator, but more on that later.

But even with the X63, you can run into thermal limitations. If you’re serious about pushing the i9 12900K to its limits, you’ll need to consider using a fully custom liquid cooling loop. That’s beyond the scope of this buying guide, but you should know that even a good AIO cooler probably won’t allow the i9 12900K to fully overclock.

Graphics card: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti

  • GPU cores: 10,240
  • Maximum frequency: 1,665 MHz
  • Memory: 12GB GDDR6X
  • Memory speed: 19Gbps
  • Memory Bandwidth: 912GB/s

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti offers essentially the same gaming performance as the RTX 3090 but costs $300 less. Even here, with our extreme build, we can’t help but focus on value for money, and with the release of the 3080 Ti, Nvidia has basically retired the RTX 3090 when it comes to gaming. The RTX 3080 Ti is still a $1,200 graphics card, and that’s if you buy the Founder’s Edition and not a more expensive third-party product. It is not a cheap option.

The only reason you might want to keep looking at an RTX 3090 is if you want to pair your graphics cards, as at least for Nvidia Ampere, the RTX 3090 is your only option for dual-GPU combo. Even with it installed, you still have to worry about whether the games you play will use both GPUs. By the way, most don’t, and compatibility gets lower and lower as time goes by. Another alternative is the RTX 3090 Ti, which costs even more and makes even less sense for regular gaming, though if you’re into more professional workloads, you might be able to justify buying it.

RAM: G.Skill Trident Z5 DDR5-6000

  • Capacity: 32GB (2x 16GB)
  • Speed: 6000MHz
  • Times: 36-36-36-96
  • Voltage: 1.35V

You could put more memory in this build (up to 64GB), but two 16GB DDR5-6000 RAM modules are more than enough for gaming. There are plenty of memory options, and speed is more a matter of bragging rights than actual performance, however we love the look of G.Skill’s Trident Z5 RGB memory.

It is true that DDR5 is tremendously fast compared to the standard of yesteryear, but more importantly, its designs do not forgo beautiful lighting. In addition to G.Skill, we recommend Corsair, Kingston, HyperX, Crucial, Adata, and Team as safe options. RAM has reached a point where most modules work just fine, so it’s often a matter of price and color, if that’s your thing rather than minuscule performance differences.

GeForce RTX 4090

GeForce RTX 4090 review 2023

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We have been decided to assemble the list of the our top predictions for Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 review in 2023, using both rumors’ and our own expert judgement to make an educated guess of the company’s upcoming plans. So, if you’re a big Nvidia fan, and want to know what the company will potentially be up to in the next 12 months, keep reading on RTX 4090. 

GeForce RTX 4090

More RTX 4090 graphics card

Nvidia may have entered a new generation of graphics cards recently, but it’s only launched two products in the new RTX 4090 range so far. That is guaranteed to change in 2023, as we’re expecting a landslide of new Nvidia graphics cards to hit the market. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is widely expected to be the next graphics card to join the line-up, with Nvidia deciding to make a U-turn on its plans to launch two different flavours of the RTX 4080. 

We’re also expecting a mid-range RTX 4060 or RTX 4060 Ti card to arrive in 2023 at the very least, with the likes of the RTX 4050 and RTX 4070 also potential options. This will be an exciting development, and it would finally make the RTX 4000 series affordable for the average PC gamer as they’ll benefit from excellent performance, as well as improved features such as DLSS 3.0 and more efficient ray tracing. 

New RTX 4090 GPUs for laptops

Now the RTX 4090 range of graphics cards have launched, it’s likely time for Nvidia to release its laptop-friendly GPUs that share the same name. Nvidia usually unveils its latest laptop GPUs during CES, so we’re expecting an announcement in January during CES 2023. There, we predict Nvidia will reveal a slew of GPU chips for gaming laptops, potentially including the RTX 4060, RTX 4070 and RTX 4080. 

It’s important to point out that these chips won’t be as powerful as their desktop counterparts, since they use a lower wattage in order to function on a portable laptop, but they’ll still bring a performance bump compared to laptops from 2022 while also making use of new features such as DLSS 3.0 for supported games. The RTX 4000 GPUs would help take gaming laptop performance to new heights, so we’re really hoping that Nvidia does indeed launch the chips in 2023 rather than pushing them back into the following year instead. 

Upgraded GeForce Now servers

Nvidia’s GeForce Now is an excellent subscription service that enables you to leverage the power of the cloud so you can play modern game PCs on any compatible device, regardless of their own specs. Right now, the most powerful (and expensive) tier lets you benefit from the power of an RTX 4090 graphics card, but that feels a tad outdated now Nvidia has launched its more powerful RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 graphics cards. 

We expect Nvidia to update its GeForce 4090 Now servers in 2023, so subscribers can benefit from the added power of the latest generation of graphics cards. This should mean modern games will be able to run ray tracing in 4K while still achieving an incredibly smooth performance. Whether the RTX 4080 server will replace the existing RTX 3080 tier, or be added as an even more expensive option remains to be seen. But with GeForce Now seemingly growing in popularity, it makes a lot of sense for Nvidia to improve the experience even further next year. 

Wild card: A new chip for the Nintendo Switch 2?

Most people will agree that the Nintendo Switch is struggling to keep up with modern games due to its outdated processor, and Nintendo has been forced to use the cloud in order to support many third-party titles. As a result, it’s becoming increasingly likely that a new Switch 2 or Switch Pro release is imminent. What does this have to do with Nvidia? The Switch is actually powered by Nvidia’s Terga X1, and so it is likely that Nintendo will renew its partnership with Nvidia when it comes to producing the Switch’s successor. 

Nvidia has made huge strides in the graphics market since the original Nintendo Switch console, especially when it comes to AI performance. Features such as DLSS uses AI to boost the performance of games, while seeing minimal compromise to the graphics quality. Such a feature would be incredibly useful for a Nintendo console, allowing developers to create complex games without worrying about performance issues. I have only included this as a wild card option, as there’s no guarantee that Nintendo will launch a Switch successor in 2023 but by this time next year, the original Switch will be six years old and close to equaling the gap between the PS4 and PS5. If the Switch successor doesn’t launch in 2023, we at least expect (or rather hope) that Nintendo will announce the eagerly anticipated console. 

HP Elite Dragonfly G3

HP Elite Dragonfly G3 Review, features 2023

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HP has announced several new products at CES 2022. The highlight is the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 premium business laptop, an upgrade over its predecessor Elite Dragonfly G2, and this time there’s also a version of the HP Elite Dragonfly Chrome book running Chrome OS. HP Elite Dragonfly G3 is still a 13.5″ notebook, thin design, weighing 0.99 kg, this time upgraded to use Intel 12th Gen CPUs according to the cycle, adjusting to use a 3: 2 screen ratio (1920×1280) to have more vertical display area. , Bang & Olufsen sound system and microphone to reduce noise, add a natural silver color from the original Slate Blue color, the operating system is Windows 11 already. Notebook for work on the go. I think the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 is a great system for productivity use cases like running the business, collaboration, At CES 2022, HP today announced the Elite Dragonfly G3 business laptop powered by Windows 11. The main highlight of the Elite Dragonfly G3 is its weight. This new laptop weighs less than 1 kg and will be available in Slate Blue or Natural Silver colors. For improved concert, the Dragonfly G3 is driven by 12th Gen Intel processors. The 13.5-inch screen with a taller 3:2 aspect ratio screen has improved the viewing experience. This laptop also comes with HP Presence for an enhanced collaboration experience.

HP Elite Dragonfly G3

With HP Presence, people can now enhance their on-screen image to customize how they appear in meetings with the Appearance Filter, while the my HP app provides a single dashboard to control and customize their PC experience like applying video settings across their conferencing apps with one click For an enhanced audio experience, this laptop features Bang & Olufsen Audio and four discrete amplifiers working together to create immersive sound, HP Dynamic Voice Leveling automatically optimizes voice clarity, and AI-based noise reduction 2.0 improves audio so people can be heard even while wearing. a mask. HP Elite Dragonfly Chromebook Described as the best business Chromebook, Intel v Pro support on Chrome OS, up to 32GB of RAM, first Chromebook with haptic trackpad, 360-degree (x360) flip-out touchscreen, buy pen Magnets can be added as accessories, weight starting at 1.28 kg. It’s scheduled to go on sale in April 2022. Pricing hasn’t yet been announced. There’s also a Chromebook Enterprise version that’s specifically targeting the enterprise market.

HP ELITE DRAGONFLY G3: PRICE & AVAILABILITY

The HP Elite Dragonfly G3 is available to buy now, and the widgets embedded in this page should give you some idea of the pricing you can expect. At the time of writing, the model we reviewed is available for around £1,800 in the UK from places such as Box(opens in new tab) and Laptop Outlet(opens in new tab), while you’ll pay around $2,000 for it in the US.

HP ELITE DRAGONFLY G3 REVIEW: DESIGN & DISPLAY

What you need to know first of all near the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 is that it’s compact and lightweight. With a screen size of just 13.5-inches angle to corner, the laptop portions just 297 x 220 x 16mm, and weighs a kilo exactly. Slide this into a backpack and you’re not really going to notice it’s there, whether in terms of its size or its weight, and it has the perfect dimensions for working on the train or in other cramped spots. In terms of appealing, there’s a lot of understated style on show, from the silver HP logo on the laptop lid to the delicate backlighting on the keyboard. It looks every bit the premium device, and it feels like one too: the matte finish on the aluminium chassis definitely helps that. Despite it not weighing very much, it’s a laptop that feels the opposite of cheap thanks to its considered finish.

HP has managed to find room for two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports with DisplayPort 1.4 support, one HDMI 2.0 port, and one USB-A port, as well as a 3.5mm audio jack for your wired headphones. For a laptop this thin and light, that’s quite an impressive showing, and gives you sufficiently of options when it comes to relating up a second screen or any other peripherals. There’s support for the latest Wi-Fi 6E standard, as well as a webcam above the monitor that can go up to a resolution of 2560 x 1920 pixels (i.e. greater than Full HD). The 13.5-inch screen is available in a variety of configurations: the one on our review model offered a resolution of 1920 x 1280 pixels and 400 nits of maximum brightness, and we originate it crisp and vivacious in use. From writing essays to watching movies, it’s a superb screen. You can get the panel with a touchscreen option if you desire, and with a resolution of up to 3000 x 2000, which is a lot of pixels for a display this size. We do like the 3:2 aspect ratio, which is great for viewing more of a document or a webpage at once.

HP ELITE DRAGONFLY G3 REVIEW: PERFORMANCE & FEATURES

As with the monitor, the internal specs of the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 vary depending on the model. Our review unit came with a 12th Gen Intel Core i7-1255U processor, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD it’s the ‘4J039AV’ model, if you’re associating listings online. Those specs are comfortably enough for day-to-day computing, and we had no problems functioning with multiple browser tabs, spreadsheets and images. With the integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics, what you’re not going to be doing here is running the latest and most demanding games, or doing any seriously intensive video editing. However, some lightweight gaming is possible, and the laptop has enough power inside it to serve you well for several years. Microsoft is consistently pushing out new improvements and upgrades for Windows 11 too, so the software on board the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 should continue to get better over time.

We ran the PC Mark 10 benchmark on the laptop and it came through with a respectable score of 4,416: that’s broadly comparable with other 13-inch business laptops on the market (not the best, not the worst), giving you an idea of where this model stands in terms of its performance. The PC Mark 10 tests include simulated office work, video calling, web browsing and so on, so we’re talking about the tasks you’re likely to be doing in the office. It’s also worth noting that the fans on the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 don’t often kick in, keeping noise levels nice and low, but we should also point out that the underside of the chassis does tend to get rather warm (perhaps due to the lack of fan action). This is a laptop that you’re going to want to keep on a desk as much as possible, rather than on your lap. It’s not a major issue, but something else to consider. If you’re buying this laptop then you’re most likely to be using it for office tasks, and we had absolutely no problems here. The keyboard and the trackpad have a classy, premium feel, and with every tap and click you can tell that you’re dealing with a high-end laptop. 

The sound system has been engineered in partnership with Bang & Olufsen, and given the lightweight nature of the laptop, it sounds decent: certainly nowhere near as good as separate speakers, but acceptable for movies and audiobooks and podcasts even music at a push, despite limited bass response. There’s also a dedicated HP audio mixing app, plus a pile of other preinstalled HP software (that we largely didn’t have much use for). In our one-hour video streaming test, the battery level dropped by 16 per cent, suggesting around 7 hours between charges overall. However, that was with the screen display set to maximum brightness (and a low volume), so if you dim it a little you’ll get more than that. Provided you’re not running the screen as bright as it can go and are dealing with relatively lightweight computing tasks, you’ll be able to get through a full working day away from a power socket.

Intel Arc A770

Intel Arc A770 16GB Limited Edition

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There has been a duopoly in consumer graphics card for far too long. AMD and Nvidia have had the market all to themselves. Belongings are getting more powerful, but also more expensive. Enter player three, Intel, with its first lineup of enthusiastic GPUs in two periods. The flagship release is this, the Intel Arc A770 Limited Edition.

Intel Arc A770

There will be third-party versions of the Intel Arc GPUs, but this one is the first out of the gates from the constructer itself. The “Limited Edition” comes with one key spec difference to what we expect Intel’s partner cards will have. This one has a whopping 16GB of VRAM and only costs $349. That in itself is astonishing. Intel claims that this first attempt and its sister release, the A750, are in the ballpark of Nvidia’s RTX 3060. A mid-range but still very capable GPU. That caring of performance and being able to undercut on price makes for a tantalizing headline, but how does it actually emerge in practice? Is the Arc A770 any good? And importantly, is it good enough to compete with the big dogs in the yard?

About this review

This review was conducted using a pre-release sample of the Intel Arc A770 Limited Edition as provided by Intel. All performance data gathered is our own and nobody at Intel has seen or had any input into the contents of this review.

Intel Arc A770 pricing and availability

The Intel Arc A770 Limited Edition is set to become available from Intel on October 12 at a retail price of $349. The recommended price for cards with 8GB of VRAM compared to the 16GB available in the Limited Edition is $329. Intel isn’t commenting on the availability of third-party versions of the A770, but we’ve already seen one confirmed product from Acer’s Predator Gaming brand. This one doesn’t have pricing or availability at this time.

Intel Arc A770 specs and hardware

The specs for the Intel Arc A770 Limited edition are shown in the image above, which also compares to the sister card, the A750 (review coming soon). The only difference between this and other versions of the A770 is that it has 16GB of VRAM. Third parties are expected to mostly go with 8GB. All other specs remain the same. We took a look at the hardware previously in our first unboxing, and it’s a little surprising just how nice the A770 is. As a piece of hardware design, it’s exquisite. The entire design is screw less, save for the ones required to actually fix the I/O plate to the card. It’s subtle and stylish, and on the A770 you have a splash of RGB to remind you that you’re a gamer.

On that front Intel absolutely nailed it with the A770 and indeed with the A750. This is probably the best-looking graphics card we’ve seen in a while. The RGB is controlled through a dedicated app on the PC, but only if you connect the little cable in the box to a USB header on your motherboard. It’s probably my only gripe with the exterior. The cable is just about long enough to feed through tidily, but it’s another cable dangling off the front of the card. Picky, perhaps, but it’s something else to try and make look presentable. It could have been better on the end, maybe. The A770 has four display outputs which include both DisplayPort and the latest HDMI 2.1. It also comes with a companion app, Intel Arc Control, to manage drivers, system monitoring, and performance tuning.

Test bench specs

As tempting as it is to pair the A770 with the most expensive, fastest CPU around, the absolute fastest memory and such, that sort of defeats what kind of build this graphics card is targeted at. There will be a time when we’ll do that, when the 13th Gen Core i9-13900K is here we’ll put together an “Intel super build” to see what happens there. But the A770 will appeal most to those on a more modest budget, so for testing, I’ve slotted it into my modest gaming PC build as below.

  • Intel Core i5-11600K
  • 32GB GSkill Trident DDR4-3200
  • Intel Arc A770 16GB
  • Crucial P5 Plus PCIe 4.0 SSD

All games tested were loaded from a Crucial MX500 SATA SSD. What this test system does mean is that for now we’re mostly focused on gaming. Because I don’t have a 12th Gen Intel CPU handy, tools like Deep Link and Hyper Encode are off limits, for now. For those, you either need a 12th Gen or 13th Gen Intel CPU with integrated graphics. We’ll update the review according after the 13th Gen drops with more details on these features.

It’s also worth noting that you need to enable Resizeable Bar on your motherboard. Intel as good as says the A770 will be garbage without it, so before beginning dive into your UEFI/BIOS. Most modern motherboards should have it, if not you might need to install an update. But Intel’s companion software will warn you if you don’t have it enabled, so take that as read that it needs to be on.

Intel Arc A770 gaming performance

When it comes to gaming there’s more than just the GPU to talk about. Intel also has its own upscaling tech now, known as XeSS. In simple terms, you can think of it like Nvidia DLSS or AMD’s FSR. It renders frames at a lower resolution, passes them through its engine, and upscales them back to whatever resolution you’re playing at. It’s not quite the same as playing at native resolution, but the idea is that it’s close enough in detail while giving your frames per second a nice little boost.

XeSS isn’t exclusive to Intel Arc, either, and for comparison’s sake, I tested it where possible on my Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080. The Arc A770 is positioned around the RTX 3060, but alas, my unit has display output issues. But the RTX 2080 is similar in gaming performance in my experience, though not an apples-to-apples comparison. XeSS doesn’t quite have the coverage of DLSS or FSR, but it’s rolling out in a few games already. Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Death Stranding: Directors Cut have recently been updated, and Intel provided access to early builds of Ghostwire Tokyo and Hitman 3 that will be joining the party soon.

Synthetic benchmarks

Using the 3DMark suite of graphics benchmarks, the table below shows relative performance compared to the 2080 in Fire Strike, Time Spy, and the DirectX Ray Tracing benchmarks. In all of these higher is better.

BenchmarkIntel Arc A770 16GBNvidia RTX 2080
Fire Strike Ultra7,1066,351
Time Spy (DX12)13,41210,810
Time Spy Extreme (DX12)6,3345,032
DirectX Ray Tracing31.5 FPS20.75 FPS

In all of these benchmarks, the new A770 handily outdoes one of Nvidia’s older, but still potent GPUs. But it’s less clear-cut when you get into gaming.

Highlights:

  • Powered by Intel’s latest Xe HPG Architecture the ARC A770 Graphics Card is equipped with 32 Xe cores, 512 Xe Vector Engines and 16GB GDRR6 memory.
  • The Intel 16GB graphics card has a clock speed of 2100MHz and is overclockable. It is designed to work across 256-bit memory interface.
  • The Arc A700-series performance beats the 3060 in most modern titles using DirectX 12 or Vulkan APIs.
  • The Intel based GPU supports 4 simultaneous displays at 8K UHD (7680×4320) resolution giving you the ultimate visual experience at your games or at your workspace.
  • Intel ARC A770 is a PCIe 4.0 ready graphics comes with RTX (ray tracing) technology to give you the most realistic visual treat.