π§ Step 1: Decide What You Will Use the PC For
Before spending a single penny, decide your priority:
| PC Use | What You Need Most |
|---|---|
| Browsing & school work | RAM + SSD (speed > power) |
| Gaming | GPU is king |
| Content creation | CPU cores + RAM + large SSD |
| 3D modeling / AI / engineering | CPU + GPU + high RAM |
| Office work | Any modern CPU + SSD |
Once you understand your use case, the budget decision becomes easier.
π· PC Buying Guide by Price Range (2025)
β Under Β£300 / $300 β Best Budget PC (Basic Use)
Ideal For:
-
Students
-
Internet browsing
-
Word processing
-
Streaming
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 / Intel Core i3 or newer
-
RAM: 8GB (minimum)
-
Storage: 256GB SSD
At this price, the priority is responsiveness.
π An SSD is essential. Avoid HDD-only systems β they feel painfully slow.
Good PC choices in this range:
-
HP Slim Desktop (Ryzen 3 + SSD)
-
Refurbished Dell OptiPlex (i5 + SSD upgrade)
π₯ Tip: Buying refurbished in this price range gets you much higher specs for the money.
β Β£300βΒ£500 / $300β$500 β Best Entry-Level PC (Everyday + Light Productivity)
Ideal For:
-
Home office users
-
Students who multitask
-
Light photo editing
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: Ryzen 5 / Intel i5 (10th gen or newer)
-
RAM: 16GB
-
Storage: 512GB SSD
At this budget, avoid Intel Celeron / Pentium; they struggle with multitasking.
Example PCs:
-
Lenovo IdeaCentre mini PC (great value)
-
DIY custom PC with Ryzen 5 5600G (built-in graphics capable of light gaming)
π‘ Why the Ryzen G-series?
They include integrated graphics powerful enough for light gaming.
β Β£500βΒ£800 / $500β$800 β Best Gaming Starter PC
Ideal For:
-
1080p gaming
-
Light content creation
-
Moderate multitasking
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: Ryzen 5 5600 / Intel i5 12400F
-
GPU: NVIDIA GTX 1650 / RTX 3050 / AMD RX 6600
-
RAM: 16GB
-
Storage: 512GBβ1TB SSD
This is where PCs start to feel powerful and capable.
You can now run games like:
-
Fortnite
-
GTA V
-
Valorant
-
Call of Duty (1080p, medium settings)
π₯ Best Value Build (Popular in 2025):
Ryzen 5 5600 + RX 6600
β Β£800βΒ£1200 / $800β$1200 β Performance / Mid-Range PC (Gaming + Content Creation)
Ideal For:
-
High FPS gaming (1080p/1440p)
-
Streaming
-
Light video editing
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: Ryzen 7 5700X3D or Intel i5 13600K
-
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4060 Ti / AMD RX 7700 XT
-
RAM: 16GBβ32GB
-
Storage: 1TB NVMe SSD
These PCs are strong enough for fast multitasking and content creation (like Premiere Pro or Photoshop), while also providing great gaming performance.
β‘ As of 2025, the best gaming value CPU is the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D because of its 3D V-Cache technology.
β Β£1200βΒ£2000 / $1200β$2000 β High-End PC (4K Gaming + Professional Workstation)
Ideal For:
-
Video editing (4K workflows)
-
VR gaming
-
Game streaming + recording
-
Heavy multitasking
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: Ryzen 7 7800X3D / Intel i7 14700K
-
GPU: RTX 4070 Ti SUPER / RX 7900 XT
-
RAM: 32GB DDR5
-
Storage: 1TBβ2TB NVMe SSD PCIe 4.0
π― This is the sweet spot for high performance, without overspending.
β Β£2000+ / $2000+ β Ultra High-End / Creator / AI Workstation
Ideal For:
-
3D modeling (Blender, Unreal Engine)
-
AI training (LLMs)
-
Machine learning research
-
4K/8K video editing
Recommended Specs:
-
CPU: Ryzen 9 9950X / Intel i9 14900K
-
GPU: RTX 4090 / RTX 5090 (when available)
-
RAM: 64GB DDR5 (or more)
-
Storage: 2TB+ NVMe PCIe 5.0
π If your workload earns money, invest here β time is more valuable than hardware.
π§ PC Buying Mistakes to Avoid
| β Mistake | β What to Do Instead |
|---|---|
| Buying HDD-only PCs | Get SSD or NVMe β night and day difference |
| Prioritizing RGB lights | Put money into CPU & GPU first |
| Buying older than 10th gen Intel | Performance drops sharply |
| Getting 8GB RAM for gaming | Minimum 16GB in 2025 |
π Rule of thumb: performance > looks.
π§ Prebuilt vs Custom PC β Which Should You Choose?
| Feature | Prebuilt PC | Custom PC |
|---|---|---|
| Ease | β Ready to use | β Takes effort |
| Price | β More expensive | β Best performance per Β£/$ |
| Upgrades | β Often easy | β Fully customizable |
| Best For | Beginners | Enthusiasts, gamers, creators |
π‘ If budget matters: build your own.
If convenience matters: buy prebuilt.
β Final Recommendation (TL;DR)
| Budget | Best PC Choice |
|---|---|
| Β£300 / $300 | Refurbished i5 + SSD |
| Β£500 / $500 | Ryzen 5 + 16GB RAM |
| Β£800 / $800 | RX 6600 gaming build |
| Β£1200 / $1200 | 4060 Ti / Ryzen 7 gaming & editing |
| Β£2000+ / $2000+ | RTX 4090 workstation |
If you want the best value for gaming, choose:
β Ryzen 7 7800X3D + RTX 4070 Ti
If you want the best budget PC, choose:
β Ryzen 5 5600G (built-in graphics)
Need a Custom PC Built?
If youβre in the UK, G Power Computers can build custom desktops tailored to your needs.
