Price To Performance over Upgradability?

[HRFranklin0702]

For a first budget PC build (around £300), I was wondering, would it be a better idea to pay an extra for upgradability in an Intel build or go for price to performance in an AMD build?

Thanks in advance.

 

[TJ Hooker]

What are you going to use it for? If it's just for basic desktop use, I probably wouldn't put a big emphasis on upgradeability.

If it's for gaming, I'd probably say 300 pounds is probably a little low to even start with. That'll get you a pretty low end gaming rig, so I'd definitely make sure you have options to upgrade once you get some more cash.

If you're talking about AMD's older chips (e.g. FX 8xxx or Athlon CPUs on AM3+ or FM2+ mobos), I definitely wouldn't recommend them regardless of your use case. Ryzen CPUs are the only AMD chips worth getting now.

 

[ohenryy]

Probably you can get something with a bit more money..

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3NFqzM
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3NFqzM/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor (£63.47 @ BT Shop)
Motherboard: ASRock - H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£46.97 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Crucial - 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory (£56.40 @ Aria PC)
Storage: Seagate - BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£37.97 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: PowerColor - Radeon RX 560 2GB Red Dragon OC Video Card (£99.95 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix - Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case (£34.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: EVGA - 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply (£33.79 @ Aria PC)
Total: £373.54
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 17:41 BST+0100

 

[spdragoo]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1400 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (£146.96 @ More Computers)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME B350-PLUS ATX AM4 Motherboard (£75.44 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (£125.99 @ Aria PC)
Total: £348.39
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 17:39 BST+0100

This gets you some decent DDR4-3000 RAM, the cheapest Ryzen CPU (which is more than sufficient for gaming), & a decent B350 chipset motherboard (which not only will support faster Ryzen 5 & 7 chips, but also lets you overclock).

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4620 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor (£86.21 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: MSI - Z270 GAMING PLUS ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£89.52 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (£125.99 @ Aria PC)
Total: £301.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 17:42 BST+0100

This is a cheaper build...but while you get a 2C/4T CPU with it, you can't overclock with this CPU -- you need at least the i3-7350K, or an unlocked Core i5/i7 to do that -- & while for most games a 2C/4T CPU will be OK, there are a number of games that simply perform much better on 4C/4T or higher CPUs (& they'll only start taking advantage of more & more cores in the future).

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i3-7350K 4.2GHz Dual-Core Processor (£149.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - Hyper TX3 Evo 43.1 CFM CPU Cooler (£19.13 @ Novatech)
Motherboard: MSI - Z270 GAMING PLUS ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£89.52 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (£125.99 @ Aria PC)
Total: £384.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 17:45 BST+0100

This would be the minimum Intel-based build if you wanted to have overclocking capability from day 1. Note that it's about £36 more expensive than the Ryzen 5-based build, & that a) you have to buy a CPU cooler for it (Intel doesn't provide them with unlocked CPUs), & b) for the most part the Ryzen-based build will match or exceed the i3-7350K's performance. Bumping up to the i5-7600K adds another ~£60 to the cost (https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/NpnK9W), putting you almost £100 more than the Ryzen 5 1400 build.

And yes, I didn't include storage, GPU, DVD-drive, OS, etc. Two reasons:
#1: There's always the chance that you already have those with an existing system, so you can simply reuse your existing hardware & reinstall your existing Windows (unless it's the OEM version).
#2: It helps showcase that, for £300, you really cannot do any kind of meaningful gaming system (unless you stick with the Intel build & are content to use only the integrated graphics). Even if you decided to go as bare-bones as possible -- Pentium CPU, mATX motherboard, & only 8GB of DDR4-2133 RAM -- you would still have only maybe £95 to spend on your GPU & still stay within budget (https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/X4kmTH). The GPU options in that price range aren't exactly stellar -- we're talking about GT 750Ti/1030 or RX 460/550 (https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/products/video-card/#sort=price&page=1), most of which aren't much better than the integrated graphics to begin with.

 

[HRFranklin0702]

What are you going to use it for? If it's just for basic desktop use, I probably wouldn't put a big emphasis on upgradeability.

If it's for gaming, I'd probably say 300 pounds is probably a little low to even start with. That'll get you a pretty low end gaming rig, so I'd definitely make sure you have options to upgrade once you get some more cash.

If you're talking about AMD's older chips (e.g. FX 8xxx or Athlon CPUs on AM3+ or FM2+ mobos), I definitely wouldn't recommend them regardless of your use case. Ryzen CPUs are the only AMD chips worth getting now.

I'd use it For light gaming and school work

 

[HRFranklin0702]

Probably you can get something with a bit more money..

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3NFqzM
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3NFqzM/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor (£63.47 @ BT Shop)
Motherboard: ASRock - H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£46.97 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Crucial - 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory (£56.40 @ Aria PC)
Storage: Seagate - BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£37.97 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: PowerColor - Radeon RX 560 2GB Red Dragon OC Video Card (£99.95 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix - Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case (£34.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: EVGA - 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply (£33.79 @ Aria PC)
Total: £373.54
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 17:41 BST+0100

Wouldn't I have to update the Bios for that?

 

[TJ Hooker]

What all needs to be included in that budget? Windows, any peripherals?

Best I could do and stay close to your budget:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4600 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor (£73.80 @ Alza)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£65.12 @ CCL Computers)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws 4 series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (£59.30 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£39.95 @ Aria PC)
Case: Rosewill - SRM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£26.99 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£49.89 @ Ebuyer)
Total: £315.05
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 19:14 BST+0100

Not sure how good even light gaming is going to be on integrated graphics, but the G4600 has a little better iGPU than the G4560, for an extra £10. Has decent upgrade potential: can drop in another 2x4 GB RAM and discrete GPU (should be able to run up a GTX 1060 with that PSU) down the road. Can also upgrade the CPU all the way up to a i7-7700(K) with that mobo.

 

[HRFranklin0702]

What all needs to be included in that budget? Windows, any peripherals?

Just a CPU, RAM, Storage (preferably an SSD even a 120gb just one for windows and a few small games. I'll add a HDD later down the line), Mobo, PSU, Optical Drive, Wifi card and case.

 

[TJ Hooker]

OK, respecced to fit in your budget with an optical drive, SSD, and wifi card.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor (£63.47 @ BT Shop)
Motherboard: MSI - H110M PRO-VD PLUS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£42.30 @ Novatech)
Memory: Crucial - 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (£55.41 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: ADATA - Ultimate SU800 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£49.45 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Zalman - T2 Plus MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£23.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£49.89 @ Ebuyer)
Optical Drive: Lite-On - iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer (£12.54 @ Ebuyer)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link - TL-WN881ND PCI-Express x1 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter (£11.99 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £309.04
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-24 20:43 BST+0100

Definitely cutting a few corners, but that's sort of a given with such a small budget. You would need to verify with the retailer that the H110 mobo comes with a BIOS new enough to support Kaby Lake.