With the recent reveal of the PS4 and the whole focus on social media, along with the rumored always-on connection and no used games for Microsoft's next Xbox, my disappointment in the next gen consoles has led me to the conclusion that the PS3 is my final purchase. I am now leaning towards building a Steambox as my "next gen console".
While my library of PC games is growing, I want to enjoy playing them on my 55" television from the comfort of my couch (the PC I have right now is geared more for digital content creation). For me, the main focus is to play my PC games at the equivalent of console games (720p with no less than 30 fps), but at the same time have the Steambox specs equal to or better than the next gen consoles (in case I want to upgrade down the road). I also want the form factor to be as small as possible (decided to go the Mini ITX route). With that, I set my budget to $600 - $700.
Here is what I came up with after doing some extensive research:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks
CPU: AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A85X-ITX Mini ITX FM2 Motherboard ($105.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($47.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($65.17 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $649.07
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-25 06:52 EST-0500)
Since Sony and Microsoft are going with AMD and using a custom-built APU, I went this route as well; again, my main focus is to have this "console" to be equivalent with their new consoles. I also decided to go with only a 128GB SSD; this will be strictly a gaming machine, so it will only have Windows 7 and Steam with 1 or 2 games installed at a time. I even added a DVD drive because I have copies of my Steam games backed up onto discs (even own physical copies of recent games I haven't played yet like Max Payne 3 and Dishonored). I already own an Xbox 360 controller so my controlling needs are already taken care of.
So, judging from what I have, what do you think? Any suggestions?
While my library of PC games is growing, I want to enjoy playing them on my 55" television from the comfort of my couch (the PC I have right now is geared more for digital content creation). For me, the main focus is to play my PC games at the equivalent of console games (720p with no less than 30 fps), but at the same time have the Steambox specs equal to or better than the next gen consoles (in case I want to upgrade down the road). I also want the form factor to be as small as possible (decided to go the Mini ITX route). With that, I set my budget to $600 - $700.
Here is what I came up with after doing some extensive research:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks
CPU: AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A85X-ITX Mini ITX FM2 Motherboard ($105.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($47.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($65.17 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $649.07
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-25 06:52 EST-0500)
Since Sony and Microsoft are going with AMD and using a custom-built APU, I went this route as well; again, my main focus is to have this "console" to be equivalent with their new consoles. I also decided to go with only a 128GB SSD; this will be strictly a gaming machine, so it will only have Windows 7 and Steam with 1 or 2 games installed at a time. I even added a DVD drive because I have copies of my Steam games backed up onto discs (even own physical copies of recent games I haven't played yet like Max Payne 3 and Dishonored). I already own an Xbox 360 controller so my controlling needs are already taken care of.
So, judging from what I have, what do you think? Any suggestions?
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