Amazon announced the dates for this year's Prime Day, and we can expect to see tons of discounts on a variety of products between July 11–12. Many of these discounts will cover technology, including prebuilt gaming desktop systems. We're here to answer a vital question you may have: Should you buy a prebuilt gaming PC on Prime Day?
We have countless years of experience reviewing prebuilt systems, as well as individual PC components. The team at XDA knows a thing or two about what makes a good gaming PC and how much you should pay for one. The prices of electronics have been a rollercoaster of sorts over recent years, and while prices have fallen considerably, it can prove difficult, even in 2023, to locate a superb deal.
That's where we come in! You'll find the very best gaming PC deals here, as well as useful guides on whether 2023's Prime Day is a good way to save money and get your dream system.
Should you buy a prebuilt gaming PC this Prime Day?
Whether you should purchase a gaming PC during Prime Day depends on what deals are available and your budget. The price of graphics cards has fallen sharply as companies struggle to sell existing stock, and PC gamers continue to use GPUs they already own. This doesn't make them more affordable, but it has brought prices down to MSRP from the inflated level we saw during the height of 2020. But you might be able to save even more money with a prebuilt system that includes those sometimes pricey components.
Prime Day also tends to make prebuilt systems (and gaming laptops) more affordable, and as such, it may be worth considering a deal found during this year's event. It's not only Amazon that will be lowering the price of products during the event either. Should you not be a fan of the online retail giant, other options like Newegg and Walmart will also be participating.
Which gaming PC should you buy?
Perhaps you have a budget in mind (it's OK if you don't!), but how much should you spend, and what kind of PC and specifications would you need for a smooth gaming experience? The best gaming PCs easily cost thousands of dollars and offer the best PC components for 4K gaming, but not everyone will require such high levels of performance.
A lot of it comes down to what you want your visuals to look like. Spending $5,000 on a gaming PC would be overkill for a 1080p or 1440p monitor. Having a screen with a lower resolution will allow you to save money, but even a 4K monitor can play games at lower resolutions, and there's always room for upgrading a prebuilt PC further down the line. (We very rarely recommend prebuilt systems that do not use standard PC components as this helps to avoid electronic waste and allows user servicing and upgrades.) That said, if you have a budget and monitor in mind, we have some ideas.
1080p gaming
- Budget: ~$750
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super, AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT
- CPU: Intel Core i3, AMD Ryzen 5
This is the lowest tier for PC gaming right now. Those who prefer 1080p gaming either don't need a higher fidelity experience or prefer to enjoy more casual games on a budget. This segment can also prove useful for those who want to test themselves in the online competitive multiplayer scene, as lower resolution and visual settings can boost frame rates.
HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop TG01
The HP Pavilion TG01 is an affordable gaming prebuilt PC with just about everything you'd need to start playing your favorite games, including a mouse and keyboard. Inside is an Intel Core i3 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 GPU.
1440p gaming
- Budget: $750–$1,500
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT
- CPU: Intel Core i5, AMD Ryzen 5
1440p (QHD) is one of the most common gaming resolutions and is often considered a stepping stone between 1080p (Full HD) and 2160p (4K). In order to enjoy smooth gameplay at this resolution, we'll need to step up the GPU and CPU slightly. The amount of system memory should also be at least 16GB, although you should stretch for 32GB of RAM.
ROG Strix G15 Gaming Desktop
The Asus ROG Strix G15 can be configured with various PC components, but we feel this is a solid choice for 1440p gaming. Inside is an Intel Core i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, and an RTX 3060 GPU.
4K or UW gaming
- Budget: ~$1,500 and above
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080, AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX
- CPU: Intel Core i7, AMD Ryzen 7
We included ultrawide (UW) monitors with 4K as these screens can prove demanding on the GPU and other components due to the number of pixels needing to be controlled with each frame. This is where you'll spend the most money, even if the desktop PC is on sale. We'd recommend the latest AMD and Nvidia graphics cards.
CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR (GXiVR8080A34)
Our top pick for 4K gaming would be the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR. This capable machine from a reputable brand is excellent with an RTX 4070 Ti and Intel Core i9 processor, using the excellent HYTE Y60 PC case.
What makes a good gaming PC deal?
We make use of various tools to check the price history of a gaming PC. We're also able to determine how much each component would cost if we were to buy them all separately and build the PC ourselves. One should always expect to pay a small premium with prebuilt systems, but so long as there isn't a colossal disparity, it's usually worth the additional cost for peace of mind and immediate usage.
One such tool that is free to use this Prime Day is a website called CamelCamelCamel. It may have one of the strangest domains, but it's incredibly useful for browsing around Amazon specifically. Some retailer vendors, Amazon included, have been known to inflate prices of specific products ahead of discount promotions to only return them to normal levels and list it as a "deal."
There are also some browser extensions that do a similar function. Another neat trick with some retailers is to add specific parts or prebuilt gaming PCs to your cart and check back daily (or hourly on the promotion days between July 11-12) to see if the prices have lowered at all.