So, you have finally decided to step into the world of PC gaming with a prebuilt PC but are not sure where to start your search for a good gaming PC from?
Well, finding the ideal gaming PC can be a bit tedious and $1500 is a big amount to spend on a PC you don’t want to waste now do you?
If you are stuck not knowing what to do then don’t worry this article has got everything covered regarding prebuilt gaming PCs.
At the end of the article, you will not only be well versed on the topic of prebuilt PCs but will have the best gaming PCs under $1500 that are available in the market at your disposal because this article is going to cover the following:
- How to choose the right PC for your needs
- Can you game at 4K resolution on a $1500 gaming PC?
- 5 prebuilt gaming PCs under $1500
Being an avid gamer myself, I realize the challenges faced by folks when looking for a gaming PC. There is a lot to absorb, and it can get overwhelming at times therefore in my article I will simplify the information for you and present it in a beginner-friendly manner.
There is also a lot more to gaming PCs than just raw specifications and therefore the reviews in this article will not only describe gaming PCs but also tell you what they are like to use day in and day out.
For this purpose, I tested each and every PC and have brought to you the gaming PCs that offer something unique and different from the rest. In this article, you will see all sorts of different PCs and surely there is something for everyone. Excited! So let’s begin, shall we?
In a Hurry? These are the Best Prebuilt Gaming PCs Under $1500
After carefully testing and selecting PCs from the plethora of options available, the following is a quick look at the PCs under $1500 that are going to be featured in this article.
Our methodology for testing not only involves determining the performance and features of the PC but also evaluating the gaming experience it can offer to a particular individual.
*For more info on the gaming PCs below, click the “Jump to review” button to go to our review of that PC.
Best Overall
Compact Pick
Best Aesthetics
Best Value
In-Depth Review
The following section will contain comprehensive reviews of the five best prebuilt gaming PCs that I have included in this article after extensive testing.
Best Overall
1. AVGPC Hellfire II
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Pros
Cons
Bottom Line:
The AVGPC Hellfire II is a blast to game on. This PC comes with the best-in-class specs, making it capable of playing any game you want with ultra graphics. This PC also has many great features, and its retro-modern aesthetics is the cherry on top. There are many positive things about this PC that far outweigh the negatives, making it the best prebuilt gaming PC under $1500.
Gaming Experience
AVGPC Hellfire II delivers a sublime gaming experience, and it has many other PCs beat in this regard. This PC is one of the fastest on this list and also one of the better-looking ones.
The main reason why this PC ranks so highly is because it can play any game you want without needing to drop the graphic quality. You will easily be able to squeeze reasonable FPS on most games with this PC.
Therefore, due to its exceptional performance, this PC is equally good for casual as well as competitive. It does not matter if you enjoy the mountainside views in GTA V or pick off heads in Valorant; this PC will be equally good in both situations.
During my playthrough, I subjected this PC to the same games that were played on all the other gaming PCs. The average frame rate received was as follows.
At 1080p resolution:
- 85 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 68 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 96 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 150 FPS in CoD Warzone, 138 FPS in Fortnite, and 144 FPS in GTA V.
Moving onto the 1440p gaming benchmarks, they are as follows:
- 70 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 55 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 79 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 120 FPS in CoD Warzone, 103 FPS in Fortnite, and 98 FPS in GTA V.
The highest graphic preset was used for playing all of the above games.
The above gaming benchmarks show that the AVGPC Hellfire II can maintain over 60+ FPS on all types of games at both 1080p and 1440p resolution. We can also see that the average frame rate delivered by this PC is also slightly higher than other PCs on this list.
Therefore, if you are looking for a gaming PC with the highest performance for your $1500, AVGPC Hellfire II is a viable option.
Specifications
AVGPC has pulled off an upset in the specs department, and I doubt any gaming PC can match the specs of the AVGPC Hellfire II; certainly not in the $1500 price bracket.
This PC is powered by a Ryzen 7 5700G processor. AMD’s newest 8 core 16 thread offering is all set to dethrone its Intel counterpart as the best mid-range CPU for gaming.
A major advantage of using the Ryzen 7 5700G over its Intel counterpart is that it stays relatively cool even under full load. Still, though, heat is not good; therefore, this PC has a 120mm AIO liquid supplied by Cooler Master.
The Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti is the ace of this PC. It is hard to get a GPU with the capability of the Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti in a sub $1500 gaming PC. The fast Ryzen 7 5700G and the equally fast Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti result in top-notch gaming performance.
For smooth gaming, a PC needs high RAM capacity, and fortunately, this PC is up to the task. It comes with 16GB RGB RAM from G.Skill, which runs at the clock speed of 3200MHz.
The top-notch technical specs mean that this PC can play any game you want; therefore, it is likely that you will store a lot of games. Fortunately, this PC comes with a massive amount of storage space.
It has a fast 1TB NVMe SSD, which acts as the main storage drive, and a 2TB HDD for additional storage. Given the high specifications of the PC, it will need a lot of power to run.
This power is provided by a 750W gold-rated power supply. I am quite pleased with AVGPC for using a gold-rated power supply because they have better efficiency and last longer.
Case Design and Connectivity
This PC case has modern and retro elements incorporated into its design. The front panel of this case is made from plastic. Plastic is not the preferred material for case panels, but I like how they have implemented it here.
This PC uses a tinted and frosted plastic panel that closely resembles a glass panel and gives a similar impression. The use of plastic, fortunately, ends here. The side panel of the case is made from tempered glass.
One design element I particularly don’t like about this PC is the lack of a PSU shroud. I get it they did this to instill the retro charm into the design of this PC, but practicality wise it makes a mess of the cable management.
The connectivity of this PC is also not particularly amazing. There are only two USB-A ports at the front and they too are hard to reach. Even the gamers with tall height will find it to be a bit of stretch to reach the front ports of the PC.
Apart from the 2x USB-A, the front I/O has 2x 3.5mm ports for mic and audio, a power button, a reset button, and an LED light button.
If you are looking for more ports they can be found on the back of the PC. These include 6x USB-A ports, ethernet LAN, PS/2 ports, HDMI, DisplayPort, and audio ports for connecting speakers.
Aesthetics and Salient Features
The AVGPC Hellfire embodies a modern retro aesthetic vibe. There is something about the design of this PC that takes you back to the early days of gaming when red was all the rave.
The thing that has the most retro vibe is the use of red trim pieces and accents. They definitely add an old-school charm to the case design, which I am all for.
However, this PC is not all about retro looks. There are other cool elements to this PC as well.
For starters, the RGB lighting of this PC is very well executed. This PC has just the right amount of RGB lighting. It is not overly decorated by RGB lighting, nor does the RGB light hide in the background, which makes for very good looks.
Coming onto the features, this PC comes with a gaming keyboard and mouse. While these are touted as gaming-oriented devices, their usability and quality are average at best.
Besides that, you also get a 1-year warranty with this PC and free technical support for a lifetime.
Compact Pick
2. AVGPC Mini
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Pros
Cons
Bottom Line:
The AVGPC is a small and compact gaming PC that does not suck. This PC has proper high-end gaming hardware from AMD and Nvidia. Despite its small size, it even comes with decent connectivity. Suppose you have small desk space and want a gaming PC to deliver exceptional performance. In that case, the AVGPC Mini gaming PC is for you.
Gaming Experience
I was not expecting such a small gaming PC to provide heaps of fun when gaming. This gaming PC handled all the games I threw at it like a champ, and never did I feel the need to drop the graphic quality.
Having this much performance out of a small and compact gaming PC is unheard off. It is quite pleasing to see how far technology has progressed, and the most shocking thing was that this PC played all the games without running crazy hot.
Sure the temperatures, on average, are more than other large-sized gaming PCs, but that is to be expected. However, the PC never thermal throttles, which speaks volumes about how well this PC is designed and executed.
I played all sorts of different games on this PC, and the average frame for all of them is as follows.
At 1080p resolution:
- 85 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 68 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 96 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 150 FPS in CoD Warzone, 138 FPS in Fortnite, and 144 FPS in GTA V.
At 1440p resolution:
- 70 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 55 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 79 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 120 FPS in CoD Warzone, 103 FPS in Fortnite, and 98 FPS in GTA V.
All the games were played at the highest graphic settings each game had to offer.
It is still quite shocking that this PC could hang with the AVGPC Hellfire II in terms of FPS, which is twice, if not thrice, its size. Truly, it is remarkable engineering to extract such high performance from such a small and compact chassis.
Specifications
One might think that due to size constraints, the specs of this PC will not be any good. Surprising to me and maybe to you as well, this PC comes with top-notch specs.
Embedded at the heart of this PC is an AMD Ryzen 7 5700G CPU. The Ryzen 7 5700G is an 8-core, 16-thread processor that competes with the Intel Core i5. The gaming performance of this CPU is a tad less compared to the 12th generation Intel Core i5. Still, it makes up for it by having lower temperatures.
Therefore, the installed Cooler Master 212 Evo air cooler does a good job of cooling down this processor. Despite that, it can still get hot under load due to the restrictive airflow of this case.
The Ryzen 7 5700G is paired with the Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti, which is the best-suited GPU for this PC. The Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti is the best mid-range GPU that delivers good performance and gets less hot as compared to its AMD Radeon counterpart.
The combination of the 8 core Ryzen 7 5700G and the Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti in such a small size PC is quite spectacular, to say the least.
It is also quite remarkable to see this PC coming with 16GB DDR4 RAM, running at the clock speed of 3200MHz. The only nitpick I have for the specs is that this PC only comes with 1TB NVMe M.2 SSD.
While it is great that this PC comes with an NVMe M.2 SSD, the 1TB capacity can be quite limiting. However, this can be easily solved if you add in a 1TB HDD for about $50.
Case Design and Connectivity
The first thing that you will pick is how small this case really is. The size of the case does justice to the Mini reference in the name of this PC.
If I had to give you an idea, consider this PC marginally larger than the newer PS5 and the Xbox series X. It is about the same in height but just a little wider and fatter. In the white color scheme, this PC bears a close resemblance to the Mac studio.
However, this PC has some gamer-esque design elements that let other people know that this is a gaming PC. The side glass window of this PC is the same as other gaming PCs.
I don’t know how they can trim down the size of the case to this extent without disturbing the PC’s capability. Even the connectivity of this PC is quite manageable despite the small size.
This PC has 2x USB-A ports on the front, which are flanked by a power button and a combo 3.5mm audio and mic port. Having only these ports is not ideal, but I can give it a pass due to the size of the case.
The remaining ports are scattered around the backside of the PC. They include Ethernet LAN, HDMI, DisplayPort, 5x USB-A ports, USB-C port, and additional 3.5mm audio ports for a surround sound setup.
Aesthetics and Salient Features
The vibe of this PC is a lot different from other gaming PCs. This PC is laid out on the formula of design first – aesthetics later. So, if you are expecting a fully blown-out RGB gaming PC, you will be disappointed.
However, suppose you want a clean and minimalist gaming PC on your desk that can blend in any environment and any setup. In that case, that is exactly what you are getting with the AVGPC Mini.
The matte white PC case with the slight touch of RGB lighting looks quite premium and dare I say elegant. The aesthetics of this PC are better suited to an office desk than a gaming desk, but that is what you get in a small gaming PC, and you have to live with it.
I will be quite honest with you that there is not much in terms of the salient features. This PC has a 1-year warranty, which you can avail for both parts and labor. Also included is the lifetime technical assistance for this PC by AVGPC.
Best Aesthetics
3. iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a
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Pros
Cons
Bottom Line:
The iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a is a gorgeous-looking gaming PC. This PC comes with tons of RGB lighting which is a treat for RGB lovers. Besides, the looks this PC also gets the specs right. It features the latest hardware from AMD, as a result of which this PC can run any game you want. Besides, the lack of airflow there is not a whole lot wrong with this PC, hence making it an excellent choice.
Gaming Experience
No gaming PC review is complete without mentioning the gaming experience that a gaming PC has in store for a gamer.
I am pleased to say that I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a during my testing, and it ran like a champ.
The only off-putting thing about this PC was the lack of USB-A ports at the front. As a result, I had to resort to dongles to connect my gadgets to the PC. Still, when everything was set up the way I wanted, there was little to complain about the gaming experience of this PC.
The iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a ran all the games I tried on it and passed the frame rate test with flying colors. As for the actual framerate, the PC averaged the following:
At 1080p resolution:
- 80 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 71 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 250 FPS in Valorant, 118 FPS in Fortnite, 120 FPS in CoD Warzone, 200 FPS in Rainbow Six Siege, and 144 FPS in GTA V.
On 1440p resolution:
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla 50 FPS, Red Dead Redemption 2 60 FPS, CoD Warzone 103 FPS, Fortnite 79 FPS, 72 FPS in GTA V, and 163 FPS in Rainbow Six Siege.
All the games were tested at the highest graphic settings each game had to offer.
Overall, the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a did a great job in the gaming experience department and handled all the games that I ran on it pretty well.
You also don’t have to worry about changing the graphic settings because this PC will play all the modern AAA games without needing any prior graphic adjustments.
Specifications
The specs of this PC are quite good. I commend the decision for going with all AMD gaming PC because due to the lack of airflow this PC needed thermally efficient hardware, and AMD fulfills those shoes.
Powering the PC is a Ryzen 5 5600G CPU. The Ryzen 5 5600G is a 6-core, 12-thread processor designed to compete with the Intel Core i5. This processor has slightly worse performance than the Intel Core i5 but beats it at thermals.
The Ryzen 5 5600G runs very efficiently and produces minimal heat. Despite the stock AMD cooler, the temperature of his CPU remains below 75°C at all times, which goes to show how efficient the Ryzen 5 5600G is.
The Ryzen 5600G is paired with the AMD RX 6600 XT graphics card. The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is the competitor to the Nvidia RTX 3060 and offers similar performance.
The other specifications of this PC are also impressive, It comes with 16GB DDR4 RAM, which has a clock speed of 3200MHz.
The only area where I found the PC lacking is its storage. While it does have an SSD, the storage is quite limiting at 480GB. Unfortunately, there is also no HDD included with the package, but I suggest adding one later on because 480GB of storage will get filled up pretty quickly.
The good thing is that the storage is the only negative I have to speak of, the rest of the specs of this PC are simply amazing.
Case Design and Connectivity
One cannot deny that the case of the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a looks very striking and catches your attention even at first glance. I certainly was left stunned at the time of my first sighting with the PC and thought this was a custom-built PC, not a prebuilt one.
This PC case consists of glass panels all around. The front and side panels of the case are made from glass which results in the ability to see the RGB lighting on the PC.
While glass panels may look premium and expensive, they have their disadvantages. For starters, glass panels are fragile and can easily break, so having them makes the PC case less strong and susceptible to damage.
Glass does not allow air to pass. Due to lack of airflow PC cases with glass panels generally have higher temperatures than those with mesh panels.
Connectivity can make or break a gamer’s experience with a PC. Unfortunately, my experience with the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a was not the smoothest.
For starters, the PC features only two USB-A slots at the front of the case, which is unacceptable in this day and age because gamers require many different peripherals that are all USB powered.
Making matters worse is the lack of a USB-C port. The lack of connectivity relegates the PC to the dongle territory, which can be cumbersome.
The PC covers other aspects of connectivity by including HDMI, DisplayPort, and an ethernet jack. There are also additional USB-A slots at the back of the PC, which, although not ideal, can fill the void left by the 2 front USB-A ports.
Aesthetics and Salient Features
RGB Galore! This expression pretty much sums up the entire design and presentation of the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a. There is so much RGB in this PC that you can’t help but wonder whether the company saved enough funds to invest in other areas of this PC.
The RGB goodness comes at a cost, however. The RGB lighting takes center stage of the looks of this PC and overshadows all of its other design attributes.
Therefore, this case is more suited for gamers that want the maximum amount of flashy and blingy RGB lighting on their PC.
Moving onto the next features, and like most other gaming PCs in this price range, the iBUYPOWER SlateMR 215a includes built-in Wi-Fi eliminating the need for an ethernet cable for connecting to the internet. The Wi-Fi is also quite stable and can even be used for competitive gaming because of its reliability.
If you are new to this whole PC gaming scene, you will find it difficult to diagnose issues with your PCs. Therefore, it is quite reassuring to know that this PC comes with a 1-year warranty covering parts and labor. Also, iBUYPOWER is providing you with free lifetime technical support with their gaming PC.
4. CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR
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Pros
Cons
Bottom Line:
The CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR is a great sub $1500 gaming PC. It can play any game you want at a respectable frame rate. The PC also looks great and is loaded with RGB lighting. If you are after a flashy and blingy gaming PC that performs well, then the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR should be right up your alley.
Gaming Experience
Gaming on the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR was enjoyable and hassle-free. While not the most powerful, this PC did not provide me any problem with running any game that I wanted.
Besides the specs and performance, this PC has also got the looks that enhance the gaming experience of this PC. Therefore, the gaming experience of this PC is quite remarkable. This PC can play any game you throw at it without breaking a sweat.
I mainly played the latest AAA games and some multiplayer games on this PC, which all ran extremely well. The average frame rate was as follows.
At 1080p resolution:
- 58 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 64 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 84 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 115 FPS in CoD Warzone, 113 FPS in Fortnite, and 121 FPS in GTA V.
On 1440p resolution:
- 53 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 47 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 69 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 89 FPS in CoD Warzone, 74 FPS in Fortnite, and 77 FPS in GTA V.
All these games were played on the highest graphic settings that each game had to offer.
From the above FPS figures, it is quite clear that this PC plays games at both 1080p and 1440p resolution very convincingly. Therefore, if you want better quality, you can play games at 1440p. On the contrary, if you want more FPS, you can drop the resolution to 1080p.
All things considered, the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR is plenty powerful to handle any game you want. This PC provides a fantastic gaming experience, and if you need more FPS in competitive games, you can always drop the settings down to medium, but in most cases, you won’t need to.
Case Design and Connectivity
RGB lighting, glass, and more glass. This sentence can be literally used to summarize the case design of the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR.
The case of the PC, which features a front and side glass window, fully facilitates the implementation of RGB lighting and makes the RGB shine through.
The glass sandwich design, although very modern and appealing, does come with a few negatives.
The main drawback is the lack of airflow. Glass does not allow air to pass, which results in a lack of airflow in the PC. This can result in overheating or thermal throttling.
Apart from the case design, connectivity is a very important aspect of any gaming PC, and it seems that CyberPowerPC knew that because they have provided this PC with good connectivity.
During my time with the PC, I didn’t encounter any major connectivity hurdles and most of the time, connecting different peripherals and gadgets to this PC was a breeze.
One connectivity element, though, I did find missing was the lack of a USB-C port. I get it, many gaming PCs have not adopted this port yet, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that many gadgets today come with USB-C connections.
Therefore, for these gadgets and peripherals that do use a USB-C connection, you will need to buy an external adapter if you plan on using them on this PC.
Besides the lack of a USB-C port, there is no other negative to report on the connectivity front. Every other connectivity port that is required for daily use is available on this PC.
The ports present on the PC include 6x USB 3.1 Type-A, 2x USB 2.0 Type-A, ethernet jack, a separate 3.5mm jack for audio and mic, 2x Display Ports, and an HDMI.
Specifications
The CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR has a solid set of specifications, but there is still some slight room for improvement.
Beating at the heart of this PC is an Intel Core i5-11600K processor. This 6-core and 12-thread processor from Intel, despite being a generation older, still performs rather well.
The difference between the Intel Core i5-12600K and Core i5-11600k is not very significant; hence I am not mindful of the inclusion of the older generation CPU.
Despite there being a slight difference with using the Intel Core i5-11600k but what matters more is the GPU. I am glad CyberPower for this PC has decided to go with the latest Nvidia RTX 3060 12GB graphics card. The Nvidia RTX 3060 is among the best graphics cards that you can currently wish for in a sub $1500 gaming PC.
The combination of the Intel Core i5-11600k and the Nvidia RTX 3060 makes for a deadly performing duo that pretty much swallows any game in its way.
Another aspect where this PC leaves its competitors in the dust is when it comes to storage. With this PC, you are getting a 1TB NVMe SSD making the storage space of the PC not only plentiful but also stupid fast.
Usually, such high capacity NVMe SSD are a rare sight on $1500 gaming PCs. For added storage, this PC also offers a 1TB HDD drive which comes in handy for storing large media files.
As for the RAM, this PC comes with 16GB of DDR4 memory, which is ample for gaming and multitasking in most situations.
Aesthetics and Salient Features
The look of the PC is dictated by its flamboyant display of RGB lighting. Regardless of the angle or the direction you look at the PC, the first thing that will catch your eye is the RGB lighting; hence it dominates the overall aesthetic of the PC.
The RGB lighting is easily customizable, and depending on your mood and PC setup, there are many colors to choose from, which you can also switch on the fly.
Gamers will be pleased to know that this PC includes built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. During my testing, I found the Wi-Fi of this PC to work quite well.
Running on the latest 802.11AC protocol, the Wi-Fi was very stable and didn’t suffer from any sort of interruption or disconnectivity. With the Wi-Fi, you also get the latest Bluetooth 5, which is also very beneficial.
The Bluetooth and the Wi-Fi make up the prominent features of this PC. Apart from that, this PC does come with a gaming keyboard and mouse bundle, but the quality of both the devices is not very good.
Having this many complex parts in your PC can be quite worrisome, but the CyberPowerPC relieves all your worries by providing you with a 1-year part and labor warranty while also covering free lifetime technical support for your PC.
Best Value
5. Skytech Archangel
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Pros
Cons
Bottom Line:
The Skytech Archangel is a value to money gaming PC that does everything right. It looks great, has competent specs, and comes with decent features. The plus point of this PC is that it costs less than other PCs with the same specs without compromising on the quality. Therefore, the Skytech Archangel cuts this list because of its well-rounded overall package.
Gaming Experience
The Skytech Archangel costs less than other gaming PCs, but when playing games, I did not feel that this PC is subpar or worse than other gaming PCs on this list.
This PC played all of the games I wanted without any hitch. I was able to retain the highest graphic setting in most of the games I played. There were some that could do better with high-medium graphic presets, but on the whole, most of the games ran extremely well on this PC.
For testing, I played the same games on this PC that I played on the others to have comparable FPS results. The average framerate in those games was as follows.
At 1080p resolution:
- 67 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 58 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 72 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 122 FPS in CoD Warzone, 110 FPS in Fortnite, and 121 FPS in GTA V.
At 1440p resolution:
- 53 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 50 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 60 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, 97 FPS in CoD Warzone, 85 FPS in Fortnite, and 88 FPS in GTA V.
All the games were played on the highest graphic setting that each game had to offer.
Despite this PC costing less than other gaming PCs on this list, I don’t see a massive difference in terms of its FPS. Yes, you will get a slightly reduced frame rate compared to the best $1500 gaming PC but does the difference amount to $200 to 300 less? I reckon that is not the case.
Therefore, if bang for the buck is what you are after, then there is no better PC than the Skytech Archangel. You will get the proper gaming experience here at a cost lower than other gaming PCs.
Specifications
The Skytech Archangel is a value-to-money gaming PC that does not cut corners in its specifications. This PC is powered by the latest hardware, and despite that, it comes at a lower cost than its competitors.
At the heart of the PC is a 12th gen Intel Core i5-12400F processor. The 12th gen Intel Core i5-12400F is one of the best CPUs for the money because, with it, you get all the capabilities of the latest generation Intel Core i5 at a fraction of the cost of the high-end variant.
The Intel Core i5-12400F is also much more efficient and therefore produces less heat than the i5-12600K. Still, though, it is not as efficient as a Ryzen 7 5700G. So, cooling this Core i5 is a beefy RGB air cooler that is better than the stock cooler.
Facilitating this RGB air cooler are 4 case fans. They all work unanimously to provide airflow to the PC hence controlling the temperatures.
The GPU used in this PC is the RTX 3060. Given that this PC costs less than other gaming PCs, it is nice to see that Skytech has not cut any corners, and went with the latest mid-range GPU that Nvidia has to offer.
Moving onto the RAM, this PC comes with 16GB DDR4 RAM. The RAM is running at the clock speed of 3200MHz, which is as fast as it gets for mainstream builds.
Storage is the only negative of this PC. It comes with a 1TB NVME SSD, which is quite fast, but the storage capacity is very limited. 1TB storage space will get filled pretty quickly; therefore, you are better off adding a 1TB HDD.
Supplying power to all these components is a 600W gold-rated power supply. The gold-rated power supply provides better efficiency and also has more consistent power delivery as opposed to regular power supplies.
Case Design and Connectivity
The case of this PC is designed in a very unique and interesting manner. You will not see giant glass windows on this PC, but rather, this PC case has smooth plastic covering its front panel.
The white color of the case is also striking and makes the case pop more. Although this PC case may seem simple, it has some very interesting elements to it.
The left sharp edge of the PC case has some design going on with the use of sharp cuts. A very little design detail, but one I like very much is the use of white-painted case feet. Most PC cases have unpainted bare metal feet, so it is quite nice to see that Skytech has taken the proper time to match the feet of the case to the rest of the other panels.
The Skytech Archangel has had its moments, but I am disappointed to say that the connectivity of this PC is not very well sorted. There are only two USB ports on the front, which is unacceptable for a PC at such a high price point.
There should at least have been an additional USB-A port because sometimes gamers need to connect different gadgets and keyboard and mouse simultaneously to the PC, which is not possible on the Skytech Archangel.
To compensate for the lack of sufficient USB-A ports on the front, this PC comes with five additional USB-A ports on the back. However, reaching them can be a bit of a stretch at times because, most times, gaming peripherals don’t come with extra-long cables.
Other ports included on the back of the PC are HDMI, DisplayPort, Ethernet Lan, USB-C, and multiple 3.5mm audio ports.
Aesthetics and Salient Features
This PC does not look like any other gaming PC on the market. It is characterized by sharp lines and RGB lighting that is done tastefully.
The RGB lighting of this PC is not overwhelming, but rather the use of the embedded RGB strip at the left edge of the PC makes the case look very stylish. It adds character to the case, which is something other PC cases don’t have because they go overboard with the RGB.
However, there is no shortage of RGB lighting either. The inside of the case is illuminated with RGB lighting, which makes the hardware installed on this PC look very good.
On the whole, this PC comes off as a very refined and elegant gaming PC. It has a mature and artistic vibe with its aesthetics.
Coming to the salient features, this PC does not have anything out of the ordinary. It comes with built-in Wi-Fi like all the other gaming PCs on this list. The Wi-Fi worked very well in my brief time with the PC and never dropped signal even once.
With Wi-Fi, you also get support for Bluetooth connectivity, so you can connect all your favorite Bluetooth accessories like earbuds to this PC.
Like other prebuilt gaming PCs, the Skytech Archangel also comes with an industry-standard 1-year warranty, which covers both the labor and parts. It is quite reassuring to have the warranty and brings peace of mind.
What to Look for in a Gaming PC Under $1500 — The Buyer’s Guide
Providing you with just the reviews of the prebuilt gaming PCs that I consider the best will not help to get the most optimal PC for your needs.
Because Afterall, how will you from the five gaming PCs distinguish which PC is better for your needs and usage.
This is the query I want to tackle with the buyer’s guide. In it, I am going to cover all the information regarding how you can make a more informed decision when choosing your next gaming PC.
I am going you take you through the complete thought process behind buying then we are going to evaluate some PCs to relate them to our needs.
Sounds good enough, so let’s begin dissecting each section of the buyer’s guide to gain a better understanding of the topic on hand.
Can You Game at 4K Resolution on a $1500 Gaming PC?
Playing games on 4k resolution is all the buzz lately, and hence naturally gamers question whether a $1500 can play games at the aforementioned resolution.
Although, I personally have always favored 1440p resolution and high frame rate but can’t deny the crispness in picture quality 4k resolution brings, and who doesn’t love eye candy right.
Now the question remains whether you can enjoy the serene scenery and the ultra-sharp graphics that 4K resolution provides, on a $1500 gaming PC. After all, $1500 is a lot of money therefore, the expectation with the gaming PCs at this price range can be high.
For the sake of transparency, I am going to use the gaming results of the top gaming PC of this article, that being the AVGPC Hellfire II as a reference.
By knowing its performance on 4K resolution you will get a picture of whether a $1500 can play games on 4K resolution or not. Spoiler alert the results coming up next are nothing short of impressive meaning that $1500 gaming PCs can handle gaming at 4K.
For thorough testing, all sorts of different games were played on the AVGPC Hellfire II and the result was evaluated twice.
It brings me great joy to say that the PC ran every game on 4k resolution quite smoothly. The average frame rate achieved was the following:
- 40 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, 45 FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2, 55 FPS in Cod WarZone, 70 FPS in BF 5, 60 FPS in Forza Horizon 5, and 95 FPS in Rainbow Six Siege.
All games that were picked for 4K testing were played on the highest graphic settings that were available for each respective game.
As you can clearly make out from the diverse selection of games tested, playing games at 4K resolution on a $1500 PC is indeed possible and you can get amazing results in some games.
First Thing to Consider
Before buying your shiny new prebuilt gaming PC you need to set aside some priorities because you are going to be bombarded with so many different machines when you begin your search for a gaming PC that it will leave you all confused and lost.
The trick to not falling into the trap and giving in to the marketing temptations is to have certain fundamentals laid out that will form the basis of your search for a gaming PC.
Firstly, what I want you to do is to list down the games that you are going to play on your gaming PC. Once you have the games listed, then proceed to evaluate your daily usage of the PC.
This will involve not only your gaming use but also the other tasks that the PC will be used for on a given day.
Now that you have these two basic fundamentals listed, these will form the foundation of our search.
By doing this you have basically outlined your wants and requirements associated with a PC therefore, any PC that can be a potential purchase target will be evaluated on the basis of the games listed and the other usage.
Our end goal is to buy a gaming PC that provides the most value for your gaming and other needs. This will save us from falling into the marketing trap and buying the PC that is ideal for our consumption.
For example, talking about myself, I like to play competitive multiplayer games and only fire up single-player games once in a blue moon.
Now for me, I need a simple PC with no fluff, but still, the FPS of that PC should be high. The AVGPC Mini fills that role pretty well.
On the contrary, let’s assume that you like playing single-player games and want to stream them on Twitch or other live streaming platforms. Now in your situation, a PC like the AVGPC Hellfire II, since it offers both the aesthetically pleasing looks and the highest performance.
The ultimate takeaway for this whole section is that. For buying the ideal gaming PC, you should have a proper understanding of the tasks and the games you will be using the PC for.
Why the Best is Not Always the Right Choice?
I know what you are thinking and no, I am not contradicting myself here. What I mean by don’t fall into the “best” trap is to not base your ultimate buying decision on product price, specification, and rating.
Trust me, it would have been so easy for me to simply point at the top PC in our list that being AVGPC Hellfire II, but things don’t work that way.
Chances are despite that PC being the most powerful it is not something you want or need. This can be due to multiple reasons, for example, you don’t simply need that much power based on your usage or you don’t like the look of the PC.
You see where I am going right. Therefore, my advice to you is to look only look at things objectively but also subjectively as well.
Personal taste, need, and want should be the priority because, at the end of the day, you will be using the PC, not me or the other person reading this article.
Now that you are better informed on how to choose the most ideal gaming PC for your needs let’s take a look at some of the important characteristics of a gaming PC.
Graphics Card
The graphics card is the most crucial piece of the puzzle when it comes to gaming PCs. A graphics card can single-handedly dictate the capability of your PC in terms of handling games because it is directly responsible for gaming.
To put it simply, the better the graphics card installed in a PC the better the gaming performance of that particular PC will be. Therefore, as a gamer, your first priority should always be to get the gaming PC with the best graphics card then focus on the rest of the characteristics.
A particular PC that fits the bill for this particular aspect from the list is the AVGPC Hellfire II. This gaming PC has an RTX 3060 Ti graphics card which is the best you can get in a gaming PC at the $1500 price range.
Processor
After the graphics card, the next thing on the line of relevancy is the processor. A processor is the brain of a computer and is therefore responsible for executing all the actions that are to happen on a computer.
For gaming, you want a processor that has enough capability to execute commands instantaneously. Practically speaking, a 6-core processor like the Core i5-11600KF present in the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR is good enough for gaming but an 8-core processor like the Ryzen 7 5700G provides better longevity to your PC.
As for whether you should get an Intel or an AMD processor well there is no right or wrong here so get whatever comes packaged with a better PC.
RAM and Storage
Things are relatively simple in terms of the RAM and the storage. You need enough capacity for both the RAM and the storage that the working of your gaming PC is uninterrupted.
Ideally, for gaming, you need 16GB of RAM. As a result, I have included only those gaming PCs on this list that come with 16GB RAM.
As for the storage, it can be a personal preference on the amount of space that a particular individual needs, but a wise decision is to go with at least 2TB storage.
2TB storage capacity will allow you to store a lot of games and if you need even more than that then the AVGPC Hellfire II is the PC you should be looking at since it has a total storage space of 3TB.
VR Capability
From a $1500 gaming PC, one should expect reasonable VR operation and it is also quite important to verify this because VR is becoming increasingly popular for not only games but for other productivity tasks as well.
Therefore, you should have a PC that if need be can easily support the operation of a VR headset. I kept this aspect in mind when choosing PCs for this list and all our PCs have specifications that meet the VR standard.
However, if you are looking specifically for the best VR experience possible then the iBUYPOWER Slate5MR 236i is the way to go because of the faster processor.
Related Guides
Check out our price-focused prebuilt PC guides below.
- Best Prebuilt Gaming PC Under $1000
- Best Prebuilt Gaming PC Under $800
- Best Prebuilt Gaming PC Under $500
- Best Prebuilt Gaming PC Under $2000
Check out our GPU-focused prebuilt PC guides below.
- Best RTX 3060 Prebuilt PC Recommendation
- Best RTX 3070 Prebuilt PC Recommendation
- Best RTX 3080 Prebuilt PC Recommendation
- Best RTX 3090 Prebuilt PC Recommendation
Check out our aesthetics-focused gaming PC guides below.
Conclusion
This wraps up our article on the prebuilt gaming PCs that provide the most value at the $1500 price range. Before I proceed any further let’s quickly summarize everything talked about in this article.
This article establishes that $1500 gaming PCs have excellent gaming potential and can even play games at 4k resolution, therefore, maximizing your value for the money.
All the five PCs mentioned in the article have great gaming capability but differ in their application therefore, it is advisable to buy the right PC according to your need.
If you want to stream and play demanding games, then the AVGPC Hellfire II will be the ideal option. It only not offers the best FPS but also has a CPU that can handle the demanding task of streaming.
If you are more of an aesthetic person and want a unique gaming machine, then the Skytech Archangle should be right up your alley or if you prefer more of that RGB bling then you can’t go wrong with the iBUYPOWER Slate5MR 236i or the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR.
On the contrary, if you want a simple and minimalist gaming PC that does not sacrifice performance, then the AVGPC Mini should fit the bill.
Most importantly, what I need you to remember is that never fall into the “best” trap and pick the PC that underlines features and aspects that are ideal for your consumption regardless of if that PC is ranked at the first spot or the fifth.
Now before I sign off, do let me know down in the comment section which PC did you end up going with. Also while you are there do mention any other prebuilt gaming PC that you think could have been better suited for the top five list.
