Group test: what's the best budget PC?

Top 5 sub-£500 desktop PCs you can buy

PC Advisor reviews the best five desktop PCs available now in the UK for less than £500. UPDATED 10 NOVEMBER 2011.

5. Arbico i5357 Pro

Arbico i5357 Pro
  • Reviewed on: 12 February 13
  • RRP: £579 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 6 out of 10

Very powerful for an office PC, but also pricey, the Arbico i5357 Pro may be of interest for key workers who need extra performance for more intensive computing tasks. It combines a fast quad-core processor with a 60GB SSD for good responsiveness, even if we prefer to see larger SSDs to avoid Windows support issues when they become full.

4. Eclipse eBiz Precision i322H61

Eclipse eBiz Precision i322H61
  • Reviewed on: 15 February 13
  • RRP: £569.95 Inc VAT & delivery
  • Rating: Rated 7 out of 10

The choice of lower-performance processor, coupled with a fast SSD shows some clever thinking and wise distribution of the available budget; but then 16GB of installed memory is unnecessarily extravagant when a better motherboard or monitor could have been supplied instead. The system is too expensive for what is offers.

3. Quiet PC Serenity Value

Quiet PC Serenity Value
  • Reviewed on: 18 February 13
  • RRP: £795.79 inc VAT & delivery
  • Rating: Rated 6 out of 10

For most business users the Quiet PC Serenity Value will score very highly on serenity, and very lowly in value. For all its superior build quality, ultra-quiet operation and luxury components it's simply too expensive for all but special-purpose quiet-room installations.

2. PC Specialist MPC-3470T

PC Specialist MPC-3470T
  • Reviewed on: 18 February 13
  • RRP: £569.95 Inc VAT & delivery
  • Rating: Rated 7 out of 10

Very small and neat, the PC Specialist MPC-3470T is a decent quad-core PC with quite low power requirements and requires little desk space. Its performance is more than adequate, but does lag a little behind the fastest systems in this sector at this price. It's also not so easy to maintain or upgrade due to its somewhat cramped construction.

1. Chillblast Fusion Sapphire

Chillblast Fusion Sapphire
  • Reviewed on: 13 February 13
  • RRP: £549 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

The Fusion Sapphire is competitively priced, performs well and comes with an excellent 23.6in IPS monitor. It offers a modern, manageable motherboard and comes with a superior keyboard and mouse combo. In terms of power it’s also over-specified for the job, and the blue lightshow is an unwelcome distraction in an office PC.

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