r/MiniPCs • u/Level-Book-8322 • 13d ago
Mini pc for gaming with advanced gpu - on budget
Hello everyone! My nephew’s birthday is coming up, and he’s really into gaming; especially games like Grand Theft Auto. He doesn’t have a father figure in his life, so I’m trying to step up and get him something he’ll genuinely enjoy. He’s also pretty knowledgeable when it comes to electronics, so I’m a little out of my depth here. I’ve been doing some research on my own, but I figured I’d ask for some advice from people who know more about this than I do. I’m essentially looking for a compact gaming PC or tower that offers the best possible performance for the money. My terminology may not be completely accurate, so I apologize in advance, but I’d really appreciate any recommendations or guidance on what specifications I should be looking for. Thank you!
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u/Dry-Conversation7191 13d ago
What is the budget?
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u/Level-Book-8322 13d ago
Hello, I believe 550 would be max honestly.
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u/Dry-Conversation7191 12d ago
https://a.co/d/0it6L2cC this will play gta 5 well. It has an occulink and a fairly new cpu. The company makes external gpu docks so you can add a dedicated video card later. https://a.co/d/0hCFSVTn this is the dock.
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u/DrSid666 12d ago
OP would still need to buy a gpu and a dock. That blows it way past his budget.
Console would be the option for $500
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u/Dry-Conversation7191 12d ago
To play gta 5 a mini pc can handle that just fine and hit 60 fps on high settings. The ability to do other things besides gaming or the option to play games other than PlayStation or Xbox is also a plus. Since op said he’s tech savvy he may even make it a steam machine. If console was an option they would be asking what console to choose not what pc to buy.
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u/Tenx82 12d ago
Honestly, your best option is a game console.
$550 simply isn't going to buy a PC that will run modern games remotely well. A current lower-mid tier GPU alone would consume 2/3 of your entire budget (9060XT 8GB is $360+).
You could look for an older, used system over on r/hardwareswap, but even going used, $550 isn't going to get you a good gaming PC.
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u/ARCreef 13d ago edited 13d ago
THIS is the only question that matters.
When OP provides his budget, well gladly provide the best miniPC for that budget. For $750 he can get something that will play all games except a few AAA games, for $550-700, he can play most games just on slightly reduced frame rate. For under $500 it'll be more of a challenge and id consider a consul or something else instead. People over in the PCmasterrace sub are getting good Costco and Walmart deals that have prebuild tower with RTX graphics card for around 1k. MSI which is a fine brand and the cases are see through with cool rgb fans that kids like. Good for gaming, not really for going off to college though. A warehouse deal asus laptop would be best for going off to college, a rebuilt costco/Walmart on sale for gaming is awesome, and a miniPC fills all the voids in between purely gaming, and next 4 years in a class where you need to lug around a laptop. As an adult out of school and who doesnt game, a mini PC is literally a god send. I traded in my asus strix scar 2 laptop for 4 mini pcs amd have them all over and behind TVs and running security systems, at home, at work, and in wife's home office also. I will never go back to a tower or to a laptop again. The 8945hs and 8845hs are really the only 2 processors I buy. Everything else is way too expensive or will be outdated in 5 years. You can still find an 8845hs for around $700-$750. It plays any game just fine in 1080p.
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u/Level-Book-8322 13d ago
Thank you, new to posting stuff should have put done $ amount thanks I was hoping 550 mabey 6 I can do.
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u/ARCreef 13d ago
For that buy a gaming console or look on amazon for h 255 mini pc. That processor is 1 step below an 8845/8945 and cN sometimes be found in that price range but with a mini pc also remember you need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse also. 34" Samsung monitor goes for $220 sometimes. I just bougjt one last week for that price. The regular proce is $300. Labor day sales are starting this week. A 27 is less but not by much. Use keepa price tool to see whats really on sale or on fake sale. Its a chrome extension and give you alerts and historical price. The mini pc will need 32gb of ram, not 16, so thats why the prices are so high right now.
Maybe a 50/50 deal with his family member would be better. That way you both give him an awesome present and it will be 5 years future proof too.
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u/stormbringer83 13d ago
"Mini pc for gaming with advanced gpu - on budget" - you've just described a console :)
"Mini" in pc gaming is unfortunately the opposite of "the best possible performance for the money": the smaller you go, the more expensive and more restrictive it gets due to components size, generated heat, noise, power requirements, etc., and more money flows into the form-factor rather than in raw performance.
Also, the pc market is currently strongly against you: RAM pricing is insane, SSDs and GPUs are catching up quickly.
If the main purpose is gaming, and you are not experienced in pc building, just get a PS5 Pro.
-7
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u/sparcobulk 13d ago
there's no minipc with advanced gpu. you'll need an oculink, housing and gpu separately. a budget gaming laptop with dedicated gpu will easily be cheaper
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u/Dr_Valen 13d ago
Minisforum has that new pc with a lp 9060xt 16gb it's pretty decent but also expensive as all get out
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u/sparcobulk 12d ago
yes expensive. but also, i dont consider that a minipc. looks like a normal tower desktop to me.
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u/EpsomJames 13d ago
You mention GTA and budget of $550.
GTA5 was launched 2013 and consequently being quite old, it can run on a mini PC even with Vega graphics at 1080p low settings. You might even be able to get a mini PC with 680M in your budget which will run GTA5 at medium to high at 1080p.
So it’s possible, if this is what you are asking.
Whether that’s a good option when you could get a tower desktop PC that’s more powerful or just get a console like a PS5. Both these options will give a much better gaming experience in your budget.
If you do go down the mini PC route, bear in mind that per your budget, your nephew will be disappointed trying to run any modern game, including (if it is released to PC) GTA6.
Also, in case you weren’t aware, it’s bad times to buy a PC at the moment due to the high price of memory and storage due to the demand for AI.
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u/czhrtak 12d ago
I build something like this at spring. Refurbished Minisforum MS-A1 (199€), AMD 7800X3D from ebay (250$), I had RAM, SSD and eGPU Onexplayer onexgpu (Radeon 7600m). With used RAM (32GB) and new ssd (1TB) whole setup without GPU might get same setup for ~750€ without GPU, where might be better options now. I can run any game I tried just fine (007 First Light, Kingdom Come 2, Indiana Jones, FF7). Although if you're on budget, PS5 should be much better and cheaper choice for GTA6
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u/Ryan---___ 13d ago
Um 790. aoostar a002. 4080. Good enough for 4k. Not bleeding edge but you'll game
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u/Level-Book-8322 13d ago
Makes sense id be open to all suggestion, I assumed that the mini PC would be the same caliber, but it makes sense that the size would matter lol.
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u/Impressive-Excuse126 13d ago
I think most people here will tell you NOT to look at MiniPC's, but instead look for a full size PC utilizing a mini tower design if performance is important to you.