Since man (or woman) was first able to game, PCs have long been the technology of choice.
And while I’ve spent my entire PC gaming life using just two custom built PCs in 16 years, the time had come for me to upgrade. So out the call went, and in the products rolled – and the perfect alternative gaming set up was built.
Yes, these products were gift – or loaned – but that doesn’t stop me from being honest, if not brutal on one occasion (sorry in advance, BenQ). To test these products out, I used the Xbox for Windows app, playing Forza Racing, as well as bench-marching the mini-PC (we’ll get to that) using Linus Tech Tip’s favourite software, Cinebench.
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But what does make this the best alternative gaming set-up? Well, it won’t break the bank, it doesn’t take up a small house in size and you will feel like you’re playing with a top-spec PC, without emptying your wallet to do so. And while this is not the definitive guide, it has the screen, PC, mouse and keyboard you’ll need to go gaming mad.
Geekom AX8 Pro – 9.5/10
I have never used a mini PC until now, and was always a little wary of what they were about. How could something so small pack so much power, I thought. Well, I was wrong to not be immediately enthused and have spent the last month using the Geekom AX8 Pro as my daily driver.
It is, in a word, impressive. Built on the all-new 4nm process, the 45W AMD Hawk Point Ryzen 8040 series processor (up to Ryzen 9 8945HS) found in the AX8 Pro features as many as eight Zen 4 CPU cores, 16 threads and 16MB of L3 cache, offering you top-tier performance in just about any computing scenarios.
It also has the new AMD Radeon780M, dual channel 32gb DDR5 RAM (upgradable to 64GB) and a 1TB SSD (also upgradable). The power is undeniable, and it scored a whopping 16,344 on Cinebench – ranking third on the list.
It handled any game I threw at it with ease, and is smaller than your average Biro pen. It’s only downfall is that it doesn’t have enough USB 2 or C ports for me – it has two HDMI, two USB C and four USB 2.0 – so I had to be an hub to cover this.
However, putting that to one side, I can not recommend this machine highly enough. It is stunning, powerful and silent when in action. The price is currently on sale at £749, with Daily Star readers getting 5% off by clicking here and using code DailyStarAX8 until September 30 – and an extra £10 off if you join Geekom’s mailing list.
Cherry Xtrfy KV52 – 10/10
I have longed for a mechanical keyboard for years, and Cherry’s Xtryfy KV52 proved my longing to be correct. The keys are the perfect height for fast typers, the LED colours are as stunning, yet non-intrusive nice touch, and the noise it makes when you press down on each key is just SO satisfying.
It classes itself as a “small, 65% gaming keyboard” which to me can be a little off-putting, because the word “small” would seem like a negative to many. But having had my hands – or fingers – on this for the last few weeks, it really isn’t “small” at all. Yes, it’s missing the keypad many would like on the right, but you don’t notice that after a few days and start to appreciate how special this piece of tech really is.
Connected via USB 2.0, it also comes with a removal tool for key caps, and two space switches, to make repairs or customisation super simple. Currently priced at £127.69 on Amazon in transparent white, the equally swanky black comes in cheaper at £95.94
It’s worth the price, and then some, but if that’s too much for you then I can also recommend the slightly cheaper Logitech MK950, although that isn’t mechanical and has no LED lights – but it does come with a mini Bluetooth mouse.
Alienware Pro wireless gaming mouse – 8.5/10
I have always wanted to get my hands on an Alienware product – which is Dell’s top-of-the-line gaming products. I was not disappointed by it’s Dark Side Of The Moon edition of its pro gaming mouse.
Priced at £149.99, it’s light, smooth, fast, and almost perfect for gaming with. Weighing less than 60g, you won’t feel your hand getting fatigued with this, and it comes with the backing of the most awarded team in E-sports history in Team Liquid.
It has both 4KHz wireless and 8KHz wired polling rates, equating to 0.25ms and 0.125ms response time respectively, and can also be customised by its own Alienware Command Centre software.
The only downfall of this mouse for me is that I was a little on the small size – which is where my next recommendation comes in – but that’s extremely personal, and many will find this to be just the perfect size.
Logitech G502 X Lightspeed wireless gaming mouse – 9.5/10
This is the mouse that I would recommend for anyone who wants an ergonomic beauty of slightly bigger proportions. It costs £109.99 – currently on offer on Amazon at the time of writing – but is well worth the price.
This isn’t your bog-standard mouse, by any means. For the techies among us, it has all-new hybrid optical-mechanical switch technology for incredible speed and reliability, as well as precise actuation with crisp response, for hours of performance gaming, and an extremely precise 25K gaming sensor – as well as a DPI-shift button and dual-mode scroll wheel.
The ergonomic shape, and little lip where your thumb sits, is designed perfectly. It also has customisable LED lights, which is always a winner with me. I don’t have a negative things to say about this, and it even works via a rechargeable internal battery last several hours (I haven’t had it run out after two weeks of usage yet).
If this is slightly too costly for you, there is a cheaper option with the G309 – it’s not got the same design but had pretty much the same spec.
BENQ Zowie range – no rating
I’m sorry to whoever made this range at BenQ, but I couldn’t make friends with it. It was an odd size, odd shape, comes with a gimmicky ariel that no mouse really needs – and I just can’t find anything nice to say about it when it costs £129 at full price.
Sorry!
HUAWEI AD80HW – 8/10
I have been using this 24 inch full HD 1080p monitor for around two years now, and I still think this is great value for money at £250. Sometimes it’s worth splashing out, and this monitor is one of those things I would recommend doing so for.
It has a 90% screen-to-body ratio, a 72% NTSC colour scope and 1000:1 contrast ratio, making it one of the most vivid screens available for that price. If you’re going to splash on one thing, make it this.
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