I'd argue there's a good case to be made for buying a high-end PC right now if you're looking to upgrade your system. With the global memory shortage showing no signs of slowing, if there's a good deal on a high-end rig, you can rest a little more secure knowing that you won't need to upgrade as prices continue to rise. And I'd say this Andromeda Insights PC I've just spotted on sale for $2,350 at Newegg is a good contender in this respect.
The market isn't very pretty right now, so we shouldn't be expecting RTX 5080 rigs on sale for $2,000 anymore—at least not with any real frequency. But where most discounts still have RTX 5080 machines sitting north of $2,500, this one for $2,350 rings about right.
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And while system builders and OEMs seem to have ditched the idea of fitting 32 GB of RAM into most well-priced budget and mid-range systems, they can't really get away with that in a high-end rig like this. So you're getting 32 GB of RAM, and it's full-fat DDR5 too.
RTX 5080 vs competing GPUs @ 1440p
These are frame rates for the RTX 5080, RTX 5070 Ti, and RX 9070 XT tested at 1440p.
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
RTX 5070 Ti
84
74
RTX 5080
95
83
RX 9070 XT
82
73
0255075100
| Product | Value |
|---|---|
| RTX 5070 Ti | 84 Avg FPS, 74 1% Low FPS |
| RTX 5080 | 95 Avg FPS, 83 1% Low FPS |
| RX 9070 XT | 82 Avg FPS, 73 1% Low FPS |
That RAM is going to pair nicely with the Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus. Our testing for the non-F version of this chip (the only difference between the two being the inclusion of integrated graphics) is more than enough to show it's worthy of sitting next to the RTX 5080. It performs practically as well as a Core Ultra 7 chip in productivity/content creation, and for gaming it's even a little better.
The price-to-performance of that chip is probably part of what's helping keep this rig on the right side of $2,500, so no complaints here. Though of course the ideal would be an AMD X3D chip.
The RTX 5080 is, of course, the fastest mainstream GPU on the market, given the RTX 5090 is just so far beyond the reach of anyone with a semblance of a budget. It can easily handle modern games at 1440p, often at a high refresh rate, and it can even play many games at 4K without breaking much of a sweat. Only the handful of most demanding games will make RTX 5080 struggle at max settings on high resolutions.
If you're happy spending extra, then something like this Skytech build for $2,800 at Newegg will get you something tippity-top for gaming, but for the right side of $2,500, I'd be opting for the Andromeda Insights rig.
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Jacob got his hands on a gaming PC for the first time when he was about 12 years old. He swiftly realised the local PC repair store had ripped him off with his build and vowed never to let another soul build his rig again. With this vow, Jacob the hardware junkie was born. Since then, Jacob's led a double-life as part-hardware geek, part-philosophy nerd, first working as a Hardware Writer for PCGamesN in 2020, then working towards a PhD in Philosophy for a few years while freelancing on the side for sites such as TechRadar, Pocket-lint, and yours truly, PC Gamer. Eventually, he gave up the ruthless mercenary life to join the world's #1 PC Gaming site full-time. It's definitely not an ego thing, he assures us.
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