Barebones gaming PC: best barebone computers for gaming 2022
We take alook at the best barebones gaming PC out there.
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After spending 43 hours of extensive research and comparison, we finally concluded that the best barebones prebuilt gaming PC this 2022 is the Intel NUC8 NUC8i7HVK. It is packed with an 8th Gen Intel Core i7 processor that’s unlocked, has a lot of connectivity ports, and a graphics card that’s VR capable– perfect for dead serious gamers who want power in a portable box.
Our Top Picks
How We Choose
The most important component that you need to check when investing in a barebones computer is the included graphics card. In fact, this was one of the determining factors that led us to choose the 5 kits in this article.
Barebones PCs are usually not designed for gaming purposes because their compact size isn’t designed to dissipate hot air efficiently. But we scoured the internet to find barebone computer kits that are preinstalled with a good graphics card and has good airflow.
All but our budget pick comes preinstalled with a decent graphics card that’s more than enough to deliver a quality experience in the 720p to 1080p territory. In fact, our second pick can handle games smoothly at 1440p resolution.
Things To Consider
Barebones gaming PCs are preferred by a specific group of gamers who travel a lot or just prefer a small setup. They’re light, compact, and can even pack a more powerful punch than a regular gaming desktop if paired with the right hardware.
It’s also worth noting that, unlike ready to go mini-PCs, barebones PC kits don’t usually come prebuilt with a RAM and hard drive, which makes them relatively cheap upfront. However, this also means you’ll have to buy a hard drive and RAM for it to even start to work.
Now with that covered, here are the features you should look into before buying one:
Processor (CPU)
The processor is usually– but not always– included in the package. This is why you have to carefully choose a mini-PC that comes with a CPU that can handle your needs with ease.
Today, you can find barebones gaming PCs that are powered with the latest processors. In fact, some of the items on our list below utilize an 8th Gen Intel Core i5 processor. And that’s more than enough to deliver a smooth gaming experience.
Graphics Card (GPU)
Most barebones gaming PCs usually come with an integrated mobile graphics card; others come pre-installed with a dedicated graphics card.
While it’s true that some of the models mentioned below utilize a graphics card that performs just as good as a GT 1030 dedicated graphics card, it still isn’t enough to deliver a quality AAA gaming experience.
You’ll need a more powerful graphics card if you wish to play at 1080p on ultra or max settings, such as a GTX 1060, a GTX 1070, or a GTX 1080 and their respective Ti variants (for GTX 1070 and GTX 1080) to experience a far better quality gaming graphics and performance. So make sure you know which graphics card is best for your gaming rig and needs if you aren’t sure.
Sadly, a lot of these rigs are too small for larger, more powerful GPUs. However, thanks to technology like Razer Core X and Gigabyte Aorus Gaming Box, you can hook up a dedicated graphics card to your minicomputer (or laptop) by plugging your dedicated GPU inside and hooking it up to your rig via a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C).
Size and Weight
Make sure you’re aware of its dimensions and weight. Although they’re known to be small and light, barebones gaming PCs come in different sizes and weights. Barebones gaming PCs can be as large as a laptop or as small as a gaming mouse’s box.
If you travel a lot and you want one that’s very compact and light, then you’d be better off going with a very small one.
Storage and Memory (RAM) Compatibility and Limit
Some barebones gaming PCs don’t come with a storage device and RAM while some do.
You’ll want to get at least 250 GB of SSD storage (but more is better) and at least 8GB of RAM.
While you can use 2.5” SSDs (or external SSDs) RAM compatibility can differ from one barebones gaming PC to another because of their diminutive size– so make sure you double check.
Connectivity
You’ll also need to pay attention to the I/O (input and output) ports included on the model you buy, since it can vary greatly. Most barebones PCs should have some (if not all) of the following:
- Mic and headphone jack
- USB port
- LAN port
- HDMI/DisplayPort
- VESA mount
How To Choose the Best Barebones Gaming PC for You?
Are you going to use it for CPU intensive games/apps? There are a lot of CPU options these things come with. From really slow Atom/Celeron/Pentium based processors to quad-core i7 mobile processors.
If you’re going to be using it to play browser games, lower end indie games, and other light games, a Core i7 won’t be necessary. A lower-end CPU should do just fine. In fact, for some of these games, its integrated mobile graphics card chip should shoulder most of the burden.
On the flip side, go with Core i5’s and i7’s if you wish to play AAA-titles. You’ll also want to consider pairing it with an external graphics card dock/enclosure as mentioned above; although you might not have an option.
How much memory do I need? Most of these can support at least 32GB of RAM, while some even support up to 128GB. If you’re going to be using this for streaming, you’ll definitely benefit from having at least 16GB of RAM.
Now that we have everything covered, here are the 5 best barebones gaming PC we would recommend buying.
The The 5 Best Barebones Gaming PC
In-depth Review
- VR ready
- Compact
- Includes a VESA mounting plate
- Has a lot of I/O ports
- Expensive
An all-rounder barebones gaming PC like the Intel NUC8 NUC8i7HVK could be considered ideal for most gamers needs in the mini-PC realm. This smaller form factor PC packs a powerful punch and has one of the more interesting designs on the list with a glowing skull on top of the case.
Looking at the connectivity department, you have the following:
- 3x USB 3.1 (Gen2)
- Type-C ports (two at the rear and one on the front), two of which support Thunderbolt 3
- 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 output
- Can support up to 6x displays with excellent expansion
This NUC (Next Unit of Computing) model is also loaded with a Core i7-8809G processor on top of having a decent Radeon RX Vega M GH graphics card. That’s more than enough to handle AAA titles and even VR!
Its compact size and design make it ideal in the living room and small spaces. Out of the box, it comes with the power adapter and VESA plate. This means you can hook this to the back of the monitor or television to give the appearance of a smart TV/ no wire setup.
The performance from this HTPC is very surprising but with its high price tag makes sure you plan on playing games with this otherwise it could be a bit overkill.
If you play competitively and don’t want to buy an external dock for a dedicated GPU, then forget about the rest of the list as the Zotac Magnus EN1060K-U-W2B packs the most powerful graphics card among them (GTX 1060) paired with a competent processor (Intel Core i5-7500T).
Like the all-rounder, this is a VR-ready machine, so you can enjoy your favorite VR games anytime, anywhere. It also comes preinstalled with a Windows 10 OS.
That aside, you won’t just have to stick with 1080p gaming with this machine; you’ll start to climb into 1440p territory with this sheer power.
If you prefer a ready-to-use option, you can do so easily by choosing the package that also comes with 120GB SSD + 1TB HDD for storage and 8GB RAM. It’s also surprisingly quiet despite having so much power.
You’ll also find a handful of ports in this machine:
- Mic and Headphone jack
- 2x Ethernet ports
- 2x USB 3.0
- 1x USB 3.1 Type-C
- 1x USB 3.1
- 2x USB 2.0
All in all, this is a very solid choice for those who prefer a plug-and-play high-performance barebones mini PC– it’s small and compact although you have to remember that this is the most expensive item on the list.
- Low-pitched fan noise
- Elegant design
- Supports 4K resolution natively
- Compact
- VESA compatible
- No Thunderbolt 3s port
- Only uses Intel UHD
The Gigabyte GB-BRI5H-8250 is just like any barebones gaming PC on the list. But it is packed with a relatively different spec under the hood.
Thankfully, the performance is much better than the appearance. Inside you’ll find the Intel Core i5-8250U and an integrated Intel HD graphics card.
It supports 4K resolution natively and can support multiple displays. So if you want to have multiple displays for productivity or you want to stream, it is possible.
Like the rest, this has the regular ports-on-the-side setup. It also has a black design that’s comparable to most barebones gaming PC on the list.
It’s no surprise that this has a lot of ports, and these are as follows:
- Mini DisplayPort Outputs (Supports dual displays)
- 2 x USB 3.1 (1 x USB Type-C)
- 2 x USB 3.0
One thing that really sets this apart from a few of the barebones PC kits on the list is the fact that this is a VESA compatible small machine.
What makes this great is the fact that this can support an M.2 SSD and has 2x SO-DIMM DDR4 RAM slots.
- Plug and play
- Has a custom gamer design
- Steam OS theme for Steam gamers
- Compatible with console controllers
- Does not support every Steam game
- May load longer
The Alienware Alpha ASM100-1580 is actually unique in that it is installed with the Steam OS. Much like a Linux OS, this has a dedicated purpose; in this case, that would be for Steam gamers.
It should be noted that most games are not supported by Steam OS, so you will likely want to install Windows 10 ASAP.
Inside you’ll find an Intel Core i3-4130T processor inside along with a GTX 860M graphics card which is more than enough to run most indie titles and even older AAA games smoothly at 720p 60FPS or 1080p 30FPS, depending on the graphical settings. New AAA-titled games will definitely need more power for a decent experience.
It also comes preinstalled with 4GB of DDRL3 memory at 1600MHz (although you’ll like want 8GB of RAM) and a 500GB 5400RPM hard drive.
Connectivity isn’t as rich as the others above but you still have enough:
- 2x USB 2.0 (at the front)
- 2x USB 3.0 (at the back)
- 1x Ethernet port
- 1x HDMI out 1.4
- 1x HDMI in
- Mic and audio jack
Upgrading the processor to an Intel Core i7 chip is also possible AND recommended so you can play the latest games.
- VESA mount compatible
- Affordable
- Powerful processor
- Compact design
- Supports 4K resolution natively
- Only has Intel HD 620 graphics card
The ASUS UN65U-M022M is our budget pick thanks to its relatively powerful Intel Core i5-7200U. You know how earlier we said you should always get a powerful processor, even if the GPU isn’t great? Well, this is a sterling example of that at play.
Keep in mind that this one does not have RAM, HDD or SSD, or an OS. Even factoring this in, however, it will still be cheaper than the 4 above options.
For the price, this has enough connections at your disposal:
- 4x USB 3.0 ports
- 1x 4-in-1 card reader
- 1x HDMI port
- 1x DisplayPort
- 1x Ethernet port
Overall, this barebones gaming PC is enough if you’re starting out. It’s compact and lightweight and just powerful enough to give you an acceptable performance on titles that aren’t too demanding. However, if you plan on doing some serious gaming, you will need to invest in an external graphics card and a device that lets you utilize it, like the Razer Core X and Gigabyte Aorus Gaming Box.
Final Word
Choosing a barebones gaming PC for you to enjoy for hours on end should not be hard. By following this guide, you should be able to make the right choice.
There you have it! If you’re still reading this now, chances are that you already have a good hint at what you want. Consider sharing it down in the comments or tell us if you have a better idea in mind. We’d love to hear from our audiences!
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