Gaming PC on a PS4 budget: SA pricing

It’s a debate that gamers love to have: is the PlayStation 4 better than a gaming PC when you take bang for your bucks into account?

To try and answer this question, we took a standard PS4 bundle and attempted to build a decent gaming rig for the same price.

The basic PlayStation 4 bundle currently sells for R6,799 in SA, and includes the 500GB console, one controller, and the necessary HDMI and power cables.

In putting together the competing budget PC, we had to source a CPU, GPU, RAM, motherboard, hard drive, power supply, case, keyboard, mouse, and a Windows licence for R6,799.

Below are an AMD and Intel build, based on similar projects conducted by GameSpot and Eurogamer’s Digital Foundry, specified to match the gaming performance of the PS4 console.

Both systems were able to run AAA titles such as Battlefield 4 and Thief in 1080p, above 50fps.

Intel System
CPU	Intel Pentium G2130 3.2GHz	R 807.00
GPU	Nvidia GTX750 Ti 2GB	R 2 399.00
RAM	Corsair 4GB DDR3	R 522.00
Motherboard	Asus H61M	R 907.00
Hard Drive	Seagate 500GB 7,200 RPM	R 679.00
Case/PSU	Thermaltake Tower/500W	R 844.00
Keyboard	Thermaltake eSport	R 87.00
Mouse	Logitech V100	R 93.00
OS	Windows 8 64 Bit	R 1 075.00
Total		R 7 413.00

The Intel system came in at a few hundred rand more that the PS4 price without compromising on the quality of the components used.

AMD System
CPU	AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz	R 1 708.00
GPU	Nvidia GTX750 Ti 2GB	R 2 399.00
RAM	Corsair 4GB DDR3	R 522.00
Motherboard	Asus M5A78L-M	R 943.00
Hard Drive	Seagate 500GB 7,200 RPM	R 679.00
Case/PSU	Thermaltake Tower/500W	R 844.00
Keyboard	Thermaltake eSport	R 87.00
Mouse	Logitech V100	R 93.00
OS	Windows 8 64 Bit	R 1 075.00
Total		R 8 350.00

The AMD system was slightly more pricey than its Intel alternative, but comes with a more powerful processor.

Our friends over at Evetech showed us how it should be done. Below is their Console Killer deal – a gaming PC for, you guessed it, R6,799.

Evetech’s Console Killer
CPU	Intel Pentium G3220 3GHz
GPU	Radeon R7260X 2GB 128Bit
RAM	8GB DDR3
Motherboard	MSI H81 USB 3.0
Hard Drive	1TB 7200 RPM
Case/PSU	NZXT Trempest 410/500W
Optical	24x Dual Layer DVD Writer

Taking into account the extra R200 for a keyboard and mouse, and Evetech’s deal is close enough to the PS4 price to be a console competitor. It does not include a Windows license, though.

That being said, the PS4 comes in a box, you plug it in, and you are ready to go. PCs have a way of complicating matters sometimes, but that is a discussion for another day.

Here’s your chance PS4 and PC fans – have at each other in the comments and forum.