8 Best Desktop Computers for Sale in South Africa

Operating System and Processor

When selecting a processor and OS, speed is crucial. Multicore processors process more data simultaneously. How fast a processor processes information depends on its gigahertz clock speed, core count, and other parameters. Many CPUs can temporarily boost speed for maximum performance. Higher clock speeds mean faster processors within a family. Around 1 GHz is usual for mobile processors. Desktop processors can approach 5 GHz.If you want a cheap computer to browse the web, check email, and work on Office documents, any processor should work. You should start with Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 5 processors for HD videos and mainstream games.

Operating systems: Windows and MacOS perform similar things, but differently. Choose the one you want unless you need an OS-specific software. Most computers run Windows, while Apple’s iMac, Mac Mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro run MacOS. ChromeOS-based Chromebox is cheaper and easier to operate than a Windows PC or Mac, but it can’t run Windows or Mac software. 

Just How Much RAM Do You Need?

Computers with greater memory are faster, up to a point. Gigabytes are used to measure memory. These days, most computers have 8GB of RAM, and the best ones have 16GB or more. Aim for 8GB if you don’t usually have a lot of demanding apps open at the same time.

Hard Drives

Hard drives come in a range of sizes, from 250GB to more than 1TB, which are measured in gigabytes and terabytes. Additionally, speed is significant and is determined in rpm, which stands for “revolutions per minute.” If your hard drive is slow, it will take longer to initialise the operating system and programmes, as well as finish jobs like setting up programmes or virus scanning. A PC with a hard drive speed of at least 7,200 rpm will work the best. 

Solid State Drives

Hard drives that use moving parts are slower than solid state drives (SSDs). This is because SSDs don’t have any moving parts. If your computer has a regular hard drive, which has a spinning hard disc and uses more power than an SSD, adding an SSD can really speed it up.

Optical Drives

An external optical drive that plugs into a USB port can help you play CDs and DVDs, access old files or watch movies that aren’t on a streaming service.

Graphics

The GPU drives the screen and generates what is displayed, as well as speeding up graphics-related (and increasingly AI-related) activities. Apple’s M2 and M3 processors integrate GPUs for Macs. Windows desktops have integrated (iGPU) or discrete GPUs. An iGPU is part of the CPU package, but a dGPU is a separate chip with dedicated memory (VRAM) that communicates directly with the CPU, making it faster.

Because it shares space, memory, and power with the CPU, the iGPU is limited. It works with all-in-ones and SFF PCs but isn’t as powerful as a dGPU. Some games and creative apps require a dGPU or enough VRAM to run. An iGPU can run most productivity, video, web, and other non-specialised apps.

A dGPU is needed for video editing, gaming, streaming, design, and other graphics-intensive tasks. They are only made by Nvidia and AMD, however Intel sells some with Xe-branded (or UHD Graphics-branded) iGPU technology in its CPUs.

Storage

While it is still possible to find budget desktops equipped with cheaper hard drives and gaming PCs featuring larger hard drives, quicker solid-state drives (SSDs) have virtually supplanted hard drives. They can significantly affect performance. SSDs vary in performance, with lesser-priced desktops generally featuring slower drives. Your computer may soon slow down while you’re working if it ends up going to the drive with the least amount of RAM, which is 8GB. 

Get whatever you can afford, but for the majority of consumers, at least 512GB for a desktop is recommended. For storing extensive game or media libraries, get at least 1 terabyte. It is typically possible to accommodate a compact drive by incorporating an additional internal drive into a tower PC. When a compact internal drive is needed to supplement an all-in-one or SFF PC, it is typically more convenient to utilise an external drive or cloud storage.

Price

Acer, Asus, Dell, and HP provide inexpensive PC towers that last for years. Windows 11 minimum specs:

• AMD Ryzen 5 (5000, 6000, or 7000 series) or Intel Core i5 (12th or 13th generation)

• Basic integrated graphics (Intel UHD, Iris, AMD Radeon)

• 16GB RAM or higher; 

• 512GB NVMe SSD disc or greater.

• Four+ USB 3.1or 3.2. At least one or two front-facing USB-C/USB-A ports

• Bluetooth and Wi-Fi wireless

• Minimum one PCI-E (x16) slot for video card expansion

Upgrade RAM and graphics if you game or edit images or movies on a PC. More advanced video cards cost more.

AMD Radeon RX or Nvidia RTX GPU

• At least 16GB RAM 

• 450-watt power supply