Need help finding a console like pc or mini pc or whatever they are called?

DoomMarine

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Hi there, i am hoping you can help me finding a console like pc that is similar to the xbox one or playstation.

i know there is alienware, msi tridents & asus rogs.

are there any other options under 550 dollars that has a 1tb or 2tb with a solid state drive of 130 or 250 if possible?

what abouit console prebuilt pcs? the ones that you can customize with the system?

i hope im asking on the right site, if not can you send me to a correct one if possible?

thank you.
 
You can go for windows 10 , it is a normal PC
If you want a PS4/XB1 lookalike, then you have to bulid it by yourself , you need to wait for the case to be released
here:

https://hardforum.com/threads/sentry-2-0-evolution-of-console-sized-gaming-pc-case.1957662/

sounds like there are not whole lot of console pc options out there yet.

is the sentry 2.0 better than most cases that are out there?

looks like i be getting syber c series then as my main option.

by the way on the syber c series, do i have to have the keyboard or is it included in the pric e tag? cause i have an xbox one and i have two controllers, would i be able to use those on there?

i saw it can come with an external optical drive, would i be able to replace the keyboard pricetag with this instead so i can keep the pri cetag under 600 if possible or no?
 
You can use your Xbox controller with your PC using the Xbox One Wireless Adapter V2 for Windows 10

91C67F0A-0B5D-4240-B760-48FEF6C080EB.jpeg

Every windows PC needs a keyboard and mouse to play KB+mouse games , to install the games and software ,, to type the passwords , etc...

if you want to play a controller games only and plug your PC to the TV and use it as a gaming console then you can use a mini wireless keyboard with built-in mouse
5E2BC6BE-EB94-4D03-A776-C78FBB581B7E.jpeg

Also , you can send an email to Syber and ask all your other qustions.
Good luck
 
If you are looking for small PC cases you can build your own computer in to play video games, then check out some of the other threads in this section of the forum. The Sentry is just one of the PC cases you can find. If you are more flexible with your size or shape options, then look for the Ncase M1, the Dancase A4, the CCD MI-6, and more. I personally have the Ncase M1 and I’m waiting for the next production run of the CCD MI-6.

If you want to go really small, pre-built, and still powerful you should look for mini PCs like

https://www.gigabyte.com/us/Mini-PcBarebone/GB-BNi5HG6-1060-rev-10#ov

https://www.zotac.com/us/product/mini_pcs/magnus-en1080k-windows-10-home

https://www.asrock.com/nettop/Intel/DeskMini GTXRX/index.asp
 
You can use your Xbox controller with your PC using the Xbox One Wireless Adapter V2 for Windows 10

View attachment 108711

Every windows PC needs a keyboard and mouse to play KB+mouse games , to install the games and software ,, to type the passwords , etc...

if you want to play a controller games only and plug your PC to the TV and use it as a gaming console then you can use a mini wireless keyboard with built-in mouse
View attachment 108714

Also , you can send an email to Syber and ask all your other qustions.
Good luck

so sounds like its still required to have for the keyboard stuff to type, imagine it would be probably difficult to use on a mini pc for a controller to be used only. so im assuming it would be the same for all the other ones that are ou there that needs keyboard to be used for typeing stuff?

i have a 47 inch tv, will that work for this one?

thank you for your help, it helps alot.
 
If you are looking for small PC cases you can build your own computer in to play video games, then check out some of the other threads in this section of the forum. The Sentry is just one of the PC cases you can find. If you are more flexible with your size or shape options, then look for the Ncase M1, the Dancase A4, the CCD MI-6, and more. I personally have the Ncase M1 and I’m waiting for the next production run of the CCD MI-6.

If you want to go really small, pre-built, and still powerful you should look for mini PCs like

https://www.gigabyte.com/us/Mini-PcBarebone/GB-BNi5HG6-1060-rev-10#ov

https://www.zotac.com/us/product/mini_pcs/magnus-en1080k-windows-10-home

https://www.asrock.com/nettop/Intel/DeskMini GTXRX/index.asp

do the cases come with certain accessories to get you started on the cases or no?

how many companies are making the pc cases?

on the desktop mini from asus rock and gigabyte mini pc. can they be set horizontally?

on the sentry, is that the only pc case that is the size similar to xbox or playstation?

does that one come with certain accessories to start off with or no?

has it come out yet?
 
Any TV with HDMI input will work.

All Windows PC’s requires a keyboard and mouse to operate , unlike gaming consoles.

You need a PC with a decent dedicated graphics card to play games matching the consoles quality and performance and that is more expensive than buying a console.

If you need to know how to build a PC using a case and all other components then you need to watch some Youtube videos about that, and there are many.

PC’s from Syber, Gigabyte, Zotac, msi, Asus, Alienware and Asrock are pre-built PC’s or PC’s that does not need much components to be ready to be used (like barebone PC’s) (you need to buy the components separately) (some of them are Plug and Use PC’s without the need to add components)

Some PC’s does not work in horizontal placment because of the air flow design , check the product photos to confirm.

Good luck
 
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If you're new to pc building but want a smaller form factor pc case, the Fractal Design Node 202 is perfectly acceptable in terms of features, size and price. It is not as premium as some of the small, custom made, aluminum and steel cases here, but it'd be a much cheaper way to get you in to small form factor pc gaming.

I helped a friend build a pc in the Node 202 and it was fine. He hadn't had a desktop in years and he was shocked by how compact it was compared to typical towers. Not incredibly small like some of the custom cases here but it gets the job done here and now, relatively cheaply.
 
I agree that the Fractal Design Node 202 case would be a good, less expensive way to try out small form factor computer building.

I also agree that if you are not familiar with building your own computer, you really should look up some videos on YouTube. Just make sure that it is NOT the video made by the Verge, that one is terrible.

Here’s a couple links for example





These are general guides for both AMD and Intel systems.
 
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I'm afraid it's not really feasible with your budget, if your goal is to game on that.

Building a small form factor PC with comparable performance to a current console is not cheap.
Some of the cases suggested above already cost >$200 on their own. A complete system can easily cost more than double of your budget.
Barebone systems with discrete graphics are not cheap too. Expect $1000+ for one.

Closest thing you can get perhaps would be a pre-built like what you mentioned. They comes with everything: OS, mouse and keyboard etc.
But again, you can't really get performance like a xbox x on a PC without shelling out something like ~$1000
The cyberpower PC mentioned above only has onboard graphics which is OK for some light gaming. For heavier games, you really have to dial the graphical settings way down to have acceptable framerates.

I'd suggest talking with the sale reps to see if they can cough up a better deal (not just cyberpower but other pre-built vendors too)
 
Any TV with HDMI input will work.

All Windows PC’s requires a keyboard and mouse to operate , unlike gaming consoles.

You need a PC with a decent dedicated graphics card to play games matching the consoles quality and performance and that is more expensive than buying a console.

If you need to know how to build a PC using a case and all other components then you need to watch some Youtube videos about that, and there are many.

PC’s from Syber, Gigabyte, Zotac, msi, Asus, Alienware and Asrock are pre-built PC’s or PC’s that does not need much components to be ready to be used (like barebone PC’s) (you need to buy the components separately) (some of them are Plug and Use PC’s without the need to add components)

Some PC’s does not work in horizontal placment because of the air flow design , check the product photos to confirm.

Good luck


so sounds like no matter what pc system ethier its pre-built or not, will need keyboards regardless, good to know.

what price would you recommend for building pcs, since matching the quality of consoles would be expensive, what would you recommend for building pcs under a certain price point, cause the games i am planning on running would be: Quake 1-4, Doom 3 & Doom 2016, wolfenstein series, assassin creed series, tom clancy series, rts games & etc?.

so thes ones that i was looking at are pre-built ones.

so im guessing there are only several companies out there making these pre-built systems?

so horizontally for pc systems can only work if wasn't design for air flow.. that is very good to know.

the pc i have is good for running games like these, but it struggles to run modern games. it's one of the new products of amd i think and it has lights of different colors. has tons of ports and such. has a glass window on the left side and you can see on what it has in there.

yet it struggles to run games like assassin creed and etc. lol.

i also have an xbox one as well, But, sounds like for options of horizontally ones are small.

what about the companies that make pc systems for you after you customizeable ones like ironside, xidax, digital storm & etc?.
 
I'm afraid it's not really feasible with your budget, if your goal is to game on that.

Building a small form factor PC with comparable performance to a current console is not cheap.
Some of the cases suggested above already cost >$200 on their own. A complete system can easily cost more than double of your budget.
Barebone systems with discrete graphics are not cheap too. Expect $1000+ for one.

Closest thing you can get perhaps would be a pre-built like what you mentioned. They comes with everything: OS, mouse and keyboard etc.
But again, you can't really get performance like a xbox x on a PC without shelling out something like ~$1000
The cyberpower PC mentioned above only has onboard graphics which is OK for some light gaming. For heavier games, you really have to dial the graphical settings way down to have acceptable framerates.

I'd suggest talking with the sale reps to see if they can cough up a better deal (not just cyberpower but other pre-built vendors too)

sounds like the ones mention above are overpriced interesting.

so pre-builts once again are my option, good to know.

what are other vendors would you recommend, i only know several of them, are there more out there besides: Zotac, msi, asus, asrock, cyberpower & etc?.
 
I agree that the Fractal Design Node 202 case would be a good, less expensive way to try out small form factor computer building.

I also agree that if you are not familiar with building your own computer, you really should look up some videos on YouTube. Just make sure that it is NOT the video made by the Verge, that one is terrible.

Here’s a couple links for example





These are general guides for both AMD and Intel systems.


cool, thank you so much, i keep these guys in mind for building pcs.
 
sounds like the ones mention above are overpriced interesting.

so pre-builts once again are my option, good to know.

what are other vendors would you recommend, i only know several of them, are there more out there besides: Zotac, msi, asus, asrock, cyberpower & etc?.
There're many vendors and system builders. Basically most "big names" like dell, asus, lenovo, hp etc. all have their gaming desktop lines.
And assume you're in US? There're many system builders like ibuypower, maingear, cyberpower, digital storm etc.
But if you're looking for a smaller form factor machine, your choices become more limited.

I've just spotted this on newegg,
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod...21344R&cm_re=asus_gr8-_-83-221-344R-_-Product
It's a open box deal.(Be aware of the conditions) The spec looks quite impressive considered it's price. I think kabylake i5 + 1060 3GB would be quite sufficient for the games you play.
I've never bought from newegg nor used that machine before so I can't really "recommend" it. But on paper it looks very promising so definitely take a look
 
There're many vendors and system builders. Basically most "big names" like dell, asus, lenovo, hp etc. all have their gaming desktop lines.
And assume you're in US? There're many system builders like ibuypower, maingear, cyberpower, digital storm etc.
But if you're looking for a smaller form factor machine, your choices become more limited.

I've just spotted this on newegg,
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod...21344R&cm_re=asus_gr8-_-83-221-344R-_-Product
It's a open box deal.(Be aware of the conditions) The spec looks quite impressive considered it's price. I think kabylake i5 + 1060 3GB would be quite sufficient for the games you play.
I've never bought from newegg nor used that machine before so I can't really "recommend" it. But on paper it looks very promising so definitely take a look


yes im in us, califorina.

are lenovo systems any good?

what about maingear, how are these systems?

i been hearing alot of good from newegg, but recently something happen to the site and i believe it was hijacked or accounts were hacked or something like that.

the site is still around, but was hacked probably cause they saw how popular the site was.
 
Hi there, i am hoping you can help me finding a console like pc that is similar to the xbox one or playstation.

i know there is alienware, msi tridents & asus rogs.

are there any other options under 550 dollars that has a 1tb or 2tb with a solid state drive of 130 or 250 if possible?

what abouit console prebuilt pcs? the ones that you can customize with the system?

i hope im asking on the right site, if not can you send me to a correct one if possible?

thank you.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/6J4w8Y

You can build your own. G4560 + RX 570 is a little weaker than Xbox One X. For PCs, you generally pay upfront $100-200 if you're looking for same performance, that is saved back through PC sales and mostly free online.
 
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https://pcpartpicker.com/list/6J4w8Y

You can build your own. G4560 + RX 570 is a little weaker than Xbox One X. For PCs, you generally pay upfront $100-200 if you're looking for same performance, that is saved back through PC sales and mostly free online.

I'd follow this up by saying that with a little patience you could potentially find a deal on the 4gb RX580 for like $175 with rebate. iirc there was such a deal a week or two ago. Patience is key. It could make up to a 25% difference in the cost of a new build.

If you really want to keep price down used is a good option. There's cheaper ram, used on ebay, so you could get two sticks which doubles the memory bandwidth for the cpu. Having two sticks of cheap ram is better than just one stick of fancy ram.

And if you're willing to go used on the gpu maybe you can find a good deal on a 6GB GTX 1060 which would be a really solid graphics card. As of writing there's quite a few on ebay for ~$175 or less.

But if you don't want to go used, the above build is seriously good bang for the buck.
 
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I'd follow this up by saying that with a little patience you could potentially find a deal on the 4gb RX580 for like $175 with rebate. iirc there was such a deal a week or two ago. Patience is key. It could make up to a 25% difference in the cost of a new build.

If you really want to keep price down used is a good option. There's cheaper ram, used on ebay, so you could get two sticks which doubles the memory bandwidth for the cpu. Having two sticks of cheap ram is better than just one stick of fancy ram.

And if you're willing to go used on the gpu maybe you can find a good deal on a 6GB GTX 1060 which would be a really solid graphics card. As of writing there's quite a few on ebay for ~$175 or less.

But if you don't want to go used, the above build is seriously good bang for the buck.

so basically for pc building, i would have to try and figure it out on what i am going for hardwarewise and such depending on the price and where you go to get these hardware stuff.
 
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so basically for pc building, i would have to try and figure it out on what i am going for hardwarewise and such depending on the price and where you go to get these hardware stuff.

Yeah, have a budget in mind and get the best hardware possible within that budget. Whether that's used or new or a combination is up to you. Personally, I recommend getting the graphics card first since that is the high cost and game performance limiting factor. Others may have a different opinion..

This is of course assuming you want to go the DIY route. Expect to pay a 10-15% premium for pre-built from a major vendor for the same exact specs as a DIY pc. Sometimes more. OEMs tend to really up charge for things like ssd upgrades over old school spinning hard disks.
 
You might take a look at some of the mini PCs sold on AliExpress like the MSECORE i3 8100. With i3 8100, GTX 1050 Ti, 8GB ram and 128GB SSD cost is $600. If you look through the mini PCs available they have i5 and i7, 6th and 7th generation with GTX 960M for about the same price. Price is decent and they are very compact.
 
You might take a look at some of the mini PCs sold on AliExpress like the MSECORE i3 8100. With i3 8100, GTX 1050 Ti, 8GB ram and 128GB SSD cost is $600. If you look through the mini PCs available they have i5 and i7, 6th and 7th generation with GTX 960M for about the same price. Price is decent and they are very compact.

i haven't seen that site before, i defiantly keep my eye on this. thank you. looks like they have pretty good decent ones in there for the price range im looking for. how long have this site or company been around? i'm not familar with them? had no about this site existing with the price sim looking for. awesome site. this will help me alot.
 
Aliexpress has been around for a bit, China based so you may have not seen them before. I've bought custom PSU cables and a few other things from them, never had a problem.
 
Aliexpress has been around for a bit, China based so you may have not seen them before. I've bought custom PSU cables and a few other things from them, never had a problem.

i notice they had alot of stuff on sale, how often do they get discounts? are they alot better than most online shopping sites? how is the service, are they usually ontime?
 
Haven't shopped there enough to know much about their sales. They have a lot to choose from but navigating their site can be difficult. I am in the US and they are in China so shipping is slow, about 30 days.
 
Haven't shopped there enough to know much about their sales. They have a lot to choose from but navigating their site can be difficult. I am in the US and they are in China so shipping is slow, about 30 days.

not too bad. but, sounds like there products are worth it for the price they have.
 
not too bad. but, sounds like there products are worth it for the price they have.

Just be aware you may have zero warranty support on such products. Not always true but when ordering directly from China you may be getting parts that were not intended for North America. Hopefully each component would have its own warranty from their respective manufacturer, but you're definitely not going to get any support from the seller.
 
so sounds like its still required to have for the keyboard stuff to type, imagine it would be probably difficult to use on a mini pc for a controller to be used only. so im assuming it would be the same for all the other ones that are ou there that needs keyboard to be used for typeing stuff?

i have a 47 inch tv, will that work for this one?

thank you for your help, it helps alot.

That's not true. If you have an xbox controller there is an app that allows you to use the controller as a mouse and then you wouldn't need a keyboard. I use it at home all the time. The only problem is that you have to remove password login from your computer or get a usb key that automatically logs in for you, or buy a camera to do face log in or any of many other login options that don't require a password. Although if you are going for console like experience removing log in would be the most similar to a console.

For the keyboard you can just use the onscreen keyboard like you would with xbox or ps4.
 
That's not true. If you have an xbox controller there is an app that allows you to use the controller as a mouse and then you wouldn't need a keyboard. I use it at home all the time. The only problem is that you have to remove password login from your computer or get a usb key that automatically logs in for you, or buy a camera to do face log in or any of many other login options that don't require a password. Although if you are going for console like experience removing log in would be the most similar to a console.

For the keyboard you can just use the onscreen keyboard like you would with xbox or ps4.

Or steam controller works as mouse and keyboard in windows. I have the steam controller but I just couldn't get used to it. Some people like it though.

DoomMarine Also something to consider, if you plan on using the pc for playing games 95% of the time and want to go "full controller" just set Steam to launch when windows starts, in Big Picture mode and don't have a password on the pc (unless it's totally necessary for you) and it'll give you a very "console" experience. That's pretty much how I use my gaming pc in the living room.

As a pc gamer that plays on a living room TV, I just use one of the Logitech wireless keyboards with a TouchPad built in for when I'm not playing games and the Logitech f710 wireless controller which behaves just like an Xbox controller but has the joystick layout of Playstation which I prefer. Steams starts when the pc boots, in big picture mode. I only see the desktop for like 10 seconds until steam launches. It's straight into games basically.
 
Just be aware you may have zero warranty support on such products. Not always true but when ordering directly from China you may be getting parts that were not intended for North America. Hopefully each component would have its own warranty from their respective manufacturer, but you're definitely not going to get any support from the seller.

i keep that in mind about the warranty.
 
That's not true. If you have an xbox controller there is an app that allows you to use the controller as a mouse and then you wouldn't need a keyboard. I use it at home all the time. The only problem is that you have to remove password login from your computer or get a usb key that automatically logs in for you, or buy a camera to do face log in or any of many other login options that don't require a password. Although if you are going for console like experience removing log in would be the most similar to a console.

For the keyboard you can just use the onscreen keyboard like you would with xbox or ps4.

what app do i need to look for?

how would i remove the password login?
 
Or steam controller works as mouse and keyboard in windows. I have the steam controller but I just couldn't get used to it. Some people like it though.

DoomMarine Also something to consider, if you plan on using the pc for playing games 95% of the time and want to go "full controller" just set Steam to launch when windows starts, in Big Picture mode and don't have a password on the pc (unless it's totally necessary for you) and it'll give you a very "console" experience. That's pretty much how I use my gaming pc in the living room.

As a pc gamer that plays on a living room TV, I just use one of the Logitech wireless keyboards with a TouchPad built in for when I'm not playing games and the Logitech f710 wireless controller which behaves just like an Xbox controller but has the joystick layout of Playstation which I prefer. Steams starts when the pc boots, in big picture mode. I only see the desktop for like 10 seconds until steam launches. It's straight into games basically.


i'm not sure how people got use to the weird design choice for the steam controller, not sure what they were thinking at the time, i guess they wanted to be unique compared to other controllers.

how good are logitech controllers? are they decent well made compared to other brands?

what system do you use for pc gaming on the living room t.v?
 
i'm not sure how people got use to the weird design choice for the steam controller, not sure what they were thinking at the time, i guess they wanted to be unique compared to other controllers.

how good are logitech controllers? are they decent well made compared to other brands?

what system do you use for pc gaming on the living room t.v?

I use my own custom built pc with an LG OLED TV and a Dolby Atmos 5.1.2 surround sound setup. Not a very typical setup haha. My pc budget started out around $800 but I upgraded piece by piece over time until I had a very high end system that was probably around $1700 total. That's the nice thing about pc's, they can be upgraded over time as you get more money. I upgraded the cpu once, gpu once, doubled the ram, several new SSD's.

As for the controller it's not bad. Not quite as good as the stock ps4 or Xbox controller but totally usable. If you like Xbox layout, just get an Xbox controller. It'll work fine on pc. If you like Playstation layout you can try to use a ps4 controller but it's not the best experience. So I went with the wireless Logitech controller, it's been fine overall.
 
That's not true. If you have an xbox controller there is an app that allows you to use the controller as a mouse and then you wouldn't need a keyboard. I use it at home all the time. The only problem is that you have to remove password login from your computer or get a usb key that automatically logs in for you, or buy a camera to do face log in or any of many other login options that don't require a password. Although if you are going for console like experience removing log in would be the most similar to a console.

For the keyboard you can just use the onscreen keyboard like you would with xbox or ps4.
Or steam controller works as mouse and keyboard in windows. I have the steam controller but I just couldn't get used to it. Some people like it though.

In both cases, you need to have the requisite software installed, which requires a mouse/keyboard. You can navigate using a mouse or a keyboard, if you know how, but you still need at least one.
 
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