HARDWARE
PROCESSORIntel Core i5-
$We’re going back two generations with
this sub-$150 Comet Lake CPU, which is
a pretty good bet if you’re building on a
tight budget. With integrated Intel UHD
630 graphics and a cooler, it’s a well-
rounded product for a relatively small
outlay. This six-core, 12-thread CPU
should handle things pretty well, with up
to 4.3GHz clock speed from Intel’s Turbo
Boost technology 2.0. For our build, it
should be able to play games at a mid-
range level at 1080p and it should also
suit the rest of the rig nicely. intel.comSTORAGEPNY CS
480GB 2.5” SSD
$One of the most popular SSDs
from PNY, the CS900 is an ideal
price for our budget build. With
capacity options ranging from
120GB to a whopping 8TB, the
480GB model was the most
suitable for our machine though,
annoyingly, we couldn’t grab the
500GB version. This SATA-3 SSD
is also backward-compatible
with SATA-2 motherboards.
We’d try and get an M.
drive in here but, due to budget
constraints, this 2.5-inch format
makes an appearance once
again. Hidden out of the way of
the motherboard, it should make
this relatively straightforward
build that bit easier. pny.com$600 budget build
18 MAXIMU MPC MAR 2022