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The best desktop computers you can buy by Christian de Looper on Jan 30, 2018, 11:31 AM The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase. 
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A desktop computer can be more powerful than a laptop and offer more connectivity options for use at home or in your office. The best desktop you can buy is the Dell XPS Tower, thanks to its varied processor options, reasonable price, and many ports. Computer components have gotten smaller and more powerful, and laptops have become increasingly popular as a main computer for most people. That, of course, does not mean there isn’t a place for a great desktop computer in your home or office. After all, while laptops are perfectly capable of handling most tasks, some people just need a little extra oomph. For example, gamers need to be able to run high-performance games, video audio editors need powerful processing to work with high-resolution files, and so on. The average joe may want a desktop computer, too, because they can easily be customized, often feature disk drives, and allow for more connectivity with more ports. As with any computer, there are a few things to keep in mind when buying a desktop computer. For starters, you’ll want to think about the operating system that you prefer: Windows or MacOS. Operating system comes down to personal preference, though many find MacOS easier to use. Windows machines are cheaper and more widely compatible with programs and external devices, though. You’ll also want to think about how powerful you need the computer to be. Most of the computers on this list feature Intel Core i chips, which come in a range of models. At the most basic level, the entry-level chip is the i3, the mid-range the i5, and the high-powered option is the i7. Apart from the processor, there’s RAM, which impacts overall speed and day-to-day use; and storage, which dictates how many files — including videos and music — can be stored on the desktop. Now on to our top picks. SEE ALSO: The best all-in-one PCs you can buy The best desktop computer overall  Why you'll love it: The Dell XPS Tower is stylish, affordable, and highly customizable with its many processor, storage, and graphics card options. In our experience, the Dell XPS Tower is the best desktop PC you can buy. Although it's certainly not the most powerful option, it offers the best value for your money and decent processing power at an affordable price. The XPS Tower starts at $799.99 and comes with a range of options. You can get either an 8th generation Core i5-8400 processor, or go for a more powerful Core i7-8700 chip. The RAM options range from 8GB to 64GB, and there are dozens of storage options. You can choose both the type of storage and the amount you need. You can even get a high-powered graphics card like the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 if you want it. Safe to say, you’ll be able to get the exact specifications that you want. Of course, the more powerful components you choose, the more you’ll have to pay. The XPS Tower also has an optical drive, 11 total USB ports, two USB-C ports, and three USB-A ports. Dell says the desktop PC is VR-ready, too, so if you're interested in a high-powered VR headset, it's a good option. We aren’t the only ones that like the Dell XPS Tower. Tom’s Guide gave the computer a 9/10, praising it for almost everything except the lackluster keyboard and mouse — two parts that can be easily upgraded. You’ll also need to buy a display separately — the computer comes with a keyboard and mouse, but no display. Pros: Stylish, customizable, lots of options, lots of ports, starts at a relatively low price Cons: Included accessories aren’t great
The best gaming desktop computer  Why you'll love it: The Corsair One Pro is well-designed and offers plenty of connectivity, but the best thing about it is that it's powerful enough to handle graphically intense games. The Dell XPS Tower is a great computer, and you can customize it to have some pretty powerful components. But doing so can make for an expensive computer. What if you just want a high-powered computer out of the box and don’t want to customize one? Then the Corsair One Pro is the computer for you. There are plenty of reasons why the Corsair One Pro is the best gaming computer on the market. For starters, it’s beautifully designed with a nice sleek black look and blue lit highlights. More important than the design, however, is what’s under the hood. The computer comes with a top-of-the-line Intel Core i7-7700K quad-core processor, coupled with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics card, which is an absolute beast of a GPU. The RAM and storage are customizable, but there are plenty of options. It also has a solid-state hard drive with a capacity of 1TB, so it should be nice and fast. Plus, the desktop is able to hold plenty of files and games. As far as ports go, there are plenty to go around. The One Pro has a USB 3.1 port and HDMI 2.0 VR port on the front, but around the back, you’ll get a USB 3.1 Type-C port, three USB 3.1 Type-A ports, two USB 2.0 ports, and another HDMI port, among others. So what are the downsides? Well, as mentioned, there are only two ports on the front, and the computer isn’t very upgradeable. On top of that, it’s expensive, coming in at $2,099 or more on Amazon. Still, if you want a top-of-the-line machine, you’ll need to pay for it, and this is the one we recommend buying. Pros: Ultra powerful, plenty of ports on the back, stylish design Cons: Expensive, limited ports on the front, limited user upgradability
The best Apple desktop computer  Why you'll love it: The Apple iMac is well-designed, powerful, and easy to use, thanks to MacOS. While gaming can be a bit tough on a Mac, there’s something to say for how well Macs work with the rest of Apple’s ecosystem and how easy they generally are to use. Plenty of people prefer Macs over Windows computers, and if that’s you, thankfully there are some great desktop options for you, too. Which iMac is the best? While the Mac Pro is the most powerful, we think the good ol’ iMac offers the best value for money coupled with a relatively high level of performance. The computer comes in two main styles: one with a 21.5-inch display and one with a 27-inch display. The entry-level 21.5-inch computer offers a 7th-gen Intel Core i5 processor, coupled with 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard disk drive. Sure, it’s not the most powerful computer out there, but the options only range up from there. Perhaps the best thing about the computer is its beautiful all-in-one design. The computer is built into a large display, so you get a nice screen along with a relatively nice computer. So what are the downsides? Well, the iMac is a little expensive for the performance it offers, though as you may have seen with the Corsair desktop, Windows computers can certainly get pretty expensive, too. Plenty of reviewers loved the computer, too. TechRadar and MacWorld both gave the computer a hefty 4/5 stars. Pros: Nice design, can get powerful, MacOS is easy to use Cons: A bit expensive
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