Is it worth it? - CybertronPC Electrum QS-A4 Gaming Desktop

The CybertronPC seems to be a good deal at first glance, at least for an average person, but unfortunately it is quite the opposite when you try the newest games. A high clocked 3.8GHz processor (4GHz with boost), 8GB of RAM, 1TB of storage and AMD Radeon HD 8470D graphics card look pretty good on paper, but in reality the pretty weak dual-core AMD cpu and integrated graphics are not suitable for most modern games. Let's take a popular game like Witcher III which requires a minimum 3GHz AMD quad-core processor and a AMD Radeon HD 7870 graphics card (like other popular games like PUBG etc). It seems like an easy pass, 3.8GHz is higher than 3GHz and HD 8470D is bigger number than HD 7870. Unfortunately this CybertronPC is far below minimum requirements, the game requires  3GHz 4 core processor and it only has 2 core at 3.8GHz and the graphics cards performance is only a fraction of required HD 7870.
On the better side the 8GB of RAM (although older DDR3) and the 1TB mechanical HDD are pretty normal for computers even twice the price. This PC is fine for low demanding games like WoW, LoL and so on, but don't expect to play AAA games from recent years. If you wonder why there are still some people raving about this CybertronPC gaming computer, it is because a lot of these cheap "gaming computers" are being gifted by not so tech savy person to their kids or grandkids. Often you see reviews like "I bought it for my 9 year old son and he seems to like it, so 10 out of 10!"


Processor:
The dual-core A4-7300 Richland based AMD APU costs around and it is one of the cheapest processors you could buy as new, even cheaper that Intel Celeron series CPUs. It runs at 3.8 GHz base clock and 4.0 GHz turbo and it is equipped with a Radeon HD8470D GPU.  The high GHz number seems tempting, but in reality this 3.8Ghz AMD APU is slower than 2.8GHz Celeron. Some modern games won't even start with a 2 core, so buying graphics card costing over $150 (like GTX 1060 or RX 580) is pointless because of the CPU bottleneck.

Graphics card:
There is no dedicated graphics, integrated Radeon HD8470D GPU is not suitable for new games. You can buy a $100 video card to upgrade gaming performance.

RAM:
Due to the FM2/FM2+ socket, it can only use DDR3 ram, not DDR4 like newest AM4 Ryzen CPUs and latest Intel processors. 8GB is plenty for this kind of computer, the processor is not suitable for extreme multitasking anyway which would require 16GB of ram.

Storage:
1TB mechanical hard drive is the norm for computers from $400 to $800. An SSD would be a good upgrade for any desktop because of faster booting, loading times and overall experience.

Case and power supply
The case is modern looking and definitely has more options for upgrading than cheap office computers, but you might need a new power supply if you plan to upgrade the PC. It is because most cheap "gaming computers" come with very cheap no-name brand PSUs. Keep in mind this desktop doesn't come with an optical drive, so you would need an external USB DVD drive. Modern cases don't often have an internal slot for your DVD or Blu-ray drive.


Pros:
Just enough of RAM and storage for the price
Nice looking case
One of the cheapest PC with a "gamer look"

Cons:
Only a dual-core processor
Integrated graphics card

Other:
Power supply not suitable for massive upgrades
No optical drive or wireless
Needs about $200 in upgrades to play newest games



Specs:
AMD A4-7300 3.80GHz Dual-Core
8GB DDR3 memory
1TB SATA HDD
Windows 10 Home 64-bit operating system
AMD Radeon HD 8470D GPU
No Optical Drive
Keyboard and Mouse
Gaming Mid-Tower with a 400 Watt Power Supply (unknown brand)
1 Year Parts & Labor Warranty | Free Lifetime Tech Support


What are the alternatives?

For under $400

Refurbished HP Pavilion 510-p127c

Refurbished, but better in almost everything. Quad-core instead of dual, more ram, has a dedicated gpu, so it can play some newer games. More modern platform. Case and power supply are not upgrade friendly.


Lenovo Ideacentre 300 Desktop Computer, Black (Intel Core i3, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB HDD, Windows 10) 90DA00LPUS 

Much better processor, but case and powersupply are not upgrade friendly. IGPU is better than AMD A4's.


Acer Aspire Desktop, 7th Gen Intel Core i3-7100, 8GB DDR4, 1TB HDD, Windows 10 Home, TC-780-ACKi3

It is cheaper and similar to the Lenovo, but has a newer generation processor. Power supply and case can hold a GTX 1050 or GTX 1050 Ti that don't require a six-pin power.

If you want the best gaming performance for under $400

Alienware Alpha ASM100-1580 Console (Intel Core i3-4130T 2.9 GHz, 4GB DDR3, 500GB HDD, Windows 8) (Discontinued by Manufacturer) 

This one has the best gaming performance under $400 for a new PC, but its graphics card and CPU are not upgradeable, needs extra RAM. Better than the problematic newer version according to reviews.