Parts for gaming PCs can be purchased from numerous online vendors and retailers. One of the main benefits of buying parts online is convenience and cost savings; shopping online often results in significantly cheaper prices than buying from brick-and-mortar stores. Additionally, most online stores provide a wide variety of parts to choose from and are frequently updated with new components, meaning you are sure to find exactly what you need.
One of the largest and best-known stores for purchasing parts is Newegg. With around 12 million products currently listed, Newegg offers incredibly competitive prices and an extensive selection. They also provide a range of helpful tutorials, reviews and advice, making it easy to decide which components best suit your needs.
Amazon is another popular option, largely due to its ease of use. As one of the most extensive marketplaces on the web, it is home to countless parts for gaming PCs, ranging from GPUs to motherboards and beyond. Furthermore, combined with its renowned customer service, Amazon is usually a great place to find the parts you need.
The online forums of hardware-related sites–such as Tom’s Hardware and AnandTech–are also good places to hunt for parts. Not only can you ask fellow users for advice, but you’ll also be able to take advantage of some of the deals that the community highlights and discuss any issues.
Finally, there is the option of building your own gaming PC, which gives you complete control over the final product. Researching the components required and building your own PC can be incredibly rewarding, and the cost savings this leads to can be significant.
Ease of Use
When it comes to ease of use, simply put, shopping online is incredibly convenient. With all the components you need in one place, you can create and customize your PC to perfection quickly and easily. Unaccompanied by the hassle of travelling to brick-and-mortar stores and managing large queues, you’ll save a significant amount of time with online shopping.
In comparison, building your own gaming PC can be rather time consuming. From researching the parts required, to ordering them and then painstakingly assembling them, the process can take many hours. This can put off some potential buyers who do not have the time or skill required for such a task.
Furthermore, as mentioned previously, online stores such as Newegg and Amazon also provide helpful advice and tutorials, ideal for those who are new to PC building. As a result, they offer a much more stress-free and simple way of purchasing all the components required, appealing to a much wider audience.
However, a disadvantage of shopping online is that some stores do not offer cash-on-delivery options, limiting the options of those unwilling or unable to use other payment methods. Nevertheless, this is a small price to pay for the vast array of benefits that come with online shopping.
Price
When it comes to the cost of the final product, almost every component in a gaming PC can be purchased online, often at drastically reduced prices. When building a PC, the cost of the parts required can often be more expensive than if purchased as a pre-built, due to the additional labor involved. However, when shopping online, prospective gaming PC owners can often find more cost-effective alternatives.
The wide selection of parts offered by Newegg, for example, makes it a great place to search for the best prices. Similarly, cashback opportunities, coupon codes and off-season discounts all make buying parts online a much more fiscally viable option.
On the other hand, when it comes to building a gaming PC from scratch, it is often cheaper than buying pre-built. Assembling parts individually allows for even greater choice, personalization and cost savings, perfect for those wanting to build their own machine on a budget. As the parts you buy can vary significantly, the costs of component choice are yours to manage.
Furthermore, due to the cost saving opportunities on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, buying components at discounted prices for your gaming PC is simpler than ever. Therefore, for those who carefully select their components and take advantage of these deals, the cost can be significantly reduced.
Selection
When shopping online, you can choose from a vast array of parts and components, each tailored to fit many different needs. Shopping websites like Newegg are incredibly well stocked, having almost every component imaginable. On sites dedicated to PC parts, one can easily track a component’s meteoric rise and subsequent fall in the market and take advantage of the fluctuating prices.
Furthermore, taking into account the component’s compatibility with others is also much simpler online. Information about each component’s compatibility with others can be found easily using sites like PCPartPicker, allowing for the efficient construction of a great PC. This makes building your own gaming PC from scratch significantly less stressful, as you can be sure you have the parts necessary for the build.
In contrast, the selection of parts at brick-and-mortar stores is usually limited, and the prices can be much higher than when shopping online; this renders these stores unfavourable for most prospective gaming PC purchasers. Therefore, for those who want to ensure they can find exactly what they need, shopping online is the way to go.
Delivery & Warranty
The delivery times of shopping online can often be much faster than those of buying from brick-and-mortar stores. With quick delivery and excellent customer service, buying parts online can be incredibly convenient, as once you’ve bought the parts you need, you can easily wait for their arrival.
Additionally, many online stores will provide warranties for their products, presenting reassurance to buyers that something will be done in case of any issues with the parts. With customer service contacts very easily available, any customer complaints or inquiries about specific components can also be taken care of with ease. On the other hand, when it comes to building a PC from scratch, warranties may not be as easily accessible or applicable.
When shopping online, it is also much easier to track purchases and keep track of prices. Therefore, for those who want to ensure they have the best deals and greatest convenience, online stores such as Newegg and Amazon provide both with relative ease.
Conclusion
Whether building a PC from scratch or buying pre-built components, there are many places to get the parts you need for a gaming PC. Shopping online offers the greatest convenience, selection, and cost savings, and puts the power of acquiring parts in your hands. Furthermore, with the wide range of tutorials, advice and reviews available, it couldn’t be easier to decide which components best suit your needs.
