I bought my son a prebuilt gaming PC in 2024, but he's starting to outgrow it and some of the games he wants to play don't run particularly well. The PC also can't officially upgrade from Windows 10 Pro to Windows 11 because its hardware doesn't meet the requirements.
I'd prefer to improve it gradually rather than replace everything at once, but I don't know enough about PCs to tell which parts are worth keeping. The current specifications are:
CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 at 3.4 GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050
Motherboard: Intel B75 chipset, apparently
RAM: 16GB
Storage: 256GB SSD
Operating system: Windows 10 Pro
Would any relatively simple upgrades make a meaningful difference, or would I be better off replacing the motherboard, processor, and memory? I may need to open the case to identify the power supply and cooling setup. If a replacement is the better option, I'd ideally like to keep the budget around £800 and reuse anything practical.
5 Answers
If you can spend close to £800, a complete replacement is probably the cleanest option. A current CPU, motherboard, and DDR5 memory would provide proper Windows 11 support and a longer upgrade path. You could initially keep the RTX 3050 and upgrade the graphics card later, depending on which games he plays.
The exact games and monitor resolution matter a lot. If the main issue is graphics performance, a newer GPU could help, but the old processor will still hold it back in many games. I’d start with a new platform—CPU, motherboard, and RAM—then replace the GPU and add storage when the budget allows.
The RTX 3050 and SSD can probably be reused in a newer build. A budget-friendly route would be a modern or used AM4 setup with something like a Ryzen 5 5500, 16GB of DDR4, and a compatible motherboard. That would give the existing graphics card a much better platform without replacing everything at once.
The processor, motherboard, and memory platform are the main problem. The i7-3770 is from 2012, so there isn’t a worthwhile upgrade for that motherboard. Replacing just one of those parts won’t help much; you’d effectively need a new CPU, motherboard, and RAM together.
Before buying parts, check the power supply model and wattage, since the graphics card upgrade or a new system may require a better PSU. Also check the SSD’s capacity—256GB fills up very quickly with modern games, so adding a larger drive would be a useful upgrade regardless.
He’s only nine, so I didn’t realise how old the platform was when I bought it. Reusing the graphics card while replacing the core components sounds more manageable.