Should I buy a $1,500 gaming PC now or wait for better deals?

Some of the cheapest retailer CPU bundles include only one 16GB memory stick. That will run, but single-channel memory can reduce performance in certain games. If you choose one of those bundles, budget for a matching second stick or choose a 32GB dual-channel kit instead.

If you can afford the system and find a configuration with a good CPU, power supply, SSD, and warranty, buying during a legitimate sale makes sense. Nobody can reliably predict when prices will drop, and waiting could mean paying more. Keep the PS5 and Steam Deck if you still use them; they can complement the PC rather than replace it.

I’d wait for the actual Black Friday pricing, but I wouldn’t postpone the purchase indefinitely. There should be some deals, especially on prebuilts and retailer bundles, even if the overall market stays expensive. Also check used local systems; machines with GPUs such as the RTX 4070 or RX 7900 series can sometimes offer much better value.

The market is expensive, but the pandemic-era shortages were arguably worse because parts were difficult to find at all. Today there is still enough supply to build a good PC, especially if you’re flexible about DDR4 versus DDR5, choose 1440p instead of 4K, and buy components gradually when genuine sales appear.

Try to stretch the build to 32GB of RAM instead of 16GB. A $1,500 budget should be enough for a strong 1440p machine if you shop carefully, and a 9070 or 9070 XT build may offer substantially better long-term value than an RX 9060 XT system. Compare complete systems and parts rather than focusing on one GPU.