A while ago, I highlighted the IdeaCentre K450 by Lenovo as one of the best pre-built computers so far. At just under what most gaming enthusiasts will spend on non-custom rigs, the K450 packs a valuable punch.

Lenovo IdeaCentre K450: Specs

Take a look at some of the hardware specs for the K450. Obviously, it has a lot of power. Additionally, by purchasing it here on Amazon, you get a full copy of Windows 8 too.

Gaming Desktop	Processor	Video Card	RAM (Random Access Memory)	Price	Amazon Customer Reviews
Lenovo IdeaCentre K450	Intel Core i7-4770 3.4 GHz	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650	16 GB DDR3	See price on Amazon.com	4.1 out of 5.0 (39 customers)

Lenovo IdeaCentre K450 Review: Power

The GTX 650 graphics card (you’re better off with something like the GTX 970) isn’t the most powerful card to date, but we put it — along with the 3.4 Ghz i7 processor and 16 GB of DDR3 RAM — to the test, and it held it’s own. I benchmarked the K450 with it’s standard vanilla build, meaning I did absolutely no upgrading from what Amazon shipped to me, other than using the basic peripherals like my Anker CG100 gaming mouse (read more)

Playing games like Battlefield 4 (a very beautiful game on PC, by the way) was great. I couldn’t quite get the K450 to run on the absolute max settings, but it did well on medium to high settings with a range of 60 to 90 frames per second. Graphics were fluid and meshed well with my great 24 inch LED gaming monitor.

Lenovo K450: Features

What’s a gaming desktop without features? The IdeaCentre K450 boasts 3 handy power options: Turbo (max performance), Auto (adjusts based on what applications are running), and Cool (for power saving). This can be helpful if you’re planning to have multiple uses for the K450 and not just for gaming alone.

It also has an already integrated DVD reader and burner, plus multiple USB and storage card ports, along with an HDMI port to link with your favorite HD gaming monitor or HDTV.

Lenovos entry in budget gaming desktops also has a sleek and simple metallic design. The front lights up underneath to the tone of red, blue, or green, which adds a nice touch to the already simplified presentation.

Check out more K450 features here

IdeaCentre K450 Review: Value

To wrap up the review, let me tell you firsthand that the K450 is absolutely one of the best gaming setups if you’re on the market for a budget PC this year. At a price that’s well under $1000 on Amazon, you’re getting a ton of power, performance, and usability for your money.

There aren’t a lot of PCs out there that will give you all this hardware (you can even upgrade for more) and an updated operating system (Windows 8) for the price.

Read next: Aurora R4 Review and ASUS VS247HP Gaming Monitor Review.