HP - Pavilion Gaming Desktop - AMD Ryzen 5 2400G - 8GB Memory - AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB - 1TB HDD 128GB SSD - Black

The HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop (Model 690-0024) is a solid mid range gaming tower. It packs more than enough power to handle E-sports titles (CS:GO, Overwatch, LoL) at high to ultra settings and 1080p. It also has no problem running Fortnite at epic settings, 1080p, with 60+ fps. AAA titles can be played at med-high settings and still pull around 60fps. Specs Processor – AMD Ryzen 5 Pro 2400G with Vega 8 Graphics - CPU 4C/8T @ 3.6 GHz with boost to 3.9 GHz Graphics – AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB [Discrete] / Vega 8 iGPU 11 cores Motherboard – AMD B350 with AGESA 1.0.0.5 BIOS Memory – 8GB DDR4 2666 Single Channel (20-19-19-43) Storage – 128GB Samsung SSD (M.2); 1 TB Seagate Barracuda 7200 RPM HDD with 64MB Cache Buffer Network Adapter – 802.11AC WiFi adapter / 1X Gigabit LAN Port / Bluetooth 4.2 Radio External Ports – 1X USB-C / 2X USB 3.1 / 4X USB 3.0 / 2X USB 2.0 / 1X SD Card Reader / 1X HDMI / 3X Displayport / 3.5mm jacks for speakers, mic, and AUX. Additional Internal Expansion Ports – 1X 288-pin DDR4 slot / 1X PCIE (3.0?) x1 slot / 1X M.2 SATA* / 1X SATA 3 6Gb/s CD/DVD Burner Includes a standard wired HP keyboard and mouse The HP Pavilion Desktop (690-0024) comes with an all AMD setup. It’s equipped with their stellar Ryzen 5 2400G processor and Radeon RX 580 graphics card. [Full disclosure I am an AMD fan with an R7 1800X/Vega64 powered main tower]. The R5 sports 4 cores with 8 threads that performs better than an i5-7400 and just a hair behind the 8400. The RX-580 graphics card performs similarly to the Nvidia 1060 3GB. It is a perfectly good card that can play AAA games, and still deliver an enjoyable gaming experience. I had the pleasure of hooking my 580 up to a HP 25x 1080p 144Hz Freesync monitor, and got to experience some smooth 144Hz action. I also used the card to drive my 4 1080p monitors, which is great for people who might need some more screen real estate. The HP Pavilion comes with a single 8GB DDR4 2666 (CAS 19) RAM stick. This, for the most part, is enough RAM to play most games without becoming a bottleneck. It should be noted that Ryzen processors are hindered by single channel RAM and adding a second RAM module is a significant benefit. Storage comes in the form of a 128GB M.2 NVME SSD and a 1TB 7200RPM hard drive. The SSD can handle the install of the majority of your programs and the OS, but its size will force you to install your games to the 1TB HDD. The specs for the HP list 2 M.2 slots. In all reality only 1 can be used for an SSD. The other is an M.2 WLAN slot, which is meant for a Wi-Fi card. This spec is misleading, and really should be defined as 2 different slots. Games and Benchmarking I ran the Pavilion through a series of benchmarks to test its various capabilities. Tests included 3DMark Time Spy (scored 3882) and Skydiver (scored 23097), PC Mark 10 (scored 4467), and CrystalDiskMark 6 (Sequential 535 Read / 309 Write for the SSD). The results showed me basically what I already knew. This computer is a competent mid-range gaming PC that can play any game available at 1080p with settings tailored to the game being played. It’s not going to set any records, but it will play E-Sports title at high frame rates (100+ @high to ultra settings), and the most popular games (looking at you Fortnite) at good framerates (60+ @ Epic settings). I made sure to run it through the 1 game I know will be played on it – Fortnite. I was able to achieve mid 60s to low 70’s with V-sync enabled on Epic (not customized) settings with a long draw distance. Dialing down the settings I would get a better max FPS but would still bottom out into the 60’s leading me to believe at 1080p the CPU was the bottleneck. An extra 8GB of RAM would have probably helped these numbers out, but as tested the game ran just fine. In all reality the game played/looked better at max settings with a lower framerate. I also played some Dirt Rally to see how it held up with the fast-paced scenery changes. Running the game on high settings with V-Sync on I was maxing out at 130 FPS while getting and average FPS of 85. If this game support Freesync, the average/max numbers would be closer together. And in a run through of Shadow of War on high settings I was pulling around 60FPS avg. Overall pretty good results for this system. Again affirming its spots as a mid-range gaming desktop. Design The Design of the Pavilion is small and sleek. It has a very simple, clean shape. The front buttons and inputs are flush with the face, which helps it keep its sleek exterior. The green accent LED’s give the front of the case a nice accent feature. I like the green, mostly because I am so tired of blue LED’s. Also green is less intense of a light color, so leaving this tower on at night in your room shouldn’t cause you any problems – unlike the blinky blue lights of a router. Compared to my main tower (Thermaltake Core P3 Mid), the Pavilion is diminutive. I chuckled when I sat them next to each and the P3 dwarfed the Pavilion. However, that led me to be impressed with how much performance was packed into this little case. The layout of the ports are as you would expect. USB’s in the front and the rear. What is nice to see is the addition of USB C to the front I/O panel. Its nice to see this port finally brought out from the rear I/O to the front where it can be used more readily. The case is a mATX mini tower that use SFF (small form factor) components. The power supply is a 400W 80 Plus Platinum (very nice) SFX PSU. The GPU is a single fan 170-175mm long version of the 580, and the DVD drive is a laptop form factor (5.25” slim) version. All of this together comes out to only 11.4 lbs. That’s only a pound more than the PSU for my main tower! I can easily bring this little tower to LAN parties. Value I mostly look at prebuilt systems from a value perspective. I enjoy spec’ing and assembling my own PC, but if the value is there in a pre-built I don’t see the point. I built up a similar system in PCPartPicker – matching about 95% of the specs. I came out to a final total of $835 – and would have to source all the parts from 4 different online stores (Amazon, Newegg, B&H, and Outlet PC). This is without shipping or tax and with some items on sale. Or for the same price (MSRP is $830) I can get the HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop from Best Buy, save the hassle of ordering from all over, skip the fun/frustrating assembly stage, and be up and running right away. Already this HP comes out as a better value proposition, and that’s at full MSRP. Sales happen, and you can catch these towers for a tremendous deal which just makes the DIY route make even less sense. I love building PC’s, but there are times when the big OEM’s put alot of value in their offering that is tough to beat. Besides, I can always fiddle with upgrades to satisfy that DIY need. Upgradability The biggest issues with pre-built systems is their narrow upgradability and BIOS limitations. Usually you are limited to just adding RAM, or swapping slower parts for faster ones. In the case of the Pavilion, you have a few other options, which are nice. You can still upgrade the RAM by adding a second DDR4 2666 stick. *Ryzen processors can handle DDR4 3200 (CAS 14) – The GSkill Flare-X series are ensured to run at stated speeds with Ryzen processors. You can still swap out the main drives for faster/larger versions. There is also an additional hard drive mounting location in the case. You can add either a larger capacity 2.5” SSD or get something like a Seagate Firecuda hybrid drive (has an 8GB SSD built in as a cache buffer to increase speeds). The GPU can also be readily upgraded as long as you stick within the parameters of the current card. Card length will need to be SFF compatible and only need an 8-pin power connection. The card can be It also can’t exceed the 400W PSU without that needing an upgrade as well. A longer card can be used (maybe up to 240mm), but you will need to do some modification to the special HP 8 pin harness holder or discard it. Also, since HP produces a version of this desktop with an R7 2700, it is safe to say that in the future you could buy an R7 2700 or 2700X and swap the processors. That upgrade isn’t for everyone, but it would double your core/thread count. It’s something that can be done when stores are clearing out their R7 2000 series stock or snag a used one. Depending on the BIOS, you may even be able to upgrade to the Ryzen 3000 or 4000 series – this is more of a long shot though and not likely to be available. Also, per comments from an HP rep in the forums about this lineup, Overclocking the processor is locked on HP MOBO’s. I haven’t tried the Ryzen Master Application to OC from within the OS, so there may be some wiggle room there. Final Thoughts I really enjoyed using the HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop. I took my main tower (1800X/Vega64) out of service for 2 weeks and used the HP in its place. It drove all 4 of my monitors for day to day activities with ease. It had no issue with anything I threw at it honestly. Aside from being able to play games at higher settings on my main rig, there wasn’t much difference in my computing experience. That is impressive, and sad (for me) at the same time – my main rig cost 2-3 times as much ☹. When I went to game I played exclusively on my HP 25x 144Hz 1080p panel to get the best image quality out of my setup. The RX 580 had no problem with the higher refresh monitor, and it allowed me to have an enjoyable gaming experience. This is a great little tower that has a solid value proposition. It has entry level pricing, and mid-range performance. It is a great tower for anyone getting into gaming, or just looking to upgrade an old rig without blowing the budget. It has some future upgrade potential as well, so you can always add some extra power down the line.

Gaming: This is an entry level gaming desktop. For the price, it is a solid performer. I started by running the SuperPosition benchmarking software. It scored low when compared to Unigine’s public benchmarking score board. However, when I put in my favorite game, Mechwarrior Online, I was scoring between 40 to 110 fps at highest detail settings. I averaged 60 fps. For comparison, my two-year-old Nvidia 970 scored a little higher on the SuperPosition benchmark but can only average 40 fps in this same game at medium graphical detail settings. Goes to show that benchmarks only tell part of the story. Playing this game on the AMD RX 580 was like playing a whole new game. For the first time in years, I can see the dust and particles thrown into the air by every mechs footfall. I saw fireballs falling through the air and impacting the sides of volcanic rock. Things that are meaningless to the actual game but increase the impressiveness of the game and my overall enjoyment of the game. Next, I tried Batman: Arkham Asylum at full resolution and the graphical settings maxed out. Smooth as butter. I am also impressed that the Radeon software recognized my HP 25X gaming monitor that is FreeSync enabled. I do believe this had a lot to do with the frame rates hitting higher than 60 fps. My impression? This is a great choice for a budget gaming machine. I cannot wait to throw more games at it. Setup: Unpacking the system was easy. The computer comes with a mouse, keyboard, power cable, the computer, and a quick setup guide. The first two pages of the setup guide shows how to setup the computer using easy to follow pictures. The rest of the guide does have some troubleshooting information, basic system care instructions, and a section on where to get additional help from various HP support options. Setup for me took minutes mostly because I replaced this system with a pre-existing system. It may take 15 minutes or more if you are putting together a new space with all new equipment. Just keep your expectations reasonable. Look and Feel: The system is black with a dark grey, brushed metal finish. There is a small slit running along the center face of the case. A green racing stripe appears when the computer is powered on. When the power is off then the stripe is imperceptible. There are six USB ports on the back of the system, two on the front, and a USB type C connector on the front. The computer also has a memory card reader and a laptop style DVD Writer drive. The AMD RX 580 has a single HDMI connector and three DisplayPort connections. The computer is currently driving two monitors with a third on its way. I typically pick a single monitor for gaming while using the extras to post information, web surf, or perform some other task while I wait for levels to load. For some reason, HP chose to go with the Ryzen 5 2400G. This is an APU, meaning it has an integrated graphics processor. The integrated Vega 11 graphics processor in this APU is not being used. To further drive the point home, HP bolted a cover over the motherboard’s HDMI port. During testing, the Vega 11 graphics were never used regardless of the system idle or content. I own a laptop with the same processor and the AMD 560 mobile processor. The driver’s on that system will swap between graphics processors depending on workload. So, what is the point of adding an APU to this system if there is no intent of leveraging it? No idea. I did not remove the HDMI cover to test the port. I do not have the special screw driver bit to remove the cover, yet. I plan on testing this sometime in the future. The computer does come with a mouse and keyboard. Both are cheap, period. The keyboard narrow from number keys to space bar, nothing to differentiate it as a gaming computer’s keyboard, and adequate enough for typing. I would game on it if I did not already have a dedicated gaming keyboard and mouse. The mouse is not even worth talking about. It is my opinion that HP cheaped out on the mouse and keyboard to give us a nice mid-tier graphics card. I will take the trade-off. Plus, you can always save up for a better mouse and keyboard. Finally, HP chose to place a white sticker on the side of the computer case. This is basic system information. No idea why HP chose to do this other than for their own needs at the factory. It does ruin that initial “wow, I’ve got a new gaming computer at Christmas!” feeling. HP could have chosen a different route on this one. Half the meal is eaten with the eyes, HP! Inside the Case: All gamers I know love to tinker with their rides. So, I tore the system apart. I also included two photos. The computer case is not a screwless design; meaning, everything is screwed in and secured in some fashion. Thankfully, the system will come apart with a simple flathead screwdriver. The system is compact with some cleaver design choices. The drive cage holds the 1TB drive vertically. The DVD write is directly beside it. Cabling is minimal and well managed. The drive cage does block access to 1/3 of the case’s interior. You must remove this cage in order to replace or upgrade the memory, the HDD, or add a small PCIe card. You could replace the M.2 SSD but I don’t see the point for this system. You would be better of picking up a cheap SSD and leaving the M.2 drive alone. This, of course, is my opinion. There is a single 8GB stick of memory. I did not pull the memory card to get the numbers off of it. The power supply is 400 Watts and is rated at 80 Plus Platinum. This should make it an efficient power supply. There is a single expansion slot. You could get away with a PCIe audio card, video capture card, or some other compact PCIe expansion card. You will not be able to add a second video card to this system. If, for some reason, this is your intent, then you would be better investing in a more expensive system with a stronger graphics performer. The video card, even though a separate card, cannot be upgraded in this system unless you go straight to HP. The computer case is designed around this card. I did include a photo of the video card. It is a single fan design with a decent head sink. It is not super heavy like you will find from a third-party manufacturer like EVGA or Gigabyte. The drive cage is design to fit and support the video card and heatsink. This way, the PCIe socket does not need to bear the full burden of the card’s weight. Again, if you want a higher end card then spend the extra money for a higher end system. For the money, this is a solid performer. Finally, there is an extra drive bay of sorts on the 1/3 cover. This, again, HP made a strange design choice. The drive must be suspended from the opening with screws. HP did not include any screws. There is a second SATA connection but no companion power connection. There are three SATA connections on the motherboard. Without a way to power a third drive I fear that the only upgrade to storage available is either by adding an external USB device or replacing the included 1TB HDD. Final thoughts: Overall, I found this system to be a nice upgrade from what I had before. My old system is more than five years old. I was going to build a new system that, with current memory and storage prices, would have costs me significantly more money. What I need is a system that is capable of light gaming, office work, web surfing, and entertainment. I need the ability to drive multiple monitors which this system can do. And I need ample storage. I like the compact design, the Ryzen 5 delivers great performance and strong multi-tasking capabilities over my aging Intel processor, and the AMD RX 580 blows the doors off my older Nvidia card. The proof is in my real-world experience with my games and not the silly, generic benchmarks. I consider this an entry level gaming computer and will be treated as such. There are other systems around this price point that have their own unique offering. I think HP made the right compromises with this model. The 128 GB M.2 SSD is fast enough to run the system and the 1TB drive is large enough and fast enough to store and load my programs in a timely manner. The super cheap keyboard and mouse are functional and allowed HP to include a strong mid-tier graphics card at a solid price point. The system even looks cool next to the matching 25X gaming monitor once you remove that stupid sticker. I think this would make a good entry level computer for a teenager, collage kid, or for someone who needs a computer first and performance gaming second. Please like this review if you found it helpful. Thank you.

GENERAL: Seriously impressed. Out of the box you will need to install all of the Windows 10 updates. So make sure you do that first. The inbuilt WiFi is fast and updates installed quickly. There are also AMD Radeon RX 580 graphics driver updates, but you need to go to AMD.com to download their driver detect and update tool. Windows won't install the latest AMD drivers by default. If you install the latest AMD drivers you will be able to use AMD Freesync, which gives you better frame rates on compatible monitors. I am using this with the HP 25X monitor and it's a perfect gaming setup. I would recommend buying both together (Pavilion and 25X monitor) from BestBuy. I haven't used a desktop PC for a while and forgot how whisper quiet they are compared to laptops which tend to run hot. FYI, the vent on the grill is on the left side (if you're facing the PC). Thought I'd share for anyone who is thinking of putting this in a cabinet or using as a multimedia PC. There is only a left hand and rear vent. Seriously though, I want to say again how quiet this is. I have been gaming on a laptop previously and I am use to the sound of fans kick in everytime I play. Not so with this, even on Ultra/Epic settings for games. Gosh, even my PS4 runs louder than the Pavilion. Wow! Boot time is almost instant thanks to the 128GB SSD. The 1TB mechnical drive is rate at 7200 RPM. My Pavilion has a Samsung M2 SSD and and Toshiba HDD. CASE: The picture on BestBuy is a little misleading as the case is actually much smaller than it looks on the website. It's roughly 13" tall, 11" deep and 7" wide. It's about the size of a small sub woofer. It's a compact tower case. So fits neatly under a desk or could be used as a entertainment PC. SYSTEM UPDATES: Aside from Windows System Updates, you will also need to install some HP BIOS firmware updates. You do this through the HP Service and Support Software (it's hidden in the start menu). PORTS: HP have been generous with number of includes USB ports. 8 in total + 1 USB C (and a SD card reader). I laughed when I first saw all the USB ports, but after you plugin a mouse, keyboard (my HP Omen Sequencer needs 2 USB ports), and a USB gaming headset you quickly start filling up ports and would need them all if you decided to use VR. The Radeon RX580 has 1x HDMI and 3x Display ports. 2 of the USB ports and the USB C port are front mounted as is the SD card reader. MOUSE/KEYBOARD: It comes bundled with a corded mouse/keyboard. The mouse and keyboard are good but not gaming qualty. The keys have very little travel. Comparable to laptop chiclet keyboards. If you are serious about gaming, I'd recommend buying a quality mechanical gaming keyboard. The HP Omen Sequencer keyboard (also available from BestBuy) is my personal choice and works a great GAMING: I tested the HP Pavilion Ryzen 5/Radeon RX 580 with Overwatch, Destiny 2 and Fortnite. Overwatch: Played on Epic, steady 85 FPS no issue. Destiny 2: Highest settings, steady 60 FPS no issue. Fortnite : Played on Epic, steady 80+ FPS no issue. I also play Civ VI, it doesn't show frame rate as it's not that sort of game. But it played happily on max graphics settings. DRIVE SETUP: The system is configured as follows. SSD is the C:\ drive and has Windows. D:\ is the 1TB mechnical driver. E:\ is partitioned as the recovery drive. When installing software make sure you select to install games and apps on D:\ . This can be down within your Steam Client or Battle.net account. Please don't use regedit to hard code a new directory, it's best to take the few seconds to check you are selecting the right drive when you install software. There's also a DVD drive mapped to F:\ BEST BUY FREE GAMES: If you buy this PC form BestBuy it comes with some bundled games courtesy of AMD. But only if you get this model, the one with a Ryzen and Radeon graphics cards. The choice of games changes from time to time depending on the purchase date. You should get a coupon code from BestBuy on purchase which you can then redeem on AMDrewards.com for your free games (registration required). HP INCLUDED SOFTWARE: HP have really fixed the bloatware issue that use to plague their PCs. There's no rubbish other than 3rd party antivirus installed by default. When you first run the Pavilion it does run "HP JumpStart" where you can download some software that HP is promoting - but I find this respectful and better than having to spend time uninstalling unwanted software. The only non-standard software installed is McAffee Live Safe trial, which is easy to remove. HARDWARE UPGRADES: The HP Pavilion is upgradeable. There's a single screw to remove the access panel, then 4 screws inside to remove the housing cage. There's 1 spare motherboard slot and 1 spare memory channel. I have not upgraded or removed anything, but it was easy to open the case and access the internals. You have to disconnect the DVD driver to be able to easily slide off the housing cage but it's easy to reach. I've posted shots of the internals for those interested but have blanked out the serial numbers. CASE LIGHT TIP: The case has a green vertical ambient light to give it a gaming look. You can disable this in the BIOS. To access the BIOS. Hit ESC on boot. You will be promoted to hit ESC again. Then select Advanced > Device Options > Chasis Light Bar > Disable > F10 Files > Save Changes I don't mind the case light as it does look cool. But others who have reviewed this dislike the light. The case light does not stay lit when in standby mode. You cant change the color of the light, it's either green or off. OVERALL: Impressed. I would recommend the Pavilion with Ryzen 5 Radeon RX 580 over a gaming console if you're serious about gaming. As you get all the power of a gaming PC with the flexibility to get some work done as well. Just plan on buying a gaming keyboard and mouse. I would have given this 5 stars if HP had included better keyboard/mouse or a discount code to upgrade. FINAL TIP: The HP Support Website for Pavilion is here if you want to know how to upgrade the PC, etc. https://support.hp.com/us-en/product/hp-pavilion-gaming-690-0000-pc-series/19769765/model/21447501

The HP Pavillion gaming desktop is a solid choice for the holidays if you looking to get into PC gaming. It has just enough specs to enjoy this at a rock solid and consistent FPS. The best part is it's fully upgradeable so you really can throw more into the machine. First, I'm a team green Nvidia guy myself (Main rig: Core i5, 980TI, 16GB RAM) but I'm insanely blown away by what AMD has managed to put into Ryzen, in fact, I'm just blown away by the performance you get from this rig at this price point. Performance: So far its been fantastic as a gaming rig, I would up suspect many would love this as their first gaming rig as well. 1080p gaming works flawless and paired with a FreeSync monitor as I do (HP 25x 24 inch) every game was smooth and buttery! Forza Horizon 5 looks so breathtaking on this RX 580. The downside is the RX 580 is only loaded with 4GB...This is great if you only want to do 1080p gaming but you going to need a lot more power to push even 1440p gaming. I find that the RX 580 did fine in a bunch of games like Fortnite (Which is the machine is perfect for. 90+ FPS at the highest settings), Witcher 3, COD: Black Ops 4, Forza Series, Gears of War 4, Cuphead, CS: GO, and Rainbow Six: Segie all ran at high framerates 60+. I did have some issues with Final Fantasy XV for some reason. The cutscenes ran at lower frames then the actual gameplay. Maybe its a driver issue but it didn't run that well at all. Keeping the settings on GTA V gave 50-60 FPS @1080p. eSports titles like Overwatch do well @ 88 fps at the highest with this HP gaming desktop As for the PC itself, applications open up quickly with the fast SSD in there. Ryzen 5 rips through everything you can throw at it. Bootup times are fast, Chrome opens quickly, Windows is speedy. Everything else seems fine with testing. Design: I mean its, not an ugly machine just a very basic one. I guess you can say this PC is an HP Omen with a different skin but it's strange they went with just a green LED seeing how this is an AMD rig but I guess red was HP OMEN's thing. It really should have been muti-LED colors at the very least, but the good news is you can turn off the light in the BIOS. It does have that design element of a gaming PC put its something missing here to give it that total gaming feel. Brush hairline looks good with the blackish silver like the color but overly simplistic. There are tons of I/O ports on the machine giving you many to use and work with. HP gave a plethora of USB ports and I/O. 8 USB, 1 USB-C, and an SD card reader. Not only that HP was kind enough to put a CD disc drive for legacy gaming media. The AMD Radeon RX580 GPU has 1x HDMI and 3x Display ports so you can hook a good amount of displays up to the desktop itself. Overall: I like it, it works as a 1080p PC gaming rig perfectly, I still think its perfect if it's paired with a FreeSync monitor. And you really shouldn't have any issues playing future titles especially if you plan to upgrade in the future. there is enough room in the case for it. This is pretty much an HP Omen at a low cost and I don't see anything wrong with that. If this is your first gaming PC, Need something updated for gaming, or just looking for that perfect holiday gaming PC this would be a perfect rig. HP hit the right mark and price point on this Pavilion.

This product makes me happy because my kids are very happy with the games,and it was really gaming desktop.

HP - Pavilion Gaming Desktop - AMD Ryzen 5-Series - 8GB Memory - AMD Radeon RX 580 - 1TB Hard Drive + 128GB Solid State Drive - Shadow Black With A Brushed Hairline Pattern Summary: Svelt and compact mid-range gaming workhorse. It offers good bang for your buck and will allow a few upgrades along the way. Pros: This gaming desktop has a great form factor that allows it to occupy just enough space in your setup. The unit has all of the necessary ports for a standard array of accessories. Internally, there is also enough space for a full sized graphics adapter; this means upgrading shouldn't be a problem if you stay within the same family (due to installed power supply - 400W). The specs make for a good entry-mid level gaming desktop. The GPU competes with Nvidia''s GTX-1060. If you're on a budget and want in on some of the action, this is a good fit. Cons: The hard drive (storage) performance is somewhat lacking. I wish I could configure the unit to use the SSD as a cache. It may yet be possible, as I haven't gone through all of HP's documentation. HPs pre-installed software is a mess. It is slow and unresponsive to the point I'd rather not use it at all. You can't install too many upgrades/ additions due to space constraints or power supply (400W PS), but this is expected for a unit of this form factor (size). The green LED lighting on the front panel is cool, but it is also bright and unable to be changed. In a dark room, it will be more light than I think I'd want when in a gaming session. Also, I am more Sith than Borg, so the bright green is something I wish I could change. Use: This unit resides in a household home to an Alienware Aurora R5 (GTX-1070) and an Alienware 18 R3 (980m SLI). We mostly play Destiny 2 (on these PCs as well as XBO-X and PS4-Pro), and also World of Warcraft (BfA). Surprisingly, the frame rates on this unit with settings set to MAX were on par with or slightly surpassed the other (slightly older) PCs mentioned. Destiny 2 saw about 60fps consistently and WoW saw about 75-80fps consistently in open world. RAM upgradable to 32GB (from 8GB). Details for the AMD Radeon RX580 Graphics Adaptor: Form Factor: Full-height PCB with ATX dual slot bracket Dimensions: 4.4 in x 7.0 in Rear I/O connectors: HDMI + 3 DisplayPort Maximum resolution: DisplayPort resolution: 5120 x 2880 @ 60Hz HDMI resolution: 4096 x 2160 @ 60Hz ( HDMI 2.0) note: Not all ports support the highest resolutions. Memory size: 4 GB (256-bit) Memory type: GDDR5 Total power consumption: 150 W max Blu-ray support Multi display support: 4 displays, up to 6.

I acquired this, my first gaming desktop, specifically for the purpose of playing Shroud of the Avatar, pairing it with an HP 25x monitor. This is supposed to be a good match, because the FreeSync feature of the monitor is designed to reduce stuttering delays adapting the display refresh rate by syncing with the AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB graphics processor. Also, aesthetically, I liked the matching green LED lights, shown in the picture I posted in my review of the HP 25X monitor. The first thing I like to do when acquiring a new desktop computer is to have a look inside to see where things are situated and assess its capability for upgrading and adding other components. I suspected that this very compact desktop was not designed for adding more hardware easily, and I was right. The cover was easy enough to remove, but a glance inside showed that there was no place to mount additional drives or PC cards. Okay, well, technical there is an Express x1 slot to the right of the installed graphics card. As you can see from the picture I posted, basically most of the motherboard on the left, with the CPU fan immediately below the DVD and data storage drive, the monstrous graphics card is mounted in the middle, and the PSU is on the right. The memory slots are hidden beyond the CPU; access requires removing the frame that holds the drives. In theory removing that frame should not be difficult, although I snapped off a piece of plastic doing so. Once the frame is removed you can pop in another memory stick if you think that 8 GB is not enough (see posted pic). While there might be barely enough room between the MB and installed drives for another drive, there is no framework to support one. Ironically, there is an empty SATA socket on the MB; I am just not sure where you would mount the SATA drive or other device after you plugged it in. My real-life test of the desktop was playing the Shroud of the Avatar. I should confess that my heavy gaming days ended with Ultima VI, long before Ultima Online and other MMORPGs came into vogue. I've seen my sons play the most recent, graphically-intense online games, so I have some idea of what they look like, but I have not had first-hand experience with them until I recently acquired Shroud of the Avatar and therefore cannot compare other experiences. That said, I found the system to be powerful and responsive and the graphics for this game to be stunningly beautiful, so I do think that this is an excellent gaming desktop when paired with a FreeSync monitor. There are tons of options for connecting peripherals, both in the back and the front of the desktop. I tried both the HDMI and DisplayPort connections, and they worked equally well, although I thought the audio was better with HDMI. I plugged speakers to the analog audio jack in the back and both analog and USB headsets to the respective jacks in the front. Everything functioned flawlessly. After about a month of use, I can heartily recommend this gaming desktop. As I said in a previous review of an HP computer, Hewlett-Packard home computers were among the best available during the 1990s. When my mother custom-built the best system she could for desktop publishing, she didn’t go with IBM or Apple, but with HP. The Pavillion desktop system she had constructed was both monstrous in terms of processing power and gorgeous in design. HP systems were real winners. But somewhere along the line (maybe when they merged with Compaq) HP lost its glamour. I considered their desktops and laptops to be very middle-of-the-road, functional machines, but nothing special. I always purchased another brand. Recent experiences with HP, though, have changed my mind. HP is back.

-- The Good -- * Ryzen 5 2400G * RX 580 (4GB) * Dual channel memory (but only 2 DIMM sockets) * NVMe SSD * Large HDD for game library * Small, compact case * You can upgrade components as needed -- The Bad -- * The included SSD is only 128GB * The small chassis limits you to smaller graphics cards ** Build your own VS. Pre-built ** I'll start with the obvious statement that always manages to come up when talking about pre-built PCs: yes, it's cheaper to build your own gaming PC. Well, usually at least. The day that this review is posted, this system is currently on sale at Best Buy. Prices for PC parts fluctuates every week it seems, but if I were to build a comparable system (and buy a copy of Windows 10 Home), I would save somewhere around $50 (give or take $15 depending on sales). That means that if you're new to PC gaming and don't feel comfortable with building your first system (or you're looking to buy this as a gift for someone), you're paying about $50 for HP to assemble the system for you and include a 1-year warranty; that's a pretty good deal. ** Upgradeability ** I'm quite surprised with what you can upgrade in the new Pavilion gaming tower. If you want to swap out the Ryzen 5 for a 7 later down the road, you can. If you want to go with a different card, you can (just keep in mind that the tower chassis is compact so you'll need a smaller graphics card and the 400W PSU might need to be swapped out too). For memory, the motherboard supports up to 32GB (DDR-2400), but there's only 2 DIMM sockets. The included SSD is an NVMe drive, but it's only 128GB (once NVMe prices come down I'll likely upgrade mine). ** Performance ** There isn't a title out there that this system can't handle. The GPU is the 4GB variant of the 580 and the CPU is a Ryzen 5, so you're better off running your games in 1080p to get the best FPS possible. All of the games I regularly play (World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, Destiny 2, Skyrim Special Edition with mods, and Fortnite) run smooth and have no problems maintaining 60 FPS with the proper settings. Depending on what games you regurlarly play, having everything on the 7200RPM 1TB HDD is just fine (the loading screens for WoW were long enough to make me move the game over to the SSD). If having an HDD bothers you, prices for SATA III SSDs have really started to drop... -- Bottom Line -- If you're looking to get into PC gaming, but don't feel comfortable building your own system (or you're looking to buy someone a new gaming PC), the new Pavilion gaming desktop is a solid choice for a mid-range system.