Mesh Elite 3570K-W8CS review

You’re in luck if you want to supplement the existing 2TB hard disk and DVD-RW drive, as there are six unused 3 1/2in bays – two of them externally facing – and three empty 5 1/4in drive bays. The motherboard has two SATA3 ports and four SATA2 ports – currently only one of each is in use. Two of the motherboard’s four memory slots are occupied by a 4GB DDR3 module running at 1,600MHz. There are two USB ports on the front panel, plus the usual 3.5mm mic and headphone ports. The back of the motherboard provides four USB2 ports, two USB3 ports, a PS/2 port, Gigabit Ethernet and 7.1 analogue audio outputs.

The Hanns.G HL249 monitor is a 23.6in widescreen LCD display with a matte finish, so doesn’t struggle with overhead light sources like a reflective panel. Its even lighting and lack of reflections are easy on the eyes but we were disappointed by its poor viewing angles and slight reddish tint. The keyboard and mouse – a Logitech wireless set – feel lightweight and made of cheap plastic but work well enough. The keyboard tends to rattle as you type, so we’d recommend upgrading to a smarter model in the future.

For your £800, the Elite 3570K-W8CS gives you a powerful processor that still has potential for further overclocking if you’re prepared to add a third-party CPU cooler. Its Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti graphics card is also seriously quick. However, it doesn’t have a Blu-ray drive and its monitor is a bit disappointing compared to those we’ve seen with other, similarly priced systems. We prefer the Chillblast Fusion Blaze, which has similar graphics performance, a better monitor and higher-specification optical drive.