Palicomp Intel i7 Elite review

A 256GB Crucial MX100 SSD is installed as a boot disk, helping keep Windows 8.1 feeling fast and responsive but still having room to install your most-played games in order to keep loading times down. A 3TB hard disk is fitted as a secondary storage drive; this is a generous amount for multimedia storage, so you won’t need to shuffle your files onto external disks.

The case has three more dual-purpose drive bays that can accommodate either 2½in or 3½in disks should you ever want to install more storage. The drive rails are completely tool-free if you’re fitting 3½in disks, but you’ll need a screwdriver to secure 2½in disks or SSDs. Three of the motherboard’s six SATA3 ports are in use, for the two storage disks and the DVD-RW optical drive, and if you want to use SATA Express you’ll lose another two. There is an M.2 port mid-board though, for installing an M.2 SSD. These carry a slight price premium over standard SSDs, but are great for reducing cabling and improving airflow.

Only two of the PCI-Express x16 slots will have the full PCI-E x16 3.0 bandwidth, in case you wanted to have two graphics cards in SLI or CrossFireX. The third slot is PCI-E 2.0 and only operates at x4 speed.   One of the PCI slots is obscured by the dual-width graphics card too, but the two PCI-E x1 slots at the bottom are free to access. A Corsair CX750 PSU delivers a maximum 750W, which should accommodate most upgrades.

There are two USB3 ports and a headphone jack on the front of the case, with a further four USB3 and two USB ports on the back. You’ll also find a PS/2 port, Gigabit Ethernet, optical S/PDIF and six 3.5mm outputs for up to 7.1 audio. Finally, the graphics card has three DisplayPort outputs as well as HDMI and DVI, so you’re well catered for if you want to use multiple monitors.

The Palicomp Intel i7 Elite has undeniably excellent performance, and considering the excellent graphics card and generous amount of storage its great value overall. If space is no issue and you’re not too dissuaded by its gargantuan size, it’s a great choice. You also get a great warranty to round things off. If you’re looking for something smaller and slightly cheaper though, the Chillblast Fusion Raptor is also a top-performer. If that doesn’t suit your needs, then check out our Best PCs and buying guide.