Palicomp AMD Kaveri Evolution review

The drives use up only two of the motherboard’s eight SATA3 ports. The motherboard also has four memory slots, two of which currently contain 4GB modules of 1,600MHz RAM, and four vacant expansion slots. These include a full-speed PCI-E x16 slot for a primary graphics card, a PCI-E x16 slot that runs at x4 speed, a PCI slot and a PCI-E x1 slot. Note that if you add a graphics card, the x1 slot will almost certainly be rendered inaccessible by the card’s cooler. The motherboard supports both CrossFire and AMD Dual Graphics, which lets you link the processor with an AMD R7 240 or R7 250 discrete graphics card to increase performance.

At the back of the case, the motherboard’s back plate has six USB ports, two of which are USB3, as well a couple of PS/2 mouse and keyboard connectors, three 3.5mm analogue audio outputs that can be configured for surround sound and VGA, DVI and HDMI graphics outputs. There are another three USB ports at the front panel, although only one is USB3, plus the usual mic and headphone ports.

The system is supplied with a budget Cherry mouse and keyboard set. The mouse is oddly angular and takes a bit of getting used to, but the keyboard is one of the better low-cost models you can buy, with keys with plenty of travel and a comfortable layout for touch typing.

With a big, good-quality 24in monitor, a powerful processor that’s been capably overclocked and reasonable upgrade potential, this is quite simply one of the best PCs you can get for £500. It wins our Best Buy award.