It may seem like everyone only cares about the beefiest, most expensive, most ludicrously powerful gaming rigs that can ramp every setting up to the max with room to spare, but plenty of people just want a reliable gaming desktop that doesn’t drain their bank accounts. Lenovo already had that area covered with the affordable Lenovo LOQ Tower, but that budget gaming PC is far more affordable right now thanks to an early Black Friday deal. I’m currently writing this article with this tower PC, and I can safely recommend it — this is a great deal.
More great early Black Friday deals
Compact, sleek, and a great entry to PC gaming
I’m using the Lenovo LOQ Tower right now. Why? Well, because I’m reviewing it for Windows Central! While it was fun to review the Lenovo Legion Tower 7i (Gen 8) in all its ludicrously powerful and RGB-lit glory, that’s also a high-end gaming desktop that will deter plenty of buyers based on its price tag alone. The Lenovo LOQ Tower is far more reasonable, with an understated design and just enough power to play all the latest and greatest PC games without going too crazy.
I’ve really been enjoying this PC so far. It’s basically a Lenovo IdeaCentre (you know, the desktop PCs you’ll find in abundance in thousands of business and schools around the world), but Lenovo smartly upgraded the cooling systems, power supply, and GPU to transform it into a competent 1080p gaming machine. That means that very capable 13th Gen Intel Core i5-13400F is cooled by a 65W CPU cooler, the solid NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 with 8GB of VRAM handles graphical duties, and the PSU is surprisingly rated 80+ Platinum for greater power efficiency and reliability (every configuration above the flat bottom has a 500W PSU instead of 380W, too, giving you a little more breathing room).
Oh, and the front grate cleverly hides more ventilation behind a classy blue LED strip, which is basically the only “gaming” design feature Lenovo included on this PC. Otherwise, it’s a compact 17 liter tower with quiet fans, and it’s actually a really solid performer. Don’t expect to play every game at 4K and max settings, of course, but I’ve been able to comfortably play absolutely any game I try at 60 FPS or higher with great visuals at FHD 1080p resolutions, including Cyberpunk 2077 (72 FPS average with the High graphics preset), Forza Horizon 5 (102 FPS average with the High preset), and Counter-Strike 2 (120-150 FPS average with the Medium preset). For context, my configuration has that same Core i5 and RTX 3050, but I do have 16GB of RAM and a 500W PSU.
I’ve been consistently impressed with this little PC, and it’s upgradeable, too. You get toolless entry into the admittedly cramped internals, with open slots for RAM, storage, and PCIe expansion upgrades. You’ll be a little limited by the chassis size, the 500W PSU, and the capabilities of the motherboard, but all-in-all its a great starting point for any casual PC gamer (or those looking to get into the PC gaming hobby). Right now, Lenovo is discounting the already-affordable LOQ Tower by 27-34% as part of an early Black Friday 2023 deal, making this a can’t-miss sale.
Whether you’re buying for yourself or considering gifts for the holiday season, the Lenovo LOQ Tower is an awesome product at this price. Getting any competent gaming PC for just $700 is great, but I do recommend spending a little bit more on the middle configuration for more RAM, a better GPU, and that aforementioned 500W PSU. You can thank me for the substantially improved gaming experience you’ll get later.
