HP 800 G2, Core i5-6500, 32GB, 1TB SSD, GTX 1050Ti, Black

The HP 800 G2 is a refurbished budget gaming desktop with 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a GTX 1050 Ti. It's great for esports titles and everyday use, but the aging Core i5-6500 CPU is one of the weakest in its class. At around $453 USD, it's a decent value for casual gamers, but serious players should look elsewhere.

Let's talk numbers. The Core i5-6500 runs at 3.6GHz across 4 cores, which was respectable in 2015 but is now firmly in the bottom tier for gaming desktops. In our database, this CPU ranks in the 9th percentile, which is a polite way of saying it's one of the weakest processors you can buy in this category today. It'll handle web browsing, office work, and light photo editing without complaint, but anything CPU-heavy like video editing or modern open-world games will make it sweat.

The GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB of VRAM is a more balanced pairing. It ranks in the 58th percentile, which puts it right around average for budget gaming GPUs. In practice, you're looking at 60+ fps in esports titles at 1080p, and playable frame rates in older AAA games if you're willing to drop settings to medium. The 32GB of DDR4 RAM is well above average for this class of machine, and the 1TB SSD means load times won't make you want to throw the tower out a window. Just don't expect to run Cyberpunk 2077 at anything above low settings, and even then, the CPU will hold you back.

Compared to the Apple Mac mini M4, the HP 800 G2 is in a completely different league. The Mac mini's M4 chip absolutely demolishes the i5-6500 in both CPU and GPU performance, and it does so while using a fraction of the power. But the Mac mini starts at a higher price and doesn't include a discrete GPU, so it's not a fair fight for gaming. The HP's GTX 1050 Ti will actually outperform the Mac mini's integrated graphics in many games, even though the M4 is the better overall chip.

Against the Dell Tower Desktop ECT1250, the HP 800 G2 holds its own in terms of RAM and storage, but the Dell typically ships with newer processors that will age much better. The iBUYPOWER Slate SBI7N5601 is the more interesting comparison. It costs more, but you're getting a modern CPU and a much stronger GPU, which translates to a dramatically better gaming experience. If you're serious about gaming, the iBUYPOWER is worth saving for. The Minisforum UM760 Slim is a different beast entirely, a compact mini PC with a newer Ryzen chip that will outperform the i5-6500 in most tasks, though it lacks a discrete GPU. For pure gaming, the HP's 1050 Ti gives it an edge, but for everything else, the Minisforum is the smarter buy.

At $453 USD, the HP 800 G2 is a mixed bag on value. You're getting 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a discrete GPU, which is a lot of hardware for under $500. But you're also getting a CPU that's nearly a decade old and a GPU that was entry-level when it launched in 2016. If you're looking for a cheap esports machine or a general-purpose desktop that can dabble in gaming, this is a reasonable deal. But if you can stretch your budget to $600 or $700, you'll find much better options like the iBUYPOWER Slate SBI7N5601, which offers a significantly stronger CPU and GPU combo. The refurbished nature of this machine also means you're rolling the dice on quality control, though the seller's customer support seems responsive based on user feedback.

The HP 800 G2 is a refurbished tower PC that's been given a second life as a budget gaming rig. It's built around an Intel Core i5-6500, a 4-core chip from 2015, paired with a GTX 1050 Ti and a generous 32GB of DDR4 RAM. The 1TB SSD is a nice touch for a machine in this price bracket, and it ships with Windows 11 Pro already installed. At around $453 USD, it's aimed at people who want a capable desktop without spending new-PC money.

Is the HP 800 G2 good for gaming? Sort of. The GTX 1050 Ti can handle esports titles like Fortnite, Valorant, and CS2 at 1080p without much trouble, and older AAA games will run fine on medium settings. But this is not a machine for modern AAA titles at high settings. The CPU is the real bottleneck here. It sits in the 9th percentile for gaming desktops, which means it's one of the weakest processors we've seen in this category. That's the trade-off you make at this price.

For everyday tasks, though, this thing is surprisingly pleasant. The 32GB of RAM is overkill for most people, but it means you can keep a hundred browser tabs open while running Discord and a game without breaking a sweat. The 1TB SSD gives you plenty of room for a game library, and boot times are snappy. If you're coming from an older Windows 10 machine, the jump to Windows 11 Pro on an SSD will feel like a breath of fresh air.

If you're planning to play modern AAA games at high settings or do any kind of video editing, 3D rendering, or streaming, the HP 800 G2 is not for you. The Core i5-6500 will bottleneck almost everything you throw at it, and the GTX 1050 Ti is simply too weak for demanding workloads. You'd be much better off saving for something like the iBUYPOWER Slate SBI7N5601 or building a budget PC around a modern Ryzen or Intel chip. This machine is also a poor fit for anyone who wants a quiet, compact system, since the tower form factor is bulky and the aging components will run hot under load.

Should you buy the HP 800 G2? If you're on a tight budget and want a machine that can handle esports games and everyday tasks without complaint, it's a decent option. The 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD are genuinely nice specs at this price, and the GTX 1050 Ti is still capable of 1080p gaming in less demanding titles. The fact that it ships with Windows 11 Pro is a bonus.

But the Core i5-6500 is a real problem. It's one of the weakest CPUs we've seen in this category, and it will hold you back in anything beyond light gaming and basic productivity. If you're hoping to play modern AAA games or do any kind of content creation, this machine will frustrate you. For $453, it's a fair deal for the right use case, but most people would be better off saving a bit more for something with a modern processor.