The TechSpot PC Buying Guide offers an in-depth list of today's best hardware, spanning four unique, yet typical budgets. Whether you are a first time builder seeking guidance or a seasoned enthusiast, we've got you covered.

After working on this guide for many years, we learned the biggest pitfall of our previous work, as well as with many other buying guides online, is that they expire shortly after publishing. Prices change daily, components come and go, and the guides simply degrade in worth until they're eventually rewritten a few months later. Recognizing this, we are taking an alternative approach in our revamped PC Buying Guide.

We will add and update new hardware to the mix as it's released. All four builds will be updated on major product launches and we'll make a biweekly pass over the components and their prices to catch anything in-between. We wholly welcome your support and input to keep this guide as fresh as possible.

With that out of the way, let's take a look at our four system price points:

The Budget Box

• Decent performance • Good for everyday computing • Gaming only with add-on graphics

If you just need to create a few documents and check your email, you can get by on much less than a $500 desktop. Hell, a $300 netbook can tackle that job while remaining highly portable. Buying a netbook is a worthy route for the road warrior, but desktops still reign supreme in terms of value and expandability.

If you follow this build you'll have a system acceptable for any role apart from running graphically intense applications. Throw a budget video card into the mix — which can be had for less than a $100 these days — and you'll have a humble solution to gaming as well.

Motherboard, Processor, Memory
The new dual-core Core i3 2100 ($117 list) is a perfect match for this machine, offering comparable performance to the acclaimed quad-core Core i5 750 ($200 retail) in applications that don't utilize the two extra cores — which includes most games. Additionally, the new Sandy Bridge processors have a very respectable on-die graphics core, making them especially ideal for a budget machine with integrated graphics. Unfortunately, many of the new Intel processors aren't available through etailers, so we can't quite add the i3 2100 to the table yet.

We would recommend waiting until the lower-tier Sandy Bridge chips are released before purchasing a machine in this price bracket. If that's not possible and you can't spend big on a processor, AMD's Phenom II X2 555 remains your best bet. Not only does the stock chip offer an incredible value, but you have a fair chance at enabling two additional processing cores.

DRAM prices are finally dipping to more budget-friendly levels — at least compared to previous months. We think 4GB of RAM is gradually becoming the new standard, but you could save a little cash by purchasing 2GB instead if you're only going to be browsing the Web, emailing, instant messaging, word processing, listening to music and so on.

Graphics, Sound
This build is not intended for gaming, but adding a relatively low-cost GPU like the Radeon HD 4850 will do wonders for your FPS, transforming this into a viable machine for casual PC gaming. We recently published a tech tip with a list of the top budget and mid-range graphics cards available, which should offer some guidance. In addition to a Radeon HD 4250 IGP, the chosen motherboard has a Realtek ALC662 audio chipset and integrated sound is more than sufficient for a basic machine.

Storage
The way hard drives are priced these days, a few extra dollars can literally yield a 50% increase in storage space — and the gigabytes disappear faster than you think. But if you are certain that you won't need the additional storage space, you're welcome to save a couple bucks by choosing a less capacious drive. The 500GB Caviar Black currently offers the best bang for your buck.

Power, Case
You wouldn't put diluted gas in your car and you shouldn't feed your PC dirty power. The instability offered by your typical no-name PSU will inexorably lead to an untimely failure, leaving you with an unglamorous paperweight. In short, friends shouldn't let friends buy cheap power supplies. Antec's Neo Eco 400c will not only provide this build with all the power it could ever need, it should also meet the requirements of most entry-level video cards in circulation.

There are plenty of basic chassis priced in the sub-$50 bracket, and the NZXT is our personal pick with plenty of space for expandability and a stock 120mm rear exhaust fan, which should be sufficient for a system with no discrete graphics. It's almost always available with free shipping, which is a major plus if you're buying a 13lb metal box.

Monitor, Speakers, Peripherals
A 20" display doesn't sound like much these days, and there's no denying it's toward the smaller end of desktop monitors. The Asus VH202T-P 20" features a native resolution of 1600x900 and unless you've already been spoiled by larger high-res displays this should prove adequate for general computing tasks. No display in the sub-$150 range is going to boast superb imagery, and most are of comparable enough in quality that you're safe buying anything with decent reviews.

We recommend just finding something that fits your size and resolution needs. Unfortunately, you'll probably have to rely on sales, rebates, open box, or refurbished monitors if you're after one that's larger than 20" and cheaper than $140.

Our chosen display has integrated speakers, but frankly, we wouldn't recommend using them beyond Windows sounds. Dip into your piggy bank and invest in some low-end 2.1 speakers, such as Logitech's S220. You'll be glad you did.

Wired keyboard and mice combinations start at about $10 with choices including several Logitech, Microsoft and Apevia combos under $25. Our pick is currently one of the cheapest solutions available, but if you have an extra few dollars and prefer a wireless setup, have a look at Logitech's EX 100.

The Entry-Level Rig (~$900)

• Good performance • Fast for everyday computing • Casual gaming
Our Entry-Level Rig should prove to be an excellent companion for running general applications and a sufficient solution for even the newest games on the market, albeit with a bit of the eye-candy tuned down.

The Enthusiast's PC (~$1,600)

• Excellent performance • Good Multitasker • Perfect for gaming
Our Enthusiast's PC incorporates the perfect blend of both the Entry-Level Rig and Luxury System, making this the most harmonious of builds. Our intent is to keep this system within the grasp of the average computer enthusiast, essentially offering a fully-loaded PC minus some of the unnecessary bells and whistles that could set you back an additional grand or two.

The Luxury System

• Workstation-like performance • Great for heavy multitasking • Extreme gaming
The Luxury System is a screaming-edge machine lacking any virtual price cap. Every component in the Luxury System guide is thoughtfully scrutinized, offering the most horsepower for your greenback. If a component's premium price isn't justified, it simply doesn't make the cut.

Republished with permission from TechSpot.

Matthew DeCarlo is a TechSpot editor. Follow him on Twitter.

TechSpot is a computer technology publication serving PC enthusiasts, gamers and IT pros since 1998.

We can't all be Angeline Jolie or Brad Pitt, but what we lack in looks we make up for in brains, right? Apparently not. Researchers in London have found that attractive people are smarter too, dammit.

This has to be some sort of joke, right? I've seen the best minds of my generation, and the faces attached to them aren't winning any prizes. What gives?

Researchers at the London School of Economics studied 52,000 people from the United Kingdom and the United States, and their results were conclusive: Attractive men have IQs 13.6 points above average, while pretty women score 11.4 points higher.

"Physical attractiveness is significantly positively associated with general intelligence," said LSE lead researcher Satoshi Kanazawa, in the latest issue of the journal Intelligence.

Why is this the case? The study theorizes that intelligent men are more successful than men of lesser intelligence. Beautiful women are attracted to successful men. Therefore, by breeding with attractive women, these successful, intelligent men produce more attractive, more intelligent offspring.

Of course those are all broad generalizations. I'd like to think that women are more attracted to intelligent men in general, not just because of their successes. I'd rather not paint women with such a broad brush, and not just because it's depressing to me as a homely smart guy.

At least Kanazawa keeps everyone grounded, letting us know that we shouldn't use the results of this study as a basis to judge others.

"Our contention that beautiful people are more intelligent is purely scientific," he said. "It is not a prescription for how to treat or judge others."

That's right, boys and girls. This is just cold, hard, scientific evidence. No need to treat people uglier than you as inferior just because science says they are.

What I've read about the study leaves many questions unanswered, the most important being how it was determined that the 52,000 people involved in the study were of above average attractiveness. It's a value I feel is hard to quantify scientifically, as it differs with every person. Hell, someone found me attractive enough to want to marry me. That fact alone makes me want to toss these results out the window.

I'd check out the full article at ScienceDirect, but they want me to pay $31.50 for it. I may be ugly, but I'm not any more stupid than science says I should be.

Update: Thanks to all of you grad students for sending me the full text. You are all gentlemen and scholars!

Beautiful men, women are more likely to be smarter with high IQs, too: study [NYDailyNews.com]

Sports titles just aren't supposed to be game-of-the-year contenders. Their annualized nature sends the message that this year's game, no matter how great, won't be worth owning in 365 days. If anything could rise above that, it is NBA 2K11.

Michael Jordan is as timeless a figure in sports as they come. People still think he's going to come running out of that tunnel, as he does in NBA 2K11's spellbinding opening sequence. Even if he or the 10-game recreation of his greatest moments appear in future games, it's hard to imagine they will dedicate themselves to him in this way. That makes NBA 2K11 the rarest of sports games, the one that will be worth playing over its successors.

For non-sports gamers, NBA 2K11 may not be as easily grasped as a shooter, a role-playing game, or an action-adventure sandbox. But if all you know to do is pick the superstar on the floor and take him to the basket repeatedly, The Jordan Challenge can be won by doing just that. It may not be a tutorial for playing basketball, but it is a powerful invitation to video game sports.

The prize for completing the challenge is to unlock Jordan in the My Player career mode and reincarnate him in the present NBA. By undertaking that, you come to understand how Jordan often defied reality, because the easiest way to recreate his signature performances is to approach the game as unrealistically as possible. Feed No. 23 the ball every time. Shoot without a screen. Drive straight at the teeth of the 1986 Celtics defense. You'll have to score 63 points against one of the greatest teams in basketball history. And it may not be the hardest thing you do, either.

None of this addresses what is still a technically brilliant sports simulation without Jordan or even before his arrival, but that's somewhat the point. To deliver a transformative work atop years of excellence is an expectation faced by no other game we've nominated - not Call of Duty: Black Ops, Mass Effect 2, nor Red Dead Redemption. Nor is it one they fulfilled.

And if that does not qualify a sports game for Game of the Year, then nothing ever will.

Luke Plunkett's Reply
For the sake of future sports games that deserve a tilt at our "Game of the Year", I'm a little disappointed this is the one being touted as the genre's best ever shot. Because while I agree with you that it's an amazing sports game, and that it's easily the best basketball game ever made, those two things don't really count for much.

Sure, it's got Michael Jordan in it. And a whole host of other retro superstars. Sure, it looks (and sounds) like a TV broadcast. But for a basketball game to be worth nominating for the big prize, it needed to do more than that. It needed to be, as you put it, truly transformative in terms of how it played, not just how it was dressed.

But it's not. Adding Jordan doesn't change the fact that this is just another basketball game. It may be the best one ever, sure, but until the series stops pandering to a niche and finds out why the sales of basketball games don't match the global appeal of the sport, that's all it'll ever be.

Brian Ashcraft's Reply
Okay, to get a few things out of the way: I don't like basketball, and I haven't enjoyed a basketball game since NBA Jam. Both of these points might discount my opinion entirely, then again, they may not.

The issues I had with NBA 2K11 were not gameplay per se. Once I started to get the hang of that, I enjoyed playing the game. The stumbling block for me, and for this game's GOTY chances, is the bar for entry is just too high. There's too much navel gazing.

The menus make little to no sense, and it was off-putting to figure out where I could learn the ropes, practice, change the settings, etc. The interface was largely counterintuitive, and because of that, it makes NBA 2K11 feel like yet another entry in a series, but with added Michael Jordan, and not a solid stand alone and definitely not Game of The Year.

Mike Fahey's Reply
The opening to NBA 2K11 was the most satisfying sequence of any sports game I've played. Where I was expecting music and menus I was immediately thrust into the role of one of the greatest players in basketball history, playing in one of the most important series of his career. The music and menus came eventually, but I was indeed spellbound in those opening moments.

I'm not much of a sports gamer, but I can appreciate the excellence of NBA 2K11. The gameplay is slick and addictive. The atmosphere is second-to-none. The presentation rivals broadcast television. Hell, I spent a half hour building my custom baller for the game's My Player career mode. Packed with modes and special features, it's a ridiculously deep sports game.

In the end, however, I have to agree with Luke. The game's surprising depth makes it far too easy for a basketball novice like myself to get lost in a sea of game terminology that I just don't understand. For a sports game to be truly worthy of Game of the Year, it needs to cater to all gamers - not just those already familiar with the subject matter.

Stephen Totilo's Reply
I occasionally agitate for a Best Controls awards category to become standard across all gaming awards galas, because good controls are more valuable than good graphics, good sound effects or good just about anything else. So I'm praising NBA 2K11's controls as among 2010's best. They feel good.

I'm also praising 2K11 as one of the year's best role-playing games, partially because I refuse to consider the "role-playing game" classification the way tradition has defined it. No, I will stubbornly adhere to the way the English language defines it. NBA 2K11, in letting me play as Michael Jordan across a series of historically accurate games of elite basketball, enables me to believably inhabit the sneakers of a a real man whose physical accomplishments were damn near super-human. It's more fun to Be Mike than to Be Like Mike.

But given basketball games' trajectory toward matching the realism of basketball or a basketball broadcast, I can't consider even as polished a basketball video game as this as anything more than an incomplete advance toward a distant goal. I can't help but hold the example of what it aspires to be but is not against it, killing its chance of getting my GOTY vote.

Brian Crecente's Reply
That's funny, I see this as a role-playing game too. That was the biggest draw for me this time around.

I played a few games with known, pro-players, including Jordan, but what really captivated me about the game was the notion of starting from nothing and learning and earning my way to a top position in the draft.

I know this isn't a first for a basketballer, but it's the first time it's been combined with so polished an experience. But it's still a very specific core, inwardly looking experience. It may be at the top of its game, but it's a game that is often an overwhelming experience, one that seems to embrace just how insular it is.

And I completely disagree with the notion that the latest Call of Duty, Rockstar epic or top role-playing game somehow skates on gamers' expectations of a transformative work. The difference here is that 2K11 is built around a set of rules that rarely change.

Michael McWhertor's Reply
As the champion of 2009's game of the year outlier, Demon's Souls, I sympathize with your plight in arguing for NBA 2K11. If I could approach this basketball simulation as a role-playing game, one in which I was somewhat invested, we'd share a mutual appreciation of the game's merits.

Unfortunately, the opportunity to role-play as one of the sport's most accomplished athletes holds no special meaning for me. With no emotional attachment or nostalgia for Michael Jordan, the Chicago Bulls, or their dynasty, I find myself simply playing an enjoyably accurate sports game, but experiencing none of the emotive, immersive qualities of 2010's other nominees.

While I was fascinated by the depth and breadth of NBA 2K11, as a sports game rookie, my enjoyment suffered from diving into a well-established franchise that I found unfriendly to those without basketball simulation expertise.

What NBA 2K11 made me appreciate was the vocabulary I've established playing non-sports games. Sports sims are a language I do not yet speak. I haven't been convinced that this is a game worthy of my vote, but it has been a fine introduction to a genre more worthy of my attention.

Owen Good's Rebuttal
Admittedly, this nominee was our longest shot and the one most vulnerable to one's taste in games and broader lifestyle. Luke's rebuttal stings but rings true. NBA 2K11 doesn't pull far enough away from the assumption that interest in a sport equals familiarity with or proficiency in it. If this is an invitation, it's still to an exclusive party.

But I was pleasantly surprised to read the praise for NBA 2K11's role-playing game qualities. I may have missed an opportunity in my advocacy. Stephen's praise of the controls also points out something many sports gamers take for granted annually.

On NBA 2K11's behalf, I'll consider that making it this far before losing is still a tremendous achievement. But Jordan himself, if this were one of his seven playoff years without a championship, wouldn't take that for much of a compliment. He'd come back next year more determined than ever. I hope NBA 2K12 - and all sports games - will too.

This is the first of four debates surrounding our final choice for 2010's game of the year. All four will run this week. The winner will be announced Monday.

In today's episode of the daily Speak-Up on Kotaku, commenter BiggunSid talks about the trophies and achievements that he'd like to see game developers do away with.

I think most of us will agree that achievements/trophies are a pretty cool addition to the current generation of gaming. Some of us love it-a buddy of mind called it "gamer crack"-and some of us simply think it's neat. For those of us who like to platinum a game or have a good game in our complete games list, gamer score and trophies can extend the life of a game well beyond the last scene in a campaign.

But here are two types of achievements/trophies that I feel should not exist.

1.) Multiplayer achievements/trophies

Yeah, sure it's okay with games like Reach or Killzone 2 or the Left 4 Deads. They have a healthy community. But what about other games, like Assault on Dark Athena? I really liked that game and would love to have it in my complete games list, but it's never gonna happen because they put in a pile of multiplayer achievements/trophies. The multiplayer on Dark Athena will never have a community, because it's just not that good. And that's why so many games like Assault put the achievements in their multiplayer, under the misguided notion that somehow those trophies will make people play it, and thereby develop a community. It's akin to putting nudity in a crappy movie; dudes will watch anything for a bit of nudity. But the thing is, it's NOT like that. All the trophies/points in the world won't make a gamer suffer through a crappy multiplayer experience. If a developer wants a gamer to play its multiplayer mode, then here's a tip: make the multiplayer worth playing for its own sake. A prime example of this is CoD 4. There were no multiplayer achievements in that game, and that was fine, because the multiplayer was rewarding in a TON of other ways (like it or not, and I don't, it was deep and rewarding because of its unlockables and whatnot). You could get all the achievements in the single player campaign, and that was fine. Except for one of those achievements, which is the collection of the intel, which brings me to my second point.

2.) The "Hey! Find and collect a bunch of stuff that's been left around for some reason!" achievement/trophy.

Today's games offer an immersion factor the likes of which hasn't been seen before in gaming. Nothing ruins that like having to collect a bunch of flags which some bored Templar has littered the rooftops with (Assassin's Creed) or having to collect THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY BLAST SHARDS in inFamous. I mean, that's a sucker punch right there. Having to print maps off of the internet and spend hours running to every nook and cranny is not really doing anything to make me like the game. I don't feel that I AM Cole when I spend three hours trying to collect the last three blast shards. And it's not the difficulty of attaining these trophies that bothers me. I mean, doing all the stunts on the list in inFamous is tough, but fair. The same with skydiving to safety on veteran in CoD 4. That has to be one of the most ball-busting achievements out there, and I may never get it, but if I did, OH wouldn't that be sweet. But collecting all the intel isn't. Having to collect a bunch of crap I don't care about and which is irrelevant to the actual game is unrealistic and painful.

Anyway, there's my two cents. Anyone with me?

About Speak-Up on Kotaku: Our readers have a lot to say, and sometimes what they have to say has nothing to do with the stories we run. That's why we have that little box on the front page of Kotaku. You know, the one with "Got something to say?" written in it? That's the place to post anecdotes, photos, game tips and hints, and anything you want to share with Kotaku at large. Just make sure to include #speakup in your comment so we can find it. Every weekday we'll pull one of the best #speakup posts we can find and highlight it here.

It's almost like being there! Thanks to Zelda Did It! for sharing the pic.

Gameface is a photographic celebration of the people who make, play and love video games.

Zip-lines, collapsing ice bridges and auto-turrets are all coming to Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer next month, if you game on an Xbox 360.

Due out on the Xbox 360 on Feb. 1, and perhaps one day the Playstation 3 and PC, the First Strike map pack will include four new multiplayer maps and a zombie map for 1,200 Microsoft Points, or about $15.

The maps will each offer a unique twist to the always addictive gameplay of Black Ops.

Kowloon, inspired by the Hong Kong mission found in the game's single player campaign, was rebuilt specifically for multiplayer matches, according to Treyarch. The game is packed with layers of rooftops and hiding spots and includes a zip-line that will let you quickly sweep between spots on the map, but do so without access to your weapons.

Discovery is a map set in an antarctic research station, a station that happens to be evenly divided by a deep chasm. Fortunately there's a single ice bridge connecting the sides, a bridge that can be collapsed.

Berlin Wall has you playing in East and West Berlin and includes a No Man's Land loaded with auto turrets.

Finally, Stadium is a close quarters map with plenty of places to run around and hide in.

There don't appear to be any details about the new zombie map, at least not yet.

The developers say the pack is coming to the Xbox 360 first, but don't get into when or if the pack will be hitting the PC and Playstation 3.

Early this morning we reported on a new study that claims one in ten children are engaged in pathological gaming, prone to serious mental health issues. How does CNN handle the study?

Surprisingly well, if you ask me. They manage to mention that the 3,000 children involved in the study were from Singapore, for instance, which is of course a completely different country than the United States with a completely different culture. They touch on the Entertainment Software Association's assertion that this new study means absolutely nothing at all and was conducted with the aim of proving a negative point about the industry.

The only huge slip up I noticed was calling World of Warcraft a violent video game. Someone hasn't played any WoW lately.

Thanks RtFusion for the link!

Selecting the best game of the year should be the result of a thoughtful process, not a rush to the finish line.

Last year we completely retooled how Kotaku made it's selection for game of the year, and I think it worked. This year we're returning to that system, a system that has us wait until we've had time to examine our choices and think through our arguments.

Today we kick off the debate, a process that has us openly discussing why we think our selection of finalists is or isn't the game of the year.

Later today you'll have a chance to read through the arguments we each made surrounding the first of four games nominated internally as potentially the game of the year.

To select those nominees I asked each writer to decide what single game they thought was the absolute best for the year. It had to be a game that they could argue was better than any other. There was no runner-up or third place selection, so the finalists come off as an oddly eclectic mix.

Once selected, we made sure everyone had played all of the games in question and then kicked off a round of internal debate. A game was given a champion who opened the debate with his reasoning for why the game was the best of the year, that was followed by six writers discussing why they agree or disagree. Finally the champion has a chance to respond to the points raised.

This is what we're publishing over the course of the week. These are sincere arguments, they are meant to change minds, internally, and sometimes they do.

On Friday we will open the debate up to you, our readers. Over the weekend I will ask the staff of Kotaku to reexamine the arguments made both internally and by you and to recast their vote for game of the year. We will announce that winner and the winner of the reader's choice award on Monday.

Hope you enjoy the debate, it starts in two hours.

This week's Nintendo Download features a game called Doc Clock: The Toasted Sandwich of Time, and a DSiWare game that lets you punch anthropomorphic animals in the face. What more could you people possibly want?

It gets better! In Stickmen Studios' Doc Clock for WiiWare, the titular doctor travels through time, building inventions out of parts he finds and battling misguided robots as he strives to find his lost cat and built the perfect sandwich toasting machine. That might be the best game plot summary I've ever typed.

It also gets a little worse, as Gammick Entertainment's Animal Boxing is a re-release of a Nintendo DS game that no one really liked in the first place, even though you could physically assault cats. Just goes to show that even games with can't-miss concepts can miss.

Flip through the gallery to see if anything tickles your fancy this week!

Marvel Vs. Capcom 3's release is less than a month away, and Capcom keeps marching out the new combatants. Today we get our first look at Street Fighter's Akuma and a new Marvel character that knows all of your moves.

First up is Akuma, the younger brother of Gouken, the sensei of Street Fighter's Ken and Ryu. Lightning fast and often ridiculously powerful, Akuma is a hidden character that will pop out to kick your ass at inopportune times.

And then we have Marvel's new entry, the Taskmaster. What makes him so scary, aside from his spooky skull mask? Taskmaster possesses something called photographic reflexes. If he sees a move, he can perform it. He's used this power to battle Captain America to a standstill on several occasions, and Deadpool only beat him by letting his innate insanity take over so the Taskmaster couldn't predict his moves. He's the guy super villains turn to in order to train their troops. Taskmaster will steal your moves and then beat you with them.

Are we done yet, or does Capcom have any more surprises in store before Marvel Vs. Capcom 3's February 15 release date?