Will splashing out on expensive RAM make a real difference to PC performance? And if so, how much should you buy? We supply the benchmarks and lay the details bare

A range of cut-down Core 2 Duo processors that are fine for everyday tasks.

An old standard, but one that still provides decent performance at a great price.

Our full guide to saving cash-saving secrets is here, from how to get discounts on PCs, to SIM only phone contracts, the best DSLR cameras deals, and discount licensing from Adobe, Microsoft and others.

There may be two main CPU manufacturers, but picking the right processor is anything but simple. We put 51 CPUs through their paces

Still not sure whether it's worth upgrading to Vista? We put XP and Vista through the ultimate face-off.

LGA 1366 is Intel's first new desktop socket in four years. It uses the same ZIF design as the familiar LGA 775 architecture, but it incorporates many more contacts

Graphics card manufacturers’ obsession with multi-GPU boards continues this month. The Asus HD 3850 X2 brings to market the novel formula of two ATi Radeon 3850 GPUs on one card.

A diverse family including some stellar CPUs and numerous also-rans.

A diverse family including some stellar CPUs and numerous also-rans

A mighty dual-GPU board that makes light work of even today’s toughest DirectX 10 games.

A mighty dual-GPU board that makes light work of even today’s toughest DirectX 10 games

A powerful card at a competitive price – a deserved victory to cap ATI’s remarkable turnaround

An uninspiring board with no strong selling point

This motherboard is a promising appetiser – although the real meal is yet to come.

A capable little package at an attractive price

A feast of features for those willing to pay

A smartly engineered processor, but for today’s applications it’s lacking in bang per buck.

Intel’s three new CPUs promise Core i7 power in an economical and efficient package. We put them through their paces to see whether small really is beautiful