PC Gamer’s highest hardware review scores of 2022… and the five lowest
We’re an exacting bunch here on PC Gamer, and we have the highest standards. We know our gear, and we’ll only hand out the highest review scores to the kit that meets, or exceeds those standards. And, of the 200+ PC gaming products we’ve reviewed over the course of 2022, only 19 have managed to get over the 90% mark.
Yes, we still use the hundred point range, get over it.
It’s a somewhat surprising list, with some names you might not expect to be in there, and some you might have thought would make it into the top echelons of PC gaming gear this year. I definitely reckon you’ll be surprised to see which brand managed to get the absolute highest score of the year.
The fact there’s no AMD or Nvidia kit repping in the top tier of our reviews is likely not a surprise, and is largely a symptom of the fact that both have launched new hardware with unrealistic price tags. And that doesn’t win them any favours with us.
But with everything from gaming headsets, to CPUs, to PCs and screens, there’s a good spread of gear to whet your appetite. And then, just to balance out all the positivity, I’ve dropped the five lowest scoring products in at the bottom.
Seems like I’m the mean one, too, because all of the lowest scores were handed out by yours truly. Ain’t I a stinker?
The highest rated PC gaming gear of 2022
Gigabyte X670 Aorus Elite AX
For
- Good value for money
- Strong VRM
- Good connectivity options
Against
- Cheap audio
- B650/E competition
SK Hynix Platinum P41 2TB
For
- Excellent all-round performance
- No major weaknesses
- Competitive on price with direct rivals
Against
- Runs a tiny bit hot
- Unspectacular 4K performance
- Better value is available elsewhere
For
- Immaculate presentation
- Highly customisable
- Easily upgradeable
Against
- Expensive compared to a DIY build
- No Radeon graphics option
- The 5800X3D is overkill unless you are a gaming purist
For
- Extremely comfortable for a racing seat
- Magnetic memory foam headrest
- Premium metal construction
Against
- Eye-wateringly expensive
- Not especially rich in features
HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless
I couldn’t recommend a better wireless gaming headset than the HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless. They sound amazing and the battery lasts what feels like forever. Plus they’re comfortable for long sessions. These may not have the versatility of headsets with more connections, but if what you want is a wireless headset that works amazingly with your PC, this is the one to buy.
For
- Battery life that can only be described as witchcraft
- Excellent for listening to music
- Precise, powerful audio is great for gaming
- Very comfortable
Against
- Microphone isn’t up to par with the rest of the headset
- They aren’t the loudest headphones
For
- Excellent feel in the hand
- Outstanding RGB aesthetics
- Buttons are all easily accessible
- Excellent performance in games
- Great for productivity too
Against
- Not wireless
- Limited control over RGB
For
- Leading analogue features
- Genuinely beneficial in-game
- The best application around…
- …which can even run in your browser
- Vibrant RGB effects
- Excellent quality
- Highly customisable
- Spare switches included
Against
- No adjustable feet
- 60% size isn’t for everyone
- PBT keycaps currently US only
- F1 games don’t play nice with analogue functions
For
- Great to build into
- Extra cooling
- Routed cabling is a blessing
Against
- Doesn’t support tall RAM modules
NZXT Streaming Plus BLD Kit
For
- Good components for the money
- Genuinely fun to put together
- Clear building guide…
Against
- Some parts of the guide are generic
- And it takes time
For
- High performance and silent operation
- High-quality components and top build quality
- Fully modular
- 12-year warranty
Against
- High OCP on all rails, especially the minor ones
For
- Excellent no-fuss audio
- Beautiful design and solid build
- On-mic level monitoring
- No software needed
Against
- No control over sidetone
- Best audio requires a boom arm
For
- Great typing feel
- Reassuringly robust
- Responsive
- Optional modular numpad is great
Against
- Base Camp software remains a minor weak point
- Overall package gets expensive
For
- Excellent audio performance
- Comfortable for all-day use
- Beautiful design and build quality
- Very good microphone
For
- Adjustable lumbar support
- 4D armrest
- Seat size
Against
- Placement of the lumbar support knobs
The Top 4 best products of 2022
Alienware 34 QD-OLED (AW3423DW)
For
- Fabulous contrast and colours
- Stupendous pixel response
- Genuine HDR capability
Against
- Not a great all-purpose panel
- Latency isn’t a strong point
- No HDMI 2.1
For
- Great stock performance
- Low power
- Stays cool
- Holy hell, does it overclock
Against
- BCLK OC may get patched out
- Requires a whole new motherboard
For
- Gaming performance close to a Core i9 12900K
- Multithreaded performance close to a Core i9 12900K
- Basically a Core i9
- Fairly efficient
- Cheaper 600-series platform available
Against
- Hotter and hungrier than the Core i5 12600K
- Slower than last-gen in some games
For
- Powerful with top performance in all sections
- High build quality
- Silent operation
- Software control
Against
- Super expensive
- Small distance between peripheral connectors
The five worst products of 2022
For
- Strong gamer aesthetic
- Doubles as a bottle opener
Against
- Bass-heavy audio
- Weak battery life
- Low latency mode sacrifices sound quality
For
- Lots of features
- Long-range wireless
- Solid battery life
Against
- ANC isn’t great in games
- Connection static, and sometimes flaky
- Audio is a bit lacklustre
- Over $100 more than better headsets
- Poor mic clarity
Against
- Ephemeral MSRP
- Weak 4GB capacity
- Last-gen gaming performance
For
- The armrests are nice
- The head cushion is squishy
Against
- Really uncomfortable
- They want money for this
For
- Functional wireless
- Hotswappable switches
- Packaging is cute
Against
- Terrible typing experience
- Too flexible plastic chassis
- Lot of money
- Lacks the QA of a genuine LEGO product
We’re an exacting bunch here on PC Gamer, and we have the highest standards. We know our gear, and we’ll only hand out the highest review scores to the kit that meets, or exceeds those standards. And, of the 200+ PC gaming products we’ve reviewed over the course of 2022, only 19 have managed to get over the 90% mark.
Yes, we still use the hundred point range, get over it.
It’s a somewhat surprising list, with some names you might not expect to be in there, and some you might have thought would make it into the top echelons of PC gaming gear this year. I definitely reckon you’ll be surprised to see which brand managed to get the absolute highest score of the year.
The fact there’s no AMD or Nvidia kit repping in the top tier of our reviews is likely not a surprise, and is largely a symptom of the fact that both have launched new hardware with unrealistic price tags. And that doesn’t win them any favours with us.
But with everything from gaming headsets, to CPUs, to PCs and screens, there’s a good spread of gear to whet your appetite. And then, just to balance out all the positivity, I’ve dropped the five lowest scoring products in at the bottom.
Seems like I’m the mean one, too, because all of the lowest scores were handed out by yours truly. Ain’t I a stinker?
The highest rated PC gaming gear of 2022
Gigabyte X670 Aorus Elite AX
For
- Good value for money
- Strong VRM
- Good connectivity options
Against
- Cheap audio
- B650/E competition
SK Hynix Platinum P41 2TB
For
- Excellent all-round performance
- No major weaknesses
- Competitive on price with direct rivals
Against
- Runs a tiny bit hot
- Unspectacular 4K performance
- Better value is available elsewhere
For
- Immaculate presentation
- Highly customisable
- Easily upgradeable
Against
- Expensive compared to a DIY build
- No Radeon graphics option
- The 5800X3D is overkill unless you are a gaming purist
For
- Extremely comfortable for a racing seat
- Magnetic memory foam headrest
- Premium metal construction
Against
- Eye-wateringly expensive
- Not especially rich in features
HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless
I couldn’t recommend a better wireless gaming headset than the HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless. They sound amazing and the battery lasts what feels like forever. Plus they’re comfortable for long sessions. These may not have the versatility of headsets with more connections, but if what you want is a wireless headset that works amazingly with your PC, this is the one to buy.
For
- Battery life that can only be described as witchcraft
- Excellent for listening to music
- Precise, powerful audio is great for gaming
- Very comfortable
Against
- Microphone isn’t up to par with the rest of the headset
- They aren’t the loudest headphones
For
- Excellent feel in the hand
- Outstanding RGB aesthetics
- Buttons are all easily accessible
- Excellent performance in games
- Great for productivity too
Against
- Not wireless
- Limited control over RGB
For
- Leading analogue features
- Genuinely beneficial in-game
- The best application around…
- …which can even run in your browser
- Vibrant RGB effects
- Excellent quality
- Highly customisable
- Spare switches included
Against
- No adjustable feet
- 60% size isn’t for everyone
- PBT keycaps currently US only
- F1 games don’t play nice with analogue functions
For
- Great to build into
- Extra cooling
- Routed cabling is a blessing
Against
- Doesn’t support tall RAM modules
NZXT Streaming Plus BLD Kit
For
- Good components for the money
- Genuinely fun to put together
- Clear building guide…
Against
- Some parts of the guide are generic
- And it takes time
For
- High performance and silent operation
- High-quality components and top build quality
- Fully modular
- 12-year warranty
Against
- High OCP on all rails, especially the minor ones
For
- Excellent no-fuss audio
- Beautiful design and solid build
- On-mic level monitoring
- No software needed
Against
- No control over sidetone
- Best audio requires a boom arm
For
- Great typing feel
- Reassuringly robust
- Responsive
- Optional modular numpad is great
Against
- Base Camp software remains a minor weak point
- Overall package gets expensive
For
- Excellent audio performance
- Comfortable for all-day use
- Beautiful design and build quality
- Very good microphone
For
- Adjustable lumbar support
- 4D armrest
- Seat size
Against
- Placement of the lumbar support knobs
The Top 4 best products of 2022
Alienware 34 QD-OLED (AW3423DW)
For
- Fabulous contrast and colours
- Stupendous pixel response
- Genuine HDR capability
Against
- Not a great all-purpose panel
- Latency isn’t a strong point
- No HDMI 2.1
For
- Great stock performance
- Low power
- Stays cool
- Holy hell, does it overclock
Against
- BCLK OC may get patched out
- Requires a whole new motherboard
For
- Gaming performance close to a Core i9 12900K
- Multithreaded performance close to a Core i9 12900K
- Basically a Core i9
- Fairly efficient
- Cheaper 600-series platform available
Against
- Hotter and hungrier than the Core i5 12600K
- Slower than last-gen in some games
For
- Powerful with top performance in all sections
- High build quality
- Silent operation
- Software control
Against
- Super expensive
- Small distance between peripheral connectors
The five worst products of 2022
For
- Strong gamer aesthetic
- Doubles as a bottle opener
Against
- Bass-heavy audio
- Weak battery life
- Low latency mode sacrifices sound quality
For
- Lots of features
- Long-range wireless
- Solid battery life
Against
- ANC isn’t great in games
- Connection static, and sometimes flaky
- Audio is a bit lacklustre
- Over $100 more than better headsets
- Poor mic clarity
Against
- Ephemeral MSRP
- Weak 4GB capacity
- Last-gen gaming performance
For
- The armrests are nice
- The head cushion is squishy
Against
- Really uncomfortable
- They want money for this
For
- Functional wireless
- Hotswappable switches
- Packaging is cute
Against
- Terrible typing experience
- Too flexible plastic chassis
- Lot of money
- Lacks the QA of a genuine LEGO product
