Stories by: Marco Chiappetta

Ever since Microsoft released Windows Vista, all Windows PCs have included a benchmark tool called the Windows Experience Index, which gives you a quick look at how well you can expect the system to handle basic Windows tasks, Aero graphics, more-demanding applications, games, and more. Hitting the overall maximum score--7.9, at the time of this writing--isn't easy without investing in a lot of expensive, specialized hardware, but we've found a PC build that you can tweak to reach 7.8 overall (with a 7.9 in every category except processor speed) for about $1000.