If you’re looking for the best CPU of 2020 for gaming, you’re in luck, as the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is finally back in stock at Currys in the UK at the regular price of £ 280.
Easily the standout CPU of AMD’s new line of Ryzen 5000 processors, the six-core Ryzen 5 5600X offers nearly identical gaming performance across all resolutions to the more expensive Ryzen 7 5800X and Ryzen 9 5900X. It’s also a lot faster than Intel’s Core i5-10600K, and a lot more energy efficient to boot. It’s a great choice for new PC builders and right now it’s my CPU of choice for those looking to upgrade now.
You’ll want to pair it with one of AMD’s B550 or X570-based AM4 motherboards to get the most out of it, but select 400 series AM4 motherboards are also compatible with AMD’s new Ryzen 5000 processors after a BIOS update. If you are upgrading from an existing 400 series motherboard, check to see if an update is available for your particular board before removing your old processor. X570 and B550 motherboards, on the other hand, work directly with all Ryzen 5000 CPUs.
Sadly, the Ryzen 5 5600X is still out of stock pretty much everywhere in the US, but stock levels in the UK seem to be slightly better at this point. Indeed, Currys has the best price for the 5600X right now as Scan currently has it at £ 310, while Overclockers UK are even more expensive at £ 320. In fact, it’s not just limited to a handful of local Currys stores in nationwide, it’s also available for both online purchases and local pick-up via drive-through, because, you know, lockdown and all.
I should note that Intel will be releasing their 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs before the end of March this year, so you might prefer to wait and see how they compare before taking the plunge. Intel’s 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs will finally support the superfast PCIe 4.0 standard when released later this year, as will AMD’s Ryzen 5000 chips, making them a much better foundation for a new PC than Intel’s existing 10th Gen Comet Lake processors . PCIe 4.0 support will become increasingly important in the future, and I wouldn’t recommend anyone build a PC without a PC this year.
In the meantime, AMD’s Ryzen 5 5600X is still an excellent CPU on its own, and well worth fetching £ 280 if you’re building a new PC.