DIGITAL NATIVES
AS YOU MAY HAVE GUESSED by the fact that you’re not holding a physical copy of Maximum PC this month, we’re becoming a digital-only publication from this issue forward. Sadly, the rising costs of printing and distributing the physical edition of Maximum PC were no longer viable, and while I know that will be a disappointment to many of you, we made the decision to pivot to digital now so that we’re able to continue to bring you the title you love. And that’s exactly what we’re doing: the same magazine, the same number of pages, and the same features as before, just in a new digital format that you can access anywhere you have a device.
We’re also taking this opportunity to add more content to the magazine in its digital format, such as this issue, where Sam and I discuss the story of this issue’s cover build in audio form (see page 16). A lot of you have told me you love hearing about the challenges we face when building PCs and how we overcome them, problems which are sometimes only briefly explored in text form. In audio, we’re able to go into much more detail, from how we come up with the ideas for our builds to an insight into what we’re working on next. As always, I’d love to hear from you about what you’d like to see from us, so that we can deliver you even more of Maximum PC in its new digital format.
To our loyal subscribers, this move has also allowed us to address one of your most-requested features, which is to create a digital archive of easily accessible back issues. We now have over 140 issues available going back over the last 12+ years, so you can check out historic reviews, re-read your favorite features, or just enjoy a spot of nostalgia to see how far we’ve come over the last decade. The move to digital also allows us to keep the magazine more current and relevant than before, as we can work closer to the on-sale deadline, meaning our news and reviews will be fresher than ever.
Whatever you think of our move, please tell me on editor@maximumpc.com. I read every email and will include the best correspondence in a future Comments section (see page 94).
As for what we’ve been working on this issue, we lead with a new budget gaming build that Sam put together using the latest components. Incredibly, that includes an Intel 13th generation processor, discrete Arc video card, and 1TB of SSD storage, yet clocks in at quite a bit less than $1,000. Sam also made sure his Corsair case had plenty of space for upgrades, meaning it should be usable for many years to come. Turn to page 16 to find out more.
We also lead this month’s reviews section with AMD’s Ryzen 7950X3D— the company’s fastest-ever gaming processor. Is the addition of of a 3D cache enough to get Zen 4 ahead of arch-rival Intel and its newly-released unlocked Core i9-13900KS? Turn to page 74 to find out.
Elsewhere this issue, Jeremy Laird has a fascinating look at how PC screen tech is shaping up this year—it’s LCD vs miniLED vs OLED on page 32. Plus, on page 56, we explain how CPUs work, take a look back at some of the most influential chips ever, and see which company is the one to watch as we push Moore’s Law ever harder.
Enjoy the issue!
Guy is Maximum PC’ s Editor-in-Chief. He built his first gaming PC in 1997 to play Tomb Raider on 3 dfx, and has been obsessed with all things PC ever since.