Thanks for this! I've been meaning to get back into games but only keep a laptop at home and I had no idea that I could make a machine that could capably serve my needs for <£300 (32Gb Win10 i7 6700 with 256gb SSD (!), OK 2nd hand GPU) I spent my younger years always having The Best Machine I CoUlD afFord, but fifteen years later I just want something 'good enough' and it's nice to know I needn't spend over a grand to do so.
Yeah, to be honest, I followed one of these build guides, and got a second hand GPU, and it didn't fit in the case. I tried to "make" it fit with some shears. It died. No surprise. So then I bought a new cheap GPU, and the machine seems to work pretty well. My kids play Minecraft and StepMania on it.
I kind of love it. Convertible to tablet (keyboard folds under.) Runs Android apps, including Disney+, can download Disney+ shows. HDMI out. I believe the HDMI out works for Disney+ which is a surprise and a treat. Runs Linux. I installed Visual Studio Code, .Net Core, etc. Because it's a "Chromebook Plus," it has an App Shortcut to install the Steam Installer. (!!!) I installed Balatro, and the touchscreen works awesome. I installed both Android Minecraft (works well on the built-in screen but for some reason has frame rate problems on the external display?), and also Minecraft Java through the Linux.
Haven't tried too many other Steam games yet. I tried to install Path of Exile, but it seems to completely not work.
Arrgh - I didn't need to go even deeper down the rabbit hole! (I did) That Linus Tech Tips video was useful to me - there are a few of those HP Workstations available cheaply here in the UK, some with better i7 processsors. Thanks!
The Chromebook situation's a bit different over here though - I don't think the market is anywhere near as big as it is over the the States, as I think your educational set up encouraged them a lot, whereas they haven't here.. I think?
Still, plenty of cheap laptops to be had otherwise (I know I'm never going to bother buying a new one again - Second Hand Thinkpads FTW!)
And honestly, don't forget Steam Decks. Refurbished or otherwise. They truly are amazing machines for the price. And a cheap dock to hook up to a TV, keyboard, and mouse. A cheap set of 8bitdo controllers... And you're rocking and rolling.
I'm doing a dual-boot into a 128 GB Steam Deck image I found with... many... retro games on it. The website looked like hot garbage and I had to make an account to have access to download... but... very well made image.
"You Can Build This Powerful Ultra Low Cost SteamOS 3 Gaming PC For Only $150"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFIgQ9zgXOk
Optiplex 7020 with a tower - not a "Small Form Factor."
"This Super Low Cost PC Runs SteamOS 3 Better Than The Steam Deck!"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myye5o0y2Jw