Some things should be rented: cars, houses, some high-end cameras. Smartphones and gaming PCs shouldn’t be on that list. (Don’t message me about smartphones; you shouldn’t lease them like you lease cars.) But NZXT is hoping you won’t take my advice: The PC maker has launched a new program that lets you rent a rig for just $59 (peripherals not included).
Called NZXT Flex, the subscription program allows gamers to upgrade to a new PC tower for free every two years. You can cancel at any time, but you’ll have to return the system, as NZXT makes it clear that it’s not a rent-to-buy service. The subscription also comes with 24/7 customer service and a lifetime warranty; however, the warranty is limited and doesn’t cover “exceptions only in the case of negligence, theft, or intentional damage.”
As you may know, this does not result in a hard query being run on your credit report – NZXT may run a soft query during the verification process – but if you don’t pay or return the system, the company may turn to a debt collection agency “as a last resort.”
Subscription Price
According to The Verge: NZXT NZXT has been offering its Flex subscription service for a few months now, and has been fine-tuning the model structure since its launch. The current service has three subscription tiers: Player One, Player Two, and Player Three. Player One is the entry-level plan for $59, which offers a desktop PC with an Intel Core i5-12400F CPU, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU, 16GB DDR4 3,200MHz RAM, and a 500GB NVMe M.2 SSD. NZXT recommends this tier as “for the average gamer with standard settings.” With a solid configuration, you’ll get good frame rates in most games. However, if you’re interested in 4K gaming, you’ll experience a significant drop in frame rates.
If you want a bit more power, there’s the mid-tier Player Two for $119. This tier is for “enthusiasts who want to play the latest releases at great FPS.” This upgrades you to an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 GPU, 16GB DDR4 3200 MHz RAM, and a 1TB NVMe M.2 SSD. It’s definitely a step up and should enable respectable frame rates. However, those with 4K gaming in mind will need something even more powerful. That’s where the top-end model, the Player Three, comes in at $169. Specifically targeted at users looking for “cutting-edge performance and 4K gameplay,” this model comes equipped with a 16-core, 3.4GHz Intel Core i7-13700KF processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti GPU, 32G DDR5 5600 Mhz RAM, and 1TB NVMe M.2 SSD.
No matter which plan you choose, there’s an additional $50 charge for “setup and delivery.”
Subscription vs. Pre-configured vs. DIY
Now, let’s do the math. If you want to get the Player One tier for two years, you’ll pay $1,416. Player Two and Three will cost you $2,856 and $4,056 respectively. Wow! With that kind of money, you could build yourself a PC with more powerful specs, like an RTX 4080 or 4090.
I visited a few major desktop PC manufacturers to see if their pre-configured systems were cheaper, and I quickly discovered that all of their pre-configured systems were more powerful and cheaper than two years of the Player Three tier. Two of the desktops were even cheaper than the Player Two tier, and the specs on each system were more powerful.
We started off with Dell’s Alienware Aurora R16, priced at $3,699.99 (Intel Core i9 14900KF, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, 32GB DDR5, 5600 MT/s RAM, 2TB, M.2, PCIe NVMe, SSD). Next up is the Lenovo Legion Tower 7i Gen 8 (Intel) with RTX 4080 Super GPU, priced at $2,649.99, with an Intel Core i9-14900KF CPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, 32GB DDR5-5200MHz RAM, and a 2TB M.2 2280 PCIe Gen4 Performance TLC Opal SSD. And finally, I went over to HP’s site and found the HP Omen 45L Gaming Desktop GT22-2085t, priced at $2,289.99 and equipped with an Intel Core i7-14700K, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER GPU, 16GB DDR5-5200 Mhz RAM, and a 1TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe TLC M.2 SSD.
Now, on to the system build. I built a system from scratch using the most expensive components from NZXT’s site, and used the same process for the CPU and GPU. The case includes an H9 Elite currently on sale for $169.99, two Kraken Elite 360 RGB fans ($299.99 each), an F140 RGB DUO twin pack ($84.99), a C1500 Platinum ATX 3.1 power supply ($369.99), an Intel® Z790 ATX motherboard ($299.99), an NZXT Control Hub ($34.99), an Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4090 OC edition gaming graphics card ($1,976.59), and you can choose between an AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D CPU ($546.82) or an Intel Core i9-13900K CPU ($476.14) depending on your preference.
If you choose an AMD CPU, the total price will be $4,048.35, or $3,977.67 for Intel fans, both of which are cheaper than a two-year subscription to Player 3.
NZXT’s program could be a good choice for people who are unsure about making the move to PC gaming and want to give it a try. It could also be a great way to ensure your machine is always equipped with the highest specs. It all depends on how robust NZXT’s upgrade program is. Consumers looking for a system are better off getting a pre-configured machine or building one themselves.