Review: iBuyPower RDY Slate 9MP R01 Gaming PC

The iBuyPower Slate system I spent the last month gaming on isn’t particularly flashy, nor is it a shining example of the heights that gaming PC brands can reach. It is, however, a totally usable system with minimal bloatware, and any qualms I have with some odd choices don’t harm the gaming performance.

At its listed price of almost $2,000, this configuration of the iBuyPower is charging you a modest premium just to install (almost) all of the components, but frequent sales and discounts make this a more palatable deal as the price gets lower.

It’s really only set back by some minor assembly issues, as well as parts that may limit future upgrades, which currently affects users at opposite ends of the PC building spectrum disproportionately. Given the current RAM pricing issues, this is a better value than ever, and perhaps cheaper than an off-the-shelf build.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

A Mixed Experience

First, the good stuff: The GPU is packaged separately from the rest of the system, which may sound odd, but I've found that’s one of the most common pain points when shipping a new gaming PC. I’ve seen system builders use expanding foam, special brackets, and folded cardboard supports, among other solutions, but packing the graphics cards in its original box is far simpler and safer, and the other ways of shipping a PC with an installed graphics card still require opening the system up anyway. I do wish the instructions were more specific to the case, particularly since the PCIe bracket might be a little fiddly for total novices, but anyone who has worked with gaming systems in the past shouldn't have any issues.

The case isn't particularly unique or eye-catching, but it does have a wide, slightly smoky glass side panel that helps give it a clean silhouette. The dark tint allows the lights underneath to shine a bit without the whole system being overtly gamer-coded, but also makes them extremely reflective. There are no screws holding it in place, it’s just press fit, but it’s nice and sturdy, and I didn’t worry about it falling out. Like most glass panels, they inhibit airflow, so iBuyPower has set the front fan array an inch or so back from the panel, and added mesh sections at the top and bottom, which helps alleviate the issue. Even so, I can’t imagine the fan directly behind the center glass panel is doing all that much.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

Somewhat perplexingly, despite room in the case for a full-sized ATX motherboard, this iBuyPower model only sports a microATX board. While that isn't the end of the world, especially for performance, it is kind of a curious choice. Smaller boards are often more expensive than their larger counterparts, and offer less functionality and expandability. In fact, I was able to find a comparable B650 ATX motherboard for slightly less than this one.

The graphics card is the biggest factor when it comes to framerate for most systems, as long as nothing else is holding it back, and the Ryzen 7 7700X is a nice match for the 12 GB RTX 5070. This configuration also sports 32 GB of memory, which is nice to see with RAM prices surging. The Asus version of the RTX 5070 slightly outperforms the Founders Edition card from my test rig, depending on the game or benchmark. In moderately demanding online games like Marvel Rivals and Helldivers 2, the system averages at least 90 fps at 1440p, which is good news for semi-serious weeknight gamers. In more demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077, the system was over 90 fps at 1080p with all the settings cranked up except for Path Tracing.

Screenshot: Brad Bourque

The biggest obstacle for most prebuilt machines is being set up correctly, but the installed utilities were mostly necessary, Windows was as updated as I usually expect from a new machine, and memory overclocking was properly enabled. Most of the little details, save for one, have been properly accounted for which is important for people who don’t want to deal with the typical PC setup process.

Small Cable, Notable Mistake

That brings us to the biggest issue with this machine, a tiny mistake with big implications—a disconnected fan cable.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

That might not sound like a big problem, and as someone who routinely builds PCs, it was instantly obvious and easy enough to track down and fix. Unfortunately, I imagine most people buying systems like this don't really want to open the case once the GPU is installed. Worse yet, the system gave no feedback that anything was wrong. The included fan control software reported that it was sending a fan speed and was happy to let me start gaming.

This is bad news for two reasons. The first is that an inexperienced computer user probably wouldn't notice at all, and even if they did wonder why the case fans weren't spinning, they wouldn't know how to fix it. Even worse, if they didn't notice, they'd start gaming and quickly overheat the system, at best causing intermittent shutdowns and at worst potentially damaging components.

On the other hand, it's hard to hold it against the brand too much. These things tend to happen during shipping, but extra cable wraps, or more thorough and specific instructions for troubleshooting, would help less experienced users. The company was quick to offer assistance, but I'm not sure how fast those offers would've been if I didn't have direct contact.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

Ultimately, the gaming performance and clean setup outweigh any of the small quibbles, but it’s still hard to recommend this machine unless you're getting some kind of discount. As I write this, the system I tested is priced at $1,900, but discounted to $1,600. The RTX 5070 is around $500 off the shelf, with the biggest chunk of that being the price tag. The CPU is $300 and the motherboard $175, which means you're basically paying $600 for power supply, case, cooler, and a Windows license.

The component missing from that list above is memory, and it's currently a big deal. Normally, a set of sticks like those found in my test system are a little over $100. However, as I write this, you'd be lucky to find a set for under $400, due to recent demands in the AI space causing a price spike. As long as those prices stay that high, this actually might be one of the best and cheapest ways to get your hands on a gaming system. I'll update this review when prices drop.

The case isn't my favorite for airflow, but it looks nice on my desk, with big wide windows, and a light tint that helps subdue the bright lights on the fans. It doesn't come loaded with obnoxious bloatware, and the odd decisions don't hurt performance in a meaningful way. As a computer nerd, I may want a bigger motherboard and faster memory, but if it doesn't drop the fps, it's hardly worth getting upset over.