Australian PC Awards 2022 presents: the nominees for the best PC gear
2022 is shaping up to be another exciting year of tech but, before we get too stuck in, let's take advantage of that 20/20 hindsight to nominate the best consumer PC tech of 2021 – because most of these products are current, and there's no better buying guide than a list of the very best of the best.Â
It’s the annual Australian PC Awards, and it’s underway right now.
The experts at TechRadar, APC, TechLife, PC Gamer, PC PowerPlay and T3 have combined forces to concentrate a huge year of innovation into a short and sweet list of the top tech.Â
Below is the shortlist of ripper finalists – PC companies, products and technologies that are really pushing the boundaries of what computers can do. That includes everything from the best processors to the most fanciful custom cases – if you can put it in a computer or plug it into one, it was considered for an award. Â
For anyone more interested in the meta than wading into the nitty gritty of PC components, look no further than our top two extra-special awards:
Excellence Award: Presented to the person, product or technology that advanced the PC more than any other in 2021.
Gold Award: For the best overall company operating in the PC space for 2021. This list includes every one of the finalists across all the other categories – and has been carefully considered by our expert panel of judges.
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While many will be keen to put NFTs and component shortages in the rear view mirror, there were some pretty impressive technological achievements in 2021, and this shortlist of finalists is the perfect cheat sheet for skimming off the cream of the 2021 crop. Â
I want to know who won!
And you will, quite soon in fact!
We'll be announcing all the winners right here on TechRadar on Friday, March 11, 2022, or you can head straight to the official Australian PC Awards site.
See you on the 11th!
Finalists: Best motherboard maker
Finalists: Best value motherboard
- Nzxt N7 B550Â
- MSI MPG B560i Gaming Edge Wi-FiÂ
- Asus ROG Strix B560-F Gaming Wi-Fi Â
- MSI MEG B550 Unify
- Gigabyte B560M Aorus EliteÂ
- Asrock B560 Steel LegendÂ
- Asus TUF Gaming B560-Plus WIFIÂ
Finalists: Best premium motherboard
- Â Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Pro
- Â MSI MEG Z690 UnifyÂ
- Â Gigabyte Z690 Aorus MasterÂ
- Â Asus ROG Strix Z690-I Gaming WifiÂ
- Â Asrock Z690 TaichiÂ
- Â MSI MPG X570S Carbon Max WIFI
- Â MSI MPG Z590 Gaming Carbon WIFIÂ
- Â Asus TUF Gaming Z590-Plus WIFI Â
- Â Gigabyte Z590 Aorus MasterÂ
- Â Asrock Z590 PG VelocitaÂ
Finalists: Best video card maker
- Â AsusÂ
- Â Gigabyte AorusÂ
- Â Inno3DÂ
- Â MSIÂ
- Â NvidiaÂ
- Â Sapphire TechnologyÂ
Finalists: Best value video card
- Â Nvidia RTX 3060 12GBÂ
- Â PowerColor Radeon RX 6600 FighterÂ
- Â Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OCÂ
- Â Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3060 OC Â
- Â MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Gaming X Â
- Â AMD Radeon RX 6700 XTÂ
Finalists: Best premium video card
- Â Nvidia 3080Ti Founders EditionÂ
- Â Zotac Gaming GeForce RTX 3080 Ti AMP HoloÂ
- Â Gigabyte Aorus GeForce RTX 3070 Ti MasterÂ
- Â Aorus GeForce RTX 3080 Ti XtremeÂ
- Â MSI GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Gaming X Trio 8GÂ
Finalists: Best value CPU
Finalists: Best premium CPU
Finalists: Best internal storage maker
- Â AdataÂ
- Â Kingston Â
- Â Crucial by MicronÂ
- Â SamsungÂ
- Â SeagateÂ
- Â MSIÂ
- Â Western DigitalÂ
Finalists: Best external storage maker
- Â AdataÂ
- Â Crucial by MicronÂ
- Â SamsungÂ
- Â SanDiskÂ
- Â SeagateÂ
- Â Western DigitalÂ
Finalists: Best SOHO or home NAS
Finalists: Best value laptop or 2-in-1
- Â Lenovo Chromebook DuetÂ
- Â Acer Chromebook Spin 311Â
- Â Asus Vivobook Pro 15 OLEDÂ
- Â Acer Swift 3X i7 Â
- Â Microsoft Surface Laptop GoÂ
Finalists: Best premium laptop or 2-in-1
- Â Apple MacBook Pro 14- & 16-inchÂ
- Â LG Gram 17 (2021)Â
- Â Asus ZenBook Duo 14Â
- Â HP Spectre x360 14Â
- Â Microsoft Surface Pro 8Â
- Â MSI Creator Z16Â
- Â Dell XPS 15Â
- Â Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 Pro 14-inch (AMD)Â
- Â Razer Blade 14Â
- Â Microsoft Surface Laptop 4Â
- Â Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i CarbonÂ
Finalists: Best gaming laptop
- MSI GE76 RaiderÂ
- Asus ROG Zephyrus G15 (GA503)Â
- Asus TUF Gaming A15 (FA506)Â
- Asus ROG Strix G15 Advantage Edition (G513)Â
- Aorus 15P YDÂ
- Acer Nitro 5Â
- Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR YC
Finalists: Best desktop PC builder
- Â AppleÂ
- Â ThermaltakeÂ
- Â DellÂ
- Â CorsairÂ
- Â MSIÂ
- Â Aftershock PCÂ
- Â ScorptecÂ
- Â NzxtÂ
Finalists: Best memory maker
- Â AdataÂ
- Â CorsairÂ
- Â Crucial by MicronÂ
- Â GeilÂ
- Â G.SkillÂ
- Â KingstonÂ
- Â Team GroupÂ
Finalists: Best cooling product
- Â Cooler Master Air MA624Â
- Â Asus ROG Ryujin II 360Â
- Â TT ToughLiquid Ultra 360 AIOÂ
- Â MSI CoreLiquid K240Â
- Â Corsair H170i Elite CapellixÂ
- Â be quiet! Shadow Rock Slim 2Â
- Â Zalman CNPS10x Performa BlackÂ
- Â DeepCool AK620Â
Finalists: Best monitor
- Â MSI Optix MPG321UR-QDÂ
- Â Samsung Odyssey G7Â
- Â Philips Brilliance 329P1HÂ
- Â BenQ EW3880R ultrawide monitorÂ
- Â Asus ProArt Display 14Â
- Â Aorus FI32UÂ
- Â Aorus FO48UÂ
- Â Dahua DHI-LM28-F420Â
- Â Acer Predator X25Â
- Â Aorus FV43UÂ
- Â Asus ROG Swift PG32UQXÂ
- Â AOC U34G3XÂ
- Â BenQ Zowie XL-K Â
- Â Dell 4K S3221QSÂ
- Â Samsung Odyssey G9Â
- Â MSI MPG Artymis 343CQRÂ
Finalists: Best keyboard
- Â Akko 3098BÂ
- Â Logitech MX Keys MiniÂ
- Â HyperX Alloy Origins 60 PercentÂ
- Â Asus ROG Falchion 65 percentÂ
- Â Corsair K65 Mini KeyboardÂ
- Â Roccat MagmaÂ
- Â SteelSeries Apex 3 TKLÂ
- Â Razer Huntsman V2Â
- Â Corsair K70 RGB TKLÂ
- Â Asus ROG Strix Scope RX Â
Finalists: Best mouse
- Â Razer Basilisk V3Â
- Â Logitech G305 Lightspeed WirelessÂ
- Â HP Omen Vector Wireless MouseÂ
- Â Steelseries Rival 5Â
- Â Razer Viper 8KÂ
- Â Logitech G Pro X SuperlightÂ
- Â Steelseries Aerox 3 wirelessÂ
- Â Cooler Master MM720Â
- Â MSI Clutch GM41 Lightweight WirelessÂ
- Â Thermaltake Argent M5 RGBÂ
Finalists: Best gaming headset
- Â Creative SXFI Air GamerÂ
- Â SteelSeries Arctis 7P/7XÂ
- Â HyperX Cloud II WirelessÂ
- Â Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless XTÂ
- Â Corsair HS75 XB Wireless Â
- Â Corsair HS80 RGB WirelessÂ
- Â Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 2 Â
- Â Epos H3 Hybrid Â
- Â Razer Kraken V3 XÂ
- Â Asus ROG Delta SÂ
Finalists: Best PC case
- Â Lian Li PC-O11 Air MiniÂ
- Â Nzxt H510 FlowÂ
- Â Corsair Airflow 7000DÂ
- Â MSI Sekira 100RÂ
- Â Lian Li Q58Â
- Â Cooler Master NR200P MaxÂ
- Â Antec P82 SilentÂ
- Â Fractal Design Meshify 2 CompactÂ
- Â Thermaltake The Tower 100 Mini CaseÂ
Finalists: Best router
- Â TP Link GX90Â
- Â DrayTek VigorAP 1060CÂ
- Â D-Link DIR-X3260 AX3200Â
- Â TP Link Deco X20 DSLÂ
- Â Asus Zen WifI XD6Â
- Â Mercusys MR70XÂ
- Â DrayTek Vigor2927acÂ
- Â D-Link Covr-X1873 AX1800Â
- Â Netgear Nighthawk XR1000Â
- Â TP Link Deco X90Â
- Â Tenda MW3 AC1200Â
- Â Asus ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 Â
- Â Netgear Nighthawk MR5200Â
- Â QNAP QMiro-201WÂ
Finalists: Best reseller
- Â Aftershock PCÂ
- Â Computer AllianceÂ
- Â JW ComputersÂ
- Â MwaveÂ
- Â PC Case GearÂ
- Â PLEÂ
- Â ScorptecÂ
- Â UmartÂ
Finalists: Excellence Award
For the person, product or technology that advanced the PC more than any other in 2020.
- Â Intel Alder Lake architecture Â
- Â DDR5Â
- Â OLED laptop screensÂ
- Â Apple M1 Pro / Max (2021)Â
- Â Windows 11Â
- Â AMD FidelityFXÂ
- Â AMD Smart Access MemoryÂ
Finalists: Gold Award
The company that impressed us the most, overall, in 2021.
This list comprises all of the companies that made the finalist lists, plus more that the editorial team felt deserved to be included.
- Â AcerÂ
- Â AftershockÂ
- Â AkkoÂ
- Â AMDÂ
- Â AppleÂ
- Â AsusÂ
- Â CorsairÂ
- Â CreativeÂ
- Â Crucial by MicronÂ
- Â DahuaÂ
- Â DellÂ
- Â D-Link
- Â G.SkillÂ
- Â Gigabyte Â
- Â Hyper XÂ
- Â IntelÂ
- Â KingstonÂ
- Â LenovoÂ
- Â Lian LiÂ
- Â LogitechÂ
- Â MicrosoftÂ
- Â MSIÂ
- Â MwaveÂ
- Â NvidiaÂ
- Â NzxtÂ
- Â PC Case GearÂ
- Â PLEÂ
- Â QNAPÂ
- Â RazerÂ
- Â SamsungÂ
- Â SanDiskÂ
- Â SeagateÂ
- Â Team GroupÂ
- Â ThermaltakeÂ
- Â TP-LinkÂ
- Â WDÂ
Last year's winners
See who won last year right here!