In this article I will provide my review of the Skytech Siege 4 and how it performs against Apex Legends. Please note the specific SKU being reviewed is ST-SIEGE4-0534-B-SK (below).
Skytech Siege 4 vs Apex Legends
In order to understand how the Skytech Siege 4 would perform against Apex Legends, we must first get its recommended system requirements. EA Games lists the following:
- OS: 64-bit Windows 10
- CPU: Intel i5 3570K or equivalent
- RAM: 8GB
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 / AMD Radeon R9 290
- GPU RAM: 8GB
- HARD DRIVE: Minimum 22 GB of free space
In order to truly understand what they are asking for, we must delve into the most critical components listed. To me and many others, that’s the (1) processor, (2) graphics card, (3) RAM, and (4) hard drive. I will compare what’s listed for the recommended system requirements against the Skytech Siege 4. You will find that the Skytech Siege 4 is way overpowered for this game, which will help you game at high levels of performance (FPS) while maintaining maximum graphic settings on resolutions like 1080P and 1440P. You should also be able to play Apex Legends on 4K with the Skytech Siege 4, although performance results may not be ideal.
Processor – Skytech Siege 4 vs Apex Legends
The Skytech Siege 4 comes with a newer generation Intel i5 processor, compared to Apex Legends which lists its “recommended” processor as a Intel i5 3570K, a much older generation.
The Intel i5 13600K and the Intel i5 3570K are processors from different generations and with significantly different specifications. Here’s a comparison between the two:
- Architecture:
- i5 13600K: Belongs to the Alder Lake architecture, featuring a hybrid design with both performance and efficient cores (P-cores and E-cores).
- i5 3570K: Belongs to the Ivy Bridge architecture, which is an older architecture without a hybrid core design.
- Core and Threads:
- i5 13600K: It has a total of 14 cores (6 P-cores + 8 E-cores) and 20 threads.
- i5 3570K: It has 4 cores and 4 threads.
- Clock Speeds:
- i5 13600K: It has impressive clock speeds with a max turbo frequency of 5.3 GHz (for single-core boost), 5.10 GHz for performance cores, and 3.90 GHz for efficient cores.
- i5 3570K: It has a base frequency of 3.40 GHz and a max turbo frequency of 3.80 GHz for single-core boost.
- Cache:
- i5 13600K: Comes with 24 MB of Intel® Smart Cache (20 MB L2 cache).
- i5 3570K: Has 6 MB of Intel Smart Cache.
- Power Consumption:
- i5 13600K: Has a processor base power of 125 W and a maximum turbo power of 181 W.
- i5 3570K: Has a TDP (Thermal Design Power) of 77 W.
- Technology and Features:
- i5 13600K: Supports newer technologies, improvements in instructions per clock, DDR5 memory, PCIe 5.0, and enhanced power efficiency due to the hybrid architecture.
- i5 3570K: Lacks support for newer technologies like DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 and may not be as power-efficient due to its older architecture.
Overall, the i5 13600K is a much more modern and powerful processor compared to the i5 3570K. It offers a higher core count, improved architecture, significantly higher clock speeds, more cache, and better power efficiency with support for newer technologies, making it a better choice for modern computing tasks including gaming, content creation, and multitasking.
Graphics Card – Skytech Siege 4 vs Apex Legends
The Skytech Siege 4 comes with Intel’s new graphics card – the Intel A770 16GB. Graphics cards across brands are difficult to measure, but an article from PCWorld speculates that the A770 16GB is comparable to an RTX 3060 from NVIDIA or the RX 6600 from AMD. The article mentions that the A770 outperforms the RTX 3060 and RX 6600 on 1440P gaming performance and even beats out NVIDIA’s ray tracing capabilities. That being said, performance at 1080P was lower than the NVIDIA and AMD counterparts. However, this graphics card also comes at a lower price point, which is why this PC is such a good deal.
If you were to use the RTX 3060 as a comparison to Apex Legend’s PC recommended graphics card, here’s what you would find.
- Architecture and Generation:
- RTX 3060: Belongs to the newer Ampere architecture and released in 2021.
- GTX 970: Belongs to the older Maxwell architecture and was released in 2014.
- Performance:
- RTX 3060: Offers significantly better performance due to its newer architecture, improved technology, and higher specifications. It’s designed to handle modern games at higher resolutions and settings.
- GTX 970: While it was a powerful card in its time, it’s now considered mid-range or lower by today’s standards. It might struggle with running newer games at higher resolutions and settings.
- CUDA Cores and Performance:
- RTX 3060: Features 3584 CUDA cores and improved ray tracing capabilities with its dedicated RT cores and Tensor cores. It supports technologies like DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) and ray tracing.
- GTX 970: Has 1664 CUDA cores and lacks dedicated hardware support for ray tracing or AI-based features like DLSS.
- Memory and Bandwidth:
- RTX 3060: Typically comes with 12 GB of GDDR6 memory offering higher bandwidth.
- GTX 970: Comes with 4 GB of GDDR5 memory with lower bandwidth compared to newer generations.
- Ray Tracing and AI Features:
- RTX 3060: Includes dedicated hardware support for ray tracing and AI-based technologies, enabling better visual effects and performance in games that utilize these features.
- GTX 970: Lacks dedicated hardware for ray tracing and AI-based technologies, making it less capable in handling modern graphical advancements.
- Power Efficiency and Additional Features:
- RTX 3060: Offers better power efficiency and supports advanced features like NVIDIA Reflex for reduced input latency and NVIDIA Broadcast for AI-powered streaming enhancements.
- GTX 970: Being an older card, it consumes more power for its performance level and lacks many of the newer features found in the RTX series.
In summary, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 is a considerably more powerful and feature-rich graphics card compared to the GTX 970. It delivers superior performance, supports modern gaming technologies such as ray tracing and DLSS, and provides better efficiency while handling current demanding games at higher resolutions and settings.
RAM Review
The Skytech Siege 4 comes with 32GB of DDR5 5200MHz RAM. That’s an insane amount of fast RAM for a game like Apex Legends, which only lists 8GB as a recommendation. It’s purely overkill for this game, but will also set you up well for future games, like Hogwarts which requires an insane amount of RAM to play. The amount of RAM this comes with should allow you to stream, listen to music, browse the web, play Apex Legends, and do much more all at the same time without hitting a bottleneck to RAM.
Hard Drive Review
The Skytech Siege 4 is equipped with a cutting-edge 1TB NVMe SSD, representing the latest advancement in storage technology. NVMe offers speeds six times faster than conventional SSDs, ensuring swift data access. With 1TB storage capacity, it accommodates the needs of contemporary gaming, providing ample space for numerous modern games. Moreover, it allows for future storage expansion if required.
Considering the tendency for gamers to accumulate substantial media files over time, including streaming content, various games, photos, and extensive data, I suggest considering an external hard drive. In particular, the Buffalo LinkStation is recommended for its 2TB storage capacity achieved through RAID 1 drive mirroring, ensuring data redundancy and offering a total of 4TB of RAW storage.
Conclusion – Skytech Siege 4 vs Apex Legends
This PC is pure overkill for Apex Legends, but it’s also a good PC to set you up for success for other games, like Elden Ring, Resident Evil 4, and Starfield (although I heard the story line isn’t that great). There has been a lot of reports on the stability issues of the A770 graphics card, but it seems like many of those driver-related issues have been resolved, especially for an older game like Apex Legends. All in all, this is a perfect PC to use for games that are a little older like Apex Legends but also future games.