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Animal Crossing Update Adds Lego Furniture, With a Switch 2 Version Arriving the Same Day

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I test gaming PCs for a living, and the Quoted Tech Shield is a great entry point for getting into PC gaming

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/30/2025 - 16:54
Quoted Tech Shield: Two-minute review

The Quoted Tech Shield is the latest pre-built gaming PC from boutique Canadian PC maker, and it's an ideal gaming PC for anyone looking to get started playing the latest AAA games.

Everything about the Shield feels like it’s made to bring first-time PC gamers into the hobby by offering great components, easy setup and access to internals, and simple repairs (and warranties) in case things go awry.

The configuration I received, the Shield Extreme—which currently retails for CA$1299 (US$927, £975, AU$1,993)—features an AMD Ryzen 7 9700X CPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 graphics card, 32GB DDR5 RAM, and 2TB SSD storage. This is a fantastic spec for blistering-fast framerates at 1080p and with very respectable framerates at 1440p, though some settings tweaks might be necessary for QHD gaming.

First-time PC gamers might not immediately appreciate just how easy everything is to set up. I have reviewed dozens of gaming PCs over the years, and I can say that few gaming PCs make it this straightforward to get going, while lower-quality PCs can be a downright nightmare.

This extends to the easy access to the internals through a pin-drop hinged door, and the relieving lack of complicated bloatware that plagues most pre-built PCs.

Probably the most impressive part of the Shield is its three-year parts and five-year labor warranties, which deliver peace of mind for first-timers navigating their way through the intricacies of a gaming PC by ensuring a more reliable and less complicated experience than many established competitors.

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)

Those positives don’t mean that there aren’t some issues potential buyers should understand before buying.

Most of the Quoted Tech Shield’s problems are with the case design and port selection.

First, the Shield skips out on USB-C ports entirely, which might complicate things if you want to buy the best gaming mouse and best gaming keyboard you can afford to complement your new PC, as many modern peripherals are making the move to USB-C.

The overall case design also feels a bit fragile, and more serious PC gaming enthusiasts may have an issue with the lack of personalization software—especially RGB aficionados, as the Shield only has a few pre-configured RGB effects that you can cycle through with buttons on the top panel. That said, the Shield is all about keeping things simple, so the lighting presets might actually be a plus for some users.

Overall, however, the Quoted Tech Shield makes up for its faults by delivering fantastic 1080p and strong 1440p performance, quiet operation, and a user-friendly design to account for future upgrades. Combined with its generous three-year parts and five-year labor warranties, the Shield is unquestionably one of the best gaming PC options available for an inviting, low-risk PC gaming experience without the intimidation of traditional PC building or more complicated pre-built offerings.

Quoted Tech Shield: Price & availability

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)
  • The Quoted Tech Shield starts at $1299 CAD (about USD $930 / £975 / AU$1,995)
  • Available now in the US, UK, and Australia through Quoted Tech's website

The Quoted Tech Shield can be purchased through the company's website, starting at $1299 CAD (about US$930 / £975 / AU$1,995).

There are eight different configurations ranging from the starting 1080p esports build to high-end 4K set-ups, which will set you back CA$3,049 (about US$2,205 / £1,820 / AU$3,530).

My Quoted Tech Shield "Extreme" configuration targets 1440p gaming, and will set you back CA$2,449, or about US$1,775 / £1,465 / AU$3,530.

Overall, these are respectable price points for a gaming PC at any level, though those looking for something cheaper or more premium can easily do so.

  • Value: 4 / 5
Quoted Tech Shield: Specs Quoted Tech Shield specs

Starting configuration

Review configuration

Max configuration

Price

$1,299 CAD (about USD $930 / £975 / AU$1,995)

CA$2,449 (about US$1,775 / £1,465 / AU$3,530)

CA$2,449 (about US$1,775 / £1,465 / AU$3,530)

CPU

AMD Ryzen 5 7500F

AMD Ryzen 7 9700X

AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D

GPU

Nvidia RTX 5050

Nvidia RTX 5070

Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti

Memory

16GB DDR5-5600

32GB DDR5-5600

32GB DDR5-5600

Storage

1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD

2TB PCIe 4.0 SSD

2TB PCIe 4.0 SSD

Connectivity

WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, 1Gbps Ethernet

WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, 1Gbps Ethernet

WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, 1Gbps Ethernet

Ports

9xUSB-A

9xUSB-A

9xUSB-A

CPU Cooling

120mm Tower Air Cooler

120mm Tower Air Cooler

120mm Tower Air Cooler

PSU

650W 80+ Bronze (Non-modular)

650W 80+ Bronze (Non-modular)

750W 80+ Gold, Full Modular

Dimensions (L x W x H)

40.5 x 21.0 x 42.5 cm

40.5 x 21.0 x 42.5 cm

40.5 x 21.0 x 42.5 cm

Weight

25 lbs | 11.34kg

25 lbs | 11.34kg

35 lbs | 15.88kg

  • Specs: 4 / 5
Quoted Tech Shield: Design

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)
  • Internals are easily accessible through the hinged side panel
  • Chassis is very basic and lacks customizable RGB lighting
  • No USB-C ports

One of the best things about the Quoted Tech Shield design is how simple everything is, from the side panel that’s opened with a simple pin-drop hinge to the easily removable front panel screen for quick fan maintenance.

There isn’t a part that doesn’t have easy access on this gaming PC, making future upgradability a straightforward process, especially for those who are new to PC gaming.

That does come at the cost of a case that doesn’t necessarily feel durable. In fact, I would go further to say that the overall design of the chassis feels somewhat flimsy compared to others on the market.

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)

Though the all black colorway looks great, the case feels like it's made of very thin steel; something that was apparent when our review unit arrived and the rear panel port panel and front screen panel had small dents in them. As such, the Quoted Tech Shield isn’t the type of gaming desktop that you'll0 want to move around too much if you're concerned about its aesthetic.

The RGB lighting will also strike you as entirely simple or entirely problematic, depending on your tastes. The Quoted Tech Shield prides itself on not offering bloatware, which I genuinely love, but that means you need to cycle through preset RGB color schemes via a button on the top panel. Thankfully, one of the settings allows users to turn off the lighting completely.

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)

When it comes to port selections, there are plenty of standard USB-A ports, including three top-panel USB-A ports, as well as a pair of 3.5mm jacks for a headset and a dedicated mic. That’s more than enough for many gamers, content creators, and everyone else in between.

The biggest problem comes from the lack of a USB-C ports, as many accessories are making the switch to this interface, so you might have to invest in USB adapters to use new peripherals in the future.

  • Design: 3 / 5
Quoted Tech Shield: Performance
  • 1080p performance is outstanding
  • 1440p performance is respectable
  • Don’t expect any performance customization options

The plug-and-play design of the Quoted Tech Shield Extreme configuration I received is complemented by its impressive gaming performance. The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 serve as a solid middle ground between basic gaming and high-end 4K performance, with very high frame rates at 1080p resolution and great performance at 1440p, even without having to rely on frame generation.

As mentioned previously, this is great for those who don’t feel like thinking much about customizing performance modes, wattage usage, fan speed, and the like.

CPU benchmarks vs competition

Quoted Tech Shield

Alienware Aurora ACT1250

NZXT Player PC

Lenovo Legion Tower 5

Geekbench 6 (Single)

3,355

3,071

3,081

2,594

Geekbench 6 (Multi)

16,234

20,010

18,984

13,554

Cinebench R23 (Single)

2,223

2,257

2,263

1,693

Cinebench R23 (Multi)

19,778

35,446

35,226

17,376

Cinebench R24 (Single)

136

136

137

104

Cinebench R24 (Multi)

1,157

1,979

1,923

934

Crossmark Overall

2,311

2,301

2,298

1,846

Crossmark Productivity

2,147

2,152

2,159

1,734

Crossmark Creativity

2,628

2,548

2,495

2,127

Crossmark Responsiveness

1,960

2,069

2,166

1,454

For the more competitive side of gaming, the Shield Extreme will work perfectly in both 1080p and 1440p.

Games like Battlefield 6, Fortnite, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, and Valorant ran well past 100 fps at 1440p with settings maxed out. Meanwhile, Marvel Rivals at max settings averaged around 60fps at 1440p. All of this was without relying on upscaling, much less frame generation, so you can definitely push the visual framerate much higher for a smoother experience.

GPU benchmarks vs competition

Quoted Tech Shield

Alienware Aurora ACT1250

NZXT Player PC

Lenovo Legion Tower 5

3DMark Fire Strike

45,474

44,913

45,049

43,845

3DMark Steel Nomad

5,308

5,224

4,967

5,495

3DMark Speed Way

5,898

5,741

5,855

5,960

3DMark Port Royal

14,318

14,062

14,139

14,302

For non-competitive titles, especially newer, more visually demanding games like Assassin's Creed Shadows and Black Myth: Wukong are going to need upscaling to maintain high frame rates at 1440p, though native-only gamers can still get high framerates at 1080p with settings maxed out without ray tracing.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows ran at about 58 fps at 1080p on ultra high settings without upscaling, while it hit around 33 fps on average without upscaling. Likewise, with Black Myth: Wukong, I was able to achieve an average of 55 fps at 1080p with Cinematic settings, and about 30fps at 1440p on the same settings without upscaling.

The worst results were for Cyberpunk 2077, which hit around 20fps on the Ultra preset at native 1440p. Turn on DLSS 4 with the transformer model set to balanced, without frame generation, and at 1440p, I consistently hit an average of 74 fps.

Gaming benchmarks (average FPS) vs competition

Quoted Tech Shield

Alienware Aurora ACT1250

NZXT Player PC

Lenovo Legion Tower 5

Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p, Ultra)

69

69

70

72

Shadow of the Tomb Raider (1080p, Highest)

204

202

201

207

F1 2024 (1080p, Very High)

99

104

97

119

Total War: Warhammer III: Mirrors of Madness (1080p, Ultra)

180

181

182

172

General computing and creative content curation worked well outside of gaming. Opening multiple tabs in Google Chrome didn’t lead to any slowdown or OS hangs, while Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro not only ran well but also exported files fairly quickly.

Overall, the Quoted Tech Shield proves itself as a strong, no-fuss gaming desktop that balances accessibility with performance, making it an appealing, well-rounded choice for both casual gamers and multitasking creators.

  • Performance: 4 / 5
Should I buy the Quoted Tech Shield?

(Image credit: Future / Ural Garrett)Quoted Tech Shield scorecard

Notes

Rating

Value

Regardless of which configuration you go go for, the Quoted Tech Shield offers a nice no-frills purchase backed by a nice warranty package.

4 / 5

Specs

With a very wide selection of configurations, there's a build to target every gaming resolution.

4 / 5

Design

The easy access through the pin-drop hinge is great for upgrades and maintenance. However, the chassis feels flimsy, lacks USB-C ports, or any customizable RGB lighting.

3 / 5

Performance

Though performance benchmarks favor 1080p more, 1440p resolutions run just fine at acceptable frame rates.

4 / 5

Total Score

Despite being held back by some questionable design choices, the performance, upgradability, and warranty-protection of the Shield are more than enough to recommend this PC, especially for PC gaming newcomers.

3.75 / 5

Buy the Quoted Tech Shield if…

You are looking for respectable 1080p / 1440p performance
The AMD Ryzen 7 9700 CPU matches well with Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5070 for high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p from visual spectacles to competitive leaning games.

You need easy set-up and upgrade potential
Opening and closing the case is as simple as pulling the pin drop hinge. Also, anyone new to PC gaming has an easy guide to set it up.

You want some great customer-friendly additives
A three year warranty on parts will be clutch for those who have issues going down the line and five years of labor warranty couldn’t be more of a cherry on top.

Don’t buy it if…

You need a USB-C port
Many modern PC gaming accessories utilize USB-C ports, and the Quoted Tech Shield has none, forcing you to use an adapter for USB-C peripherals.

You want a more durable case
Despite having easy access to internal components and even fans, the overall chassis feels somewhat flimsy and prone to denting.

You want customizable RGB lighting
The no-frills package of the Quoted Tech Shield means no bloatware. This also means that RGB lighting is cycled through a handful of presets via a button on the top panel.

Also Consider

If my Quoted Tech Shield review has you considering other options, here are two other gaming desktops to consider...

Alienware Aurora ACT1250
The Alienware Aurora gaming desktop is an iconic gaming PC, and its latest iteration features fantastic performance at a decent enough price, though internal component access and upgradability are more limited.

Read the full Alienware Aurora ACT1250 review

Lenovo Legion Tower 5
The Lenovo Legion Tower 5 is a fantastic gaming PC with solid hardware and one of the best first-party apps for tweaking performance in the Lenovo Advantage tuner. It's a bit cramped though, making future upgradability a bit more complicated.

Read the full Lenovo Legion Tower 5 review

How I tested the Quoted Tech Shield
  • I tested the Quoted Tech Shield for a little over a week
  • I ran our standard battery of benchmark tests, as well as games like Ninja Gaiden 4, Battlefield 6, Dying Light: The Beast, Valorant, and Forza Motorsport (2023).

I spent a little over a week testing the Quoted Tech Shield, using TechRadar's standard benchmarking suite and real-world experience across a range of demanding tasks.

During work hours, I used Google Chrome for multitasking—running several tabs for productivity tools and browsing sessions—alongside Adobe Creative Suite for video editing and design work.

For gaming, I split my time between games like Dying Light: The Beast, Black Myth: Wukong, and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II to measure performance in visually demanding titles.

For competitive gaming, I spent time with Battlefield 6, Valorant, and Marvel Rivals.

I've been reviewing gaming PCs for several years now, so I know exactly how a gaming PC at this level should perform, so you can trust that anything I recommend is worth the investment.

  • First reviewed October 2025
Categories: Reviews

I test gaming PCs for a living, and the Quoted Tech Shield is a great entry point for getting into PC gaming

TechRadar News - Thu, 10/30/2025 - 16:54
The Quoted Tech Shield gaming PC is a great way to get into serious PC gaming, but there are some quirks that you'll have to navigate to do so.
Categories: Technology

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