Maybe it’s how my brain works, but I’d have way more research to do about a pre-built than building myself one. I’d be worried about warranty and customer service, the build quality, are they using low quality components, and wondering where they are cutting corners.

The Linux distro analogy is a good one though. That’s probably one of the reasons why I still haven’t dipped my toes into Linux is that there’s not an obvious way to go, and everything I read about it assumes this baseline of understanding that I sometimes have and sometimes don’t.

Compatibility is not a real issue imo if you use the tools available to plan the build, such as pcpartpicker. There’s only a couple compatibility things and they aren’t too complicated. After you pick a CPU and GPU, it’s pretty simple to get compatible MB and RAM, big enough power supply, and an SSD. There doesn’t need to be anything more to it.

I don’t really consider building a pc to be a hobby. It’s really nowhere near as much work as people who haven’t done it think, and it really isn’t something you keep doing after it’s done. There’s not maintenance or things to play with all the time, at least no more than with a pre-built.

Maybe a downside is that tech support is up to you, or you have to pay for it. But you’ll be able to go to a local spot of your choosing and will probably still spend less than you would on a pre-built.

Doesn’t need to be. Pick a budget and your priorities, then bang together a shopping list on pcpartpicker. There’s plenty of easy guides and which processor is best for each budget range. Yeah if you’re trying to min/max it can take some time, but I just get the cheapest of every component (except SSD) and it’s been great.