Specifications

Dell Vostro 200
$899 direct
(E-Value Code: OC brde2ph)
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Dell has introduced a small business
desktop in the mold of the Inspiron con-
sumer desktop. It’s a good choice for
business that doesn’t have IT staffers.
HP Compaq dx2300
$563 direct
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HP’s “budget” business desktop is
just enough for the clerical worker
in a medium-size business. It’s not a
powerhouse, but you’re not paying your
employees for ripping MP3s and work-
ing on YouTube videos, right?
HP rp5700
$1,299 direct
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HP’s “long life” PC will be available
in its current confi guration for the
next fi ve years, whereas most busi-
ness PCs top out at 18 months. This
reduces administration headaches
and IT costs. The system’s “green”
features are an added bonus.
Lenovo ThinkCentre M55e
$1,259 direct
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The ThinkCentre line is no
stranger to the corporate
worker. ThinkVantage utilities,
including rescue and recovery
enterprise-class components, and a
good feature set make this small-
form-factor PC a shoo-in for busi-
nesses of all sizes.
Business Desktops
camcorder, and the iLife suite with which
to glom the resulting pictures, music, and
videos together mean that you have an
instant YouTube/Facebook/MySpace
machine that takes just minutes to set up.
To coin (steal) a phrase, this is the com-
puter for the rest of us.
Specs: 2.4-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7700 pro-
cessor; 2GB, 667-MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 320GB,
7,200-rpm hard drive; 256MB ATI Radeon HD
2600 PRO graphics card; Mac OS X 10.4.
Dell Inspiron 531 (Blu-ray)
$1,129 direct; $1,409 with 20-inch LCD
widescreen monitor
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Dell’s Inspiron 531 (Blu-ray) is one of the
two bargains in this category, coming
in at under $1,200 without a monitor.
Though it has more computing power
than sub-$1,000 PCs do, it falls a step
behind the competition. Its Blu-ray drive
is read-only, but you can use it to watch
HD-quality movies. Other pluses include
Bluetooth, a USB multimedia keyboard,
and the recommended “No Additional
Software” option. Not a bad machine, but
the Gateway DX440X is a better value.
Specs: 2.6-GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 5000+ processor; 2GB, 667-MHz DDR2
SDRAM; 320GB, 7,200-rpm hard drive; 256MB
ATI Radeon HD 2600XT graphics card; Win-
dows Vista Home Premium.
Gateway DX440X
$1,108 direct; $1,268 with 19-inch LCD
widescreen monitor
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The Gateway DX440X is the best choice
here for the cash-strapped multimedia
enthusiast. For about the same price as
the Dell Inspiron 531 (Blu-ray), it rips one
out of the park with its larger hard drive,
built-in TV tuner, enhanced graphics
memory (though slower 3D graphics), a
bay for a (proprietary) multimedia drive
cartridge, and better overall perfor-
mance. This is the one to get if you have
about $1,200 to $1,500 to spend. It’s also
a better bargain than the HP m8100y if
you don’t need HD-quality movie play-
back or burning.
Specs: 2.4-GHz Core 2 Quad Q6600 processor;
2GB DDR2 SDRAM; 500GB, 7,200-rpm hard
drive; 512MB nVidia GeForce 8500GT graphics
card; Windows Vista Home Premium.
HP Pavilion Media Center
TV m8100y PC
$2,199 direct, $2,769 with 24-inch LCD
widescreen monitor
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This fully loaded HP desktop
is the one with the most multi-
media bells and whistles in the
group. These include a dual-
core processor, full-size removable hard
drive bay, TV tuner, combo Blu-ray/HD
DVD burner (read-and-write Blu-ray,
CDs, and DVDs, read-only HD DVD),
wireless keyboard, mouse, and a multi-
tude of input and output ports. With the
removable HP Personal Media Drives,
storage is convenient and limitless, so
your home videos and downloads have
a place to stay when you’re not actively
enjoying them. Performance was on a
par with that of the Gateway DX440X, so
go for the cheaper DX440X if you don’t
need or want Blu-ray and HD DVD in
one package. This is the one I would buy
if I were a budding fi lmmaker.
Buying desktop PCs for your small
business can be more effi cient than
getting laptops for all your work-
ers. They are usually less expensive,
and they’re built on technologies
that won’t go obsolete as quickly as
mobile tech.—JSD
• Apple iMac (20-inch, Aluminum) • Gateway DX440X
• Dell Vostro 200
NOVEMBER 6, 2007 PC MAGAZINE 67