All Desktops

The Bottom Line: Averatec's 18.4-inch All-in-One PC is a good looking little Nettop, but you must make huge sacrifices in performance. Most users would be better off buying a cheap laptop or low-end desktop, depending on one's needs.

Specs: Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz), 1.6 GHz, 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 160 GB Standard, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Personal computer

The Bottom Line: You can find flashier PCs than Dell's $1,299 Studio XPS, but few have as much power where it counts. We don't recommend its small, pared-down case for upgraders, but this PC will satisfy anyone who needs a loaded, powerful PC for gaming and consumer-level digital media editing.

Specs: Intel, 6 GB, GB, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-Bit

The Bottom Line: With lots of useful features (some cleverly hidden), Gateway's FX6800-01e stands out from the boring mainstream pack. It also uses Intel's new CPU and motherboard combination to provide speed and upgradeability. You can find faster PCs for a similar price, but few with this much promise.

Specs: Intel Core i7 920 (2.6 GHz), 2.6 GHz, 3 GB DDR3 SDRAM, 750 GB, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Service Pack 1 64 Bit

The Bottom Line: Velocity Micro's Edge Z55 provides a powerful example of the leap ahead in performance afforded by Intel's new Core i7 CPUs. Velocity Micro's own overclocking efforts don't hurt either. Any PC gamer would love to make this upper midrange desktop their own.

The Bottom Line: Falcon Northwest's latest Mach V provides a model for the coming trends in high-end computing. From the latest Intel CPU, to solid-state storage, to copious amounts of memory, there's lot to admire about his PC. You will also have to pay for it, which unfortunately will thwart all but the most well-off gamers and enthusiasts.

Specs: Intel Core i7 965, 12 GB DDR3 SDRAM, 1 TB, Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit Edition

The Bottom Line: The HP Pavilion a6620f makes a decent case for its budget price. We like the design and the built-in digital-audio ports, and if you're on an unbreakable budget, the a6620f will get you through a variety of processes, but we recommend saving up for a system that will give you a more powerful set of components for a negligible price difference.

Specs: Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 (2.5 GHz), 2.5 GHz, 4 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 500 GB Standard, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit Edition, Personal computer

The Bottom Line: The Gateway DX4720-03 performs admirably and actually holds its own against triple-core computers thanks to its impressive list of features. It also has plenty of room for internal expansion, so we recommend this budget system if you need the speed but don't crave a ton of CPU power.

Specs: Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 (2.5 GHz), 2.5 GHz, 4 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 640 GB Standard, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit Edition, Personal computer

The Bottom Line: HP's Pavilion Elite m9402f continues to frustrate us in its core design. This off-the-shelf Best Buy system is also overpriced compared with faster, more feature-rich PCs from its competition. With little to recommend this desktop, we suggest you keep shopping.

Specs: AMD Phenom X4 9650 (2.3 GHz), 2.3 GHz, 7 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 640 GB Standard, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit Edition, Personal computer

The Bottom Line: The Asus Essentio is perhaps the best conceived of the recent round of living-room-friendly slim tower desktops. It's just powerful enough, and it comes with the right mix of features to allow it to do what living room PCs do best, without overreaching.

The Bottom Line: This off-the-shelf version of the Dell Studio Desktop reminds us of a classic Dell computer. This system is faster and better equipped than its competition, and at a better price. You can certainly get away with a cheaper everyday PC, but this one is a bargain among lower midrange desktops.

Specs: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 (2.33 GHz), 2.33 GHz, 6 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 750 GB Standard, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-Bit, Personal computer