Item Description 15" LCD flat panel monitor Desktop PC with Intel Pentium 4 Processor 516 512 MB PC2-3200 DDR2 SDRAM Integrated 16x double layer DVD+R/RW drive 160 GB hard drive 9-in-1 memory card reader Integrated 10/100Base-T networking interface [bold]HP Pavilion Desktop & Monitor Bundle: [/bold] 15" LCD flat panel monitor Intel Pentium 4 Processor 516 (2.93 GHz, 533MHz System Bus, 1MB L2 Cache) 160 GB 7200 rpm Serial ATA hard drive 512 MB PC2-3200 DDR2-SDRAM Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 with up to 128 MB shared video memory 16x Double Layer DVD Writer (DVD+-R/RW) DVD-ROM 16x max speed 9-in-1 digital media card reader High speed 56K flex modem Integrated 10/100Base-T networking interface Available Slots: 2 PCI Available External Ports: 7 USB 2.0 - 2 FireWire (IEEE 1394) - 1 serial - 1 parallel - 1-external VGA monitor port Front Panel 9-1 reader: Compact Flash I/II - SmartMedia - Memory Stick - Memory Stick Pro - MultiMediaCard - Secure Digital (SD) - IBM MicroDrive, xD Software Included: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2, Microsoft Works 8.0, Microsoft Money 2005, Intuit Quicken New User's Edition 2005, HP Image Zone Plus digital photography software, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Sonic DigitalMedia
It depends on what you want it for. Do you really want to be paying extra for a card reader? I personally have no use for those things but maybe you do? This seems to be more of a multimedia pc designed for viewing photo's, watching movies etc. I wouldn't buy this if you wanted a pc for gaming puproses - the onboard graphics are poor quality and if 'available slots' is only 2 x PCI then upgrading could be difficult. If you have not got the slightest interest in games then it may be a good pc. Otherwise it isn't. How much is it going to cost?
Yeah, I agree with Pro'Noob.......I don't like the fact that there are only 2 PCI slots plus the onboard graphics aren't all that great but that could be resolved with a video card upgrade. My main concern would be the type of power supply needed to upgrade the video card, most of the video cards today "AGP,PCI Xpress 16X" require some serious power to run stable so you need to make sure you have at least a 350W power supply minimum, other then that the system specs look pretty sweet to me. As for the PCI slots, usually most of us aim for 5 PCI slots but then again how many of us only use 2 PCI slots for a soundcard and video card and that's all?? I'm one of those people!! Later
I agree with what pro`noob states in his first sentence. As far as the card reader, they cost usually today under $20 and can come in handy on occasion, such as a friend comes over with a digital camera and you want to keep some of those pics for yourself. I use mind maybe twice a year, but at $20, it’s no big deal. This machine is fine for most users, but you need to state what you want use you are looking for out of your PC in order for anyone to give a good solid opinion to you. Also, a 15" LCD has pretty poor specs when it comes to its pixel pitch, so I would suggest a 17" or 20.1" which have much better pixel pitches, not a 15" or 19" LCD.
