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Top 15 Desktop PCs

New this month: a gaming system from ABS, an updated Media Center PC from Dell, and a low-price home model from HP.

Narasu Rebbapragada

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Aurora 64 FX-55 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 04, 2005

1. Alienware Aurora 64 FX-55

2.6-GHz Athlon 64 FX-55 CPU, Two 160GB RAID hard drives, 19-inch NEC LCD monitor, 256MB ATI Radeon X800 Pro graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 16X DVD-ROM drives, Price when ranked: $3702

Bottom Line: Blazing performance keeps this well-equipped, nicely priced gaming system at the top of the chart.

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Ultimate M5-64 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 04, 2005

2. ABS Ultimate M5-64

2.6-GHz Athlon 64 FX-55 CPU, Two 74GB RAID and one 200GB hard drives, 19-inch Samsung LCD monitor, 256MB EVGA E-GeForce 6800 Ultra graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 16X DVD-ROM drives, Price when ranked: $3899

Bottom Line: Loaded PC has an industrial-strength metal case and a liquid-cooled CPU. Three hard drives in this configuration.

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Poly 939N-FX55 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: February 28, 2005

3. Polywell Poly 939N-FX55

2.6-GHz Athlon 64 FX-55 CPU, Two 160GB RAID hard drives, 19-inch ViewSonic CRT monitor, 256MB NVidia GeForce 6800 Ultra graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 52X/32X/52X CD-RW drives, media-card reader, Price when ranked: $2995

Bottom Line: Elegant-looking black-and-silver unit has top-notch performance; CRT monitor keeps the price down.

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DHS-5 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: December 06, 2004

4. Alienware DHS-5

2.2-GHz Athlon 64 3500+ CPU, 250GB hard drive, 30-inch LG LCD monitor, 128MB ATI Radeon 9800 Pro graphics, 4X DVD±RW/-RAM drive, media-card reader, Price when ranked: $5513

Bottom Line: Our favorite Media Center PC in a stereo-component style; LG LCD TV accounts for $3499 of the price.

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Ultimate M6 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: March 31, 2005

5. ABS Ultimate M6

2.6-GHz Athlon 64 FX-55 CPU, Two 160GB RAID hard drives, 19-inch Samsung CRT monitor, 256MB ATI Radeon X850 XT graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 16X DVD-ROM drives, Price when ranked: $3699

Bottom Line: This ultimate gaming machine earned our top WorldBench 5 score. Comes in an industrial-looking case.

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Dimension 8400 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: March 31, 2005

6. Dell Dimension 8400

3.6-GHz Pentium 4 660 CPU, Two 160GB RAID hard drives, 19-inch Dell LCD monitor, 256MB ATI Radeon X800 XT graphics, 12X DVD±RW, 52X/24X/52X CD-RW drives, Price when ranked: $2799

Bottom Line: Updated Windows XP Media Center PC has snappy performance, powerful graphics, and an attractive LCD.

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Millenia 940i PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: February 28, 2005

7. MPC (Micron PC) Millenia 940i

3.8-GHz Pentium 4 570J CPU, Two 400GB RAID and one 250GB hard drives, 19-inch MPC LCD monitor, 256MB NVidia GeForce 6800 Ultra graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 52X/32X/52X CD-RW drives, Price when ranked: $3699

Bottom Line: Well-appointed and fairly quick home-office model has three hard drives, two in a RAID configuration.

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MediaMax PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: December 10, 2004

8. Sys Technology MediaMax

3.2-GHz Pentium 4 540 CPU, 120GB hard drive, 17-inch Planar LCD monitor, 128MB PNY Verto GeForce FX 5200 graphics, 12X DVD±RW drive, media-card reader, Price when rated: $1345

Bottom Line: Looks more like a stereo component than a PC; has stand-alone radio, DVD, and CD options.

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ThinkCentre A51P PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 04, 2005

9. IBM ThinkCentre A51P

3-GHz Pentium 4 530 CPU, 160GB hard drive, 17-inch ThinkVision LCD monitor, 64MB ATI Radeon X300 Pro graphics, 16X DVD-ROM, 48X/32X/48X CD-RW drives, Price when rated: $1627

Bottom Line: Tool-less design and advanced security features distinguish this good-looking, all-business black tower.

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Kloss i915B PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 04, 2005

10. Amax Kloss i915B

2.8-GHz Pentium 4 520 CPU, 120GB hard drive, 17-inch AG Neovo LCD monitor, 128MB NVidia GeForce PCX 5750 graphics, 16X DVD-ROM/52X/32X/52X CD-RW combo drive, Price when rated: $1499

Bottom Line: Shoe-box system with excellent design will look terrific in any setting; see-through speakers match well.

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ProMagix PCX PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 28, 2005

11. Velocity Micro ProMagix PCX

3.4-GHz Pentium 4 550 CPU, 200GB hard drive, 19-inch CTX CRT monitor, 128MB EVGA E-GeForce 6600 graphics, 16X DVD±RW, 16X DVD-ROM/52X/32X/52X CD-RW combo drives, media-card reader, Price when rated: $1645

Bottom Line: Fast PC is very expandable; all-black aluminum case is attractive. But at this price, you deserve an LCD.

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Gamer Ultra 7500 Elite PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 04, 2005

12. CyberPower Gamer Ultra 7500 Elite

2.2-GHz Athlon 64 3200+ CPU, 120GB hard drive, 17-inch AOpen LCD monitor, 256MB NVidia GeForce FX 5700LE graphics, 12X DVD±RW drive, media-card reader, Price when rated: $999

Bottom Line: Funky-looking system includes top-mounted USB and audio ports and a pop-up status panel.

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Poly Mini-Box 939AX PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: February 28, 2005

13. Polywell Poly Mini-Box 939AX

2.2-GHz Athlon 64 3200+ CPU, 200GB hard drive, 17-inch Hyundai LCD monitor, Integrated ATI Xpress X200 graphics, 16X DVD±RW drive, media-card reader, Price when rated: $1295

Bottom Line: Stylish black Media Center entertainment model fits easily into tight quarters, but upgrades are limited.

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ClientPro 414 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 28, 2005

14. MPC (Micron PC) ClientPro 414

3-GHz Pentium 4 530 CPU, 80GB hard drive, 17-inch MPC LCD monitor, 64MB ATI Radeon X600 graphics, 8X DVD-ROM/24X/10X/24X CD-RW combo drive, media-card reader, Price when rated: $1799

Bottom Line: Small footprint and good performance are a natural fit for space-conscious home and small-office users.

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Pavilion a820n PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: March 31, 2005

15. HP Pavilion a820n

3.2-GHz Pentium 4 540 CPU, 200GB hard drive, 17-inch HP LCD monitor, 128MB integrated Intel 915GV graphics, 16XSL/2.4XDL DVD±RW /40X/24X40X CD-RW combo, 48X CD-ROM drives, media-card reader, Price when rated: $1200

Bottom Line: Value-price home PC has an eight-in-one media-card reader and a double-layer DVD?RW drive with a disc label creator.

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All systems are tested or retested under our PC WorldBench 4 test suite.

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