Caliber Explorer 720

WHAT'S HOT: For its attractive $1899 price, the Caliber Explorer 720 packs a 2-GHz Pentium 4 processor, 256MB of PC800 RDRAM, and a 61GB hard drive. It also includes a WinFast GeForce3 graphics board for cutting-edge graphics performance. Two open drive bays can be accessed without tools; after popping off the front panel, drives slide in and out of the front of the system easily. In addition to the two free exterior drive bays, the Explorer has one interior bay that requires tools to access, as well as four open PCI slots.

WHAT'S NOT: The Explorer 720 earned a PC WorldBench 4 score of 117. Caliber says it will provide a system manual only to retail customers. The company's tech support is available for only 9.5 hours a day.

WHAT ELSE: We were impressed with the vivid colors the 17-inch NEC MultiSync FE700 monitor produced, but the 12-point Arial text we use in our tests appeared slightly blurred at both the standard resolution of 1024 by 768 and the maximum resolution of 1280 by 1024. The interior is generally tidy, though if you want to add more RAM, you'll have to fight your way past some cables. An 16X/10X/40X CD-RW drive should back up data quickly. Typing on the ergonomic Microsoft Natural Keyboard was quiet and comfortable.

BEST USE: The Explorer's bargain price appeals, but less-than-stellar performance and some unimpressive components might detract from the savings for some users.

SUMMARY

Caliber Explorer 720 PC WorldBench 4 score of 117, Pentium 4-2000 CPU, 256MB of PC800 RDRAM, 256KB L2 cache, Windows 2000, 61GB hard drive, 12X DVD-ROM drive, 16X/10X/40X CD-RW drive, WinFast GeForce3 graphics card with 64MB of DDR SDRAM, 17-inch NEC MultiSync FE700 monitor, Creative Labs Sound Blaster Live sound card, Creative Cambridge SoundWorks DeskTop Theater 5.1 speakers, network adapter, midsize tower case. Two-year parts warranty, one-year labor warranty, free unlimited 9.5-hour tech support. $1899 510/353-1220 www.calibercorp.com