eMachines T3256 Desktop PC (2.20 GHz Athlon XP 320+, 512 MB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW/CD-RW Drive)

Rating:
Summary: impressed so far
Review: I bought this computer doing more research than last time I bought one. I bought another computer 1 year ago I was happy until I got some new games and it couldnt play them. It was runnung a 2.6ghz celeron, with Intel's Extreme Graphics. I was dissappointed I couldn't install new Graphics card because there was no slot. Everything else I used it for worked fine.
Well the first thing I did was install the game I wanted to play the most, and the emachines started out just fine playing game. I did have to turn down some settings to let it run even faster, but I can install AGP graphics card and should have no problem. This computer also seems to start up faster and most internet browsing seems just a little bit faster. I dont know how this processer compares to Pentium 4 but I can recommend AMD to anyone. All I need to do is learn about DVD burning now.

Rating:
Summary: Great bang for the buck
Review: I bought this model about a year ago. The one I got had a floppy drive but everything else is the same. Most of the stuff has already been covered such as what software it came with and so on. I want to address the fact the this computer comes with standard parts.

Having stnadard parts means that this is a very upgradable computer as far as pre-made computers go, in fact you can upgrade everything except the processor and that's only because AMD doesn't make a faster Athlon XP processor (they do make Athlon 64 bit processors which are faster but they won't work in this computer). The motherboard is standard ATX which is nice because some manufacturers have proprietary motherboards, and it can handle up to 2 GB of PC3200 ram (it comes with 512 MB of PC2700 ram). I've messed around with mine a lot already. I've added a new videocard and I upgraded the ram to 1 GB of PC3200, now it runs any game thrown at it including Doom 3 and Half Life 2 at 1024x768 resolution. I couldn't find a better computer for the price one year ago, and at it's current price it's still a good buy.

For anyone hesitant about buying a computer with an AMD processor my advice is, don't worry. Like I said I've had it for a year and every program I have, including MS Office XP, runs flawlessly. The processor its self is comparable to a brand new Pentium 4 2.8 GHz or a Pentium 4 3.2 GHz from a year ago.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Computer!! 5 Stars!
Review: I just purchased this computer this week, and I am VERY impressed! I previously owned a very old PC that was extremely slow (233 Mhz, 3 GB HD...), so upgrading so drastically was quite a shock. It takes roughly 20 seconds for the PC to start up and be ready for your use, which is very fast. CD burning is extremely quick. I havent tried the DVD burner yet though. I am also a gamer, and this computer does gaming justice. I have more than enough room for all my games on the 160 GB HD! And all my games run very fast and smooth. But they aren't the very top of the line games, but rather games like Command & Conquer. Also, I've noticed my dial-up connection goes ATLEAST twice as fast than on my old computer. I also bought the eMachines 17" CRT flat screen, which is a great accessory to this computer. If your looking for a very powerful, fast, computer, and are on a budget, this is the computer for you!

Rating:
Summary: Great entry-level PC
Review: I'm a Mac guy myself, but I recommended this to a friend who needed an inexpensive PC. I was a little hesitant at first since eMachines has had some quality control issues in the past. From the research I've done however, it appears that those issues have been addressed. I wouldn't recommend it for high-end work or serious gaming action, but for most tasks, it works quite well.

I liked the fact that it comes with a fast Athlon XP chip. No speed issues at all. It also comes with 512MB of RAM (actually, 448MB - more on that later) and a spacious 160GB HD - a must for storing music, pictures, etc. DVD burner comes in the package as well, which is nice. Burns discs plenty fast with few issues, iTunes works with it just fine. It does have integrated nVidia nForce 2 graphics (equivalent to a GeForce 4MX). Much faster than the Intel Integrated graphics in Celerons. The graphics do take up 64MB of RAM (you can set the amount used for graphics in the BIOS if you feel comfortable messing with those settings) of the 512MB installed. More importantly, there is an 8X AGP slot available should you decide to upgrade the video card later. The integrated graphics work well for older games or less intensive games. The only criticism is a lack of DVI for supporting digital displays. The built-in media card reader is nice too. There is no floppy drive on this machine, so if you have data stored on floppies, it's time to move to the 21st century and put it on CD-R or a USB Flash Drive.

Windows XP Home comes standard and is fine for most uses. SP 1 came on the model my friend purchased, so first order of business was a string of updates. He's on AOL dial-up (yeah, I know) and it took forever to download. I also removed IE from the desktop and installed FireFox instead. IE is only used for Windows Update. No major problems with SP 2 so far. The installed software is adequate and includes 90 days of Norton Anti-Virus protection. It comes with Works, photo editing and CD burning software. Just enough to cover the basics really. A slightly more robust software package would be nice, but at this price point, I'm not complaining. Oh, and unlike the HP/Compaq systems we were looking at, you get a complete software restore DVD just in case.

The included keyboard and mouse are OK. It comes with basic speakers so if you want sound that will blow you away, you'll want to buy a different set.

For simple home computing needs, can't really complain. This system offers good performance and expandability for the price. If you're looking for a machine to tear through Photoshop or Doom 3, this isn't your rig. For most users however, this machine is more than adequate. Been running for almost three months now and no complaints. It may not be super-fast or flashy, but it's solid and gets the job done. Can't ask for much more than that.