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Rating: 
Summary: Good machine, but it will cost you. . .
Review: The media center PC is quite a cool concept. . . The new windows version is pretty cool too! I do like the computer; but I do not like the fact that there are no open PCI slots. With all the components in the box, there is no real room to expand, only to replace. The Audigy sound card is exceptional. It is capable of supporting Dolby 5.1 surround sound. The nVidia GeForce MX 420 graphics is not the best, but it isn't bad. I still wish they would start packing them with the TI GeForce cards, they are considerably better. The onboard memory reader is a plus. The only problem is that it only has four of the five current flash-style card slots. It supports Sony Memory Stick, Smart Media, Compact Flash, and Secure Digital. It does not support the new XD memory type used in many Olympus digital cameras. The unit comes with great speakers. The processor speed is good, P4 2.53 GHz. 512 MB of DDR RAM is a must for today's demanding applications and games. The DVD recorder is cool. The audio/video equipment is awesome. The fact that you can capture television is great. The HP f70 flat panel monitor is a great compliment to this machine. It is expensive, but a quality piece. This machine as a whole is great. If you are not a fan of assembling your own computer, you will not find a machine with more already on-board capabilities. . . epc
Rating:
Summary: Good machine, but it will cost you. . .
Review: The media center PC is quite a cool concept. . . The new windows version is pretty cool too! I do like the computer; but I do not like the fact that there are no open PCI slots. With all the components in the box, there is no real room to expand, only to replace. The Audigy sound card is exceptional. It is capable of supporting Dolby 5.1 surround sound. The nVidia GeForce MX 420 graphics is not the best, but it isn't bad. I still wish they would start packing them with the TI GeForce cards, they are considerably better. The onboard memory reader is a plus. The only problem is that it only has four of the five current flash-style card slots. It supports Sony Memory Stick, Smart Media, Compact Flash, and Secure Digital. It does not support the new XD memory type used in many Olympus digital cameras. The unit comes with great speakers. The processor speed is good, P4 2.53 GHz. 512 MB of DDR RAM is a must for today's demanding applications and games. The DVD recorder is cool. The audio/video equipment is awesome. The fact that you can capture television is great. The HP f70 flat panel monitor is a great compliment to this machine. It is expensive, but a quality piece. This machine as a whole is great. If you are not a fan of assembling your own computer, you will not find a machine with more already on-board capabilities. . . epc
Rating:
Summary: Great PC/multimedia center, but pricey
Review: This computer runs the new Windows XP Media Center Edition, which is basically a superset of Windows XP Professional Edition. The extras in this superset are the multimedia enhancements that turn specially designed PCs ("media center PCs" such as this Pavilion) into a 1) DVD player/recorder (yes, you can actually record DVD movies from your own videos, but not duplicating commercial DVD content); 2) souped-up TV with digital recording capability (like UltimateTV or better known TiVO); 3) "one-touch" music center; 4) easy-to-use photo center. The hardware specs are very impressive. Speedy 2.53Ghz Pentium 4 processor coupled with 512MB of RAM and 120GB hard disk. A DVD-RW and CD-RW combo drive, with 2.4/2.4/8 for DVD and 12/10/32-48 for CD. Klipsch 200W speaker system. And nVidia GeForce 4 MX420 graphics card with 64MB VRAM. You also get USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 ports; slots for CompactFlash II, SmartMedia, Secure Digital/Multimedia Card, and Memory Stick; as well as Ethernet and modem cards. It's as complete a PC as I've seen. In terms of day-to-day use, the Media Center PC differs from an ordinary PC in where it's used (anywhere in the home), for what it's used (as a PC *and* TV/video/audio/pictures center), how it's used (with a remote control in addition to keyboard and mouse), as well as by whom it's used (from the toddler to great-great-grandma). It's a very versatile and powerful computing/entertainment environment... and very easy to set up. That said, the price for this model does NOT include a monitor, so when you buy the complete system, you are paying a roughly 25% premium over a similarly equipped "regular" Windows XP PC. Is it worth this premium? I think so because 3/4 of my family members are computer-phobic, and this wonderful new product has appealed to all of them like no computer before.
Rating:
Summary: Great PC/multimedia center, but pricey
Review: This computer runs the new Windows XP Media Center Edition, which is basically a superset of Windows XP Professional Edition. The extras in this superset are the multimedia enhancements that turn specially designed PCs ("media center PCs" such as this Pavilion) into a 1) DVD player/recorder (yes, you can actually record DVD movies from your own videos, but not duplicating commercial DVD content); 2) souped-up TV with digital recording capability (like UltimateTV or better known TiVO); 3) "one-touch" music center; 4) easy-to-use photo center. The hardware specs are very impressive. Speedy 2.53Ghz Pentium 4 processor coupled with 512MB of RAM and 120GB hard disk. A DVD-RW and CD-RW combo drive, with 2.4/2.4/8 for DVD and 12/10/32-48 for CD. Klipsch 200W speaker system. And nVidia GeForce 4 MX420 graphics card with 64MB VRAM. You also get USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 ports; slots for CompactFlash II, SmartMedia, Secure Digital/Multimedia Card, and Memory Stick; as well as Ethernet and modem cards. It's as complete a PC as I've seen. In terms of day-to-day use, the Media Center PC differs from an ordinary PC in where it's used (anywhere in the home), for what it's used (as a PC *and* TV/video/audio/pictures center), how it's used (with a remote control in addition to keyboard and mouse), as well as by whom it's used (from the toddler to great-great-grandma). It's a very versatile and powerful computing/entertainment environment... and very easy to set up. That said, the price for this model does NOT include a monitor, so when you buy the complete system, you are paying a roughly 25% premium over a similarly equipped "regular" Windows XP PC. Is it worth this premium? I think so because 3/4 of my family members are computer-phobic, and this wonderful new product has appealed to all of them like no computer before.
Rating: 
Summary: Outstanding Package
Review: This machine really flys! The 2.53GHz P4 processor combined with 512MB of DDR memory really make this machine scream even with the most demanding video games. The GeForce 4 MX420 graphics card delivers fast, crisp images even during online gaming where I have experienced most of my problems with video jumping on other machines. The sound is crisp and clear and the bundled speakers are really nice. I really like the DVD Burner feature that let's me make movies on DVD that play on my home DVD player. The built-in 6-in-1 memory card reader is a really nice touch and takes both of the memory cards I use with my MP3 player and my digital camera. This makes loading MP3s and downloading images from my camera to my PC a snap. This alone made the machine upgrade worth the money spent. No complaints here... at all!
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Package
Review: Warning do not think that you can capture and share any video with this unit. I purchased this unit thinking I could take my home movies from vhs to dvd Wrong! You will be unable to share any captured video on this unit with any other PC or DVD player due to copyright protection. With that functionality gone the unit is massively overpriced.
Rating: 
Summary: Great speakers but thats it
Review: Warning do not think that you can capture and share any video with this unit. I purchased this unit thinking I could take my home movies from vhs to dvd Wrong! You will be unable to share any captured video on this unit with any other PC or DVD player due to copyright protection. With that functionality gone the unit is massively overpriced.
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