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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
5.0 stars
"Awesome Computer- My brother loves it."
Pros: Sleek, shiny 22" LCD
Extremely fast Intel Core 2 Duo processor
Nvidia 8400 graphics- my brother can play all the new games with good settings
2 gigs of ram
TV Tuner
Nice DVD Drive
Boots to Windows in 20-30 seconds
Very upgradable
Core 2 DuoCons: The screen can smudge, but you can avoid that by not rubbing your hands all over the nice screen. Other then that, everything else isn't a big deal.
Summary: My brother received this for Christmas. I personally helped picked it out, and at first I was a little sketchy about an all in one. But, my mom liked it, and for $699 from TigerDirect, it was definitely worth a shot. It arrived in about 3 days, and it looked awesome. I actually didn't get to test it until the 25th, when my brother opened it. Wow, was I impressed! I know a lot about computers, and when when we set the computer up (there was only one cord to plug in), we were ready to go. After the simple matter of setting up an account on Vista, it logged us right on. I immediately loaded Crysis and Fallout 3 on the Averatec to test the 8400 gpu as benchmarks. I was intensly impressed. I was expecting it to run the games on low settings with lots of lag. It proved me wrong. In Fallout 3, I set settings on high, with 2X AA and 2X AF. Just exploring and walking around I was getting 40-50fps. In intense battles I was getting 30fps minimum. Now that's amazing, especially on a mobile gpu. Now of course, Crysis. (In both games I used 1024x768 res). Anyway, in Crysis I set all settings to medium with the exception of shadows and shaders, which were set on low. I set the screen at 1024x768, with no AA. When I played the game, I was suprisingly pleased with the performance. When I was swimming in the greatly detailed water, walking around, or engaging a few Koreans, I was getting a solid 30fps, 35fps highest. In intense battles with explosions I was gettting 21-27fps. Now that's impressive, and the game is extremely playable. By the way, in the two games, I noticed no difference between the native 1680x1050 and the 1024x768 resolution. The lower resolution just made the games run much smoother. The Intel Core 2 Duo E4600 processor helps too. The point is, this computer is not just a "light gaming computer". It is a powerhouse. Now, don't expect it to run all the new games on all high settings, but medium/high, or just medium, or maybe even high with exceptional framerates and quality. I haven't tested games like Half Life 2, CSS , or GarrysMod, but I can almost guarantee you would be able to run those with high settings, AA, and AF. Oh, and it even can run movies great with Windows Media Center. It even came with a cool, slim remote. The computer loads Media Center in the blink of an eye (seriously). The speakers are great, I don't know what everyone else is talking about. My two brothers and I recently watched "Eagle Eye" on the computer, and the quality and sound was excellent. Oh, and about the Imac being better than the Averatec? That's bias and BS. My mom has the best Imac you can get, which is the 3ghz 24" Imac with the 8800GS, and I prefer my brother's Averatec over the Apple. Why? Well, firstoff, the Imac can do almost no gaming, since you have to buy special games for the system itself. I even noticed the Averatec to be faster using Vista than the Apple using OSX, especially on the internet. And hear this, the Apple is directly next to the wireless bridge. The Averatec is much farther away. Now, before you go saying I'm some Microsoft fanboy, the Imac is a great system. Imovie is excellent, and GarageBand is pretty cool as well. I admit that if you compared the Imac running Call of Duty 4 versus the Averatec running Call of Duty 4, the Imac would win. But, you really can't compare the $2,199 Imac to the $699 Averatec, or you shouldn't be able to. Yet you can. And as I've also read in an article, apparently you can even upgrade the video card, which uses a MXM 2 slot, whis means mobile pci express. And even more interesting, apparently it doesn't void the warranty. I would still call Averatec to confirm though just in case, and you probably should'nt replace the gpu unless you know what you're doing, or you are experienced, etc. Still, that's very interesting, and I'm taking a look into that. The cpu also supposedly supports a socket 775, hence the desktop E4600 Core 2 Duo. You also shouldn't replace the cpu unless you know what you're doing. Although, there really is no need for upgrade, the E4600 is an excellent cpu. The screen is great too, with a sleek design and no outcroppings to collect dust. The mouse and keyboard are great, an the mouse has a nice feel to it, being shaped like a rounded square. The keyboard is sleek, and it hides the even thinner Media Center remote. They are both wireless, and have excellent reception. The only con is there are no lights for caps lock or num lock. It really isn't a problem though, you just have to stay away from the caps lock or remember if you pressed. Not really a big deal. Oh, and the wireless adapter works great, and surfing is a breeze. This computer makes Vista run very fast, it boots up faster than my computer with xp, and my computer is a custom built gaming rig, with way better specs. Somehow though, the Averatec smokes my computer in load-up time. The point is, this computer is perfect for surfing the web, movies, even gaming. For $699, it's a great deal.
Apparently there is no microphone, but no problem, since I own one.
No caps lock light
- 3 replies to this review
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i think you should have added 2 gigs of ram as a con and if its a laptop then major con of 2 gigs should at least have 4. And if its a desktop you really need 8 but since you included monitor size i ass u me that its a laptop
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I agree with this reviewer strongly. The CNET review is out of date since the Averatec can be bought for $650!! That's a MUCH better value than the iMac which is twice the price and has a smaller screen. I just wish I could get an All-in-One with upgradeable graphics.
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One of the finest customer reviews I have ever read and I have read a lot.
Averatec All-in-One:
