Specialty Desktops

Specialty desktop computers

Compaq and Apple produced all-in-one computer/monitor combos in the early days of personal computers, and they've been popular with a small segment of the marketplace ever since. However, the integrated designs resulted in way-below-average reliability, little or no internal upgradeability, and limitations in monitor positioning. The major advantage was saving space, and all-in-ones were cheaper than laptops. Radical price drops in LCD displays literally changed the face of all-in-ones. Now, they use the same displays as laptops. They also use laptop CPUs, which are slower than desktop processors and more expensive. As a generalization, all-in-one desktop computers currently have no advantage over laptops, and they lack the major advantage of laptops, which is portability. However, we found many favorable reviews for two models that are unique exceptions.

The HP TouchSmart PC IQ770 is the first home computer with a touchscreen display. It works much like a bank ATM: you can use the screen, a stylus, wireless keyboard or wireless mouse as an input device. A bright 19-inch widescreen touchscreen display is the centerpiece of this product. HP is marketing the TouchSmart PC IQ770 as a family multimedia computer for use in the kitchen. It has integrated regular and high-definition TV tuners with a personal video (TV) recorder and a remote control. Reviewers also see the TouchSmart IQ770 as well suited for use in a living room or bedroom. You can watch television, listen to the radio, record video with the integrated webcam and microphone, or dub recorded television shows to DVD.

HP designed the machine to take advantage of new features in Windows Vista Home Premium and added some original software to suit the intended purpose. The "HP SmartCenter" is like a desktop with shortcuts to a family schedule and media. HP SmartCalendar is the family scheduling center. In a nutshell, reviewers say the IQ770 is great for its intended purpose -- and otherwise mediocre. With an AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core TL-52 processor, the IQ770 is slow relative to other models in this price range. You do get 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive and a NVIDIA GeForce Go 7600 graphics card with 256MB of RAM. Some reviewers lament the lack of a next-generation DVD drive. A bigger concern for most families will be durability. The limited warranty is just one year, and HP doesn't specify coverage for pizza or taco fingerprints or damage.

Reviewers can't resist comparing the HP TouchSmart IQ770 with the iMac -- most say the IQ770 is equal or better -- but each is a niche product, and the niches are unrelated. Apple discontinued its entire iMac line this month and replaced it with new models also called iMac. The new line consists of four base models: 20-inch, 2.0GHz (starting at *est. $1,200); 20-inch, 2.4GHz (*Est. $1,500) ; 24-inch, 2.4GHz ; and 24-inch, 2.8Ghz (starting at *est. $2,300). All but that last version come with just 1GB of RAM, but the computer has an open memory slot; the 2.8GHz, 24-inch iMac has 2MB of memory.

Initial reviews have been complimentary thus far. Among reports, Ars Technica's coverage of the 2.4GHz, 20-inch iMac is exceedingly complete. Although only benchmarked against other Mac computers, the new iMac's performance is first rate -- even better than the Mac Pro (quad-core) in some tests. More notably, it proved to be better than the also-new MacBook Pro, a laptop with very similar hardware. The iMac uses laptop technology, including Intel's new Santa Rosa (Centrino Duo) platform. CNet tests the iMac against PCs, most of which cost much less, but don't include a monitor. The iMac excels in graphics and multimedia tests, but it's non-competitive for gaming. Editors say the iMac competes better with desktop PCs than any previous Macintosh.

Although the shape is about the same as early generations, the new iMacs look very different. The chassis has an anodized aluminum finish, and the glossy widescreen display has a glass cover. Ars Technica's Eric Bangeman says the display is very reflective, and several photos emphasize the point. He kept expecting it to bother him, but says it didn't.

Macworld tests the 2.4GHz, 20-inch iMac as well, but it also rates and compares the 2GHz 20-inch and 2.4GHz 24-inch versions. Like Ars Technica, all are subjected to a battery of benchmark and real-world tests and compared to older Macintosh computers, though the reporting is not as complete. Jonathan Seff says that aside from the obvious display-size difference, the two 2.4GHz iMacs perform nearly identically. Both beat the performance standards set by the previous high-end iMacs, though the speed increase is "modest." The 2.0GHz model is less expensive, but there are tradeoffs in performance, hard-drive space and graphics ability.

The iMac can run Windows, but no review we've seen thus far has tested it with Windows. Macintosh computers face fewer security threats than Windows-only computers. In reliability and support surveys conducted by PC Magazine, Apple is rated tops for service and reliability, even though its base warranty isn't very robust compared to the PC competition, and you only get 90 days of phone support (an extra $250 gets you more comprehensive coverage).