Systemax Encore 3102

As soon as you set your eyes on it, you can see that there is something different about the Systemax Encore 3102. A large display on the front of the base unit, complete with dials and buttons, suggests that it's a hi-fi rather than a computer. In fact, that is only one of things this nifty PC can be used for.

At its centre is an AMD Athlon XP 2800+ processor and 512Mb of memory. There is a Sony recordable DVD drive capable of writing to all formats apart from DVD-RAM and a six-in-one memory card reader. More important is the 120Gb hard disk, which is more than enough for everyday PC work. It also provides a lot of space for storing audio and video, which brings us onto our next point - media recording.

The Encore 3102 is Systemax's answer to Windows XP Media Center Edition PCs and it uses its own software to record or pause live TV broadcasts. Using it like a digital video recorder, you can then play back your recorded shows whenever you like or, alternatively, nip into Windows to edit the video or burn it to DVD.

Using the Encore 3102 as a home entertainment device is just like operating a normal hi-fi. The display shows all the information you would normally expect, such as mode, volume and graphic equaliser, while the super slim remote controls all of the multimedia functions.

As a PC, the Encore 3102 operates pretty well. Although it didn't complete our system tests, our hands-on testing found it to be very quick in office, internet and productivity applications. The same cannot be said of its games prowess, due to the poor on-board graphics that rendered some of the latest 3D games almost unplayable. There is a free AGP slot for a graphics card upgrade though.

A 5.1 surround-sound audio card is included alongside a set of Videologic ZXR-550 5.1 speakers. Like most PCs, the Encore 3102 contains all the usual ports and sockets, including two USB ports and two FireWire sockets.

If you don't fancy using your TV as the main monitor, the Encore 3102 comes with a Iiyama 17in widescreen TFT monitor. This lovely display is the same height as a regular 15in TFT, but offers extra width for widescreen DVD films, which eliminates the 'letterbox' effect. The monitor also has several extra inputs, so you can connect other devices to it, such as a DVD player.

The Encore 3102 is a good example of home entertainment integration. Its focused design might limit upgrade potential but, frankly, this is not a computer that you should ever need to take the case off, so this is not a problem. If the size and relative complexity of Windows XP Media Center Edition is putting you off from using a computer in this way, the Encore 3102 is the answer. Systemax also offers a three-year warranty, with the first year on-site.

Contact: Systemax 0870 729 7369
www.simply.co.uk