Packard Bell PCs have consistently offered good value for money but have sometimes been let down by odd decisions when it comes to the hardware included.

The iMedia 1602 runs a 3GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor, which is very fast and provides excellent performance in Windows applications. However, it's only supported by 256Mb of memory, which is fine for office and internet programs, but start using photo, audio or video applications and you'll see the performance drop. Although having a fast processor is a great pull, you'd get much better results from 512Mb of memory and a slightly slower processor.

The 80Gb hard disk is reasonable for a PC of this price and enough for the average user. No Windows XP disk is supplied, so the iMedia reserves 5Gb of hard disk space for backup files, which can you use in case of severe problems.

Graphics are handled by an ATi Radeon X300 card, which is fitted into a PCI-Express socket. Although it will play most 3D games reasonably, don't expect it to perform well when all the higher quality settings are switched on. Nevertheless, you can upgrade at a later date.

This is the first of a new range of iMedia PCs that comes with an attractive black chassis. Sliding panels on the front conceal the optical drive and various ports, making the system look nice and smooth. The accompanying 15in monitor is also styled in black.

The recordable DVD drive can write to plus and minus formats and some dual-layer discs. Below this are two empty 3.5in drive bays, a pair of USB sockets, headphone and microphone ports. We were disappointed not to find a memory card reader but at least there is space to fit one.

Also included is a set of stereo speakers that draw power from the PC and a wired mouse and keyboard set.

As ever with Packard Bell PCs, there is loads of software to get you started, and everything is pre-loaded and ready to go. A full copy of Microsoft Works 7, Power Cinema and My DVD is included, as is a 60-day trial of Office 2003.

Security is taken care of with a copy of Norton Internet Security 2004 but the updates only last for three months. It also comes with a one-year standard warranty.

Contact:
PC World 0870 2420 444
www.pcworld.co.uk

More information:
www.packardbell.co.uk

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