A Review of the Best Selling HP Pavilion A6220N Desktop

The HP Pavilion is one of the most recognized brand names on the market today. They make a full range of PC's as well as notebooks. Today I've gotten my hands on the HP Pavilion A6220N a top selling desktop thanks to its reasonable price. I'm going to let you know how it performs and if it truly is a bargain. First let's get started by popping the hood and checking out a few of the essentials.

Hardware:

Processor: 2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 dual-core

Storage Space: 400 GB hard drive

RAM: 2 GB of RAM (upgradable to an 8 GB maximum)

Optical Drive: a 16x dual-layer DVD with integrated CD R/RW burner

Expandibility: an open drive bay for a "HP Pocket Media Drive"

Graphics Accelerator: Intel GMA X3100 card (using up to 128 MB of dedicated video memory)

This desktop has decent startup times but not the best I've seen. They were improved by going through and deleting most of the unneeded trial ware that came preinstalled from HP. The processor is fairly strong but only a dual core. The 2GB of RAM is adequate for operating Windows Vista but is what I would consider a minimum (it is upgradable to 8GB). The graphics card isn't impressive and can also be upgraded beyond the integrated Intel offering that HP has included. Gamers beware this isn't your desktop.

Connectivity:

6 2.0 USB ports (these allow for the connection of most peripherals like printers, iPods and digital cameras)

2 FireWire ports (these are used for high speed data transfer between digital camcorders and some compatible PCs)

2 PS/2 ports (these are old school input device ports)

1 VGA monitor port (this is a typical monitor connection)

Standard surround sound speaker outputs

2 audio out / 2 microphone inputs

Digital coaxial audio input/output ports

15 in 1 memory card reader (this allows the owner to directly insert the memory from their mobile devices into the PC)

1 Ethernet port (allows this desktop to connect to a wired network)

1 56K modem (allowing the owner to dial up a network connection)

This HP has fairly standard connectivity which isn't surprising considering it's hardware. You won't find in HD outputs or multimedia perks. This desktop is perfect for typical computing, it will surf the internet, operate word, scan and print family photos - all that, it's just not going to play high end games or edit next year's Oscar winner. Priced at $650 it is right on target. There is some possibility that this PC will see a price reduction during the August sales so keep your eye out, but I don't foresee anything drastic.