Averatec All-in-One Desktop Computer: Better Than the Apple iMac?

It seems that everyone wants to copy Apple, the computer and software manufacturer that brought us such hits as the Apple iPod, the Apple iPhone, and the iTunes music MP3 store. Averatec is the latest computer manufacturer to try to get a piece of Apple's desktop computer manufacturer. The Averatec All-in-One borrows a lot from Apple's iMac, the all-in-one desktop computer that started the "inclusive design" craze. But does Averatec's All-in-One computer stack up?

I had a chance to review the Averatec All-in-One. As a hardcore Windows PC user who recently switched to an Apple Macbook, I see the strengths of both the Windows world and the Mac world. While I love the Apple iMac for its inclusive design, it's high price tag of over $2,000 makes it slightly too expensive for my budget. I'm always on the lookout for cheaper alternatives, even if they're a Windows PC computer. In this article, I give you an in-depth review of my experience with the Averatec All-in-One computer, especially in comparison to the Apple iMac.

A computer review of the Averatec All-in-One desktop computer:

The first thing that caught my eye with the Averatec All-in-One desktop computer is its clean, crisp design. It's obviously borrowed a page right from the Apple design manual. Like the iMac, the Averatec all-in-one computer is included in one single piece integrated into the computer monitor. There's no tower like most ordinary computer desktops! Also, like the iMac, this screen is a beautiful, huge LCD on a neck that allows you to move it and rotate it for the best viewing angle.

Unlike the iMac, the Averatec All-in-One computer isn't chrome or white, but a crisp black. Also unlike the iMac, the Averatec All-in-One computer includes controls that give you more custom control over things like the screen's brightness. All these extra additions make the Averatec All-in-One computer's design far better than what Apple designed for the iMac, which was very, very surprising.

Also, unlike the iMac, the Averatec All-in-One starts at just over $1,200-far cheaper than its Apple competitor.

But don't forget that there's more to a computer than just how pretty it looks on your desk. It needs to have power and work well, otherwise it's just an expensive paperweight. Does the Averatec All-in-One deliver, or is it just an expensive paperweight?

Inside the Averatec All-in-One desktop computer, you'll find a Intel Core 2 Duo processor that clocks in at 2.4 Ghz (http://www.averatec.com/products/inhomeoffice/allinone/). When you buy it, Averatec includes 2 GB of DDR2 SDRAM and a 320 GB hard drive, more than enough to handle something like Adobe Photoshop, or to create, edit and burn DVDs and CDs.

The Averatec All-in-One desktop computer also has all the standard burning and ripping drives, as well as standard networking configurations (you can set it up to be hardwired to the Internet through an Ethernet cable, or you can take advantage of speedy Wi-Fi connections).

Unfortunately, and this is a big "unfortunately," the Averatec All-in-One computer has terrible, terrible computing performance despite what looks like a hefty processor on paper. In just running ordinary applications, I found the lag unbearable. What should have been zippy and fast, such as loading a custom DVD to burn onto a blank DVD, took much longer than it should have. On a similarly configured computer, and even on an iMac, this process should have taken less than the time it took for the Averatec computer to slog through it.

Thus, while the Averatec All-in-One desktop computer has an impressive design that makes Apple work for its money, the essentials-namely computer processor performance-was so horrible I can't recommend that you purchase this computer. You would get better performance and response times from much cheaper, standard desktop computers. If you absolutely must have an all-in-one, inclusive computer, the Averatec All-in-One desktop looks good, but it won't deliver. Until Averatec issues a new upgrade to their beautiful computer, you'll need to pay the extra $800 and get an Apple iMac.