eMachines ET1831-07

eMachines ET1831-07

eMachines' $389 ET1831-07 is one of the least expensive desktops we've reviewed this year. Its traditional midtower case might not offer as much visual charm as the small form factor Nettops you'll find in this price range, but this eMachines is actually a relatively strong day-to-day performer, and boasts an aggressive feature set for its price. You can forget using this system for demanding tasks like watching HD video or playing games, but we can recommend it if you're looking for an affordable, basic productivity box. The ET1831-07's glossy black plastic front panel mostly fits the midtower PC mold that's taken over Windows-based PCs. The one variation is a strip of plastic across the middle of the system's front. When you turn the PC on, the strip lights up green. This isn't a bad first PC for a child, and in that case, the light won't feel out of place. An adult might not appreciate it as much. Next to HP's budget-priced Compaq Presario CQ5320Y, the eMachines system looks like a pretty good deal. First, the eMachines costs about $20 less than the Compaq system. It also includes a larger hard drive and more memory. More RAM is especially important in PCs like these with integrated graphics chips that stake a claim on a portion of the system memory.