HP Pavilion a350n Desktop PC (2.80-GHz Pentium 4 (Hyper-Threading), 512 MB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, DVD+RWCD-RW Combo Drive)

As the most capable model in HP's wide-ranging a300n series of desktop computers, the Pavilion a350n Desktop PC is a fast and adaptable rig that's more than ready to handle most any home, home office, leisure and business application. Sporting solid 3-D graphics support, oodles of storage space and all the critical connectivity options, the Pavilion a350n is a wise invesent in the future. Driven by a potent 2.8 GHz Pentium 4 processor with Hyper-Threading technology (Hyper-Threading allows a single CPU system to behave in some aspects like a dual-CPU system -- thereby boosting performance during key high-drain procedures such as multitasking) and 512 MB of PC2700 DDR SDRAM memory, the Pavilion a350n sports enough top-end speed for virtually any task. It's 3-D graphics accelerator, an nVidia GeForce4 MX 440 AGP 8X graphics card with 64 MB DDR video memory and TV-out, will allow you to run older and midlevel 3-D games and even send a video signal to your television, but won't efficiently run the current batch of extreme high-end 3-D games. Compaq has equipped the system with a huge 160 GB hard disk to give you plenty of room for programs, files, and a full multimedia library. Other key amenities include a blazing 48-speed CD-ROM drive for playing audio discs and loading programs; a DVD+RW/CD-RW combo drive for burning audio and data discs, playing DVD movies and writing homegrown videos to DVD; and a 7-in-1 digital card reader for accessing memory cards from PDAs, digital cameras, and the like. HP has clearly built the Pavilion a350n to meet current and future expansion and connectivity needs. The unit features a half dozen high-speed USB 2.0 ports (one of the front) for exchanging information with external devices such as digital cameras and scanners, two FireWire ports (one on the front) for fast interaction with digital camcorders, a front-mounted microphone and headphone port, two available PCI slots, and a six-speaker surround sound audio controller. Communication facilities include a 56K modem for low-speed dial-up surfing and a 10/100Base-T Ethernet interface for high-speed e-communications. An HP multimedia keyboard with hotkeys and a hassle-free optical mouse complete the hardware picture. Bundled software includes Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Works 7.0, Microsoft Money 2003, and a variety of multimedia and security utilities. A monitor and speakers are not enclosed, thus allowing you to select from the wide variety of choices available today.

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HP Pavilion a350n Customer Review(s):

Summary: Best computer of all time (READ THIS REVIEW)
Rating: 5 (out of 5)
Comment: This computer is worth every penny. I am a big fan of gaming (Counter-Strike) and tis computer preforms like the game was ment to be played on it. My friend just bought a top of the line computer with the best grphic card and i cant tell the difference between mine ans his.
My computer
$1,000(1 Gig memory upgrade)

His
$3,000

This computer fits all my needs. It is very fast, I havent had 1 single problem with it, it runs great, and it is perfect for gaming!

I used to have a sony vaio and i hated it. Teh memory went out in a second and it lagged like there was no tomorrow!

Any Questions at all about this computer email me at seany012012@yahoo.com!

Buy it! You wont regret it ! i promise!!!
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Summary: Returned the first two befor getting a great PC
Rating: 4 (out of 5)
Comment: I hate the idea that I had to return this system twice before finding one that worked or me. Both of the first two did not see the DVD and after hours on the phone was finally told to return the PC. But the third was a charm and it works fine. The media ports (2 USB 1 Firewire) and headphone speaker access on the face are very user friendly and the hardware package overall is aboce par. Access to the inside of the PC is simple and everything is at your fingertips. So installing new Ram and a Video card for gaming was a breeze. The only complaint is the onboard audio card. I would have had second thoughts if it had been brought up before the purchase. But the marked down price and rebate made this an easy decision for me.

Overall it's been a great computer very few problems and as I already noted the hardware package is pretty good. I would like to have had a better software package but the cost of the Hardware made it cheaper to purchase the A350n than build a new PC that would have been close to the same performance without the software.
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Summary: Fast, Big and Somewhat Annoying
Rating: 3 (out of 5)
Comment: This is a solid machine. Nicely built, and easy to remove the panel to upgrade. The Ram and processor are eminently upgradable for future consideration.
This machine is *Very* fast, has a large disk and enough ports, firewire, ethernet etc. to satisify most anyone.
BTW, I am an engineer who knows and designs hardware.
The down side?
1. It looks like a 1940's toaster. Hmm, maybe thats good...
2. The bundled software is full of trials and even annoying reminders (advertising) that I will soon strip out.
3. The memory is 512MB of DDR333. Not bad, but could be a little better.
I removed it and replaced it with 4 512MB modules (2GB)of DDR400. Already faster than blazes with the DDR333, the new memory moves yet faster; I would say my apps now move 25 to 40 percent faster with this.
Upside:
The 250 watt rated power supply in this unit is enough for most anything; most people, even technical support folks don't understand this.
The processor uses about 35 watts; each drive less than 25 watts, the sound card less than 15 watts and add on cards less than 20 watts each.
So everything uses less than 130 watts for real.
Even with that fancy $500 video card which warns you to use a 300 watt supply, there is overhead. That card draws a max of 50 watts more for a grand total of 180 watts.
Another thing; I cannot stand computer noise and this unit is very, very quiet. Nice!
Also, there is more software inside than the package indicates: Take a look.
For $800 or so a great deal. Even some $1500 units are not this good.
Then again, I like the doggie search character, so that shows what my opinion is worth.
Cheers!

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HP Pavilion a350n Desktop PC (2.80-GHz Pentium 4 (Hyper-Threading), 512 MB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, DVD+RWCD-RW Combo Drive) | Site Map