all-in-one

The Sony Vaio Tap 20 introduced us to the idea of the all-in-one/tablet hybrid device. Asus has taken that concept, slathered it with Asus' particular brand of experimental enthusiasm, and brought it to life in the form of the $1,299 Transformer AIO.

The Transformer AIO, like the Sony Tap 20, shows an effort to offer consumers an intriguing new blend of all-in-one desktop and semiportable tablet. Rather than following Sony's approach of relying on Windows 8's new touch-friendly interface to achieve that mix with a single, seamless piece of hardware, the Transformer AIO essentially gives you … Read more

Staples in dangling a $400 trade-in deal to steer customers toward Windows 8 devices.

How does it work? The retailer's "Trade up to touch" Web page explains the process.

You first have to buy a Windows 8 touch device from Staples. It can be an all-in-one PC, a notebook, or a tablet, but it must be one of the qualifying items on the retailer's list. The list includes all-in-ones from Hewlett-Packard and Dell, laptops from Lenovo and Asus, and the various flavors of Microsoft's Surface RT and Pro tablets.

You then identify the device that … Read more

Consumers who order an iMac in the U.S. should now see it at their doorstep in just one to three business days.

Shipment times for both sizes of Apple's all-in-one desktop eased up on Saturday following a previous lengthy delay. On Friday, Apple's online store had been showing ship times of three to four weeks for the 27-inch edition and two to three weeks for the 21.5-inch model.

The iMac had been hit by supply constraints and production problems, but those issues have apparently been addressed. However, not all buyers will receive their iMacs so quickly.… Read more

If you are considering an all-in-one desktop purchase, you may have noticed higher prices for Windows 8 PCs than Windows 7 systems with comparable hardware from a year ago. Where a reasonably fast 23-inch all-in-one used to cost about $1,000, you can expect to pay $100 to $200 more for the Windows 8 equivalent today

The good news is that PC vendors seem to have finally internalized the calls for better-looking Windows PCs and more-innovative features. Those things alone don't account for the higher prices we're seeing at retail, but they do help lessen the impact.… Read more

Samsung's tidy, new $1,099 Series 7 all-in-one mirrors others in its price range, offering a relatively frictionless entry point for those interested in a touch screen, Windows 8-based PC. A poorly implemented gesture control scheme is a minor sticking point, but given the price of this system, Samsung isn't asking much of a a premium for gesture input.

Among other 23-inch Windows 8 all-in-ones, the Samsung Series 7 is one of the most affordable, without sacrificing too much in terms of its core features. Other all-in-ones offer some more intriguing features if you're willing to spend … Read more

You can't blame computer makers as they try to shake off the low margin shackles of the commodity PC market. It's reasonable, though, to ask that they put out a product worthy of a premium price tag.

The touch-screen version of the Envy 23 line starts at $1,049, but HP submitted a $1,949 version for review. The implication is that that HP wants you to think of this PC as a serious computer for performance or home entertainment. The problem is that its distinguishing features, Windows 8 Pro and 16GB of RAM, are easily added to … Read more

Similar to the Toshiba LX835 I reviewed last week, the Dell's Inspiron One 2330 offers a mainstream entry point for PC buyers interested in Windows 8. Unlike the Toshiba system and its higher-end silicon, this Dell is almost entirely pedestrian in terms of its core features.

A handsome design and a collection of less common audio-video ports give this otherwise unremarkable PC some identity. A comparatively low $1,199 price tag puts the Inspiron One 2330 on the most accessible tier of 23-inch touch-screen all-in-ones. For those with light-duty performance needs interested in a basic Windows 8 desktop, the … Read more

Toshiba is best known for its laptops, but after entering the U.S. desktop market in 2011, the company has put out straightforward, attractive all-in-one PCs at a steady cadence. The $1,399 LX835-D3380 is no exception, offering a safe, fast, and slightly more expensive entry point to Windows 8.

The difficulty for Toshiba, and for every all-in-one in this price range, is the Dell XPS One 27, the $1,399 version of which has slower components than the Toshiba and no touch capability, but comes with a 27-inch, 2,560x1,440-pixel-resolution display. The Toshiba's 23-inch, 1,920x1,080-pixel … Read more

For the same $1,299 you could spend on this 21.5-inch Apple iMac, you can buy a 23-inch or even a 27-inch Windows-based all-in-one, and with more robust features.

Yes, for better or for worse, those other PCs have Windows 8. They also have touch screens and optical drives, features that Apple has deemed inessential for a desktop. You might agree with Apple. You might also accept Apple's hallmark design excellence and display quality as worthy substitutions. You might even need or want a particular function of OS X that you can't get in a Windows PC.… Read more