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MSI announces new higher-end Wind Top all-in-one

MSI's new Wind Top AE2420 offers performance-oriented components.

Rich Brown Former Senior Editorial Director - Home and Wellness
Rich was the editorial lead for CNET's Home and Wellness sections, based in Louisville, Kentucky. Before moving to Louisville in 2013, Rich ran CNET's desktop computer review section for 10 years in New York City. He has worked as a tech journalist since 1994, covering everything from 3D printing to Z-Wave smart locks.
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We don't expect MSI will be the last vendor to offer an all-in-one with Intel's new Core i3 and Core i5 CPUs, but it seems to be the first. Starting at $1,199 when it goes on sale in the second quarter of 2010, the MSI Wind Top AE2420 will let you configure a variety of Intel's new processors, along with other higher-end components. This approach is something of a surprise from a vendor we normally associate with budget-priced Nettops.

New Wind Top AE2420 all-in-one focuses on performance. MSI

Other highlights of the Wind Top AE2420 include a 23.6-inch, 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution display, optional multitouch support complete with new touch programs, Blu-ray and TV tuner options, ATI's Radeon HD 5000-series graphics chips, and an HDMI input to output external video sources to the AE2420's display.

MSI hasn't finalized the pricing for the top-end configuration yet, but expects to stay below $1,999, ideally in the $1,599-to-$1,699 range. Even with the Wind Top's new features, a 24-inch all-in-one must watch its value proposition carefully next to Apple's $1,699 27-inch iMac. With a fast Core i5 CPU, Blu-ray, and a powerful enough Radeon HD 5000 3D chip, we might be willing to settle for 24-inches at $1,600 or so. MSI's baseline $1,199 spec, which retains the 23.6-inch display, will present a bigger value challenge to Apple given that its $1,199 iMac has only a 21.5-inch screen. We expect the all-in-one screen size fight will rage mightily this year, so expect lots of comparisons like this as new all-in-ones ship throughout 2010.