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Dell XPS 600
If you can live with knowing that a handful of PCs out there are still faster than yours, we recommend Dell's versatile XPS 600 for the extensive features and the good value it provides.
Matt Elliott
Matt Elliott, a technology writer for more than a decade, is a PC tester and Mac user based in New Hampshire.
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With the recently introduced XPS 700, Dell's XPS 600 is second fiddle in the XPS lineup but still provide lots of performance for a good price. Hard-core gamers will bemoan the lack of AMD processors, but these Intel-based performance PCs offer high-end options, including dual Nvidia SLI graphics cards, an Nvidia Nforce4 SLI x16 motherboard, and Ageia's PhysX physics accelerator. Multimedia enthusiasts can opt for the Media Center OS and a dual-tuner TV tuner card for DVR-like functionality. Pricing starts at $1,790 and quickly scales up, with high-price add-ons, such as a 24-inch LCD. Our $4,999 XPS 600 test system can't claim to be the very fastest PC when judged against its admittedly high-octane brethren, but it can plow through any 3D game or consumer-level content-creation task. A specialized XPS service code lets you bypass the usual long wait time and speak with an XPS-trained technician.