Why You Can Trust CNET HP Media Center Photosmart 7200 review: HP Media Center Photosmart 7200
The latest update to HP's Photosmart line of Media Center PCs will appeal to families and students looking for a solid multimedia system. Users will love the features included in the m7260n, especially at this price. But enthusiasts and gamers will balk at its one-size-fits-all approach.
Does it ever make sense for an educated consumer to buy a preconfigured PC rather than configuring one online to exact specifications? In the case of the midrange HP Media Center m7260n Photosmart PC, the answer is a qualified yes. The $1,169 system includes features that will satisfy families and students (and may even include some things they never imagined they'd need) while costing less than many comparative systems. More-advanced users with specific hardware needs such as high-end graphics or an easy-to-upgrade case will balk at its one-size-fits-all approach, but multitasking mainstream users will put the system's dual-core CPU and multimedia features to good use right out of the box.
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
The m7260n looks innocuous enough with its low-key silver-and-gray case, but this outward friendliness belies a powerful passel of parts underneath the hood. The m7260n features a dual-core Pentium D 830 processor running at 3.0GHz, along with 1GB of RAM, a hefty 300GB hard drive, and a standard-def TV tuner. (The slightly cheaper m7246n model downgrades the CPU to a Pentium D 820 while the m7248n model goes the AMD route, with an Athlon 64 X2 4200+ dual-core processor. Our recent dual-core CPU prizefight feature showed that AMD dual-core chips outperform their Intel counterparts. We'd sacrifice 50GB of hard drive space and choose the cheaper AMD Athlon X2-based m7248n model.
The system features a nifty dock on top that accommodates a digital camera or an MP3 player and provides easy routing to run a FireWire cable to the back of the system. There are plenty of connections up front, including FireWire, S-Video, composite-video inputs, and dual USB 2.0 ports, and there are even more around back, including digital-audio and 7.1 surround-sound audio ports. All inputs and outputs are clearly labeled--a small but welcome gesture.
Given that the system is based around the Media Center OS, users could easily fill up its gigantic hard drive quickly with recorded TV shows. So HP gives you a handy option: a front-mounted slot for HP's proprietary Personal Media Drive. These internal/external hard drives come in 300GB ($280) and 400GB sizes ($350) and plug right into the slots like cartridges, providing plenty of additional storage space as well as excellent data-backup options. The Personal Media Drives can also connect to any system via a USB 2.0 connection.
The one drawback of the Personal Media Drive becomes apparent when you twist the case's two thumbscrews and remove its side panel. Inside, you'll find that the housing for the slot blocks access to many components, so swapping out the hard drive or one of the optical drives, or even adding more RAM, can be a small nightmare. Mainstream consumers who have no intention of opening their cases for upgrades may not be bothered by this, while intrepid upgraders will find one 5.25-inch drive bay and one PCI slot open.
Optical-drive duties are handled by a double-layer LightScribe DVD burner and a standard DVD-ROM drive. HP's LightScribe technology lets you burn grayscale text, photos, and preformatted CD label art directly onto specially coated discs, adding a professional, if time-consuming, touch to your projects.
Despite having a dual-core Pentium D 830, one of the highest-end processors available today, the m7260n's performance doesn't shine. In testing it lagged behind other systems with nearly identical configurations, scoring 5 percent slower than the Sony VAIO RC110G in CNET Labs' SysMark 2004 benchmarks. (To the m7260n's credit, it costs less and provides a larger hard drive than the VAIO RC110G.) Though it lags behind other dual-core systems, the m7260n far outpaces the single-core Pentium 4 530-based Shuttle XPC 8300mc by a healthy 13 percent. A dual-core CPU is a smart choice for a versatile Media Center system such as the m7260n, where you might find yourself recording TV while running an antivirus app and Web browsing, as dual-core CPUs are better equipped to handle multitasking than single-core CPUs.
HP may think users interested in a midrange media machine aren't going to want anything more powerful than the system's Radeon X300 graphics card, but any serious 3D gaming will require an aftermarket upgrade. The m7260n will play only older games at modest resolutions.
The m7260n includes Microsoft Works 8, Quicken 2005, and InterVideo's WinDVD 5, as well as HP's ImageZone photo-editing software. A Media Center remote, an optical USB mouse, and a USB Internet keyboard round out the bundle. Neither a display nor speakers are included with the system.
The HP Media Center m7260n Photosmart PC includes a standard one-year warranty, including a program to send user-installable replacement parts via overnight mail. The HP support Web site offers FAQs, drivers, and tutorials. Toll-free phone support is 24/7 and real-time chat and e-mail support are also available. A two-year warranty extension will run you $169.
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
 | BAPCo SysMark 2004 rating | | SysMark 2004 Internet-content-creation rating | | SysMark 2004 office-productivity rating |
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System configurations:
Dell Dimension XPS 400
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2; 3.2GHz Intel Pentium D 840; Intel 945GP chipset; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 6800 (PCIe); two WDC WD160JD-75HBB0 160GB Serial ATA 7,200rpm; integrated Intel 82801GR/GH SATA RAID Controller (RAID 0)
Gateway FX400XL
Windows XP Professional SP2; 3.0GHz Intel Pentium D 830, 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; Intel 945GP chipset; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 6800 (PCIe); Hitachi HDS722525VLSA80 250GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA (two separate drives no RAID)
HP Media Center m7260n Photosmart PC
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005; 3.0GHz Intel Pentium D 830; Intel 945P chipset; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 400MHz; 128MB ATI Radeon X300 (PCIe); Seagate ST3300831AS 300GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA
Shuttle XPC G5 8300mc
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005; 3.0GHz Intel P4 530; Intel 915G chipset; 512MB DDR SDRAM 400MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 6600 (PCIe); WDC WD2500JD-98HBB0 250GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA
Sony VAIO VGC-RC110G
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005; 3.0GHz Intel Pentium D 830; Intel 945P chipset; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 128MB ATI Radeon X300 (PCIe); WDC WD2500JS-98MHB0 250GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA