Tek Panel 370
Tek Panel 370
Matt Elliott Senior Editor
Matt Elliott is a senior editor at CNET with a focus on laptops and streaming services. Matt has more than 20 years of experience testing and reviewing laptops. He has worked for CNET in New York and San Francisco and now lives in New Hampshire. When he's not writing about laptops, Matt likes to play and watch sports. He loves to play tennis and hates the number of streaming services he has to subscribe to in order to watch the various sports he wants to watch.
Expertise Laptops, desktops, all-in-one PCs, streaming devices, streaming platforms
2 min read
The all-in-one multimedia PCs we've seen to this point deliver an abundance of features but relatively meager screens, making them suitable primarily for small living spaces, such as dorm rooms and cramped apartments. With the Tek Panel 370, however, "--="" rel="noopener nofollow" class="c-regularLink" target="_blank">&siteid=7&edid=&lop=txt&destcat=ex&destUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ehytekmfg%2Ecom%2F">Hy-Tek has created an all-in-one multimedia PC for the suburbs.
Upside: With a 37-inch wide-screen display, the Tek Panel 370 will easily become the centerpiece of any living room. Its 1,366x768 resolution is higher than what you'd get from a similarly sized plasma display, and it makes the Tek Panel 370 HDTV ready. It's no slouch as a PC, either, with a 3.2GHz Pentium 4 processor, 1GB of memory, and an ATI All-in-Wonder 9800 Pro graphics card complete with TV tuner and DVR software. The 200GB Serial ATA hard drive gives you plenty of space for storing your favorite TV shows, and the two Toshiba DVD burners should make archiving a snap. Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers, which you can connect to the unit's Creative Audigy 2 ZS sound card, will help you get over your sticker shock.
Downside: Its biggest drawback is the aforementioned sticker shock. The Tek Panel 370's $7,995 price will leave most consumers on the outside looking in. The Tek Panel 370 also runs the standard version of Windows XP Pro, not Microsoft's Media Center Edition, which we've found to be the easiest multimedia software to use because it integrates all functions within one simple interface.
Outlook: Available in either black or silver, the Tek Panel 370 will make an attractive addition to any living room. Until the cost comes down on supersize flat-panel displays, however, price will remain a barrier for all but the toniest of early adopters.
Upside: With a 37-inch wide-screen display, the Tek Panel 370 will easily become the centerpiece of any living room. Its 1,366x768 resolution is higher than what you'd get from a similarly sized plasma display, and it makes the Tek Panel 370 HDTV ready. It's no slouch as a PC, either, with a 3.2GHz Pentium 4 processor, 1GB of memory, and an ATI All-in-Wonder 9800 Pro graphics card complete with TV tuner and DVR software. The 200GB Serial ATA hard drive gives you plenty of space for storing your favorite TV shows, and the two Toshiba DVD burners should make archiving a snap. Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers, which you can connect to the unit's Creative Audigy 2 ZS sound card, will help you get over your sticker shock.
Downside: Its biggest drawback is the aforementioned sticker shock. The Tek Panel 370's $7,995 price will leave most consumers on the outside looking in. The Tek Panel 370 also runs the standard version of Windows XP Pro, not Microsoft's Media Center Edition, which we've found to be the easiest multimedia software to use because it integrates all functions within one simple interface.
Outlook: Available in either black or silver, the Tek Panel 370 will make an attractive addition to any living room. Until the cost comes down on supersize flat-panel displays, however, price will remain a barrier for all but the toniest of early adopters.