HP Compaq dc5850

Solid business machine has strong support plan



THE COMPAQ DC5850, HP's latest foray into business-oriented minimalism, should give you a leg up on your work without tearing a hole in your bottom line.

Our $1,063 test unit came sans monitor but was outfitted with a 2.66GHz Athlon 5000B processor, 2GB of RAM, an 80GB Western Digital hard drive, a DVD burner, and integrated Intel GMA 3100 graphics, the lsat of which suggests its complete lack of gaming aptitude. In other words, this desktop is a recipe for graphics frustationin a black-and-silver box.

Although our 3D tests proved you shouldn't use this system for gameplya, it's competent enough for veryday work, despite its lack of office software. There's also room inside for a seconds 5.25-inch optical drive and another 3.5-inch hard drive, as well as a PCI Express slot, should you want to upgrade to a better graphics solution.

Up front is a pair of USB ports, along with headphone and microphone jacks. Out back are six additional USB ports, a LAN port, a VGA port, two PS/2 ports, a serial port, and a DVI-D port for an optional display. The system runs Windows XP Professional-not Vista-and is rated at a maximum resolution of 1,600x1,200, ideal for spreading multiple windows across a big monitor, though we had trouble viewing resolutions above 1,280x800 on our 30-inch Dell 3007WFP-HC monitor.



Our main complaint is that you can find less-expensive PCs loaded with comparably powerful components at many big-box stores. But HP's advantage is its three-year onsite warranty, which is very generous compated with the two-year coverage many competitive systems offer. - Bill O'Brien.

Computer Shopper November 2008
www.hp.com