If you do want to improve on the Value Pro's specification, there's not much room to add new devices. There are two free DIMM slots, one PCI slot, one shared PCI/ISA slot and one ISA slot, plus two, free external 5.25in bays. You're out of luck if you want to add a 3.5in device - there are no free bays.
Externally, the Value Pro isn't that attractive either. The 15in Targa monitor is a different shade of beige from the rest of the system and the thick surround makes it appear smaller than other 15in models. The keyboard connects via a older DIN socket, so you'll need to use an adaptor if you swap it for another model. And the mouse connects to one of the serial ports rather than a dedicated PS/2 port.
As far as performance is concerned, the Value Pro held its own and beat the two 300MHz K6-2-based systems. Its 8Mb ATI Xpert graphics card helped it to secure the fourth position in the graphics test.
The Avanti Value Pro sports the lowest price tag in the test but its low-cost nature is evident in the cheap components and lack of attention to detail.
- #586.33 (inc VAT)
- Avanti: 0121 683 1683
www.avanti-systems.co.uk
Avanti Value Pro
Build quality *
Features ****
Performance ***
Value for money *****
Overall ***
BIG RED VOYAGER DISCOVERY 3D
The first thing we noticed about Big Red Voyager Discovery 3D is its bulky case, which comes with its own set of standing feet. Big Red has designed the case so that you can lock away the power button, CD-ROM and floppy drives, but in practice, this arrangement is rather awkward.
Every time you want to access the drives you have to open a flap on the front of the case.
Most of the other Voyager Discovery 3D peripherals are pretty unpleasant to use. The mouse isn't a Microsoft model and feels uncomfortable in your hand, and the keyboard is flimsy. Things improve when you move to the monitor though, and the 15in Hansol Mazellan isn't at all bad for a budget PC, providing a bright, clear picture.
The Voyager is one of two PCs to use AMD's K6-2 350MHz chip and, as with all but one of the other PCs in the line-up, this is accompanied by 64Mb of RAM. The 6.4Gb hard drive is one of the largest here, and with the 8Mb ATI Xpert98 graphics card, the Voyager adds up to a reasonable specification.
If you want more than what's on offer, there is some space to upgrade, with one free PCI slot and two free ISA slots. There are also two free 5.25in bays and one 3.5in bay, but apart from the space available, you aren't greeted by a pretty sight when you get inside this PC.
It can all be summed up in one word - mess. The cables are bundled together and shoved into the space between the power supply and the graphics card.
This puts unnecessary pressure against the graphics card, and the main power that snakes across the motherboard from the power supply does little to help matters.
The Voyager scored in the mid-range category in the performance test, turning in virtually the same mark as the other AMD K6-2 350MHz PC from Panrix. It's in much the same position in the Final Reality graphics test, making it an average performer overall.
The Voyager Discovery 3D is a middle-of-the-road budget PC but its peripherals leave quite a bit to be desired and more care could have gone into putting it together.
- #699 (inc VAT)
- Big Red: 0181 245 2456
www.bigred.co.uk
Beg Red Voyager Discovery 3D
Build quality **
Features ****
Performance ***
Value for money ***
Overall ****
HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?
While we have set a budget of #699 for our test, this is by no means the lowest price you can find if you're willing to do some hunting. You might miss out on some of the whizzy multimedia features but you can still get yourself a decent, basic PC for under #500 including VAT.
Dotlink is often a good choice if you are looking for value for money and it has a 200MHz Pentium PC with 32Mb of RAM, a 2.8Gb hard drive, 32x CD-ROM drive, 2Mb AGP graphics card and 14in monitor for #468.83. You'll have to do without sound though, and you don't get a modem, but even with these drawbacks this PC is still cheaper than the similarly-specified Panrix Legend 350.
Evesham didn't send in its cheapest system for our test and it has a system that comes in at the same price as the Dotlink PC. The Evesham Vale WinChip P200 MMX is powered by a 200MHz IDT WinChip and while it offers lower performance than a Pentium chip, it has the advantage of being cheap. Sadly, the rest of the specification isn't up to scratch and with just 16Mb of RAM, you can only realistically run one application as well as the operating system at any one time. You can forget about running power-hungry games too, though this isn't too much of a problem as there's no CD-ROM drive from which to install them. There's no modem, sound card or speakers either, so this really is a basic PC for basic tasks and not much else.
Another possibility for bargain-basement systems is Morgan Computers.
This supplier of manufacturers' surplus stock has a 200MHz Pentium-based Siemens Nixdorf PC with 32Mb of RAM, 3.2Gb hard drive, 12x CD-ROM drive, sound card and a pair of speakers at #468.
Dotlink: 0181 902 5802
Evesham: 0800 496 0800
www.evesham.com
Morgan Computers: 0181 575 0055
www.morgancomputers.co.uk
ELONEX MCX-6333/I
We've looked at lots of Elonex PCs in the past and on the whole, we've been impressed. Sadly, the same could not be said of the MCX-6333/I.
On the surface, it looked as if Elonex had done a competent job with this budget PC, but open it up, and it's a different story.
We're used to seeing messy cabling but the MCX-6333/I came to us with a power supply held in place only by the cables connecting it to the other components. Such workmanship is not only shoddy but very dangerous, and if Elonex is content to supply a PC in this state, for coverage in a national magazine, it makes you wonder what is going out to its customers.
This lamentable build quality was also reflected in other parts of the system. The clip holding the Celeron 333MHz processor in place broke off as soon as we disconnected it and the supplied mouse wouldn't plug into the PS/2 socket at the back of the PC. All in all, a very unimpressive state of affairs.
Looking beyond these disastrous problems in build quality, the rest of the MCX-6333/I isn't too bad. Its Celeron processor with 128Kb of Level 2 cache is matched with 64Mb of RAM and a generous 6.4Gb hard drive. It uses a lesser-known Asus V3000 nVidia graphics card with 4Mb of VRAM and also comes with a 56Kbits/s modem.
Improving on this specification will be tricky, since there's little room inside the MCX-6333/I for expansion. There's just one shared PCI/ISA slot and one ISA slot free, plus one 3.5in and one 5.25in external bay.
But since the power supply is just 145W, there will be a limit on running new devices even if there was space to fit them.
If there's a bright side to the MCX-6333/I, it's that it did well in both performance tests. But performance isn't everything and the only reason this PC didn't score zero for build quality is that our scale's lowest mark is one.
- #699 (inc VAT)
- Elonex: 0181 452 4444
www.elonex.co.uk
Elonex MCX-6333/I
Build quality *
Features ****
Performance *****
Value for money *
Overall **
BUILD IT OR BUY IT?
When you look at the price of all the individual bits and pieces that go into a PC, it might seem tempting to save your cash and build your own system. You could pick the exact components you want, put them into the case of your choice and still spend less than the cost of the most basic off-the-shelf computer.
A quick look through the price lists on the Internet reveals that you can get everything you need to build a 300MHz Celeron-based system with 32Mb of RAM, a 3.2Gb hard drive, 32x CD-ROM drive, 33.6Kbits/s modem, 14in monitor, basic sound and graphics, keyboard, mouse and floppy drive for around #500. This is pretty good value in comparison to many of the PCs we looked at, and if you shopping around further, you might get an even better deal.
Hold on before you whip out your credit card though - a PC is complicated business. You'll need plenty of technical expertise to put everything together and knowing what component goes where is the least of your troubles.
PC parts can't simply be matched willy-nilly and careful consideration is needed if you're to build a balanced system. There are books that help with such projects and such a task is not to be embarked upon lightly.
You should also be aware that by building your own PC, you won't get the support and after sales offered by manufacturers. If it all blows up in your face or you can't get it to work in six months' time, that's your problem.
EVESHAM VALE PESTIGE
We were initially very impressed by Evesham's Vale Prestige. Powered by a 333MHz Celeron chip with a performance-enhancing 128Kb of Level 2 cache, it has 64Mb of RAM, a 6.4Gb hard drive and uses a 4Mb ATI Charger graphics card. All of which adds up to a pretty good specification for the price.
Alas, the first letdown is the discovery that although our system came with a 56Kbits/s modem, Evesham is unable to include this within our budget of #699. So, you'll have to pay an extra #57.58 if you want to surf the Net on this PC.
The second problem was more serious. Once we had run our tests, we left the PC in standby mode for a couple of days, then switched it off - so far, so good. But when we tried to turn it back on, there was a nasty smell of burning silicone and no picture on the monitor. We're fully aware that compromises have to be made when building a PC to such a low price point, but corners shouldn't be cut on build quality.
In this case, we'll be charitable and say that the Prestige's problem was due to a faulty component, and since it's covered by a two-year onsite warranty, Evesham should be only too happy to repair or replace the system, so we won't dismiss this PC out of hand.
Fortunately, the rest of the system is good quality. The 15in monitor provides a clear, bright image, the keyboard and mouse are sturdy and pleasant to use, and opening up the case reveals neatly coiled wires held back by transparent plastic bindings. Although the case is spacious, there is some wasted space without much scope to upgrade. There's only one PCI slot, one shared PCI/ISA slot, one ISA slot and one DIMM slot free. But there are four bays available - two external 5.25in, plus one internal and one external 3.5in.
The Celeron-based PCs did pretty well in the performance tests and the Vale Prestige came third, just behind Elonex's Celeron system. Its 3D Charger graphics card wasn't quite so successful and fell among the lower scores in the Final Reality test.
Although Evesham did put together a good system and all the peripherals are pretty high quality, it's hard to overlook what turned out to be a broken CPU - a rather serious problem in a PC.
- #699 (inc VAT)
- Evesham: 0800 496 0800
www.evesham.com
Evesham Vale Prestige
Build quality ***
Features ***
Performance ****
Value for money ***
Overall ***
Lexon 502SE
Lexon submitted the only Pentium II-based PC. The 502SE uses a 333MHz processor with a performance-boosting 512Kb of Level 2 cache, twinned with 64Mb of RAM and this gave it one of the best specifications in the test.
Unfortunately, the Lexon's budget nature is betrayed by its 8Mb Matrox G100 graphics card. This is far from a good all-rounder, since it has problems displaying certain 3D graphics and the Final Reality graphics test showed a real drop in performance when it came to displaying complex three-dimensional sequences. It's a shame Lexon let itself down here, as the rest of the system is impressive.
The Creative Labs PCI 128 sound card is a high-end model and with some decent speakers it will output high quality sound. Our review unit came with some tinny, cheap 80W speakers but Lexon says that the PC will ship with a pair of 230W speakers.
All the PCs in this test came with a 15in monitor and the Lexon is no exception, but its Mag XJ530 screen is a touch better than most. The keyboard and mouse are fine, if nothing special, and there's also a 56Kbits/s modem.
You can access the motherboard by removing the sides of the case. Once inside you'll find three free DIMM slots, one free external 5.25in bay, two free 3.5 bays - one external, one free PCI slot, one shared PCI/ISA slot and two free ISA slots. So if you're not happy with what Lexon provides, you can beef things up to meet your demands.
Lexon's choice of a Pentium II processor really paid off in the performance test. The 502SE beat both the 350MHz AMD K6-2-based PCs to the top slot.
Despite the problems we saw with the graphics card, it still managed to score well in the Final Reality graphics test, being pipped at the post by Elonex with its 4Mb Asus V3000 graphics card.
If you're not that bothered about 3D graphics, then this is the PC for you. For a budget PC, it has a topnotch specification and even if you do decide to invest in a new graphics card, it's still a bargain at under #699.
- #693.25 (inc VAT)
- Lexon: 0181 667 1173
www.lexonpc.com
Lexon 502SE
Build quality ****
Features ****
Performance *****
Value for money *****
Overall *****
Panrix Legend 350
Panrix's Legend 350 really is a bare bones system and it comes without a modem, sound card or speakers. Panrix claims that this enhances performance, though quite how this happens, when you want to listen to MIDI files downloaded from the Internet, is unclear. Still, you do get a powerful AMD K6-2 350MHz processor, 64Mb of RAM and an 8Mb Matrox G200 AGP graphics card.
Perhaps Panrix chose to leave out any extra components to avoid the initial confusion that arose with the graphics card. When we switched the PC on, we discovered that the card had been incorrectly configured, resulting in complaints from Windows 98. The problem was the installation of an additional driver - which wasn't actually needed.
To add insult to injury, the Legend ships with the multimedia World Book Encyclopaedia software - not much use on a system without sound features.
It's not all bad news though. On the plus side, the pared-down specification leaves plenty of room for expansion.
There are three free PCI slots, one shared ISA/PCI slot and two ISA slots.
There are also two free DIMM slots for more RAM and three free bays - one external 5.25in and two internal 3.5in. If you want to fit a further 5.25in device, you can unclip the front of the PC and swap out the 3.5in internal bay for a larger sized slot.
The case itself is not the most attractive we've seen but then this is a budget system. There seems to be an infrared port on the front but on removing the case this was revealed to be a plastic window with nothing behind it.
Since the whole point is supposed to be performance, we expected it to blow the other PCs out of the water, but this, sadly, was not the case.
It scored in the mid-range section in the performance test - behind PCs that came with both modems and sound cards. It did a little better in the graphics test, coming in third, but these results don't make up for what was left out.
Since this system is 13 pence over our budget and still has no sound card, speakers or modem, it doesn't compare well with the other systems in terms of value for money. It's not the fastest either, so there's little to recommend it.
- #699.13 (inc VAT)
- Panrix: 0113 244 4958
www.panrix.com
Panrix Legend 350
Build quality ****
Features *
Performance ***
Value for money *
Overall ***
Paragon Supra II
Paragon is one of two manufacturers to send us a PC powered by the slightly slower 300MHz AMD K6-2, although the rest of the system matches up well to the other PCs in the test. It has 64Mb of RAM, a 6.4Gb hard drive and an 8Mb ATI Xpert98 graphics card - overall, a nicely balanced combination.
We are less impressed by the strange, bulbous mouse though, and by the cheap-feeling keyboard. The case isn't that pretty either, but you can make it look a bit neater by sliding up a cover to hide the CD-ROM and floppy drives, though this can't be locked in place. The 15in Proview monitor mollified us a little as it has a nice, bright screen and easy-to-use controls.
One side of the case slides off to give access to the inside of the Supra and when we removed it, we found the graphics card wasn't screwed in place.
Fortunately, the PC was still working but had the card fallen out, we would have been faced with a blank screen and a problem to diagnose - not what you want when you switch on your new PC.
Apart from the errant graphics card, the inside of the Supra is neat enough and there's plenty of potential to upgrade. There are three PCI slots and one shared PCI/ISA slot free, and you can add extra devices to the two free external 5.25in bays and one 3.5in internal bay. In theory, you can also use the two free DIMM slots to fit more RAM but you'll need nimble fingers to work round the power supply.
The Supra II is let down by its lower power processor in the performance test, where it trailed in last, but it fared a little better in the graphics test. Performance isn't everything though, and despite the carelessness with the graphics card, Paragon has built a pretty nice budget system.
The Supra II may not be the fastest PC in the test but it's a well-put-together budget system with some decent components.
- #699 (inc VAT)
- Paragon: 0181 478 8700
Paragon Supra II
Build quality ****
Features ****
Performance **
Value for money ****
Overall ****
Watford Aries Perfecta K6-2-3D 98
The Watford Electronics Aries Perfecta K6-2-3D 98 uses the same 300MHz AMD K6-2 chip as the Paragon Supra II but has half the amount of RAM, a 4.3Gb hard drive and Matrox G100 graphics card. This is the poorest specification of all the PCs tested here, although this system did at least benefit from Watford's experience when it came to build quality and peripherals.
We wouldn't usually want to draw attention to the speakers supplied with a budget system, since they tend to be of the cheap and cheerful variety, but in this case we think Watford Electronics has been particularly generous.
Its Aries Perfecta has two small IBM satellite speakers with a sub-woofer that provide good-quality sound from the onboard ESS sound card. On the flipside of this you have to connect up six extra cables to get your speakers working, but you can't have everything for under #700.
The 15in AOC monitor is good quality, although it had been set up incorrectly and since no drivers were supplied we had to set it up manually. The mouse and keyboard are unbranded but felt sturdy and should be up to the job.
The Perfecta is housed in a large case, which means it's pretty spacious inside and all the free slots and bays are just crying out for you to add new devices. There are four free PCI slots, one ISA slot and two DIMM slots, plus two external 5.25in bays and one internal 3.5in bay. Working inside this PC would be a pleasure since all the cables are neat and tidy, without being trussed up too tightly.
The Aries Perfecta managed to outperform the other PCs fitted with a 300MHz AMD K6-2 chip, despite its 32Mb of RAM. However, since it uses the same Matrox G100 graphics card as the Lexon system, this isn't a PC for 3D graphics.
The Watford Aries Perfecta K6-2-3D 98 is a well-built PC with a nice pair of speakers but don't expect top-of-the-range performance.
- #699 (inc VAT)
- Watford Electronics: 01582 745555
www.watford.co.uk
Watford Aries Perfecta K6-2-3D 98
Build quality ****
Features ****
Performance ***
Value for money ***
Overall ****
ALTERNATIVES
There are more low-cost PCs to choose from now than ever before.
Carrera has the #699 Power Media K6 2 300 with a 300MHz AMD K6-2 processor, 64Mb of RAM, a 6.4Gb hard drive, an 8Mb ATI Xpert 98 graphics card, sound card and speakers.
Carrera: 0171 830 0586
www.carrera.co.uk
If you don't mind a second-hand PC, Technical Asset Management has a refurbished IBM system for #590. The specification isn't that hot with only a Pentium 75 processor, 16Mb of RAM and a 14in monitor but you do get an HP 670C printer thrown in.
Technical Asset Management: 01707 885303
If money is really tight, Dotlink has a slightly cheaper option at #586.32 with a 266MHz AMD processor, 32Mb of RAM, a 2.8Gb hard drive, a15in monitor and a 33.6Kbits/s modem. It is a full multimedia system with sound card and speakers.
Dotlink: 0181 902 5802
Spend a little more and there are a few systems available on the high street. Compaq has the Presario 2262, which was our Price watch Pick of the Month last month. It costs #799 for a 300MHz Cyrix processor, 32Mb of RAM, 2.1Gb hard drive and a 56Kbits/s modem.
Compaq: 0845 270 4000
www.compaq.co.uk
Packard Bell's Club 40 PC offers another alternative on the high street.
Also priced at #799, it uses a 300MHz Cyrix processor twinned with 32Mb of RAM, a 4.3Gb hard drive and a 56Kbits/s modem.
Packard Bell: 01628 508200
www.packardbell-europe.com
Time also submitted a low-cost PC for our December Price watch table.
Its Home PC 300M comes a touch closer to our budget at #787.25 and the specification matches up to some of the systems we looked at for this test. It has a 300MHz Cyrix processor, 64Mb of RAM, 4.3Gb hard drive, 56Kbits/s modem and a 15in monitor.
Time: 0800 771 1107
www.timecomputers.co.uk
BEST BUY
It's often a tough job picking out the best buy in a group test but in this case, the competition isn't too stiff and Lexon won quite easily with its 502SE.
Its choice of a Pentium II processor paid off in the performance test, where it gained the best score. It's also one of the few machines to benefit from high build quality, with no loose cards and a neat and tidy interior.
Its 15in monitor is among the best we saw and it's also fitted with a 56Kbits/s modem. If there is a downside, it's the poor 3D rendering of the Matrox G100 graphics card, but unless you are a keen games player this shouldn't have too much impact on the overall performance.
RECOMMENDED
We thought Watford's Aries Perfecta K6-2-3D 98 deserved a special mention.
It's a well-built system but with just 32Mb of RAM and a 4.3Gb hard drive, the specification leaves a little to be desired, even at this price point.
However, there is so much space to upgrade that this would be an excellent base system to build upon.
The IBM speakers with sub-woofer are added bonuses, too.
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