Acer Aspire 5700-U2112
Acer's Aspire Z5700 is a fast, media-friendly all-in-one that would serve well as a media hub in a dorm or a den. We'd like to see a bit more polish in its design, and a Blu-ray drive would make it a home run, but on balance we can recommend this system for its speed, its large screen, and its digital media versatility.

Apple iMac summer 2010 (Intel Core i5 2.8GHz, 27 inch)
Apple's new $1,999 iMac comes with a faster CPU and a new graphics card, helping this 27-inch all-in-one desktop stay as competitive in performance as it already was in screen size. Despite the still-frustrating absence of an HDMI port, we have no qualms recommending this system for work or play.

Lenovo C315 40221GU
Lenovo's C315 all-in-one is not without its flaws, but if you can overlook its comparatively slow day-to-day performance you'll find this a solid budget-priced home entertainment PC. Don't use this system for a home office or general productivity-oriented tasks, but it would work well in a small room for movie watching and game playing.

Lenovo IdeaCentre A300 40181OU
Design fans in particular will appreciate Lenovo's unique all-in-one that serves best as a dedicated, Web-based home entertainment PC for a small room. The distinct look requires some trade-offs, particularly in performance and the lack of an optical drive, but if you're willing to sacrifice function for a bit of form, you'll find the IdeaCentre A300 charming and generally capable.

Gateway FX6840-03E
The unique-looking Gateway FX6840-03e offers respectable productivity speed, but it's relatively limited in gaming and multimedia, which is ironic considering its flashy appearance. Gateway's FX line offers some strong configurations, but this isn't one of them, and you should look for more-complete PCs in this price range.

Dell Inspiron i570-7034PBK
The Dell Inspiron i570-7034PBK's mediocre configuration and generic tower are hardly offset by the HDMI port and Wi-Fi card extras you get in the bundle. If you're on a tight budget, we recommend picking up the cheaper, more resourceful HP Pavilion p6510y instead.

Asus Essentio CG1330-05
The new Asus Essentio CG1330-05 has a more polished appearance than Asus' previous desktop efforts, but that's one of its only selling points. You get reasonable gaming performance for the price, but its overall value falls short compared with competing systems on either end of the price spectrum.

Gateway SX2801-01e
The Gateway SX2801-01e is just one of several new budget slim tower systems available this season. We're impressed by its compact design and the HDMI port makes it easy to use in the living room. For a $520 system, the SX2801-01e's performance and upgradability put it in the same top tier as the Editors' Choice-winning models that came before it, and we recommend it to anyone shopping for a powerful, flexible, cost-effective computer.

HP Pavilion P6540Y
HP's uncommonly hued Pavilion p6540y offers a competitive set of features for a midtower desktop. The quad-core AMD chip should power you through light-duty multimedia editing faster than competing Intel-based systems. Upgraders should stay away, and there are faster general-productivity PCs available for less, but we can recommend this PC to those in need of its particular quad-core charms.

Dell Inspiron i560-2050NBK
The Dell Inspiron i560-2050NBK has little to recommend it other than its semicapable video playback chops. It's not really a bad desktop, but with similar PCs available for significantly less, this Dell just doesn't offer enough value to earn our recommendation.

Apple iMac summer 2010 (Intel Core i3 3.06GHz, 21.5 in)
Apple has elected to keep its iMac firmly grounded as a productivity device. You'll find few home entertainment conveniences in Apple's new iMac, and you can find larger screens in other all-in-ones for less. Few will offer performance like this iMac, though, and none looks as pretty, which makes it easy to recommend for general-purpose computing and for the design conscious.

Asus Essentio CM5671-05
Its newly designed tower, HDMI port, and generous hard-drive capacity aren't enough to make the Asus Essentio CM5671-05 stand out next to the HP Pavilion p6510y, a similarly priced system with a faster quad-core processor and built-in Wi-Fi. The Asus system is no slouch, and we recommend it to shoppers who are concerned with storage capacity rather than speed, but even amateur media editors will benefit from the HP p6510y's extra speed.

HP Pavilion p6510y
The HP Pavilion p6510y midtower desktop is a solid computer that makes quick work in a multitasking environment thanks to its quad-core AMD CPU, and the external connections give video editors the upper hand in terms of speed and versatility. The p6510y deserves our recommendation, but if Photoshop and Dreamweaver aren't part of your daily routine, you can trade the HP's multicore speed for extra hard-drive space and save a couple bucks with a competing Asus system.

Dell Studio XPS sx8100-1408NBC
The Dell Studio XPS SX8100-1408NBC will satisfy most mainstream consumers with its capability to handle typical computing tasks from photo editing to modest PC gaming. While other PCs in this price range may perform better with apps that target multicore CPUs, this Dell offers everything we expect in a desktop for day-to-day use.

Asus Essentio CM5675-07
As much as we like the new chassis, a sparse feature set limits the Asus Essentio CM5675-07's shelf appeal. It's certainly not a bad computer, and its Intel Core i5 650 CPU is fast enough for most tasks, but we wish Asus had done more to help this lower midrange midtower stand out.

Gateway DX4840-03e
We have few reservations about this Gateway DX4840-03e. Even if it's not particularly remarkable, it's hard to argue that this system falls short as a general purpose budget midtower. If that's all you're looking for, we can recommend this PC with little hesitation.

HP Pavilion Slimline s5510y
Do not buy this HP Pavilion Slimline s5510y. Its slow performance for its price and its outdated motherboard prevent it from leveraging the strengths of its slim tower case in the living room. You can find faster, better-equipped PCs for the same price or less.

Gateway One ZX6900-01e
The Gateway One ZX6900-01e is a great deal thanks to its 23-inch display, Blu-ray drive, and speedy performance. It has a few annoying shortcomings. A lack of an HDMI-input, in particular, keeps it from greatness, but overall we'd recommend this desktop to anyone in the market for a well-rounded all-in-one PC.

HP TouchSmart 300-1120
On first inspection the HP TouchSmart 300-1120 seems like a capable enough all-in-one, but it loses a lot of appeal once you compare it with others on the market. If you want an all-in-one PC for the kitchen counter, this system may work for you. For general computing or home entertainment needs, you can find several other all-in-ones with better features for the price.

Apple Mac Mini (Spring 2010)
Apple's new Mac Mini includes an elegant new design and some long asked-for features, including HDMI output and user-accessible memory. The system still faces a value challenge for its given specs, but Apple has done enough to improve the Mac Mini's appeal for Apple loyalists and design fans looking for a living room computer.