MSI Wind Top AE2220-25SUS 21.5" All-In-One Desktop PC

Jan 11 2010 - For those who want a home theater setup in an affordable desktop package, MSI's Wind Top AE2220-25SUS offers a very compelling price and set of features. With a Blu-ray drive, HDTV tuner, 1920x1080 resolution display and a HDMI input, it has just about everything one might want. All of these features come at a price point well below the competition. The drawback is that the system lacks the performance of competition, a smaller display and is not really capable of 3D gaming beyond casual levels.

Jan 11 2010 - With a price tag of just $899, the MSI Wind Top AE2220-25SUS has an extremely staggering number of features that one wouldn't expect in a 21.5-inch all-in-one desktop. The core of these features revolve around high-definition media and using the system as a home theater PC.

The system comes built-in with both a Blu-ray capable optical drive and a HDTV tuner. This allows the system to be used to watch HDTV broadcasts and Blu-ray movies up to the full 1080p HD resolution. If you want to use the system with an external device such as a cable or satellite tuner or maybe an external video game console, it also features an HDMI input that is version 1.3 compliant. Most all-in-one systems with all of these features easily cost over $1000.

Of course, most all-in-one desktop computers that come with such media features typically come with screens at least 23-inches in size. The MSI Wind Top AE2220-25SUS comes with a slightly smaller 21.5-inch display. The screen does feature a multitouch compatible interface that adds functionality with the Windows 7 native multitouch support. This is still very rudimentary in terms of applications support though and there isn't a software package like HP's TouchSmart but it is significantly less expensive.

In order to keep the costs of the Wind Top AE2220-25SUS down, MSI has elected to use some older parts that hamper the overall system performance. It uses an Intel Core 2 Duo T6600 mobile processor that is combined with 4GB of DDR2 memory. This means that the system falls well behind all-in-ones that use desktop processors or newer mobile processors with DDR3 memory. It will still do just fine for basic productivity but will be slower for heavy mulittasking or tasks such as video editing.

Another function that is heavily limited due to costs is the graphics. The Wind Top AE2220-25SUS relies on an integrated NVIDIA GeForce 9300 processor rather than a dedicated graphics solution. Now, this isn't entirely bad as the GeForce 9300 can fully support HD video streaming and it also is capable of some light 3D graphics work. This means it can play casual 3D games at lower resolution and detail settings.

Still, when all is said and done, the MSI Wind Top AE2220-25SUS is an unbeatable value when it comes to a low cost, high definition home theater PC setup. It is hundreds less than the competition but with a full feature set. Those willing to look at it just have to be aware that it is not as capable as an all-around system like their more expensive competition.