HP Pavilion p6740f Mainstream Desktop PC

Feb 7 2011 - HP's Pavilion p6740f is a very affordable computer system which some nice features. This includes a large than average hard drive and built-in wireless networking. The low price tag does mean that the system does sacrifice some functionality including integrated graphics that prevent it from being used for pretty much any 3D gaming. The processor is also slower than many Intel based system in the same price range.

Feb 7 2011 - HP's Pavilion p6740f bucks the trend of using the new second generation Core processors from Intel and decides to use an AMD processor to make the system much more affordable. With a base price of $780, the system can be found with street prices around or below $700. This makes the system very attractive but it does have its downsides as well.

To power the system, HP uses and AMD Phenom II X4 955 quad core processor. This is an older generation processor now that has performance that falls behind what Intel has achieved in its Core series quad core processors. It is much more affordable and for its price does a good job in most applications. This is helped by the fact that HP does use a full 8GB of DDR3 memory which mitigate slowdowns from heavy multitasking or memory intensive applications.

One advantage that the HP Pavilion p6740f has over many other PCs is its storage space. Many desktops have decided to use the 1TB size for hard drives in this price class. HP instead uses a larger 1.5TB hard drive which provides more than enough space for applications, data and even high definition media files. It should be noted that the drive uses a slower variable spin rate that does decrease its performance compared to 1TB drives running at 7200rpm spin rates. A standard dual-layer DVD burner handles all playback and recording of CDs or DVDs.

The big downside to the HP Pavilion p6740f is the graphics. Rather than using a dedicated graphics card, the system relies on an integrated ATI Radeon 4200 processor. This is fine for basic usage including HD media playback. It lacks any real performance for dealing with 3D graphics. It may be used for the most basic 3D graphics in a casual game but at very limited resolutions. The power supply is also an extremely small 250 watts so even though there is a PCI-Express graphics slot, it can only handle the most basic of dedicated graphics cards to be installed.

A nice feature that HP has included in the HP Pavilion p6740f is an 802.11b/g/n wireless networking adapter. This allows the system to be easily integrated into a wireless home networking. It is actually surprising that more companies don't include this feature with desktop PCs as Wi-Fi networks are almost ubiquitous in the modern home for use with laptops and even cell phones or media players.