Reviews of the HP Digital Entertainment Center z560 - Pentium D 925 3 GHz
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CNET Review
The Good: Attractive, living room-friendly case; a flexible, modern array of video and audio outputs and inputs, including HDMI; Wi-Fi adapter comes standard; wireless keyboard works well and is easy to use; reasonable price.
The Bad: Front-panel LCD is dim; generation-old CPU lags a bit performancewise; no HD-DVD or Blu-ray drive (not that you'd expect it for less than $2,000).
The Bottom Line: With all the talk of HD video, you might scratch your head when you learn that HP's Digital Entertainment Center z560 only has a standard-definition DVD player. But when you learn what else it has and that its price is pretty reasonable, you might not care. This is a perfect home theater PC for riding out the HD format wars.
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alaTest.com
Review Summary: Experts rate this product 75/100 and users 61/100. Comparing these reviews to 58724 other Desktops reviews gives this product an overall alaScore™ 80/100 = Very Good.
Manufacturer: HP
Part number: RE500AA#ABA
General
- Type Media center
- Windows Vista Certification Windows Vista Premium Ready
- Recommended Use Home use
- Product Form Factor Desktop
- Built-in Devices LED panel
- Width 17 in
- Depth 16.6 in
- Height 4.4 in
- Weight 24.5 lbs
- Color Black
- Localization English / United States
- Desktop type Home theater PC, Gaming-friendly system
Processor
- Type Intel Pentium D 925 / 3 GHz
- Multi-Core processor technology Dual-Core
- 64-bit processor Yes
- Installed Qty 1
- Max processors supported 1
Cache Memory
- Type L2 cache
- Installed Size 4 MB
- Cache Per Processor 4 MB ( 2 x 2 MB )
Mainboard
- Chipset type Intel 945P Express
- Data bus speed 800 MHz
RAM
- Installed Size 1 GB / 4 GB (max)
- Technology DDR2 SDRAM
- Memory speed 667 MHz
- Memory specification compliance PC2-5300
- RAM form factor DIMM 240-pin
- RAM configuration features 2 x 512 MB
Environmental Parameters
- Environmental standards EPA Energy Star
Storage Controller
- Type 1 x Serial ATA
- Controller interface type Serial ATA-300
Storage Controller (2nd)
- Type IDE - Integrated
- :Controller Interface Type:Channel Qty 1
Storage
- Floppy drive type None
- Hard Drive 1 x 300 GB - Standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm
- Hard Drive (2nd) None
- Hard Drive (3rd) None
Optical Storage
- Type DVD?RW (?R DL) / DVD-RAM - IDE
- CD / DVD read speed 40x (CD) / 16x (DVD)
- CD / DVD write speed 40x (CD) / 16x (DVD?R) / 4x (DVD-R DL) / 8x (DVD+R DL)
- CD / DVD rewrite speed 32x (CD) / 6x (DVD-RW) / 8x (DVD+RW) / 5x (DVD-RAM)
- Disc Labeling Technology LightScribe Technology
Optical Storage (2nd)
- Type None
Storage Removable
- Type None
Monitor
- Monitor Type None.
Multimedia Functionality
- TV tuner type Digital and dual analog TV
- Video input Integrated in TV tuner
- Analog TV system NTSC
- High definition TV functionality Yes
- Radio tuner type FM radio
- Video capture interface S-Video, HF TV signal, Composite video
- Multimedia functionality features Personal Video Recorder (PVR)
Graphics Controller
- Type PCI Express x16 - Plug-in card
- Graphics Processor / Vendor nVidia GeForce 7600 GS
- Video Memory DDR2 SDRAM
- Installed Size 256 MB
- Digital Video Standard Digital Visual Interface (DVI)
Audio Output
- Type Sound card - Integrated
- Sound card name Integrated Audio
- Sound output mode 7.1 channel surround
- Audio output compliant standards Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Pro Logic II, High Definition Audio
- Speaker(s) None
Input Device
- Type Keyboard, Trackball, Remote control
Keyboard
- Keyboard connectivity Wireless
Audio Input
- Type FM tuner
Telecom
- Modem None
Networking
- Networking Network adapter - Integrated
- Wireless LAN Supported Yes
- Data Link Protocol Ethernet, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
- Compliant Standards IEEE 802.3, IEEE 802.3u, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
Printer
- Type None
Expansion / Connectivity
- Expansion Bays Total (Free) 1 ( 1 ) x Personal Media Drive bay - Front accessible, 1 ( 0 ) x Front accessible - 5.25" x 1/2H, 1 ( 0 ) x Internal - 3.5" x 1/3H
- Expansion Slots Total (Free) 1 ( 0 ) x Processor - LGA775 Socket, 4 ( 2 ) x Memory - DIMM 240-pin, 1 ( 0 ) x PCI Express x16, 1 ( 1 ) x PCI
- Interfaces 1 x Display / video - VGA output - 15 pin HD D-Sub (HD-15), 1 x Display / video - HDMI - 19 pin HDMI Type A, 3 x Display / video - Component video output - RCA, 6 x Audio / video - Composite video/audio input - RCA ( 3 in front ), 3 x Display / video - S-video input - 4 pin mini-DIN ( 1 in front ), 1 x Headphones - Output - Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm ( 1 in front ), 1 x Microphone - Input - Mini-phone 3.5 mm ( 1 in front ), 10 x Audio - Output - RCA, 1 x Audio - SPDIF output - RCA, 1 x Audio - SPDIF output - TOSLINK, 1 x Network - Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX/1000Base-T - RJ-45, 1 x Network - Radio-Ethernet, 1 x FM antenna - Input, 2 x TV antenna - Input - F connector, 6 x Hi-Speed USB - 4 pin USB Type A ( 2 in front ), 2 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire) - 4 pin FireWire ( 1 in front ), 2 x Infrared, 2 x Audio - Input - RCA
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Radio antenna, Remote control
- Cables Included HDMI-DVI adapter, HDMI cable, Audio cable
Power
- Power device type Power supply
- Voltage Required AC 120/230 V
- Power provided 250 Watt
Operating System / Software
- OS Provided Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005
- Software Adobe Reader, Drivers & Utilities, HP Help and Support, Sonic MyDVD Plus 6.2, PC-Doctor 5 for Windows, Sonic DigitalMedia Plus, Sonic DigitalMedia Plus 7.04, Muvee autoProducer unPlugged 2.0, Norton Internet Security 2006 (6 months subscription)
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 1 year warranty
- Service & Support Details Limited warranty - Parts and labor - 1 year, Technical support - Phone consulting - 1 year
Card Reader
- Card reader 9 in 1 card reader
- Supported flash memory cards Microdrive, Memory Stick, MultiMediaCard, SD Memory Card, SmartMedia Card, XD-Picture Card, Memory Stick Pro, CompactFlash Card type I, CompactFlash Card type II
Sustainability
- EPA Energy Star Compliant Yes
- Greenpeace policy rating (Mar 2009) 2.7
- Greenpeace policy rating explained The Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics (greenpeace.org/electronics) ranks leading mobile and PC manufacturers on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best. The scoring is based on the companies' global policies; on their practice of eliminating harmful chemicals; and on how they take responsibility for their products once discarded by consumers.
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