All-in-one computers have great potential to be more than just a small PC for those who don’t have much space at their disposal. Primarily, many have already experimented with this concept in order to make an excellent multimedia device. There’s also a great potential to make a prestigious device which will not only fulfil its function as it should, but also attract the attention of all those who see it for the first time. That’s exactly what ASUS did with the ET220I model. After many unconvincing “all-in-one” computers, a new model will have no trouble with singling itself out.

It’s difficult to explain why all-in-one PCs aren’t more popular on the current market. For instance, notebooks also have a worse price/performance ratio compared to desktop PCs. Yet they are being sold in heaps, despite the fact that many are buying them for the wrong reasons, with the notebook in question never leaving its desk surface. So what’s the problem with all-in-one models, then? Well, other than the very limited import in most smaller countries, it might be due to the huge variations in quality among manufacturers, starting from bad production quality, over slow hardware, to overheating. Lenovo’s ThinkCentre Edge 91z is a prime example of an excellent PC which has none of these issues, leaving only the question of financial viability as the key factor in favour or against it.

It was last September that we dealt with the second edition of Sapphire’s incredibly likeable miniature PC, one that immediately won us over with its appearance and high degree of functionality (in terms of what it was made for, of course). The time was nigh for a third iteration, which seems to stick to the tried-and-true formula by all means – it’s somewhat faster than its predecessor and somewhat more power-efficient.

Physically, Edge HD3 is exactly the same as “number two”, which was itself identical to the original HD. This can’t be taken as a drawback, though, since the appearance is very elegant and fits virtually all environments. Some would prefer rounded edges over the current straight ones, but since this is the third generation sporting the same looks, the redesign is likely to happen with the next one.

A few months ago, we tested and reviewed the first Sapphire miniPC Edge HD, which was awarded due to its accessible price, solid performance and low consumption. We’ve just received its heir called Edge HD 2 for testing. One could say that the new model is really just an evolution of the old one, as there is no radical difference between the two. One of the reasons for this is that Edge HD 2 is based on the same platform, with slightly upped hardware specifications compared to its predecessor.

PCs in miniature enclosures are nothing new. However, when this enclosure is merely two centimetres thick, and the graphics card in the PC NVIDIA’s ION 2, what is your first thought? This might just be the new ideal candidate for the living room media centre? We thought the same.

All-in-one PCs aren’t exactly omnipresent on the market, which makes every encounter with one of them a pleasure. This time we have two HP Pavilion PCs, very impressive in both characteristics and appearance. The significant bit concerning both models is that they weren’t conceived only to attract attention to the desk, but also contain hardware that enables comfortable work in more demanding professional applications. The PCs may only differ in one character in the name, but the invisible differences are much larger than that.