Medion MD 8800.(desktop computer)(Product/service evaluation)

Byline: Luke Peters

Medion MD 8800

If value for money is your mantra, this desktop computer speaks all the right words

A time-limited deal isn't the most convenient way of buying a new computer but be quick and you can bag a bargain.

In conjunction with Aldi, Medion has been supplying the UK with fantastic computer deals for several years and its latest offer is no exception.

The MD 8800 is Medion's latest entertainment PC.

It sports a brand new case design and contains almost everything that today's computers can handle.

It doesn't come with a monitor, so factor that into the cost, or make use of

its other sockets for connecting to a TV.

The MD 8800 has a fast 3GHz Intel Pentium D Dual Core 830 processor, 1Gb of memory and a 250Gb hard disk. In our tests, this performed very well, proving perfectly adept in basic office and internet tasks as well as more system-intensive applications such as image and video editing. What's more, it does everything very fast.

Where multimedia is concerned, this computer has it all. It has no less than three dual TV tuners, which will let you watch one TV channel while recording another. The three tuners can support DVB-S (if you've got a satellite dish), DVB-T (Freeview from a standard TV aerial) and analogue (for normal terrestrial TV). Medion also supplies its own Home Cinema software for watching, recording and pausing live television.

It's a great alternative to Microsoft's Media Center or Sky+, however you must have this computer connected to your main TV if you plan to

use it as a PVR; unless you're happy to watch on a monitor. Thankfully, it's quiet so the whirring fans shouldn't cause too much distraction.

Other good points to mention are the nVidia 128Mb GeForce 6700XL graphics card, which will play all 3D games at a high resolution. And the recordable DVD drive that writes to all disc formats bar DVD-RAM and will also print monochrome images onto LightScribe-compatible discs.

There's also a data bay above the case for attaching Medion's external 250Gb hard disk -- 'HDDrive2 go'. This doesn't come with the PC but can be bought for [pounds sterling]100 at the same time as the MD 8800.

Every port and socket imaginable can be found on the back, or behind a panel on the front. This includes USB 2 and FireWire offerings, plus SCART, S-Video and components sockets for connecting to displays. There's also optical audio ports, a 7.1 sound card and a built-in wireless networking adapter.

It comes with a Medion-branded keyboard, mouse and headset for internet telephone calls (120min of Skype calls are included free). There's lots of software for editing digital video, playing photo slideshows and creating CDs and DVDs. Microsoft Works Suite 2006 is also included, as is a 90-day trial of eTrust Anti Virus and a three-year return-to-base warranty.

In short, it's a fantastic computer. The clause is that it's only available for two weeks from 24 November but can be re-ordered from Aldi Stores up until the

7th of December, unlike the PCs in our group test on page 66, which are ongoing.

Luke Peters

Good points Fast processor, three dual TV tuners, lots of software

bad points No monitor

Packed with everything you could possibly want from a modern-day computer, and then some

overall HHHHH

Contact Aldi 0870 513 4262

Info www.aldi-stores.co.uk

Retail Price [pounds sterling]750

BuyAldi stores only

Also consider...

HP m7041.uk. [pounds sterling]799. Again, no monitor but great value

for a Media Center Edition computer. HHHH Issue 198