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Edited by: Alan StaffordPhotographs: Ken Smith
It takes a brawny Celeron system to crack the midrange Top 10 these days. Four Celeron-equipped systems battled a phalanx of well- entrenched Pentium III-500s for positions on this month's chart. They even jousted with one powerful Pentium III-600 machine that dove under the $1999 price limit. Two of the Celerons, a 500-MHz model and a 466-MHz unit, emerge victorious, capturing third and fourth place.
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Capsule Reviews
02. Micro Express MicroFlex-5B
WHATS_HOT: Text and images on the excellent 17-inch Impression 7VX monitor remain crisp all the way up to the maximum 1600 by 1200 resolution. Software-decoded DVD video plays smoothly, even while other applications crank away in the background. Like the top- ranking Dell, the MicroFlex earns a PC WorldBench score of 234, comparable to that of a Top 10 power PC.
WHATS_NOT: Though Micro Express may have intended the MicroFlex's corrugated side panel to make the system easier to open, it has the opposite effect. Poorly labeled connectors on the rear of the machine may frustrate first-time computer owners during installation.
WHAT_ELSE: The system offers a large interior that provides ample expansion room, including four open drive bays, six free card slots, and three open memory sockets. The MicroFlex-5B ships with a generic manual in print and on CD-ROM, a quick-start setup guide, and adequate documentation for the 5X DVD-ROM drive and monitor.
BEST_USE: Offices that make heavy use of multimedia for presentations, videoconferencing, or training will appreciate the system's great sound and video.
1499
FEATURES: PC WorldBench 98 score of 234, Pentium III-500 CPU, 128MB of RAM, 512KB L2 cache, 18GB hard drive, midsize tower case, Windows 98, ATI Rage 128 GL graphics board with 16MB of SDRAM, 17- inch monitor, 5X DVD-ROM drive, V.90 modem.
800/989-9900
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04. Gateway GP6-466c
WHATS_HOT: The GP6-466c ships with many corporate accoutrements but sells for just $1264, a remarkably low price for a business- oriented system. Gateway doesn't scrimp on hardware and software to arrive at that price, either: Hardware extras include an Iomega Zip 100 drive and a network card, and its above-average software bundle consists of Microsoft Office 97 Small Business Edition and several utilities. The GP6-466c's PC WorldBench...