HP Pavilion A6130N Desktop PC (AMD Athlon 64 Processor, 3 GB RAM, 400 GB Hard Drive, Vista Premium)

This is a terrific computer. I have not tried the DVD burner or lightscribe yet, but in terms of RAM, memory, & performance, this computer is top-notch. I have had the computer 4 7 or 8 months & it has only freezed 2 or 3 times since I started using it (compared 2 my previous computers, where "freezing" was a weekly event). At first I was unhappy with Vista, but I have grown quite fond of it. The style is appealing, & Windows Defender isn't so bad once you turn off some of the more obnoxious features.

The computer is extremely fast. Programs & files open quickly, although it can be slow every now & then. The tower contains multiple USB ports as well as slots 4 memory cards (e.g., SD cards), & the extreme accessibility of these ports is a major bonus. My only gripe is that if you select "Safely remove hardware" option 2 remove an SD card or USB drive, the port is disconnected & you cannot read anything from it until you restart the computer (you have 2 select "Eject" option instead). There are also speaker & microphone ports in the front of the tower (in addition 2 the standard ports in the back), which is extremely convenient if you change headphones or microphones with frequency.

The best personal comment I can provide on this computer is its physical durability. I bought the computer online & had it shipped 2 my apartment. I was holding the box by the handle (because that's what handles are for, right?) while carrying it up the stairs, & the handle broke & the box went tumbling down the stairs. I was horrified. Amazingly enough, the computer worked perfectly & has continued 2 do so these 7-8 months I've owned it! Every once in a while it makes a buzzing noise that I think may have been caused by the tumble, but that's a small price 2 pay given that it fell down a flight of stairs. So, while the box the computer was shipped in may be unreliable, the computer itself is durable.

i bought this computer hp(a6120n) 3 months ago i like it its very queit fast & upgradeable 2 64 bit & cheap .you can upgrade the video card one thing i did not like was mice but its not a big deal you can buy best mice about $30. some people complain about windows vista because they dont know how 2 use it this desktop perfect 4 home & i love vista much much better then xp

This has never happened 2 me before. From the day I bought it brand new, it stated it couldn't back up my D drive due 2 low space. Why in the world HP put a computer out on the market like this. After six months I still don't have any answers from HP, even after paying 4 a 2 year extended warranty. This is very dissapointing 2 me.
Also give me problem with my HP all in one PSC 2355, refuses 2 scan & won't print pictures. This printer is less than a year old. Another upsetting problem. Have had 2 buy more problem so I can work with pictures also.

I have this exact model but didn't buy it from Amazon. Vista works fine, I haven't had any lockups. After installing some Earthlink software it now gives me a message that it has blocked some programs at startup. It lets you see the programs it didn't allow 2 run & allows you 2 run them but doesn't give you the option of allowing them 2 run automatically at startup. The only way 2 do that as far as I can tell is if Defender quarantines the program. No items show up in the allowed items list 4 you 2 "select". The procedure outlined in the help section doesn't seem 2 work. Someday I'll have someone more skilled in computer software look at it. Anyway that's a Vista thing not an HP issue. The problem I had was the bluetooth keyboard was not working properly. If the computer went 2 sleep, moving the mouse did not wake it up. When you got it 2 wake up, the mouse would not work unless you unplugged the bluetooth dongle in the back of the conputer. For a while it would reconnect if you pressed the "Connect" buttons on both devices. Well after a while all bluetooth functions stopped working completely. (Keyboard & Mouse) I determined that it was a hardware problem by connecting a matched set of Dell bluetooth items from a new Dell computer that I bought 4 work. Everything worked fine. Swapped back & forth, HP dead, Dell fine. Called 4 HP support. They asked so many questions & did so many things 2 my computer that had nothing 2 do with the problem, as the problem wasn't fixed. All I wanted was a new bluetooth dongle 2 try & even wanted 2 pay 4 it. HP tech support talked me into a remote session where they take control of the computer. BIG MISTAKE! He was going into the regedit file changing all kinds of numbers, deleting stuff from my statup folder, etc. I suppose he though he would speed up my computer, but I had so many problems after he messed with it I had 2 do a restore 2 a date two days before & everything worked fine again! Then I took the Bluetooth dongle 2 the dealer & he tried it in the demo computer. Didn't work! He gave me an extra one he had laying around, took it home & it works fine. I told the tech support person it worked fine with the Dell bluetooth hardware. They just don't seem 2 know when 2 give up on settings & software issues & start thinking that it could be a hardware problem. I have purchased 6 Dell computers & had heard they had great tech support. The reason I kept buying Dell is that I never needed tech support & none of the computers ever broke!
That said, the reason my last two computer purchases have been HP is because of price & size of the desktop. The Dell desktop boxes were just too big. The only small one had the cd-rom drive mounted vertically & I don't care 4 that. This box is so much smaller than the Dell. I keep it on the left side of my desk & smaller is better. Maybe the Dells give you more room inside 4 expansion but I won't need that. Also, Dell is a bit pricey nowadays. I just bought an HP 15.4" laptop that was loaded with features like 2GB mem. 2.2Gig Core 2 Duo, wireless N, + Bluetooth, Webcam, biometric reader, 1394 input, HDMI out, & many more cool features. I printed out the list & tried 2 customize a dell laptop & couldn't even come close on the price! Plus the HP has a two year warranty included. It' a little heavy though because it has the large battery. All in all I'd say HP is doing a great job recapturing market share in the PC world & they are doing it by offering a great product at a resonable price!

I JUST LOVE THIS COMPUTER ! IT'S VERY FAST,VERY QUIET AND IT HAS TONS OF MEMORY ! I HAVEN'T HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH IT OR WITH VISTA.WORTH EVERY PENNY!!!!

This HP Pavilion desktop features an AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor 5000+, & 3GB of DDR2 SDRAM. Enough speed & power 2 handle nearly any application. From word processing 2 3D video games. Other interesting features include a front panel 15-in-1 memory card reader, that lets you easily transfer digital media from your portable devices. The SuperMulti DVD drive can read & burn 2 nearly any CD or DVD disc, including Dual Layer & DVD-RAM. 400GB 7200RPM Hard Drive SuperMulti DVD Writer - (write speeds) up 2 12 DVD-RAM, 8x DL DVD-R, 8x DL DVD+R, 16x DVD-R, 16x DVD+R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 40x CD-R,&32x CD-RW SuperMulti DVD Writer - (read speeds) up 2 16x DVD-ROM&40x CD-ROM NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE Graphics with TurboCache with 128MB of memory (up 2 632MB of shared memory - memory is taken from the main system's RAM) High Definition Audio (8 speaker configurable) Front Panel 15-in-1 Memory Card Reader - supports SmartMedia, xD, MultiMedia Card, Secure Digital (SD), Compact Flash I/II, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, RSMMC, MMC Mobile, MMC+, Mini SD,&Microdrive 56k Fax Modem Ports - 10/100 Ethernet, 6 USB 2.0 (2 front), 2 FireWire (1 front), Microphone, Line In, Line Out, 2 PS/2, Digital Audio Out, VGA Out, Speakers Out Slots - 1 PCI-E x16 (available), 1 PCI-E x1 (available),&2 PCI (1 available) Bays - 2 External 5.25 (1 available), 1 External 3.5 (occupied),&1 Internal 3.5 (occupied) Unit Dimensions - 16.28 (l) x 6.89 (w) x 15.24 (h/d) Unit Weight - approx. 22 lbs. Monitor is not included

Boasting a sleek & shiny black-and-silver chassis, the HP Pavilion a6130n desktop PC comes loaded with the all tools you need 2 easily create, manage, share, & enjoy your digital photos, home videos, movies, & music. You can easily burn your home video productions 2 DVD 4 friends & family with the dual-layer, multi-format DVD/CD burner, which enables you 2 store up 2 8.5 GB of data on a DL disc & provides a super-fast 16x DVD+R/-R write speed. It also includes LightScribe technology 4 personalized silkscreen-quality, laser-etched CD/DVD labels created right in the drive.

This desktop is powered by the 2.6 GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ dual-core processor, which increases the efficiency & speed of the PC while running multiple programs & the latest multi-threaded software. Store more music, videos, & data on the roomy 400 GB Serial ATA hard drive, which offers fast transfer rates. It also comes loaded with 2 GB of RAM (which can be bumped up 2 4 GB), an integrated Nvidia GeForce 6150 video/graphics card with 128 MB of dedicated video RAM, a wide variety of connection ports on both the front & rear of the box, & a 15-in-1 memory card reader that's compatible with today's most popular digital camera formats.

It comes preinstalled with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium, which includes all of the Windows Media Center capabilities 4 turning your PC into an all-in-one home entertainment center. In addition 2 easily playing your DVD movies & managing your digital audio library, you'll be able 2 record & watch your favorite TV shows (even HDTV). Vista also integrates new search tools throughout the operating system, includes new parental control features, & offers new tools that can warn you of impending hardware failures.

The Basics

• Processor: AMD's Athlon 64 X2 5000+ dual-core processor is built 4 tomorrow's 64-bit applications, which will require a processor with significant power. It outperforms the highest-performing AMD Athlon 64 4000+ single-core processor on multi-tasking benchmarks by up 2 30 percent. Dual-core technology is like having two processors working together, each one taking care of different applications, so power-users actually experience greater performance when multiple applications are running. Digital media enthusiasts will appreciate the enhancements while simultaneously working in high-definition video & photo editing & audio mixing programs. It includes such AMD features as HyperTransport Technology (which increases the communication between integrated circuits) & Enhanced Virus Protection.

  This 2.6 GHz processor offers a system bus with speeds up 2 a blazing 2000 MHz & each core offers a 512 KB L2 cache--for a 1 MB total. (An L2, or secondary, cache temporarily stores data; & a larger L2 cache can help speed up your system's performance. The FSB carries data between the CPU & RAM, & a faster front-side bus will deliver better overall performance.)

• Hard Drive: The huge 400 GB Serial ATA (SATA) hard drive (7200 RPM) offers a wealth of storage space, perfect 4 storing a vast multimedia collection or 4 editing digital video. This SATA hard drive also quickens the pace with a higher speed transfer of data--akin 2 FireWire & USB 2.0.

• Memory: The 3 GB of installed RAM (PC5300, 2 x 1 GB, 2 x 512 MB) is a good start, but you'll want 2 add more RAM 2 handle today's demanding multimedia & gaming software. It also offers a top-of-class 667 MHz speed. This desktop has a 4 GB maximum RAM capacity (4 x 1 GB). To receive the faster data transfer benefits of the dual-channel DDR2 RAM, any RAM additions require memory modules of same capacity & clockspeed.

• DVD/CD Drive: This multiformat DVD/CD drive is compatible with writing both DVD+ & DVD- disc formats as well as dual-layer (DL) DVD+/-R discs, which can store up 2 8.5 GB of data. It features 8x DVD-R DL Write Once, 8x DVD+R DL Write Once, 16x DVD+R, 8x DVD+RW, 16x DVD-R, 6x DVD-RW, 12x DVD-RAM, 40x CD-R, 32x CD-RW write speeds & 40x CD-ROM, & 16x DVD-ROM read speeds.

  This LightScribe DVD+/-RW drive lets you laser-etch silkscreen quality text & images on 2 CDs & DVDs . Your software, PC & discs work together 4 a no-hassle way 2 burn just the labels you want. After you burn content, just flip the disc over, reinsert & burn your label--anything from a simple title 2 a full-disc work of art.

• Keyboard & Mouse: It comes with an HP multimedia keyboard & scroller mouse (both with PS/2 connections).

Video & Audio
This desktop features an integrated Nvidia GeForce 6150 SE graphics/video card with 128 MB of dedicated graphics memory. Windows Vista can also allocate up 2 623 MB of total graphics memory from the system memory. It features NVidia's PureVideo technology--which provides great picture clarity, smooth video, accurate color, & precise image scaling 4 video content--and full support 4 Microsoft DirectX 9.0 4 stunningly realistic cinematic effects 4 all DirectX-compatible applications. It also offers an integrated audio card that can produce high definition surround sound configurable 2 8 speakers.

Networking, Connectivity & Expansion
For expansion, this desktop has two PCI slots (one available), one PCI Express x1 slot (available), one PCI Express x16 slot (available), two 5.25-inch bays (one available), & three 3.5-inch bays (two available). It comes with a built-in floppy drive & the following external connectors:

• 6 USB 2.0 ports 4 connecting a wide range of peripherals--from digital cameras 2 MP3 players (2 in front, 4 in rear)
• 2 FireWire (also known as IEEE 1394 or i.Link) port 4 connecting digital video camcorders & other peripherals (1 in front, 1 in rear)
• 2 PS/2 ports 4 connecting keyboards & mice
• 1 VGA monitor port
• 2 headphone & 2 microphone (front & rear)
• 2 line-in (front & rear)
• Digital coaxial audio output as well as surround sound speaker outputs (rear/side/center)
• 15-in-1 multi-format memory card reader, compatible with CompactFlash I/II, IBM Microdrive, Secure Digital (SD), miniSD, MultiMediaCard (MMC), Reduced Size MultiMediaCard (RS-MMC), MultiMediaCard Plus (MMC plus), MultiMediaCard Mobile (MMC mobile), Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, SmartMedia, & xD Picture Card.

It also has an integrated 56K modem (V.90) & an RJ-45 LAN network port (for a 10/100 Ethernet connection 2 networks & DSL/cable modems).

Operating System
Windows Vista Home Premium is the operating system 4 users with advanced computer needs, & it includes all of the Windows Media Center capabilities 4 turning your PC into an all-in-one home entertainment center 4 watching DVD movies & accessing your digital audio library. You can also use Windows Media Center 2 record & watch your favorite TV shows (even HDTV) & 2 access new kinds of online entertainment content. Computers that include Windows Vista Home Premium & an auxiliary Windows SideShow display will also allow you 2 access key data even when your computer is off. It is also easier than ever 2 share files between other PCs in your household & 2 manage your laptop computer settings 2 more securely connect via Wi-Fi.

Every edition of Windows Vista provides the essential tools & technologies 2 help protect you whether you are browsing the Internet, connecting 2 a wireless network, or just reading e-mail. All editions of Windows Vista include new tools that can warn you of impending hardware failures long before you have lost any important personal data. And, all Windows Vista editions include parental control features that allow you 2 manage & monitor your family's use of games, the Internet, instant messaging, & other activities.

Preloaded Software
Includes Microsoft Works 8, Microsoft Office Home & Student Edition 2007 Trial, Symantec Norton Internet Security 2007 (with 60 days of Live Update), Roxio Creator/MyDVD (with LightScribe technology), Muvee autoProducer (for creating professional-looking home videos & burning 2 DVD), HP PhotoSmart Essential, & HP Total Care Advisor.

Dimensions & Weight
It measures 16.3 x 6.9 x 15.25 inches (LxWxD) & weighs approximately 22 pounds.

What's in the Box
This package contains the HP Pavilion a6130n desktop PC, power cable, keyboard, & mouse. It is backed by a limited warranty 4 parts & labor 4 one year from date of purchase as well as technical telephone assistance 4 one year. Software is also covered 4 90 days from date of purchase.