Evesham Mini PC Plus review

Manufacturers sometimes have to compromise on power and features to squeeze an entire computer into a small, space-saving case.

Evesham's Mini PC Plus comes in a lunchbox-sized chassis. It doesn't have any free drive bays or PCI slots, but it does contain a Core 2 Duo processor and a TV tuner.

This computer's Core 2 Duo T7200 processor is a mobile model, more usually found in notebook PCs. It still sped through our benchmarks, though, comfortably out-performing Pentium D systems and even matching the performance of some Core 2 Duo desktops we've reviewed. It was particularly impressive in our video-editing and multitasking tests.

The Mini PC Plus should handle most Windows tasks with ease, but it has an integrated Intel graphics processor, and isn't at all suitable for gaming. It couldn't even run our Doom 3 and Call of Duty 2 tests, though it can cope with some older, less-demanding titles. At least with no powerful graphics processor to cool, the Mini PC Plus is whisper-quiet.

If you find that you're in need of entertainment, you could amuse yourself with the built-in TV tuner. It's a hybrid device that can receive either analogue or digital broadcasts, though you won't be able to record one program while watching another. The Mini PC Plus comes with Windows XP Media Center Edition and a suitable remote control. The operating system's slick interface makes it easy to browse your music and photos, as well as recorded TV shows. You can use the computer's S-video and S/PDIF ports to connect it up your TV and a surround-sound amplifier.

With no PS/2 sockets, this computer can only use a USB keyboard and mouse, neither of which is included. Annoyingly, you'll need a USB hub to connect any other devices, as there are just two USB ports. At least you can use the FireWire port for connecting digital video cameras and compatible external storage devices, though.

The Mini PC Plus has a 100GB hard disk, which is a 2?otebook model, and no spare drive bay. If you record a lot of TV programmes, or have lots of documents and photos, it's easier to buy an external disk than to open up the computer's case and upgrade the existing one. The computer's slot-loading DVD writer is also a notebook drive. It can't write DVD-R DL discs, but it is DVD-RAM-compatible. The drive is quite slow, with a maximum write speed of 8X on single-layer DVDs. If you burn a lot of discs, you may want to buy a faster, external writer.

If you don't mind a bigger PC, Eclipse's Evolution I6300 (reviewed in Labs, Shopper December 2006) has a larger hard disk and is much more suitable for games. The Mini PC Plus is a fair choice if you need a tiny media PC that's powerful in Windows, but it isn't cheap, particularly as it doesn't come with a keyboard, mouse or monitor.