Gladiator Atlas CB3800 review

Mini PCs are far more transportable than their larger midi-tower counterparts.

Gladiator has emphasised this by including a carry case with its latest compact PC, the Atlas CB3800. Unfortunately, while the Atlas is a competent computer, there isn't much else to distinguish it.

It looks smart with its matching black peripherals. It has an Athlon 64 X2 3800+ processor and 1GB of RAM. It performed well in all the Shopper benchmarks, making it suitable as an all-round family PC, but it's not as fast as other similarly priced systems with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor.

The Atlas's reliance on an integrated graphics chip means it won't be capable of playing modern 3D games. You can improve its 3D performance by adding a PCI Express x16 graphics card, but there isn't enough room for a long or double-width card. Without a noisy graphics cooling fan, the Atlas is one of the quietest PCs of its size that we've reviewed. If you do upgrade, you'll need to choose a quiet graphics card to keep the peace.

We were more impressed with the Atlas's 19in widescreen Asus monitor. Although tilt and height adjustment is limited, the onscreen image looks bright, with rich and accurate colours. The image quality isn't perfect, as there was some coarseness in the darker shades of our greyscale transitions test, but it's good enough for editing photos and watching movies.

The 320GB hard disk should provide enough room for all but the largest music and video collections. There isn't a free drive bay for adding an extra hard disk, though, so if you need more space you'll have to replace the existing disk or connect an external drive using one of the five USB or two FireWire ports. There's no memory card reader, but there is a floppy drive; we'd have preferred it the other way around.

Gladiator supplies this computer with Logitech's Cordless Desktop S-510, which is reviewed in our keyboard and mouse Labs on page 117. It's a classy-looking set that's pleasant to use. The Logitech 2.1 speakers are fine for listening to the occasional MP3, but movie fans will want to add a surround-sound set. There's no S/PDIF port for connecting a digital surround-sound amplifier, but you can add an inexpensive sound card to the empty PCI slot.

We liked the Atlas's sleek, compact and quiet design and its good-quality peripherals, but it isn't great value. PC Nextday's 6-5202 Livestyle PC, which we review on page 10, may cost £140 more and have a poorer-quality display, but it's faster, can play modern 3D games and has a TV tuner. The Livestyle is the better buy if you need a compact PC.