Compare Prices : Dell Dimension XPS 710 - Expert Reviews

Review summary: This fast, expensive gaming system and Media Center PC suits the well-heeled gamer who rarely opens the case.

Pros: Clever case design for front door

Cons: Lacks easy expandability

Verdict: The keyboard is small and light but still feels sturdy. It has eight small shortcut buttons; big, easy-to-reach multimedia control keys; and, best of all, a large volume control knob that you can easily find without looking at the keyboard

Pros: Versatile feature set and elite-level performance accommodate nearly any consumer or hobbyist ; future-resistant 3D graphics capability ; massive 1TB of hard drive space ; outstanding speakers and a giant LCD turn the $5,000 price tag into a good deal

Cons: AMD CPUs and in-house overclocking aren't offered ; the bundled LCD doesn't handle SLI 3D cards smoothly ; covering a $5,000 computer with only a one-year standard warranty is inexcusable

Verdict: If you can live with knowing that a handful of PCs out there are still faster than yours, we recommend Dell's versatile XPS 600 for the extensive features and the good value it provides.

Review summary: Dell has been churning out impressive gaming systems of late. But is its latest desktop XPS as good as it could be?

Verdict: The Dell XPS is generally very impressive and while it's very expensive you do get a great specification for your money. It's also great to look at, it's very well built and it's not too loud. However, it's Intel based, and when it comes to games, AMD ...

Pros: Good gaming scores. Huge 24-inch widescreen display in package. Less expensive than its boutique competitors. Dual-core performance. 15-month McAfee security. Two TV tuners.

Cons: That darn kickstand.

Verdict: While not the frames-per-second leader, the Dell XPS 600 makes a case for itself as a gaming PC for the multitasking multimedia hound.

Pros: Frightening performance ; easy-open case ; huge storage capacity

Cons: Glitzy front-panel is slightly kitsch