Lenovo IdeaCentre A600

Full Review

The IdeaCentre A600 is Lenovo's premium all-in-one desktop PC (unlike the entry-level IdeaCentre C300), and some of its highlights include a 21.5-inch full-HD monitor, multifunctional remote controller, and a nifty wireless keyboard with touchpad. It attempts to blur the line between your PC and TV, and has an impressive combination of features and performance with a price tag to match. There is no separate cabinet, and the IdeaCentre A600's centrepiece is its slim screen.

It attempts to blur the line between your PC and TV, and has an impressive combination of features and performance with a price tag to match.

It's glossy, 21.5-inch wide screen supports a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. The screen is curved inwards below the bezel which is secured firmly to a stand. Unlike the Apple iMac's edge-placed speakers, the  extended curved bezel on the IdeaCentre A600 houses its onboard speakers, with a sub-woofer placed on the back panel. The Lenovo A600 has an impressive list of features. It's powered by the Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 2-GHz processor, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 640GB (7200rpm) hard drive.

The IdeaCentre A600 also has an in-built TV tuner with a socket placed on the back panel to plug in your cable TV connection. Equipped with an ATI Radeon HD3650 graphics card, Dolby Home Theater surround sound and Windows Media Center, the Lenovo IdeaCentre A600 is a very good candidate for a home theater system. If the wireless keyboard takes the cake, with regards to peripherals accompanying the IdeaCentre A600, then the 4-in-1 remote controller takes the cherry on top. It lets you control your PC as an air mouse—point the remote at the screen and move it left or right to move the mouse-pointer. You can use it as a phone with VOIP services like Skype, and play bundled games just like on a Nintendo Wii. Serve for real while playing tennis, stoop and bowl while bowling, and more, with 3D motion detection via the remote: it's devilishly addictive.

Bottom Line

The Lenovo IdeaCentre A600 is a very good attempt to fuse together a television set with a PC, and it's unlike anything we've reviewed before. It's highly recommended to anyone interested in having the best of both worlds. And with the added bonus of Wii-like gaming with the wonder remote, it's a unique product in our Top 5 All-in-ones.