HP Pavilion A6152N Desktop PC (Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q6600, 3 GB RAM, 400 GB Hard Drive, Vista Premium)

Bought this in the late fall. Really liked the performance, but in mid January it failed to even do the power on self test (POST). Spent an hour on the phone to support before they would tell me what I already knew... it had to go back to HP for repair. Estimate was 10 days to get it back. Then got an email saying they were waiting on a part and the new time estimate is closer to a month. Needless to say I'm not too happy.

Had the system for a week now and wanted to share some thoughts. System is very fast even running a resource hog like vista. Some here have complained about the power supply included. I ordered a new 8800gts card for this computer, but until it arrived I used my old 6800extreme card with the stock power supply. Had no problems. Ran everything I threw at it. I think alot of people get caught up in the wattage rating, and don't really understand power supplies. This power supply only puts out 300 watts, but 23amps on the 12 volt line. That is enough for most video cards on the market. Like I said it had no problem running my video card with the latest games cranked all the way up. I did however get a larger power supply for the 8800 card simply because I didn't want to take any chances as they recommend a 400 watt power supply with a 25 amp rating.
Anyway, so far extremely satisfied with the computer. Vista is another matter all together.. the backup failed, transfering my files/setting from my other computer failed. Vista has a long way to go, although I haven't had any game related problems yet. So far I have tried, company of heroes, supreme commander, doom3, quake4, total annihilation, dawn of war, halo, far cry, and tomb raider anniversary with no problems at all.
Again, a great system at a great price. The HP w1904(I think) monitor came with it and it looks outstanding.

I bought it yesterday at CC for a decent price. I haven't used it yet, but the spec seems to kick some serious butt. One thing disappointed me at first sight is this comp is almost all Chinese-made (box, case, HDD, PSU, fan...). I doubt about a Chinese processor tho LOL. I opened the case (really easy, only 1 screw!), and the HDD is made-in-China Hitachi. Now, when it comes to delicate stuff like HDD, which will contain tons of my precious data, I'm really brand- and made-in-xxx concious. My prefered brand has always been WD, and secondly is Maxtor. Seagate died on me once after only 5 months of use in another comp, so I kinda staying away from that brand for some time. Even with WD, which I have several and none has crashed on me yet, I prefered Thailand-made to Malaysia-made. If you check for reviews on Amazon for a couple of WD MyBook exHDD models, you will read something like that. Maybe, I'm gonna add another WD Sata HDD for storage.
The case is good to look at but gets dirty easily due to the glossy plate. Something about it and its component, design... looks a bit cheesy to me. My old Sony Vaio was made in USA with foreign components and I really likes the look and feel of it inside and outside the case. The arrangement inside the case is brilliant. Components are from names that you know: WD, Samsung... While inside this HP, it looks pretty cramped. The only name I know is Hitachi. 300W PSU is LITE-ON (not impressed with their optical drives). The HDD stands up in a metal frame, and it seems you have to take that frame out to add another HDD.
Oh, and beside the comp, mouse (wheeled), and keyboard, there is a free phone cable in the box also. Quadcore on Dial-up? Thoughtful, aren't ya, HP?
The optical DVD drive is SATA connected, and there is an expansion bay. Don't worry, there is a PATA connection on Mboard for PATA drive. HP Pocket Drive is pretty useless for me (who needs it when there are HDD specialist WD out there?). Would rather have a floppy drive instead!
Anyway, with all the spec, the value is right. Chinese stuffs are cheap! Durability is another thing, but with the name HP on the case, it should not be cheesy.

I bought this machine as my primary home desktop - to deal with everyday email and stuff as well as to keep and manage my photo collection, and later on my home-made movies. So far, I am happy.
Pros: Cheap for the computing power, amount of memory, and storage space.
Cons: Integrated graphics which is the biggest factor dragging down the overall Vista's performance rating (PCI Express slot for a future standalone video adapter is available though). Only one PCI slot (which is also occupied with an unneeded modem). Also, wish it were available with XP - it would then fly like a rocket!
Given it five stars anyway as I got what I expected.

PROs: This is a great deal. I bought it last week and have had no problems with it at all. I was able to easily take out the Power Supply (300W) and replace it with a 700W RocketFish powersupply. Very easy procedure. In addition, I added a PCI-e NVIDIA 8800 GT Graphics card and everything fit perfectly. Now the Vista Index went from a 3.3 to a 5.3. This machine really flys. For a gamer this is the route to go. For others, the machine as-is works great. Since you have quad-processors, even a locked program doesn't halt the O/S because they're on different processors. The onboard sound has surround sound which has so far impressed me and with 3 GB RAM, Vista Premium and a 400 GB Hard Drive, this computer should stay up-to-speed for many years. I really like the low-power mode which basically is like a super-hibernate mode except that it wakes up faster than turning on your TV. Very nice. The photo doesn't show it, but the very bottom flap opens up to reveal headphone/mic jacks and also 2 more USB ports and a firewire port. There are also the same on the back of the machine. Also, it is remarkably quiet. It is literally 1/4 as loud as my previous machine. You hardly know it is on. Again, a big plus. Also, the DVD is LightScribe so you have that as an added bonus. Overall, just a great powerful machine for a good price. Plus you have HP to stand behind it.
CONs: For some reason HP decided to put a modem in the only PCI slot. It can easily be taken out, but it seemed strange to include it. In the old days I would've been concerned about only 1 PCI slot, but with everything external USB 2.0 now anyway, I don't see it as an issue.