Hi-Grade has put together a PC with a bit more performance potential than some others here. It has a Celeron processor running at a comparatively quick 600MHz as its power source and backs it up with 64MB or memory, like all the other systems in the review.

The other main element in the equation, storage, is provided in the shape of a 12.7GB hard drive and a 10-speed DVD-ROM drive. There's room in the midi tower case for extra drives, but because of the MicroATX system board, much less scope for expansion cards.

Like the Carrera Lynx, this machine has no ISA slots and three unoccupied PCI ones. There's a Motorola 56Kbps modem on a riser card and sound is again provided by an Intel 810 chipset, through a pair of TEAC speakers. The 810 graphics output is nothing special.

The monitor, though, is a 17-inch Hi-Grade-badged device, built by ADi. This is particularly easy to adjust and gives a good picture, with little noticeable distortion. It's suitable for DVD playback but, even at 17-inches, is hardly a replacement for a typical family TV - definitely a second screen.

This is a good system, though again hampered by the lack of any way of upgrading its graphics system.