No, it’s not the desktop version of the Eee PC, not yet anyway, but this little system is about as close as Asus has yet come to putting out a true low-cost mini-PC.

Called the Nova Lite PX24, it takes the design first used in the original Nova P20, and strips it down to a much more affordable level.

Cramming in a 160GB hard disk, DVD writer, 2GB of RAM and even an ATI RV620 graphics card – complete with HDMI and DVI ports – we were expecting a price higher than the provisional SRP of £300 inc VAT. An Asus rep also hinted that there may be an even cheaper version on the way, with an 80GB hard disk and with integrated graphics.

The one corner we can see that’s been cut is in the use of a Celeron processor, but for its intended use – a Media Center or basic workhorse PC – that shouldn’t be too much of a hindrance. It should at least be quicker than recent rivals such as the MSI Titan 700 and the Tranquil T2e Atom PC.

It comes with an ugly black and white Media Center remote and a stand that doesn’t seem to quite fit the width of the PC properly – it’s a bit wobbly to touch so you may prefer to lie it flat on your desk. Other than that we like the design, and the front panel has been nicely resurfaced with a fabric not unlike that of a speaker grille.

Size-wise, it’s 231mm x 184mm and about 5cm thick, and Asus claims to have power-saving technology that should limit the CPU to just 5W when idle – we’ll be sure to run some power tests along with our usual benchmarks before we post a full review in the next few days.

The Asus Nova Lite PX24 will be available in the UK at the end of June.