Philips LX2000 + 26PF532

The PC can be controlled via the combined keyboard/mouse, which uses a hyper-sensitive roller ball and left/right buttons in the top corners. It uses RF and comes with a small USB dongle that plugs in at the rear. Media Center can be easily controlled using the infrared remote, although it doesn't match the rest due to its white, rather than silver finish. Frustratingly, the power button can only put the PC into sleep mode - it can't wake it up again. Plus, the remote needs a huge USB receiver, which is ugly. The only advantage is that you can place this discretely below the TV and mount the actual PC out of sight in a cupboard.

One of the joys of buying an integrated system is that it should all work happily together, but PC World's bundling of these two products introduces too many compromises to make it attractive. The underpowered CPU, ill-matching graphics output and LCD TV - plus the lack of a Freeview tuner in the latter - mean this is one media-centre PC worth steering well clear of.

Author: Jim Martin