HP Compaq dc7100 SFF

A PC pressed into use for business needs to offer performance and value while leaving enough room for future expansion. HP only narrowly missed out to Dell in our recent group test, and this PCI Express-equipped system has the specs to mount a hearty challenge.

As with most business systems, the dc7100 has a muted style, looking sleek yet professional, with the black of the main chassis complemented by silver highlights. The SFF (small-form-factor) chassis will take up minimal space, and can also be positioned on its side if necessary.

Externally, the front-mounted USB 2 ports are welcome, as are the headphone and microphone jacks. Round the back are a further six USB 2 ports, as well as serial and parallel connectors and a gigabit Ethernet socket.

Inside, the model 540 Pentium 4 processor runs at 3.2GHz - fast enough for any office task. Coupled with 256MB of PC3200 RAM in both memory channels, the dc7100 managed a decent application benchmark score of 1.94. To minimise costs, downgrading to a model 520 Pentium 4 running at 2.8GHz will save you £170, or to a 3GHz 530 will save £54. Halving the RAM gives a saving of £42, while doubling it to 1GB will cost a whopping £175 extra.

There's plenty of room for expansion, as the Intel 915G Express board has two free RAM sockets and houses no PCI cards. The PCI Express 16x and 1x slots are also free, though cards will have to be half-height. The board also sports a Trusted Computing Module for added security. This can be removed for a saving of £11.

The 80GB Seagate Barracuda Serial ATA hard disk will give ample storage for most, but is hidden directly beneath the curiously L-shaped PSU, and so is liable to overheat. Heating is controlled by a front-mounted 92mm fan, which draws air onto the CPU heatsink, and a rear-facing CPU fan helping to cool the small heatsink on the Intel GMA900 chip. This leads to a very quiet system - unless the front fan is turned up in the BIOS.

Although the case is tool-less, engineers will get frustrated: the hard drive is so snugly fitted that extraction is awkward and the 16x DVD combo drive has to be wrenched free. Screwdrivers aren't necessary, but patience and strength are.

On the plus side, the security options on the dc7100 are comprehensive. The BIOS allows an administrator to turn off non-essential programs and functions, even differentiating between all and only the front USB ports. HP offers a clamp-locking and cable service for £18, and a remotely managed hook-lock solenoid for £6.50.

The dc7100 has a three-year on-site, next-business-day warranty as standard. A four-hour response time costs an extra £80 though, with four years of next-business-day or four-hour response times costing £45 and £119 respectively.

Although the keyboard looks cheap, it's reasonably comfortable to use. The ball mouse is much the same, though upgrading to an optical version for £4.50 is a bargain if the budget allows. Unless security is of major concern, however, the £742 asking price means we can't recommend the dc7100. The slight performance advantage isn't enough to topple the £650 Dell OptiPlex GX270 SFF from the A List.

Author: Clive Webster