Product Reviews

The mDMS P60 is one of the smallest Windows Media Center PCs we've seen and is comparable in size to an external DVD writer. It can be positioned vertically using the included stand so it will easily sit on a bookshelf. The P60 is almost silent so you won't be bothered by any noisy fans.

The P60 has one hybrid TV tuner so you can record either analogue or digital TV programmes, but you can't watch one channel while recording another, which can be frustrating. The P60 won't be able to store many recorded TV shows anyway due to its notebook-sized 5,400rpm 100GB hard disk.

The compact case design means it's easier to add extra storage using the four-pin FireWire port or the three USB2 ports instead of replacing the internal hard disk. You can back up your video files to DVD but the slot-loading DVD writer is a compact model designed for notebooks so it is slower than an external writer.

Although there's an S-video socket for connecting the P60 to your TV, there aren't any video-in

Thanks to its 1GB of RAM and the T2400 Intel Core Duo processor, the P60 sped through our overall applications benchmark and did particularly well in our video-encoding and multitasking tests. It had no trouble playing back our HD Windows Media Video files. The P60 isn't suitable for gaming, though, as its Intel integrated graphics chip was unable to run our demanding Doom 3 and Call of Duty 2 tests. It also shares system RAM, leaving less for your own applications.

A Microsoft Media Center remote and a cheap-feeling cordless keyboard with built-in trackball are included but you have to be within a narrow line of sight of the infrared receiver for them to work. Microsoft's more responsive Media Center keyboard would have been a better choice. WiFi and Gigabit Ethernet are built in so accessing video content over a network is simple enough. A modem is also present but we would have preferred a fourth USB2 port or a six-pin FireWire port.

If you need a compact and quiet Media Center PC and your TV viewing habits are undemanding, the P60 is a very attractive option. But the lack of a second tuner means that serious TV junkies are better off with Hi-Grade's DMS II 3200. The P60 is also attractive as a small general-purpose PC, but if you don't need a TV tuner and already have a copy of Windows XP SP2, the Core Duo Mac mini is £450 cheaper with comparable performance.