Digital Trends

Compaq has developed a formidable contender with their X series gaming systems. The GX5000Z system we reviewed proved to be both fast and reliable. We love the fact that Compaq is using OEM parts from major manufacturers like MSI, Samsung and Creative Labs. This separates the Compaq X series apart from others such as Gateway and Dell because it allows their system to be upgraded with extreme ease. In essence, Compaq has built you a system using the same off-the-shelf parts that you can purchase yourself. They build the system for you, test it and then sell it for a few hundred dollars less than you would pay building the system yourself. Top it off with a one-year warranty through Compaq, and you are good to go.

The only issue we had with our review system was the HP DVD/CD-ROM drive which had trouble reading from multiple media types. We have never been impressed with HP's DVD drives so a switch to a drive manufactured by Plextor or Sony would make this system even better. Compaq has something special on their hands with their X series of gaming PC's. We would love to see them promote these systems through gaming events and by advertising on gaming sites and publications. Until then the X series will have to be a well kept secret until the word spread. Once Compaq does some minor tweaking, they should have a powerful gaming machine that rivals the best from Falcon Northwest, VoodooPC and other hardcore system builders.