I bought the a1230n for about 875.00 (not incl. monitor) in Sept '05. I give it a hlaf notch above mediocre. Solid cabinet, separare DVD/CD drive bays, handy audio jacks in the front, 4 USB jacks. MD processor is suppose to be better for multi-media.. hmmm. Replaced the chinsey keyboard/mouse included in the package. I grew up in HP territory, the once thriving giant HP comlex is now a ghost town. Almost all design/assebly is outsourced now, this unit assembled in China. Whould I buy it again knowing what I know now ... naah.