However, the outer shell of the Media Xtender is flimsy and appears as if it is about to break at the slightest impact. For that reason, we would not recommend this device to a frequent traveller, as it may not be able to withstand the jerks and pressure applied to it.

The Media Xtender just does not stand firmly on its feet. Overall, this device can be used for home PCs. The actual card readers and USB hub work well, as does the soundcard, but its sturdiness (or lack of it) may be a cause for concern.

For: Good device drivers and good digital output make Xtender a good soundcard. Plus it can be controlled by remote control.

Against: The device is very fragile, and its plastic underside appears rather tacky and makes it less sturdy.

The Gainward Media Xtender is an external 5.1 soundcard that boasts of optical output and input, as well as a 6-in-1 card reader for Compact Flash, Smart Media Card, Memory Stick, Secure Digital Card, MultiMedia Card and Microdrive. It also has two USB 2.0 ports for additional connections to other devices.

The package includes a pair of headphones and a microphone and it can be powered by an external power adapter.

A bonus is the infrared remote, which is bundled with the device; this was easy to install, and produced no conflicts with the drivers. Sonix Sound Station, bundled with the product, allows you to configure the speaker type as well as the remote control, recording and conversion settings.

Its name rather suits this USB external drive- it is a super DVD writer! Capable of reading and writing all kinds of DVD media, it also deals with all types of CDs. This external writer not only looks cool but also comes with software that is easy to use- software like Hot Burn Pro and DVDWizard make it very easy for a user to create a CD or a DVD.

Iomega Automatic Backup also bundles products for all the times you need to make a backup. Besides, it supports Iomega NAS servers-good for all those SOHOs out there using them.

Performance-wise, it does quite well. However, do not expect the same CD­writing speeds as the other available CD writers, as the maximum speed here is 24x plus the fact that it’s a CD + DVD writer. Not that this is slow-writing S80 MB of data onto a CD-RW at 16x took only 5 minutes.

Still, if you are looking for speed then this is not the answer for you. If, though, you are looking for alternate storage solutions, this is it. Since the writing speed for a DVD+RW speed is 2.4x you will need to exercise some patience.

Burning just about 500 MB took 18 minutes. The alternate storage solution that this drive offers and its immense flexibility is great- it is external and supports all CD/DVD media. For: The build quality is really good. The drive supports all DVD formats-a major advantage which is not found on other DVD writers. The bundled software is all-encompassing.

Against: If you are going to cart the DVDs you make everywhere, you will  need to make sure that the optical media (+/- R/RW) used can be read by other DVDs! Besides, the writing speeds are rather slow

Probably the last in line for the Socket 478, the Pentium 4 Prescott 3.4E GHz is an improvement over its older brother, the 3.2 GHz Prescott. It features a higher clock speed while maintaining the same thermal specifications. The 3.4 GHz Prescott has optimized Hyper Threading which enhances audio and video applications.

The P4 3.4E GHz has a massive 1 MB L2 cache and 800 MHz FSB! In March, we compared the Pentium 4 3.2 GHz Prescott with the Northwood processor of the same clock speed. We found that the 3.4 GH2 gives about the same results as the 3.2 GHz Prescott.

This may be attributed to the motherboard being the bottleneck. However, the 3.4 GHz Prescott definitely has the power to perform with the right hardware, especially in audio or video encoding. With its improved 90nm manufacturing technology as compared to a 130nm Northwood, and HyperThreading, the Prescott scores well in SiSoft Sandra 2004 -getting a 9268 in the CPU Dryhstone and 3318 in the CPU Whetstone test.

During the Multimedia tests, it scored 24028 in the Integer test and 32380 in the FPU SSE test.  Overall, this is a blazing processor which is especially suited for audio- video applications due to its enhanced instruction set. But as with most Intel processors, it comes at a price.

For: A faster processor with a large L2 cache.

Against: This processor gets overheated quickly. Besides, it’s pretty expensive

The JBL 5.1 speaker system is quite a la mode; the subwoofer has logic buttons for volume control and the output mode-optical/coaxial/TV/Aux. The speakers can be connected to the Audio Out of a TV. This output can be ‘up­mixed’to 5.1 surround.

Unfortunately, these are the only analog connections provided and that too just two channel. The ESC 360 connection medium can be either optical or coaxial. The centre channel has a DT5, Dolby Surround decoder. Also if you have a DVD player with a coaxial output and if you do not want it to decode the digital 5.1 signal, then you can even hook it up to the JBLs.

The subwoofer driver is placed on the underside of the enclosure and is approximately4 inches in diameter. That’s quite small as compared to the size of the enclosure. The port firing is present on the front of the woofer. The subwoofer, including its satellites, is well­balanced with rubber pegs. The centre channel is larger and can be placed horizontally or vertically.

The bass is not very powerful, so this system works just fine for a small room. There is just enough power in them for a setup like this without makingyou stone deaf. The satellites are much like their Creative cousins-great for multimedia setups and quite good reproduction of high frequency notes.

For: Can decode DTS, Dolby Digital signals and has optical as well as coaxial inputs. Clear reproduction of audio as well as movies. An added bonus is an IR remote control that comes along with the system.

Against: If you are going to connect this system to a computer, you will need to make sure that you have a soundcard with optical or coaxial outputs.