We've seen lots of all-in-ones with questionable value lately, but the Lenovo IdeaCentre A700 40244CU is a particularly egregious offender. It's an expensive system at $1,249, and considering its slow performance and lack of a Blu-ray drive, we're not exactly clear on why you should pay more for this PC. We do like the A700's case design, and it comes with a healthy selection of useful external features, including multiple video input options. While you might be charmed by this PC's sleek looks or its connectivity options, we would encourage you not to settle given its weak horsepower, especially considering that there are less expensive all-in-ones from Gateway and Acer that offer comparable, better value.
Lenovo IdeaCentre A700
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
The particular model of Lenovo's A700 line is a fixed retail configuration. You can find other A700s online with variant features, and Lenovo itself offers the A700 40244JU with a Blu-ray drive and twice the memory for $50 more than the 40244CU reviewed here. In either case, the price is high compared with what you get from other vendors.
Before we delve into the features, the A700 chassis deserves some attention. Considering the number of clunky-looking all-in-ones out there, Lenovo's handsome design is welcome. Aside from the branding stickers, the case is free from gaudy detailing, but Lenovo has created some visual interest by offsetting the 23-inch, 1,920x1,080 touch-screen display from the body of the A700 case. We also like the haptic touch controls on the bottom edge of the display. Not all of the lit-up icons communicate their purpose effectively, but simply pressing them will uncover controls for volume, display quality, underlighting, display power, and display input toggle. We know of no other all-in-one that offers similar breadth in its built-in system controls.