HP Firebird with VoodooDNA 803

Voodoo was recently purchased by HP and this union has resulted in the Blackbird 002 and the Voodoo Envy 133 subnotebook, both of which are Editor's Choice-winning gaming computers. The newest computer to arrive from the company is the HP Firebird with VoodooDNA 803.

This high powered gaming desktop has some unique attributes to it. On interesting thing is that the guts of this desktop have many characteristics similar to those of a notebook. The rig has switchable graphics, the first ever seen on a desktop. It has a distinctive style about it which also incorporates a resemblance to the HP?Voodoo family. This computer comes with a Intel Core 2 Quad processor with 4GB of RAM and and 640GB of storage space. The Firebird runs the nVidia GeForce 9800S SLI graphics card which delivers powerful graphics quality. However, this computer does have a few things that might turn away a serious hard-core PC gamer.

First off, the performance of the device has been a little disappointing to some users. Also, the Firebird has limited upgrade ability which means you better be satisfied with what you get because you are not going to be able to do much to it. There are only two DIMM slots both of which are filled. This means you will need to swap the current 4GB of memory if you want to add more. The Firebird does have two innovative hard drive sleds. Considering they are compact and built well, you will be able to connect and disconnect multiple times. However, both of these slots are filled as well with 320GB drives. This system also lacks a set of PCI/PCIe connectors. This computer kind of resembles a gaming console. All the internal components are permanately attached, except for the memory and the hard drives.

One great thing about this system is that is completely free of anything annoying. For example, it does not come with any trialware programs or ads. The only things that occupy the the hard drives is HP total care for one year, a one year subscription to AVG Professional Anti-Virus Software, and a copy of Cyberlink DVD for the ability to play DVD's and Blu-ray. This computer also comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse.

The graphics setup for the Firebird is really innovative. It has the NVidia nForce 760s motherboard chipset. Which allows you to switch between power saving intgrated graphics and the two nVidia GeForce 9800s graphics cards. It has a save power mode for video viewing but if you want all the features in Nvidia's PureVideo HD, the discrete graphics need to be turned on.

This computer isn't your average gaming computer. It is a top-of-the-line gaming computer for a reasonable price. It has a nice, sleek design to it and the energy saving capabilities will save you a few needed bucks, especially in today's economy. And the incredible graphics can be turned up whenever you need it to. This computer was going to set you back around $2,099 but is on sale now for $1,299. If you are in the market for a good gaming desktop, the HP FireBird with VoodooDNA 803 is definitely worth a look at, especially if you are looking to save a few bucks.