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Acer AspireRevo AR1600 review – top mini PC, excellent price

By Andrei Girbea , updated on May 19, 2012

If you’re looking for a mini computer suitable for everyday applications or to use it as a Home Theater PC, the Aspire Revo AR1600 is perhaps your best option. It’s not the most powerful such mini PC available on the market, but it is the one with the best price/performances rapport.

Can be used for all kind of activities (browsing, watching multimedia content, listening to music, editing documents, etc) or can stream content towards a bigger display via HDMI output. Too bad it doesn’t come with integrated Wi-Fi and the VESA mount system is sold separately. Otherwise, there’s just nothing wrong with this Aspire Revo nettop.

Plus, it only costs around $200 bucks and the pack comes with included Wireless keyboard and mouse. Just stick a display to it an you have a capable computer ready to go.

Pros:

  • offers good hardware: Atom dual core D230 processor + Nvidia ION LE, 1 GB of RAM, 160 GB storage
  • comes with Card-reader, 6xUSB ports, VGA&HDMI output
  • Gigabit LAN
  • can play self stored 1080P content
  • with the new Flash player 10 will be able to stream HD Flash content also
  • can stream content via HDMI to an LCD/plasma TV
  • looks actually very nice, with a white/black finish
  • there are matching Wireless keyboard and mouse included
  • only costs around $200
  • measures 7.1 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches and consumes only up to 30Wh

Cons:

  • comes with Windows XP SP3
  • comes with only 1 GB of RAM but can be easily upgraded to 2 GB
  • there’s no Wi-Fi/Bluetooth connectivity
  • the VESA mount system is sold separately
  • no optical drive included
Good performances for an excellent price: the AR1600 Aspire Revo from Acer

Good performances for an excellent price: the AR1600 Aspire Revo from Acer

Conclusion:

All in one, the Aspire Revo AR1600 is a great pick. For around $200 you get a capable computer that will satisfy the needs of most regular users. Can even play some games, but that’s not its purpose.

Acer designed the Revo as a multimedia streaming mini computer and that’s why most users use it a secondary computer, connected to the network via Gigabit LAN and outputting multimedia content to a display via HDMI. And it’s just perfect for this job.

Prices, versions and where to buy

You can get the Acer AspireRevo AR1600 right now for only $199 on Amazon , with Free Shipping included. You can also read there more reviews, see more specs and pics, etc.

Also, if you want to make it even better and have a couple of extra bucks to spare, you should get a 2GB RAM module to replace the 1GB one currently installed, a high-quality HDMI cable or one of those Remote Controllers specially made for Acer nettops.

And one more thing, if you want a more powerful nettop, Acer also offers de AspireRevo AR3610, also reviewed on this site.

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Andrei Girbea, Editor-in-Chief at TLBHD.com. This project was born as part of my search for capable mini-laptops that I could easily lug around to work, and still provide the performance that I'd need on a daily basis. I'm primarily using such ultracompact devices and have been testing them since 2006.

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