Mesh Matrix Photo Pro review

Please note that this PC has changed specification since the original review, due to a shortage of Athlon 64 X2 5000+ CPUs. Read about the changes here.

Mesh’s Matrix Photo Pro is one of only two machines here to have two monitors (Cube247’s Nova being the other), while at the same time offering the necessary power and storage for editing photos.

The two 19in ViewSonic VX922 displays give you the freedom to work in different ways to a single screen – such as using one monitor for Photoshop toolbars and the other for showing the photo you’re working on. The VX922 is a high-quality TFT, and we found no problems with colour accuracy or detail levels. It has a limited stand, though, so you can only adjust the tilt angle.

Although we made it clear that 3D graphics weren’t a priority, Mesh still managed to squeeze a GeForce 7900 GT into the budget. This makes it an adept gaming system, but it’s an unnecessary expense if you don’t want to play games. The same applies to the 2.1 Creative I-Trigue 3330 speakers and integrated 802.11g Wi-Fi: useful features if you need them, but not essential this month.

For storage, Mesh opts for a pair of 300GB Maxtor hard disks and, in addition, the Photo Pro also has a 60GB IcyBox external hard disk so you can back up data or transfer a huge number of files around.

When you come to edit photos, there’s a decent amount of power thanks to the 2.6GHz Athlon 64 X2 5000+. It can’t match the Core 2 Duo machines for muscle, particularly the overclocked Chillblast PC, but with a score of 1.33 it’s fast enough for the job and it’s aided by 2GB of 800MHz DDR2 memory.

The PC is rounded off with a three-year on-site warranty for peace of mind. Before you buy, though, take note of the PC Nextday Zoostorm. It has the same warranty, a faster CPU and a 24in TFT. Costing almost £100 less, it’s the better choice for photo editors. But the Mesh, with its dual monitors, fast graphics card and mixture of storage, is a great alternative.