The TouchSmart software includes a calendar, a weather widget, a clock, music and video players, a program for composing short notes and a basic Web browser. All worked OK in my tests, but they're simple and limited.
The computer itself is fairly powerful. Both models have dual-core processors, large hard disks and a whopping 4 gigabytes of memory. And both run the special 64-bit version of Vista, which allows more memory usage and can be much faster than regular Vista, but only if you buy special 64-bit software programs. This machine is loaded with every conceivable port and connector, mostly hidden from view, and the high-end model has a TV tuner.
But this is still a Vista computer, with all of the disadvantages that entails, especially a sluggish start-up and an annoying barrage of pop-up warnings. And the new TouchSmart is preloaded with those irritating trial programs and come-ons that you didn't order.
There's a built-in Webcam that works in low light, but it's almost impossible to tilt the computer forward to get the best shot. The TouchSmart software interface is very basic and is ragged around the edges. It isn't a multitouch interface like the ones on the Apple iPhone and in the next version of Windows, code-named Windows 7, which recognize a variety of gestures and perform tasks when multiple fingers are used rather than just one. For example, you can't rotate a photo on the TouchSmart by grabbing it with your fingers, or move back and forth through Web pages by swiping the browser with your fingers.
The TouchSmart software is just a thin shell plopped on top of Vista, and it crashed four times during a few days of testing. Also, the limitations of the TouchSmart applications can be frustrating. The photo application wouldn't let me create albums. The music application didn't display artists' names for some of my MP3 files, and the calendar application can't display an onscreen reminder of an event in the main Vista interface.
If you're intrigued by a quick and simple interface on a handsome one-piece Vista machine, the TouchSmart might make sense. But it doesn't deliver on the full promise of touch computing.
