A home theater PC may sound oxymoronic, but a computer in the living room makes more sense than you might think.

A properly configured PC can serve as a TiVo-style recorder, Blu-ray and DVD player, digital video archive and, lest we forget, a PC — all in one box. Pair a big-screen high-definition TV with a home theater PC, and you have a monitor that puts even those monster 30” PC displays to shame.