I work in IT imaging computers and managing servers all day. I'm considering Acronis as an alternative to Backup Exec for some of my servers, but for the regular desktop PC's (running Windows 7 64-bit Pro), honestly I just use the standard built-in imaging tools. Start -> All Programs -> Maintenance -> Backup and Restore, then select the option to create a system image.
I keep a standard image that I've tweaked to work on every PC in the office on a local NAS, but you can also create an image to DVD or external hard drive. Then when we have a new hire I just pull a blank PC off the shelf, boot off a Windows DVD, and select the options to Repair computer -> From backup image, and select the correct image on my NAS. Only takes about 30 minutes, plus a little additional customization time for the individual user account, email address, etc.
I really, really hate loading any more junk onto a computer than it absolutely needs, the built-in tools work fine! Only time you might have a problem is if switching to a smaller hard drive than what the image was created for, but this can be worked around by shrinking the partition prior to creating the updated image.
Good luck!
