Author Topic: Mini PCs (Read 9171 times)

klpangan · « **on:** Mar 04, 2011 at 07:34 PM »

Do you have any idea on this mini-pcs. Anyone use this for your HTPC setup? Recommendations please

http://www.zotacusa.com/products/mini-pcs

klpangan · « **Reply #1 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 01:23 PM »

walang may idea?

plapoy · « **Reply #2 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 05:37 PM »

Sir klpangan, meron na po ba nito locally?.. how much po kaya ito? mukhang maganda sya.. kasi maganda na yung specs nya..

klpangan · « **Reply #3 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 09:15 PM »

Meron sa TPC price range from 12k-14k depende sa model. Ask ko lang mga GURU kung may nakapagtry na dito... meron din available netbox search sa TPC lalabas din... IF you compare this to NMT para mas okay ito kasi PC na siya...

paolorenzo · « **Reply #4 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 09:40 PM »

I have an Atom based miniITX PC which I use for surfing and bit torrent. It cannot play MKVs. I tried it with KMP and CoreAVC, which is a relatively lightweight but powerful player.

Ok lang itong mga 'to for casual surfing, bit torrent, and maybe as MagicJack server or gateway router (if you can put multiple LAN ports, Linux, and Pfsense).

Wildfire™ · « **Reply #5 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 09:57 PM »

mas ok to lagyan lang ng nvidia gt430 or ati hd5450 + htpc case

klpangan · « **Reply #6 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 10:03 PM »

@ Pao thanks sa info

@ Wildfire okay din yan kaso magbubuo ka pa ang aim ko kasi dito is to buy a PC that can compete with NMT

Ito mga potential Mini PCs that are available locally maybe we can deal sa user to have a group buy

1. http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=8760775
2. http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=8760752
3. http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=8760743
4. http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=8760724
5. http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=8537643

Potential PCs are 1,4 and 5.

Wildfire™ · « **Reply #7 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 10:21 PM »

wait for the next xtreamer htpc nmt

klpangan · « **Reply #8 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 10:27 PM »

@ Wildfire... not bad but when will it be available locally... mukang matatagalan pa ito and compared sa specs ng xtreamer ultra parehas lang siya i think sa option 1.. and for sure once na lumabas ito can't say it will be a budget HTPC.

Here's the link. They compare the ultra to my option 5.

http://www.xtreamer.net/Ultra/

Wildfire™ · « **Reply #9 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 10:46 PM »

parang pwede nga

klpangan · « **Reply #10 on:** Mar 08, 2011 at 11:26 PM »

Pede din ba difference lang remote siguro and file management pero madali na gawan ng paraan yun hehhe.... sana may magreply din na ibang tao para makakuha tau ng magandang feed

plapoy · « **Reply #11 on:** Mar 09, 2011 at 08:03 AM »

Quote from: klpangan on Mar 08, 2011 at 10:27 PM

@ Wildfire... not bad but when will it be available locally... mukang matatagalan pa ito and compared sa specs ng xtreamer ultra parehas lang siya i think sa option 1.. and for sure once na lumabas ito can't say it will be a budget HTPC.

Here's the link. They compare the ultra to my option 5.

http://www.xtreamer.net/Ultra/

Sir pre-loaded na ba yan ng OS? like windows 7?

klpangan · « **Reply #12 on:** Mar 09, 2011 at 02:41 PM »

@plapoy not sure for ultra pero dun sa nagbebenta sa TPC ng ganito uu...

paolorenzo · « **Reply #13 on:** Mar 09, 2011 at 07:55 PM »

Para sa akin pinaka-ok ang AMD-350 based miniITX, with AMD Radeon HD 6310 onboard graphics.

http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9034485

Confirmed nang Anandtech na kaya ang TrueHD and DTS-MA bitstreaming.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4134/the-brazos-review-amds-e350-supplants-ion-for-miniitx/1

Pros:
* DirectX 11
* USB 3.0
* SATA3 6Gbps
* TrueHD / DTS-MA bitstreaming
* Lowest power consumption

Cons:
* No RAID support
* No Gigabit LAN

FrancisD · « **Reply #14 on:** Mar 09, 2011 at 11:16 PM »

Also looking at the amd e-350.

Issue locally is the pc case. It doesn't look like an audiophile equipment. And the power supply is not low power to blend with the low power htpc based amd e-350.

But for the price! This should have better video quality than NMT (marginal difference). But the sound! With a good Soundcard (xonar) or usb Dac, you are really set

My biggest issue with NMT is the sound

I maybe wrong but an Ipod sounds better...

lncc63 · « **Reply #15 on:** Mar 10, 2011 at 09:12 AM »

I waiting for my e350n to arrive. I agree this board seems like the best candidate at present as long as you don't expect too much in gaming performance.

Checked the spec sheet again, and it does has a Gigabit NIC. I saw in an ad that it could provide eSATA but the spec sheet does not say so. Is eSATA just a special connector?

Yeah the local case options is really an issue. I too wanted my HTPC to look more like our other stuff.

Oh and about power supply, it isn't the power supply that determines how much actual power is consumed, its the stuff you connect to it that does. The power supply's rating is only its maximum.

What software are you guys going to be using on your HTPCs? Windows 7 is the no-brainer but I might consider Linux if it comes strongly recommended.

paolorenzo · « **Reply #16 on:** Mar 10, 2011 at 01:23 PM »

It eventually depends on the manufacturer's implementation. I think MSI and Asus were able to squeeze in the Gigabit LAN, by using a different LAN chip.

On OS, Windows7 pa rin talaga. If you go Linux, you'll not have much choice with players, except XBMC. XBMC was born in Linux I think, so maybe it would suffice? Sorry, but I don't have much visibility on the Linux world. Check sourceforge.net. I'm sure there's a wealth of players there.

nerveblocker · « **Reply #17 on:** Mar 10, 2011 at 07:07 PM »

Quote from: lncc63 on Mar 10, 2011 at 09:12 AM

What software are you guys going to be using on your HTPCs? Windows 7 is the no-brainer but I might consider Linux if it comes strongly recommended.

I am a Linux desktop user but I think you would be better off with Windows when it comes to HTPCs. You could get XBMC and media players such as VLC and Mplayer to play ripped HD content but when it comes to Bluray and BD ISO playback with HD audio, Linux isn't that mature yet specially for drivers of your HD hardware.

revskie · « **Reply #18 on:** Mar 10, 2011 at 08:19 PM »

Can this miniPCs be used as audio file server? I am looking for a hardware that can serve as my Itunes server and stream my Itunes collection wirelessly to my front end players distributed throughout the house.

When I say audio file server, wla na itong patayan and 24/7 naka power on.

Can this thing cut it?

paolorenzo · « **Reply #19 on:** Mar 11, 2011 at 01:31 PM »

Quote from: revskie on Mar 10, 2011 at 08:19 PM

Can this miniPCs be used as audio file server? I am looking for a hardware that can serve as my Itunes server and stream my Itunes collection wirelessly to my front end players distributed throughout the house.

When I say audio file server, wla na itong patayan and 24/7 naka power on.

Can this thing cut it?

I don't see why not. I think it's your wireless network which will become the bottleneck. If you can hard-wire the Mini-PC to your router, and let that access point distribute wirelessly, better pa.

Since 24x7 na naka-on yan, make sure you have sufficient cooling. You can also maximize the rig to act as your Bit Torrent downloader, and your Magic Jack server na rin.

ivannn · « **Reply #20 on:** Mar 11, 2011 at 02:54 PM »

ilan ang magiging consumption nito ng kuryente?

revskie · « **Reply #21 on:** Mar 11, 2011 at 03:08 PM »

Paolorenzo,

Yeah! You just gave me an idea. Thanks!

Revskie

paolorenzo · « **Reply #22 on:** Mar 11, 2011 at 05:39 PM »

Quote from: ivannn on Mar 11, 2011 at 02:54 PM

ilan ang magiging consumption nito ng kuryente?

The E-350 based board I'm eyeing is estimated to idle at 10W, and peak consumption of 31W lang (gaming).

These new line of boards pala are called FTPC (Fusion Theater PC) na, not HTPC. So baka wrong sub-forum na ito.

lncc63 · « **Reply #23 on:** Mar 11, 2011 at 10:14 PM »

Thanks guys. I started with Fedora 14 but eventually decided to use Windows 7. Here's a small tip: you need to make sure the SATA3 is enabled BEFORE you install Windows 7.

The case really have me a hard time. I was trying to get the Minix LX01 but I could not find one and had to settle for the PowerLogic C4-RB. Its about 50% bigger than the Minux but it will have to do for now.

klpangan · « **Reply #24 on:** Mar 16, 2011 at 07:19 PM »

@Pao eh paaano naman yung case?? Estimated damage natin kung yan ang bubuoin natin?

paolorenzo · « **Reply #25 on:** Mar 16, 2011 at 08:33 PM »

Quote from: klpangan on Mar 16, 2011 at 07:19 PM

@Pao eh paaano naman yung case?? Estimated damage natin kung yan ang bubuoin natin?

I currently have an Atom 260 inside an Apex MW-100 casing. I might kick out the Atom board, and put in a new Asus E35M1-I-Deluxe board (see review here). Tingin ko mga 8.5k ang Asus pag naging available na. Mas mahal, pero sulit na, kasi built in na wifi and bluetooth. Tapos USB3 and SATA3 na rin (with eSata port pa).

Pero may nabili rin ako na iCase slim casing sa isang seller nang TPC. P800 lang, tapos made for mini-ITX talaga, with 80W PSU na. Ang nipis! Mukhang DVD player lang. Meron slot for 3.5" HDD and slim-type DVD drive for laptop.

Eto pictures nang mga mini-ITX casing na meron ako ngayon:

revskie · « **Reply #26 on:** Mar 18, 2011 at 08:06 PM »

Pao,
Do these casings have cooling fans?
Rev

paolorenzo · « **Reply #27 on:** Mar 18, 2011 at 10:21 PM »

Quote from: revskie on Mar 18, 2011 at 08:06 PM

Pao,
Do these casings have cooling fans?
Rev

Wala sir. $:-\$

klpangan · « **Reply #28 on:** Mar 21, 2011 at 08:37 PM »

Bagong line-up ng Mini PCs. From MSI

MSI Wind

http://us.msi.com/index.php?func=prodpage1&maincat_no=134

cHess · « **Reply #29 on:** Mar 22, 2011 at 06:31 AM »

meron na bang locally available boards at magkano?