Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

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thejamppa
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Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by thejamppa » Fri Apr 08, 2011 5:25 am

Hello everyone!

I saw interesting mAtx motherboard on native computer magazine labeled comming soon: Asus M35m1-m pro that has integrated graphics andAMD E-350 dual core @ 1,6 Ghz) If I am right, this is AMD fusion: codename: AMD Brazos. Asrock has also: ASRock E350M1 which is on my short list for Brazos mini machine, only downside for Asrock model is that Asrock uses 40mm fan to cool the chipset, while Asus relies on huge chunck of aluminium to cool chipsets passively.

So that has everything: CPU, motherboard, graphics, all integrated with passive cooling into one bundle using low power. Now I would really like to build extremely small computer around this using SSD, as small case as I can find for mAtx, hopefully pico PSU and SSD. Just for web surfing, office work and such.

but I've never built anything like this, so I take any advices for the case, good budget SSD, PICO psu's or such and especially about small mAtx case.

djkest
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Re: Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by djkest » Tue Apr 12, 2011 7:41 am

Google search Pico PSU, there is a good website with lots of products and information on it. I would also look at mini ITX boards, and consider using an i3-2100 instead of the AMD fusion. It's way faster and still very low power consumption. Sounds like a fun project, keep us posted!

victorhortalives
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Re: Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by victorhortalives » Tue Apr 12, 2011 9:50 am

Agreed.

Here's what I'm going to be building (upgrade from existing)
PicoPSU - 90W or 150W
Asus mITX P8H67-I (not Deluxe)
Intel i3 2100
Noctua NH-U9B SE2 CPU cooler
Intel 80GB or 120GB SSD (all other stuff is in a NAS on the end of a GB LAN)
LianLi PC-Q11 or Antec NSK 3480 (if I can find it cheap - as the PSU is no use)
Scythe 120mm FDB fan (if needed)
Zalman 1 fan controller

This sits on the floor and is v quiet.

This will replace an existing Zotac ION-B that is in a Lian Li PC-Q07.

HFat
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Re: Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by HFat » Tue Apr 12, 2011 10:16 am

If you want extremely small then you want a mITX board and case, not uATX.

A Sandy Bridge PC would be ridiculously overpowered for web browsing. If you really want to go down that road, best wait for a while as the price of an entry-level Sandy Bridge system should drop quite a bit in the coming months.

The point of going with a Zacate board like the ones discussed by the OP is the nice graphical subsytem you get for the price.
If your web browsing doesn't include high-res videos and you're not planning to use a high-res monitor with the PC, a basic Atom board would work just as well while being cheaper and easier to cool.

The most appropriate uITX case and PSU for such a build would depend on parts availability and pricing in your country.
Morex makes nice cases desgined for fanless operation which come with fanless power supplies. Building a system with one of those cases is quick and easy. If they're available in your country close to US prices, they would probably be a better choice than pairing a cheaper case with a pico.
In Europe, Morex cases are sometimes on sale but mainstream cases such as the Apex MI-008 are usually easier to find at a good price. They're bigger and a bit noiser but may still be good enough for you.
If you want to order abroad, besides eBay where you should find a few sellers of M350 cases, picos and the like, you could check logicsupply.com, a good supplier of uITX parts which welcomes international customers. But ordering abroad may push the total cost of the build too close to that of a more powerful PC.

maninaitore
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Re: Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by maninaitore » Wed Apr 13, 2011 4:49 am

Yes the mITX board and case is quite small and it is good for that pieces. You have a good choice for picking a pc that is good for web surfing. It is good too for playing games online and some small games too.

ilovejedd
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Re: Small fun computer (for web surfing and nothing major)

Post by ilovejedd » Wed Apr 13, 2011 5:19 pm

HFat wrote:A Sandy Bridge PC would be ridiculously overpowered for web browsing. If you really want to go down that road, best wait for a while as the price of an entry-level Sandy Bridge system should drop quite a bit in the coming months.
Lol, perhaps it might even be as early as next month. :) There's already one H61 Mini-ITX board available and more should be coming soon and Sandy Bridge Pentiums are supposed to come out next month (May 22). Cheapest model is the Pentium G620 which is $64 1ku. I'd personally go for H61+Pentium G620 or wait until Llano for a tiny, cute, inexpensive but still fully capable build. Low-end on both would probably end up costing the same as Zacate boards are going for right now, perhaps even less. The big deal about Zacate is it performs like Atom/ION but at a price closer to Atom/NM10. However, right now Zacate boards are fetching a premium, basically around the same price as Atom/ION. The only board that's reasonably priced is ASRock.

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