Digital Storm’s compact gaming PC is fast and upgrade-friendly

It's tricky to find a small form factor PC that hits all the right notes. You can get easily expandable systems, but are they good-looking and as fast as a regular desktop? Digital Storm, at least, thinks it has everything nailed down. Its latest Bol...

CompuLab MintBox 2 unveiled with four times the power, same Linux Mint flavor

CompuLab previews MintBox 2 four times the power, same Linux Mint flavor

Now that Linux Mint 15 is available, it's only fair that we get a new MintBox to match. The CompuLab and Linux Mint teams won't disappoint us on that front: they've just previewed the MintBox 2, a big upgrade to their open source mini PC. The new version drops AMD processors in favor of an Intel Core i5 that's reportedly four times faster than the AMD T56 in the MintBox Pro. The refresh also doubles the storage to 500GB while adding a second gigabit Ethernet jack for server duties. CompuLab and Linux Mint haven't said how soon they expect the MintBox 2 to ship, but they're expecting a $599 price at Amazon.

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Via: FanlessTech

Source: Linux Mint Blog

Gigabyte shows four prototype BRIX mini PCs, including models with projectors and wireless charging

Gigabyte shows four prototype BRIX mini PCs, one with a projector

Gigabyte said that we'd have at least a few BRIX mini PCs to choose from. At Computex, however, it's showing four new prototypes that could lead to a much larger catalog. Two of them are run-of-the-mill designs with AMD Kabini and Intel Haswell processors -- nice enough, but more evolution than revolution. The other two are decidedly more exotic, though. One includes a wireless charging pad to charge a smartphone in a pinch, while the other carries a pico projector for on-the-spot presentations. Although Gigabyte hasn't mentioned whether or not these BRIX models will reach production, we'd wager that the conservative systems are more likely to reach our desks.

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Source: Engadget Chinese (translated)

Xi3 starts Piston pre-orders: buy an early Steambox for under $1,000

Xi3 starts Piston preorders buy a protoSteambox for under $1,000

While Xi3's Piston may only be a Steambox through its software optimization, that still leaves us with a milestone on our hands now that the system is available for pre-orders: it's the first Valve-blessed PC on sale. If you're willing to set aside just under $1,000 ($900 during SXSW), you can claim a Big Picture-friendly mini PC with an embedded, 3.2GHz version of AMD's quad-core A10 in addition to 8GB of RAM and a 128GB solid-state drive. There's no mention of the conventional spinning storage referenced at CES. Expansion is limited to larger-capacity SSDs, although that's not surprising when the entire computer is smaller than a GeForce GTX Titan. The real jolt will be the launch timing. Xi3 won't have Pistons shipping until around the holidays, which could leave some of us hunting for less-than-official (if considerably larger) substitutes for the full Steam experience.

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Via: Joystiq

Source: Xi3

Gigabyte shows off an extra-tiny desktop PC with a Core i7, April release date

Gigabyte shows off an extratiny desktop PC with Core i7, due in April

There was a surprise waiting alongside Gigabyte's Windows 8 tablet duo at CES: an exceptionally small desktop. The as yet unnamed mini PC is a minor marvel of engineering that's much smaller than a Mac mini at an 0.3-liter volume (10 fluid ounces), but still manages to cram in a Core i3, i5 or i7 processor. We're also looking at up to 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for heavy duty tasks. Expansion is about the only sacrifice, as there's just two USB ports, Ethernet and a rather curious choice of two HDMI ports on the pre-production model we saw. Gigabyte didn't have the system ready to test, but it should ship worldwide in April, with a price to be set later.

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Source: Engadget Chinese (translated)

Digital Storm Bolt stuffs full-power graphics into a mini gaming desktop, stretches laws of physics

Digital Storm Bolt stuffs fullpower graphics into a mini gaming PC

Attempts to create truly small gaming desktops usually involve at least some kind of performance hit. Even HP's category-bending Firebird, one of the few stand-out examples, had to use toned-down graphics to succeed in a tiny enclosure. Digital Storm might have broken the trend towards sacrifice with its new Bolt desktop: although it's just 3.6 inches wide and 14 inches tall, the Bolt can cram in as much as a GeForce GTX 680 and will even let gamers upgrade the graphics like they would in a full-size PC. The seemingly logic-defying (if also finger-defying) case still allows room for as much as an overclocked 4.6GHz Core i7, 16GB of RAM and storage options that meld a spinning hard drive with up to two SSDs and a DVD burner. Digital Storm isn't even setting an absurd base price, but it's in the cost that we finally see the catch to the miniaturization tricks. The $999 entry-level Bolt carries a modest 3.1GHz Core i3, 8GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive and GeForce GTX 650 Ti, while it takes a staggering $1,949 to get a fully decked-out Core i7 system with a GTX 680. Those prices might be worthwhile for anyone who has ever strained while lugging a traditional tower to a game tourney.

Continue reading Digital Storm Bolt stuffs full-power graphics into a mini gaming desktop, stretches laws of physics

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Digital Storm Bolt stuffs full-power graphics into a mini gaming desktop, stretches laws of physics originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 05:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Xi3 goes the crowdfunding route for future X3A, X7A modular PCs (video)

Xi3 goes the crowdfunding route for future X3A, X7A modular PCs

Xi3 has been one of the more inventive PC builders in the field, designing its Modular Computers in the belief that small, more upgradable desktops are the way of the future. The company is planning two new systems to further that dream, the X3A and X7A, but it wants our help: it's running a Kickstarter funding drive until October 28th to assist the development and garner some early adopters. Put down $503 or $603 and you'll get the entry-level X3A, a dual-core 1.65GHz (likely AMD E-450-based) PC with 4GB of RAM, a 32GB SSD and either Linux or Windows installed; splurge with $1,103 or more and you'll get the more performance-driven X7A, which jumps to a quad-core chip with a 3.2GHz peak speed, a Windows-loaded 64GB SSD and faster graphics. Assuming Xi3 makes its target, we should see the X3A and X7A arrive in January and February respectively, with Kickstarter supporters beating the larger herd by a week. Even existing owners are accounted for through a Primary I/O Board upgrade, due before the end of this year, that carries more Ethernet and USB 3.0 ports. Crowdfunding is an unusual approach to buying that next PC, without the certainties of shopping at an online store -- but we're also dealing with an unusual PC from the get-go.

Continue reading Xi3 goes the crowdfunding route for future X3A, X7A modular PCs (video)

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Xi3 goes the crowdfunding route for future X3A, X7A modular PCs (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Giada i35G Small Form Factor PC

Giada i35G Small Form Factor PC

Giada has unveiled the i35G Small Form Factor (SFF) PC. Measuring 192mm x 155mm x 26mm, the mini computer supports 1080p full HD video playback thanks to its powerful 512MB nVidia GT 610 GPU. The Giada i35G provides an Intel Atom D2500 CPU, a 320GB of HDD, a 2GB of DDR3 RAM (upgradeable up to 4GB), a remote control, five USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, a VGA output, Bluetooth and a memory card slot. The Giada i35G Small Form Factor PC retails for $274 each. [Geeky-gadgets]

Intel’s Thin Mini-ITX platform gets stuffed inside a monitor

Intel's Thin MiniITX platform gets stuffed inside a monitor

You don't have to build custom motherboards and source specialty components to build a sleek all-in-one PC. At least not anymore, thanks to Intel's Thin Mini-ITX platform, which it debuted roughly a year ago at Computex. The main board is the same footprint as Mini-ITX (that's a 6.7-inch square), but it calls for a much shallower construction -- with horizontally stacked RAM and a shorter port cluster to keep the whole thing under an inch tall. To maintain its sleek physique, Intel pairs the desktop-class Core processor at the heart with a laptop-style heatsink and fan. It's a pretty interesting standard from Chipzilla, which Tech Report ripped into, peeling back all it's layers like a silicon onion. The layout of all the essential jacks does pose a bit of an issue once the whole thing is set up, but its hard not to be impressed by the elegance and simplicity of the system. To see the whole thing torn down, then reassembled inside the chassis of an LCD panel, hit up the source link.

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Intel's Thin Mini-ITX platform gets stuffed inside a monitor originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Aug 2012 08:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Zotac ZBOX Nano XS AD11 Plus mini PC launches with E-450 APU, gets reviewed

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    Zotac and its XBOXes -- just when you think your next dorm room PC couldn't get any smaller... it does. The latest in the stable is the long-winded Nano XS AD11 Plus, a hysterically titled small form factor PC equipped with a dual-core 1.6GHz AMD E-450 APU, Radeon HD 6320 GPU, 2GB of DDR3 memory and an HDMI output. There's also a 64GB mSATA SSD, a pair of USB 3.0 sockets (as well as a couple of the USB 2.0 variety), a gigabit Ethernet jack and a bundled MCE-compatible remote. In a smattering of reviews that also cropped up alongside the box's launch, we've learned that the E-450 moderately bests the prior E-350 rigs and soars past similarly equipped Atom-based machines; the mSATA SSD is perhaps the biggest upgrade, however, easily helping the system as a whole feel far faster than those with mechanical hard drives. Hot Hardware was pleased with the overall showing, though they did note that the include USB WiFi adapter gave 'em headaches when trying to stream high-bitrate content from a NAS / home server. Worth the $359? Hit those More Coverage links to help you decide.

    Zotac ZBOX Nano XS AD11 Plus mini PC launches with E-450 APU, gets reviewed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Apr 2012 03:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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