Looking for HTPC

eliminist on 21/07/2013 - 11:10

Wanting to buy a home theatre pc as my ouya console hasn't performed to expectations.

Looking at something like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856102…

or

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/desktops/ideacentre/q-series/q1…

also had a look at some zotac pcs but I dont think they're the best value.

The main things I want in it are:
capable of handling 1080p videos
low power output
preferably small form factor, no bigger then the q190
no more then $400
wireless card integrated

Should I wait for haswell motherboards to come into these htpcs?
Will it make much difference to power savings?

Thanks.

Find Me A Bargain

Comments

  • eliminist on 21/07/2013 - 11:14

    Also forgot to mention it should have hdmi output

  • ethereal88 on 21/07/2013 - 12:10

    I have a H77M-D3H board for sale for $60, add in a G1610 and some RAM and you have the guts of an excellent HTPC.

  • scrimshaw on 21/07/2013 - 13:47
    +1

    Look for the Intel NUC (Next unit of computing).

    Building a mini ITX pc yourself is the best way of ensuring you're getting the best bang for your buck, but it does require you to get your hands dirty building it. But otherwise, you are looking at an entry Level Intel NUC with Ivy Bridge based Celeron.

    The cheapest NUC is $179 and you will 4GB RAM for $24 and a 128GB MSATA SSD for $129

    totals $332 in parts, forget about windows, just use xbmcbuntu.

  • eliminist on 21/07/2013 - 14:12

    I want built in wireless though.

    • scrimshaw on 21/07/2013 - 14:17
      +1

      Not that hard to just pop in a wireless module card, the NUC already has wireless antennas built in so it just requires a wifi module. You can either scavenge that from an old laptop or buy one from eBay or here

  • freakitude on 21/07/2013 - 14:49

    build your own may be ??

    http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/rmp_sg_whirlpoolpcs_htpc

  • rogue5 on 22/07/2013 - 10:43

    For under $400 I picked up a Zotac ID42 off ebay brand new including shipping and 4gb ram, I added an SSD because I could, and then installed XBMC (xbmc.org) - best option imho :D

    ps dont mind the price on this link, it seems that ebay updates prices on items you've already purchased:
    http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/271151054894?ssPageName=STRK:MEWA…

  • eliminist on 22/07/2013 - 17:07

    what os does that ship with?

    • rogue5 on 22/07/2013 - 17:11

      hey mate, it's bare bones if i remember correctly, though you can pay more for a windows license with the os preinstalled

      as scrimshaw mentioned, i also use xbmcbuntu, nice and easy (and free) os, purpose designed for media

      have a look at the xbmc.org website and forums if you're curious

  • eliminist on 22/07/2013 - 19:23

    Yeah I use xbmc on my computer but I want a full os so I can browse the web and do other stuff.

    • rogue5 on 22/07/2013 - 21:36

      still have a look over the xbmc forums, as its a full ubuntu linux distro you have the ability to fire up a web browser and other stuff

      for a media pc, the hardware is perfect, but if you want to do other things as well, depending on what they are, then it may not have enough grunt for you

  • eliminist on 22/07/2013 - 20:01

    Hows this:
    intel i3 3220 3.3ghz $130
    ASRock Z77E-ITX/Z77 $160
    Kingmax 4G(2x2G)1333MHZ DDR3 $50
    Kingston 32gb msata ssd $60~
    Silverstone SG05 450W $145

                           Total $545

    Any changes you guys could make to get it under $500

    I want a solid mobo with wifi and this one looks pretty good.

  • mshanann on 22/07/2013 - 20:47

    Zotac ID83 I reckon is the way to go.
    You can get the barebones device delivered for under $400 AUD from provantage.com whom I have purchased items from before.

    Ivy Bridge I3 laptop Processor - super low power consumption
    Intel 4000 graphics
    HDMI
    USB3
    Optical SPDIF
    Infrared remote and USB dongle

    just add memory and a hard drive;

    I was going to purchase this myself; but decided to splurge on a mac mini.

  • eliminist on 22/07/2013 - 21:02

    I like that its smaller and mountable but will probably come to the same cost with slightly shittier specs and I think the wifi wont be as good which is important because thats the reason why ouya failed my needs.

    • mshanann on 22/07/2013 - 22:34

      i'm regretting the mac mini purchase; i just found out it (and mac's in general) don't bitstream hd audio from OSX. How ridiculous is that. Instead you need to run another operating system.

      The apple tv rev 2 and rev 3 don't do DTS audio either or high def audio.

      I should have kept my ATV revision 1 which could do dts/ac3 and have attached USB external hard drive with movie content.

  • mshanann on 22/07/2013 - 22:36

    If you don't like the Zotac ID83, wait until Intel's haswell NUC gets released… which will have USB3 ports and the low power processor.

    • _Bruce_ on 23/07/2013 - 07:41

      They already have USB3 on the i5 NUC. Pretty expensive though.

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