Portable Sandy Box

[Guardsmon]

Evening all. Just writing out my thoughts. Will be changing this as I go along. Please feel free to comment and share your thoughts.

Issues:

• Fed up carrying my V354 up and down tons of stairs when I want to game anywhere else apart from home. (Portal 2 hasn't helped...)
• My Cubit3 has been sat unused in pieces for the past 4 months and the TV is missing it.

Aims:

• Media box
• Light gaming
• Easy to carry

Restrictions:

• Light weight
• Low powered
• Small
• £300 or there abouts

Options:
Rebuild Cubit3 - Mini-ITX
Incredibly limited and can only really have upto 150W silent power supplies.
AMD or Intel, very limited to GPU for gaming.
Sell Cubit5
Based on: GA-H67N-USB3-B3 or M4A88T-I Deluxe / IPC-AM3DD785G

Rebuild Cubit5 - flex-ATX (Shuttle)
Through buying a shuttle barebone 250-300W power supplies are available (though not silent) and have a reasonable amount of space.
Only Intel, suitable GPUs for light gaming
Sell Cubit3
Based on: SH55J2 XPC or could use 775 platform and existing Q6600

Buy SG05/6 - Mini-ITX
Slightly more space than the Cubit3 with bigger power supplies (300/450W) but noiser and not as gorgeous to look at.
AMD or Intel, best choice of GPUs
Sell both Hoojum Cubits
Based on: GA-H67N-USB3-B3 or M4A88T-I Deluxe / IPC-AM3DD785G

Questions:
Anyone have any idea:

• How much power a i3 2100T solution uses max?
• How much power a i5 2400S solution uses max?
• If it's worth getting the i5 over the i3 for light gaming and media
• If it's worth spending extra money for the lower power consumption CPUs?
• Of a suitable AMD solution or should I stick with Intel?

 

[Guardsmon]

Hey Tute,

Thanks for the reply. A lot of very helpful information there. I've been paying a lot of attention to the Zacate range as originally I was just planning for a media box, but as time has gone by I've figured I might as well give it a little more ummph and use it for light gaming as well.

I'd like to play things like Portal 2, TF2 and some SupCom at 720 on low. I'm not too bothered about making it support 1080/1200 and being good quality, just usable. Which is where I am stuck.

Would a 2100T + 4GB + HD5670 and a 2.5" HDD run on 120W you think? (I'd love a HD6670 in there, but can't find a single slot version anywhere)
If not thats the Cubit 3 out the window and leaves me with the cubit5 or SG05.

 

[Guardsmon]

Thank you again Tute and Legion.

I've done a fair bit of reading last night and I while I'd like it sooner rather than late summer it looks best to hold off. I'll keep planning though

I'll keep updating with plans.