Spec me a cheap mini itx htpc

manbearpig · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:29

Hi,

could someone spec me up a mini itx build for as cheap as possible please?

Thanks

Mr Krugga · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:42

No AM2+/AM3 miniITX boards on OcUK. Leaves Core i3 build as the only option:

Roughly £400 for this build.

manbearpig · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:45

Thanks a lot!

Mr Krugga · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:47

You're welcome. I haven't included a gfx. HIS Radeon 4850 would be a cheap option if you need some gaming power, otherwise it could be a low-end 5*** or GeForce 2**. Or the on-die graphics of the Core i3 if it suits you

manbearpig · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:53

I would only really be using this as a media pc for watching blu rays, downloads and possibly freesat if I got this and a tv card, so I dont think I would need a graphics card quite as good as that, maby I could get away with a ati 5450 or something similar like you have said.

Mr Krugga · 19 Jun 2010 at 23:56

manbearpig said:
I would only really be using this as a media pc for watching blu rays, downloads and possibly freesat if I got this and a tv card, so I dont think I would need a graphics card quite as good as that, maby I could get away with a ati 5450 or something similar like you have said.

It's your secondary PC (or HTPC if you prefer) so I'd suggest trying out the on-board graphics first, before making any purchases. You may as well save some pennies and for your needs, the on-board should do just fine

manbearpig · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:02

Mr Krugga said:
It's your secondary PC (or HTPC if you prefer) so I'd suggest trying out the on-board graphics first, before making any purchases. You may as well save some pennies and for your needs, the on-board should do just fine

Ok thats a good idea, thanks for the advise

greywolf · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:10

Have you considered something based around a ZOTAC IONITX Intel Atom 330? All in (minus an OS) will be just under £250.

manbearpig · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:14

greywolf said:
Have you considered something based around a ZOTAC IONITX Intel Atom 330? All in (minus an OS) will be just under £250.

I have had a quick look, but I dont really want a 1.6ghz atom processor that much though, but if there is any that you could recommend that would be great!

Atom · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:19

You could also overclock the i3 on die graphics...

manbearpig · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:22

Honestly, at the minute im just looking at a few different ways I could go to build something that would be suitable.

Mr Krugga · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:24

Does it have to be miniITX? You could build a nice AMD rig on microATX platform.

Cycrow · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:27

an ion would be the best to go for, if you are just using it is a media pc, then ions are perfect.

they do full hardware decoding when playing movies, so you will rarely use the processor power.

they also have all the useful connector as well, hdmi, optical out, etc

an ion can be had for under £100 for some of them, or something liek the Asus Deluxe one that silent, and comes with a silent psu you can use as well.
perfect if you want to make a silent htpc.
and they use a lot less power than something like an i3

manbearpig · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:34

Mr Krugga said:
Does it have to be miniITX? You could build a nice AMD rig on microATX platform.

It doesnt have to be mini itx, I just thought it would help keep costs down.

manbearpig · 20 Jun 2010 at 00:35

Thanks for the replies guys, I will look a bit more tomorrow.

Destination · 20 Jun 2010 at 09:35

manbearpig said:
It doesnt have to be mini itx, I just thought it would help keep costs down.

No shrinking it puts the cost up, for case, and mobo.