hmm might be replacing the i7 rig with one of these! looks cool tho

nice, finally an OEM completely taking advantage of AMD's HTPC muscle.

nice, wats this platform called

one thing that missing ... the audio output only analoque ... no coaxial or toslink ...

Taste the rainbow.
And this isn't too bad for an alternative to a large tower.

I'm just amazed that this thing has an Athlon and not an Atom -- wonder how that happened? Was Dell getting a lot of bad support calls about underpowered Atom chips now being able to play HD Video very well?

[I.R.A]_FBinice, wats this platform called

780G?, the chipset is 3 times faster in 3D than intel finest, who wants a atom/GMA950 when you can get a Athlon64/780G that totaly owns the intel combo in anything

dimensione thing that missing ... the audio output only analoque ... no coaxial or toslink ...

HDMI...

A 6850e might not run 1080p. Although in such a small form factor.. interesting.

Yes, the Athlon X2 6850E may not be able to handle 1080p, but the 780G can. :)

then it is the ATI 3200 HD or Intel GMA 950 and that advertised as HD Capable right?

dimensione thing that missing ... the audio output only analoque ... no coaxial or toslink ...

No doubt a cost-cutting measure, though as others have pointed out, the HDMI output should have no problem with 7.1 channel output. Being that HDMI is going to be most users primary mode of passing audio, I don't see the necessity in an overly complex backplane.

WeerA 6850e might not run 1080p. Although in such a small form factor.. interesting.

I would imagine their bundled software supports hardware (GPU) acceleration. Also, I would think a 1.8Ghz dual-core would have no issue whatsoever with the task, regardless of the fact that it is based on an older architecture. The 2850e is stock, which may give some users a struggle, but with the 1.5Ghz 3250e (dual-core) in place as a $30 upgrade, I don't see why you would bother with the former.

btarunr[*]Integrated ATI graphics adapter with standard HDMI and VGA video connections, and optional 512MB discrete graphics adapter.

:cool:

All this is great untill you discover you can build a twice as powerful PC for $750, and the equal in this will cost $1200.

For those wondering, the graphics card choices are the HD3200 IGP or a dedicated Radeon HD4330 512MB.

SteevoAll this is great untill you discover you can build a twice as powerful PC for $750, and the equal in this will cost $1200.

Well, to point out the obvious, its size is the main selling point. Flipping a mid-tower on its side doesn't make it an HTPC... This type of footprint is what we need more of, and even mITX can't touch it. You just can't DIY in a chassis this small. What's more, and you probably didn't notice this, but the two top-tier models include LCD screens (19"/20" respectively), which you need to factor into the overall value here.

aj28I would imagine their bundled software supports hardware (GPU) acceleration. Also, I would think a 1.8Ghz dual-core would have no issue whatsoever with the task, regardless of the fact that it is based on an older architecture. The 2850e is stock, which may give some users a struggle, but with the 1.5Ghz 3250e (dual-core) in place as a $30 upgrade, I don't see why you would bother with the former.

Great, so you agree with me that Atom 330 can run 1080p.

aj28Well, to point out the obvious, its size is the main selling point. Flipping a mid-tower on its side doesn't make it an HTPC... This type of footprint is what we need more of, and even mITX can't touch it. You just can't DIY in a chassis this small. What's more, and you probably didn't notice this, but the two top-tier models include LCD screens (19"/20" respectively), which you need to factor into the overall value here.

Yes, they incluse a $80 screen. Great.


I just built a PC with twice the power and it is goign to cost the owner $750 installed. So HTPC case, dual tuner and dedicated graphics would have made it about $200 more with a larger screen.


Everyone loves to quote dells "special deals" but when they sit down and actually start pricing, and adding things, and upgrading to what I spec anyway, they end up about $400-700 more per build.

SteevoYes, they incluse a $80 screen. Great.


I just built a PC with twice the power and it is goign to cost the owner $750 installed. So HTPC case, dual tuner and dedicated graphics would have made it about $200 more with a larger screen.


Everyone loves to quote dells "special deals" but when they sit down and actually start pricing, and adding things, and upgrading to what I spec anyway, they end up about $400-700 more per build.

You have to remember that anyone who buys one of these for a HTPC (not a normal desktop computer) has the money to dish out or absolutely no tech knowledge.
A prebuilt hassle-free computer with Windows preinstalled in THAT small of a case with customizable colors and relatively decent tech support is worth the arguably hefty price tag to most people.

KantasticYou have to remember that anyone who buys one of these for a HTPC (not a normal desktop computer) has the money to dish out or absolutely no tech knowledge.
A prebuilt hassle-free computer with Windows preinstalled in THAT small of a case with customizable colors and relatively decent tech support is worth the arguably hefty price tag to most people.

Har har har. :p

SteevoHar har har. :p

I don't get where the humor is.

SteevoYes, they incluse a $80 screen. Great.


I just built a PC with twice the power and it is goign to cost the owner $750 installed. So HTPC case, dual tuner and dedicated graphics would have made it about $200 more with a larger screen.


Everyone loves to quote dells "special deals" but when they sit down and actually start pricing, and adding things, and upgrading to what I spec anyway, they end up about $400-700 more per build.

While that may be the case, your HTPC still cannot match the Dell on a couple of levels. This is nothing against you personally, just a counter the DIY approach. For one, energy usage and noise production. Both of these are undoubtably quite low by design, and while you may beat one, it is unlikely that you will simultaneously beat both unless you're building on Ion, and even then it's not a sure thing. Two, you're dealing with a form factor you really can't match. As I said previously, even Ion on mITX can't match this thing, and certainly not with the same mixture of form and function. Finally, the warranty. Say what you want about Dell, but when your motherboard goes out, they'll replace it on the spot under warranty. I'm not sure what kind of a deal you offer your customers, but I can't imagine you keep a stock of parts, much less offer free in-home service for a full year, and if you do then you're either losing money or don't have a large customer base.

Also, I'm going to assume you're offering them the OS as part of that price, correct? OEM or retail? Do you offer software tech support, because Microsoft will not support users on OEM licenses. That responsibility is left up to Dell, or in your case, you.

The bottom line is, even if you are offering your customers a deal vastly superior to this one, not everyone lives in your immediate area, meaning there is still an overwhelming majority for which this is an excellent offering.

Unless they have a competitive business closeby, which tehy can use to purchase a PC close to the specs I build.


As for power consumption, One of my recent builds featured a 65W dual core, stock voltage at stable overclocks of 3.2Ghz on a X2 240, 80% silver PSU, 4GB DDR800 integrated 4000 series graphics and I allowed all the power management features.


I believe it pulled around 120W under load. I used a UPS power meter for that reading, so it might not be accurate, but even with F@H runnin on it it never even turns a fan on so it can be hard in a quiet room.


I imagine that it doesn't even pull 90W idle. Plus all solid caps....




My beef with Dell is their marketing and lureing people in, then getting them with upgrades, and the absurd intrest rate the charge the average idiot, so that when you have a issue with your Hell, you can speak to someone who has such a thick accent you can't possibly understnad them, and you wait on hold for 20 minutes just to get to them, so they can transfer you and you ahve to wait on hold again.


Windows pre-installed.


Is there any other way? Or do they mean, shit pre-installed, like al the trial ware they have, and the bloat that comes pre-installed.


Hassle Free. Except evey OEM pc I have ever fixed has taken about two hours to un-install old versions of crapware and bloat that poses security risks and loads up system resources on underpowered overpriced PC's so it makes it easier for spyware and other malwware to hijack a rig and turn it into a spambot. But hey, its hassle free.


Dell makes good laptops, and if someone had the insane minimalist 50 square foot apartment and could only fit this, great. Otherwise a overpriced piece of jusk, and one that will get plugged with cat hair, smoking tar, lint, and dust so fast and then die a tragic death that warranty won't pay for, unless you bought the extened warranty, and the extra protection warranty, and the hazzard warranty. All for only $60 each.

The most intriguing thing here is the fact that they offer an optional discrete graphics card.


If they use the same model case, there isn't any space for a PCI slot. Does this mean that it could be using an MXM based internal card?


And AMD seems like a great choice for this form factor, 780 or 785G gives you a lot of graphics horsepower for integrated (only the 9400m/9300m are any competition), and it gives you a fairly wide selection of low power inexpensive processors. Yes it would be great to see some new low TDP chips from AMD to put a little more power into it, but at this pricepoint it seems to be a really solid machine.

I think despite the price point, this is aimed at a different market than the atom machines. Atom nettops are typically file servers, web surfing PCs, and really convienence items offering little in terms of power (though admittedly enough for many applications). This system brings enough power for HTPC use and more substantial tasks, enough to compete with a fairly functional laptop at the very least.


Also interesting.... it's not Mini ITX. Judging from the back panel it's a nonstandard proprietary design.

4330 is availible as a mxm-1 module to some laptops
thus it might be upgardeble with other mxm boards and saw away the casing for space and cooling you might fit mxm-3 modules :-)

comparison

Its very cheap indeed as a SFF HTPC..

Inspiron Zino HD - $384

Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic SP1, 32-Bit
AMD Dual Core Athlon™ X2 3250e (1MB L2, 1.5GHz)
1 Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis - Important Information
McAfee SecurityCenter, 30-Day Trial
No Monitor
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 2 DIMM
250GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X DVD+/-RW Drive
ATI Radeon HD 4330 512 MB
Integrated 2.1 High Definition Audio
Dell USB Entry Keyboard
Dell USB Optical Mouse
Dell 1397 802.11 b/g Wireless Card
Piano Black

Compare it to one of these..

Mini-ITX - $444

ZOTAC GeForce GF9300-D-E ITX WiFi LGA 775 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500022
$129.99 after $10.00 Mail-In Rebate

PNY 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model MD2048KD2-667 - Retail
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820178134
$47.99

Intel Pentium E6300 Wolfdale 2.8GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80571E6300 - Retail
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116091
$80.99

HITACHI Travelstar 5K500.B HTS545025B9A300 (0A57912) 250GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Notebook Hard Drive -Bare Drive
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145255
$54.99

M350 Universal Mini-ITX enclosure
www.mini-box.com/M350-universal-mini-itx-enclosure?sc=8&category=87
$39.95
picoPSU-150-XT + 102W Adapter Power Kit
www.mini-box.com/picoPSU-150-XT-102-power-kit
$69.50
SILVERSTONE NT07-775 90mm CPU Cooler - Retail
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835220034&Tpk=SilverStone%20NT07-775%2090mm%20CPU%20Cooler%20-
$19.99

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Apple Mac Mini 2009 - $668.00
store.apple.com/us/configure/MB463LL/A?mco=MTA4MTY5Nzc

2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
3MB on-chip shared L2 cache running 1:1 with processor speed
1066MHz frontside bus

2GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive
One FireWire 800 port (up to 800 Mbps)
Five USB 2.0 ports (up to 480 Mbps)
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 128MB or 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory2
Built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi wireless 802.11n networking3 (based on 802.11n draft specification); IEEE 802.11a/b/g compatible
Built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)
Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45 connector)
Slot-loading SuperDrive with double-layer support

Extended desktop and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports up to 1920 by 1200 pixels on a DVI or VGA display; up to 2560 by 1600 pixels on a dual-link DVI display using Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter (sold separately)
VGA output using Mini-DVI to VGA Adapter (sold separately)

Apple Remote

--other--
Mini-DVI to DVI Adapter
110W power adapter and power cord