Patriot's Box Office Core is an interesting system for those just looking for an affordable, compact unit to use as a media playback device. The fact that it does not ship with a hard drive means that some assembly is required, but this is quite easy even for those who generally do not touch the internals of a PC. The software implementation has that definite "OEM" touch, meaning that the software lacks a real nice looking general user interface and the implementation of many features, while usable, do not make good use of the screen real estate.
Overall the PBO Core has one big thing going for it: the open platform allows you to throw a different firmware on it, or even create your own, adding the functionality you want if you know your way around the proper programming languages. This is something that sets the device apart from other offerings in the market for which Patriot deserves a big "thumbs up". In the end, the Patriot Box Office does the job, it works and has a few nice perks, but if you are looking for the grace and beautiful user interface of a HTPC within the extremely compact form factor of the PBO, you will most likely be disappointed.