Building a new rig, need some feedback

[JuddWack]

Hey kids, I'm setting up a new machine and was hoping to get some opinions. Here are some things that are important to me:

Under $400
Small form factor
1080p playback
HDMI out
File serving
Always on
Low power
Classic game emulation
Front USB ports for game pads

I think I would get the $16 extended warrentee on the mobo/cpu since there are so many integrated components. Am I making any massive mistakes here besides spending money I really shouldn't?

New Egg wishlist

Western Digital WD AV-GP WD3200AVVS 320GB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal AV Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Model #:WD3200AVVS
$79.99

ZOTAC IONITX-T-U Intel Atom D525 (1.8GHz, Dual-Core) Intel NM10 Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo
Model #:IONITX-T-U
$189.99

IN WIN BP-Series BP671.200BL Black Steel Mini-ITX Tower S.F.F Slim Chassis (Ultra Small Form Factor) 200W Power Supply
Model #:BP671.200BL
$54.99

Kingston 2GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 800 Unbuffered System Specific Memory Model KVR800D3S8S6/2G
Model #:KVR800D3S8S6/2G
2 of these bitches

[Code-Red]

Newegg was being a faggot, so I had to SS it. This system is better in every single regard.

Pros
- The Celeron is miles faster than the Atom. In fact it's probably >70% faster.
- It has a discrete 6670 that will run most games on low-medium, some on high, and emulators shouldn't be a problem up to PS2/DC/Wii.
- 8GB 1600 DDR3 instead of 4GB 800 SO-DIMM laptop memory. (could be upgraded to 16GB down the road with 2x8GB)
- Hard drive is cheaper, and faster @ SATA 6
- Socket 1155, so if you want to upgrade to something better, you can.

Cons
- It will use a tad more power - about as much as a lightbulb ~ 48w while idle. In comparison the Atom would do about 5w.
- The case is bigger.

"But Code-Red, that case is too big!". Well, then you can go with something like this:



Virtually the same thing above, this time we swap out the motherboard for a m-ITX, save money by having a 2-slot full height 6670, delete the PSU, and get a ITX cube case that comes with one.

If you still want something smaller than that, well I'd say you're SOL. An Atom will run NES, SNES, maybe PSX and N64 on low settings, but maybe thats all you want. It's a shit processor made for netbooks, and IMO its a waste of $350 that can be spent better.

[Juan]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813131697

Little bigger and no wifi, but it's cheaper and more expandable. I have a netbook based on that same APU and it should exceed your needs.

[Jeeba Jabba]

Code-Red put together a pretty decent setup for you there, but I think this might serve you a little better, especially because it has an Xbox 360 built-in.

[JuddWack]

Thanks for the opinions guys. I really like the mini-ITX boards, but not 100% hooked on Atom. I'm liking Code-Red's second build. I think I'm going to wait it out though until cyber Monday and try to score a deal.