mini-ITX

Well, what do you guys think about this? I think it is REALLY cool and woul dbe better if you could use better CPUs and could upgrade. I love the size. God I want one. Anyone using one? Watta ya think about it?
Thnx.

O ya--- for the ones who dont know what it is: www.mini-itx.com

yeah they look pretty cool. those would be perfect for a car computer or computer built in somewhere weird.
also, dont they have 1ghz chips now that dont even need a heatsink? completely silent pc , if you can live with 1ghz

I've been usin' the Epia 5000 for a couple months now as a server (even built a little wood case for it). The size is perfect. The modding possibilities are endless.

I just saw that clear PC are offering their cases in mini-itx size now. I'll have to check that out.

Only 13.5" tall.
http://www.clearpc.ca/

Once it gets more advanced, i think I will get into it. or when i want a media comp....

I have two at this present time, both M9000's.(they have a Embedded/hard soldered 993 mhz Via C3 - based on the old Cyrix processor) The main benifit of this system imho is it physical size (obviously) and it is exceptionally quiet. The system is not at all powerfull and generally benchmarks out about the same as my fathers Duron 800.
If you just want a desktop or development system then it is great however if you play games look elsewhere. The mini-itx mobos seriously struggle playing games, Q3 for example can not be run any higher than 800x600 and then only achieves medium double figure frame rates (30-60 fps).
Im currently using one for a mail server and the other as a linux-box as they suit my requirements. if you are a games player then imho you would be better off looking at the slightly larger Flex-ATX which features the Celeron and P4 range of processors, and depending what make mobo you purchase some Flex-ATX mobo's also ship with a AGP slot.

TheFrag said:

Once it gets more advanced, i think I will get into it. or when i want a media comp....

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If you want small form factor with latest technology look towards Flex-ATX its not as small as Mini-ITX but its specifications can be much higher

I have mixed feelings about Mini-ITX machines. You pay a premium for a moderate size difference and what you get is a sometimes quiet machine (depending on the PSU you choose).

They're fine for anyone who does NOT fit the following criteria...
- someone who loves gaming (in 3D)
- someone who pinches pennies (Mini-ITX machines cost 15% more than somewhat larger budget mATX machines)
- someone who doesn't care what their machine looks like
- someone who upgrades frequently

So who would I recommend a Mini-ITX machine to? Generally speaking someone who: is space-restrained, likes peace and quiet, not well-versed in computers, andwas previously contemplating buying a Mac. (so in otherwords, college students)

I myself will never own one because I love being able to interchange everything based on my changing needs (or the needs of those I build computers for). Mini-ITX has the upperhand in cuteness. But it currently suffers in the area of adaptability.

I'm considering getting one soon, I'm going to put in a little box and put it under my TV, to use as an MP3 and web-TV thingy

Yeah im planning on building a new machine but i want it to be as small as possible. I've decided i want either a Mini ITX or a Mini ATX but cant decide between the 2. The Mini ITX can look a lot better with all them nice little shuttle-like cases but you cant get any good looking cases for a Mini ATX .

I wanted a second machine mainly so i can use it to mess about on, maybe throw linux on it or something which dosent need a powerful machine, maybe using it as a filestore or mp3 and media box, oh yeah and maybe putting folding@home on it. I want silence too, the ITX will be more quieter but its more expensive too .

Hmm i cant decide, what do you guys recon i should get? Do you guys with a ITX ever regret buying it? Would you have prefered to have a M-ATX instead?

Seal

Oh yeah and i think this forum should have a mini computer forum section for, Mini ATX / ITX and shuttles and other small computers

that would be cool eh?

Meh votes first for it!

seal said:

you cant get any good looking cases for a Mini ATX .

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Are you sure?

Hmmm not bad captain, im not really keen on the 2nd case and ones that look similar to that, the first one. hmmmm, I dont want a case that looks like a "regular" case, being a regular poster on these forums we mod because we want to be different! I want one that looks like a little square like a shuttle or something as i think theyre kinda cool n funky! Is there a website or reviews or anything for that first case??? i might consider that one.

here is a non-regular case !

On a more realistic note:

and



and of course

o ya, I plan to make a mini comp, but will use micro ATX because it fits all my needs and has good power.

seal said:

Yeah im planning on building a new machine but i want it to be as small as possible. I've decided i want either a Mini ITX or a Mini ATX but cant decide between the 2. The Mini ITX can look a lot better with all them nice little shuttle-like cases but you cant get any good looking cases for a Mini ATX .

Click to expand...

The shuttle is actually Flex ATX and is larger than Mini-ITX and there are a wider range of cases for this format than Mini-ITX

I wanted a second machine mainly so i can use it to mess about on, maybe throw linux on it or something which dosent need a powerful machine, maybe using it as a filestore or mp3 and media box, oh yeah and maybe putting folding@home on it. I want silence too, the ITX will be more quieter but its more expensive too .

Click to expand...

Did you know that, there are major issues with drivers and the Mini-ITX mobo on Linux.. ive tried mandrake, redhat, suse, debian (currently the best is redhat 7.3 with later redhats doing exceptionally poor).. I have encountered problems with the TV out driver, the graphic card driver has to be compiled from source. The network card is detected as a incorrect chipset but works ok.. I can not get 3D support to work either presently and this appears to be normal according to similar posts on the mini-linux forums

Hmm i cant decide, what do you guys recon i should get? Do you guys with a ITX ever regret buying it? Would you have prefered to have a M-ATX instead?

Click to expand...

I have both Mini-ITX and Flex-ATX systems and like both of them however be the Mini-ITX system is NOT at all powerfull. Understand that and you will love it... ( the m9000 has similar all round performance to a duron 800 on a mobo equipped with onboard sound and graphics ) so the question is how much power do you want.. the ITX does not overclock well and locks up at every chance if done so and plays games poorly.. its suitable for nothing more than a simple web, office system imho.

Simply put if you play games buy a Flex ATX and stay well away from Mini-ITX

ill post some benchmarks from Win XP of the m9000 in a bit

Hey Slug- you still having trouble sellnig that clearcase you made/are trying to sell? Maybe that would be a decent case for Frag? Or anyone else wanting mATX/ Mini-ITX (both fit on same case configurations I'm led to believe).

BTW- I own a Epia 800 (800mhz Cyrix C3), havnt started using it yet (building a case), but with a 1U power supply attached, ther PSU and Mobo cooling fan are barly audible- but I would easily recommend upgrading the HS/F- I think you can replace it with most Northbridge coolers.

Heres a 993mhz Mini-ITX M9000 processor benchmark. As you can see they benchmark out less powerfull than a Duron 600 according to SI-Sandra 2003.

The 800 mhz unfortunately benchmarks out with a difference greater than its processor speed suggests.

That M9000 was running Windows and SI-Sandra 2003. The 800 Mini-ITX (non M-Series) run SDRAM while the M-Series is a DDR motherboard.

SYSTEM SPECS IN THE BENCHMARKS ABOVE :-

M9000 993 C3 processor
512 mb DDR Kingmax
8mb 120 GB WD SE Hard Drive.

If you want anymore benchmarks just say which ones.. my Flex-ATX generally benchmarks out about the same as a traditional mass produced PC while the 800 Mini-ITX benchmarks out about 15-20% lower in general than the M9000

UnseenMenace- Do you think the mini-itx board w/ the 800mhz processor with 256MB of RAM would play DVD movies and mp3's without any skipping?