With m.2, 2x Intel NIC the GIGABYTE GA-Z170N-WIFI looks like a really solid foundation for a HTPC or mini server, it is a bit disappointing that DisplayPort didn’t make the cut… Our review unit of the Gigabyte GA-Z170N-WIFI arrived in a medium sized, brown corrugated cardboard box from the company’s American headquarters in City of Industry, California, USA. It arrived […]
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What is wrong with motherboard names these days!? Sometimes I feel like a frumpy old man reading these reviews :). Nomenclature asside, Skylake has me a bit excited, and with the recent outpouring of product, and reviews around the ecosystem it looks to have taken the OEMs and PC sites along as well. After Intel left the motherboard market, I’ve […]
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It was nearly a full year ago that we reviewed the Fractal Design Node 304 small form factor cube case, and boy did we like it—it offered a wealth of options packed inside a tiny chassis. The size of it was one of the few gripes, where due to the overall size of the cube it made managing items within […]
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Over the last few years Fractal Design has cultivated a reputation for delivering intelligent, quiet, and well-built PC cases that do not require breaking the bank. With solid steel construction, ample storage options, and three hydraulic bearing Silent Series R2 fans (2x 120mm, 1x 140mm) included, we should expect the ARC MINI R2 Micro-ATX case to continue this tradition. However […]
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Intel’s third generation Core integrated processor graphics (IPG) chip, aka Ivy Bridge (IVB), got off to a slow start for us with a set of high-end CPUs not really intended for the home theater PC (HTPC). We still do not have one of the low power Core i3/i5 with HD4000 graphics on hand; now that they are available, H77 based […]
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There was a veritable flood of intriguing Mini-ITX cases released this summer, including the Cooler Master Elite 120. Cooler Master took a somewhat conservative apporach with the Elite 120, offering up a fairly conventional shoebox-style case that didn’t rock the boat by eliminating the 5.25″ bay or limiting internal bays to 2.5″ drives. The result is a largish, jack-of-all-trades Mini-ITX […]
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Lian Li has built a reputation for quality and design with their aluminum cases over the years and the company has consistently been one of the biggest supporters of the Mini-ITX format. The Lian Li PC-Q16 is one of their cube-style Mini-ITX cases. To help trim a bit off the case’s girth, the PC-Q16 forgoes an ODD slot of any […]
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The BitFenix Prodigy Mini-ITX case has been out for a few months already, and though that might be a lifetime in tech time, the reviews keep coming. This time it’s the white version on the table, and although there is no fuctional difference between the white and black versions, it’s still refreshing to get such a thorough visual tour of […]
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If your only requirement of an HTPC is that it be as small as possible, then it might be time to take a look at the Antec ISK 110 VESA case. The ISK 110 VESA takes the Mini-ITX platform about as small as it can go and still remain a complete enclosure. There is room for a Mini-ITX motherboard and […]
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The first time I heard of Fractal Design I was still heavily invovled in the Windows Home Server community. The Fractal Design Array Mini-ITX NAS case was shaping up to be the ultimate choice for the DIYer looking to build a compact appliance-style WHS box. The original Array was popular, but not without its flaws, and so Fractal Design […]
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