Updated: AOpen MiniPC – Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery
by Jarred Walton on March 3, 2006 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Installation and Setup (cont'd)
The whole package has essentially no wasted space, though we really wouldn't mind a fractionally larger case if that meant a few other extras. A couple more USB ports would be great, and the lack of standard PS/2 mouse and keyboard connections means most people will need a new keyboard at least. Still, you can't fault the design too much, as it does exactly what it's supposed to do.
To give you an idea of the time that it takes to build a system like this, I disassembled the unit, and then checked how long it took me to put it back together. The result? It took about 35 minutes, but that's with everything I needed readily available. If you're fishing for screws, unpacking parts, etc., it would probably be about a two-hour task (counting OS installation time as well as some time spent referencing the manual to make sure it was done properly). You'll also want some small screwdrivers, perhaps with magnetized bits to hold the screws. (You're not supposed to use magnets around computers, but I've been using such screwdrivers for years without any problems, and it's far more convenient than constantly dropping tiny screws into a case or carpet and then trying to find them. However, follow my example at your own risk.)
Getting the case open is the trickiest part, but the small wire connections and the extraction of the plastic drive cage also take some finesse. If you're not really comfortable working with PC components, you really shouldn't get one of these units as a barebones - and AOpen recommends that most users purchase pre-configured systems.
With the system fully assembled, software installation follows the standard routine. Being a slightly slower HDD and processor relative to most other modern PCs, XP will take a bit longer to install, but it's not really significant. AOpen's EZInstall tool remains as user-friendly as ever, providing one-click installation of all the drivers necessary once you have Windows up and running. Overall, the assembly and setup process was uneventful; it took a bit longer than some of the other SFFs that we've looked at, and everything was smaller and a bit more difficult to work with if you have larger hands, but anyone familiar with building PCs won't have a problem assembling the MiniPC.
The whole package has essentially no wasted space, though we really wouldn't mind a fractionally larger case if that meant a few other extras. A couple more USB ports would be great, and the lack of standard PS/2 mouse and keyboard connections means most people will need a new keyboard at least. Still, you can't fault the design too much, as it does exactly what it's supposed to do.
To give you an idea of the time that it takes to build a system like this, I disassembled the unit, and then checked how long it took me to put it back together. The result? It took about 35 minutes, but that's with everything I needed readily available. If you're fishing for screws, unpacking parts, etc., it would probably be about a two-hour task (counting OS installation time as well as some time spent referencing the manual to make sure it was done properly). You'll also want some small screwdrivers, perhaps with magnetized bits to hold the screws. (You're not supposed to use magnets around computers, but I've been using such screwdrivers for years without any problems, and it's far more convenient than constantly dropping tiny screws into a case or carpet and then trying to find them. However, follow my example at your own risk.)
Getting the case open is the trickiest part, but the small wire connections and the extraction of the plastic drive cage also take some finesse. If you're not really comfortable working with PC components, you really shouldn't get one of these units as a barebones - and AOpen recommends that most users purchase pre-configured systems.
With the system fully assembled, software installation follows the standard routine. Being a slightly slower HDD and processor relative to most other modern PCs, XP will take a bit longer to install, but it's not really significant. AOpen's EZInstall tool remains as user-friendly as ever, providing one-click installation of all the drivers necessary once you have Windows up and running. Overall, the assembly and setup process was uneventful; it took a bit longer than some of the other SFFs that we've looked at, and everything was smaller and a bit more difficult to work with if you have larger hands, but anyone familiar with building PCs won't have a problem assembling the MiniPC.
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JarredWalton - Friday, March 3, 2006 - link
Okay, read that as "AOpen or one of their partners." The point is that AOpen can't possibly charge $330 for this unit (with DVDR) and expect people to prefer it over the new Mac Minis. $200 gets you a Pentium M, $100 for the HDD... and you're still missing the OS. Then again, $100 price premium over a Mac if you really want to run Windows isn't the end of the world. Would I recommend it over a Mac Mini? No. If you want to buy it, though, it's still a pretty cool system to play around with. I would definitely take it over the older G4 Mac Minis, because it's clearly faster in important areas (like HD stream decoding). If the MP945 launches at $850 or less for a complete Core Duo system, we have a worthwhile contender.JarredWalton - Friday, March 3, 2006 - link
Well, this is the initial version, and it does have a DVD+/-RW drive. The optical drive runs about $85 at retail, I think. I definitely agree that AOpen should be able to get the cost of the tested model down to the $650 range (including OS), which would put it up against he Core Solo Mac Mini that just came out.Furen - Friday, March 3, 2006 - link
The OS price is the killer...The T2300 (1.66GHz) costs around $240 bucks (yet the core solo costs like $210), plus the $330 for the motherboard and $100 for the OS and you're already at $670. Add HD, the ram and you're way over budget. I suppose going for a Celeron M is the solution to this problem considering that Celeron performance is pretty comparable with the Pentium M's.
JarredWalton - Friday, March 3, 2006 - link
That's why this needs to be sold as a pre-built system, including OS. Large businesses can negotiate very good deals with MS and Intel, and realistically there's no way the case/chassis/mobo/PSU costs $330. At wholesale component prices, they should be able to match the price of the Mac Mini. Sell more at a smaller profit margin is the idea, though again I'm not sure how many people would buy one of these. Guess we'll see what happens.