mini ITX motherboard recommendations

[kinghong1970]

i need to build 3 pc's for my kids... all they do is use some google and some internet "games" and webkinz and stuff...

looking for mini ITX because the desk is very limited in size.

case will probably be a LianLi PC-Q11B or a PC-V354
and being my first mini ITX, looking for some board recommendations.

looking to spend as little money on this as possible.

any recommendations?
i like the Zotac IONITX-T-U Intel Atom D525 (1.8GHz, Dual-Core) Intel NM10 Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo but it seems a bit much for my purpose...



thanks in advance.

 

[Binky]

I would suggest something with a little more power than an Atom. Consider a Celron G530 on an H61 or H67 board. It will run cool and quiet, but it will be substantially more powerful than an Atom (which would probably perform poorly even on some flash games).

A G530 is about $52 and the boards run $60-$100.

Example foxconn for $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813186211

Example Asrock for $87
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157238

 

[kinghong1970]

much appreciated!

so then what are the intended use of the boards like the Zotac?
HTPC? and wouldn't they also need something with more power?

 

[bolomite]

to save even more money, just go with AMD E-series or maybe Llano, like A4 or something similar. Should be more than enough for what your kids will require, and the integrated Radeon graphics is a plus.

something like this:
http://www.frys.com/product/6539203?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG

 

[T_Yamamoto]

I would go with a llano build for this

 

[greenhawk]

if space is an issue, why not look at the all in one monitor style builds?

http://www.asus.com/Allinone_PCs/

a bit more costly, but then space and no need to buy anything else can be attractive.

Plan b could be just to get them a tablet.

 

[kinghong1970]

if space is an issue, why not look at the all in one monitor style builds?

http://www.asus.com/Allinone_PCs/

a bit more costly, but then space and no need to buy anything else can be attractive.

Plan b could be just to get them a tablet.

well that is an option... but i'll have to check how much it costs.
and as for tablet... it just frustrates me, when at family reunions, all the kids got their faces glued to their iphones/pads/tablets...

and i hear their school will start them on tablets next year... so i'll wait a bit.

 

[Binky]

to save even more money, just go with AMD E-series or maybe Llano, like A4 or something similar. Should be more than enough for what your kids will require, and the integrated Radeon graphics is a plus.

something like this:
http://www.frys.com/product/6539203?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Llano is definitely an option and the prices for MB+CPU are similar to the G530 setup ($100-$120). I still like the Intel better. Both should be more than adequate for the intended use.

That E350 MB+CPU has been been as low as $60 after rebates recently. It's certainly a possibility but I would probably build one of those to test before I built all three on that platform. It might not be fast enough but it should be close.

 

[Zap]

looking for mini ITX because the desk is very limited in size.

case will probably be a LianLi PC-Q11B or a PC-V354
and being my first mini ITX, looking for some board recommendations.

looking to spend as little money on this as possible.

"Little money" and "Lian Li case?" How does that work?

I would suggest an Apex MI-008 (Amazon cheaper than Newegg). It isn't the perfect case/PSU, but it is cheap, attractive and works. The PSU is pretty mediocre, but should be fine for a rig that draws less than 50W at full throttle such as a Celeron G530 with one HDD.

 

[alyarb]

I wouldn't take the Llano route at all. In the scenarios outlined by the OP, intel is the faster and cheaper solution. Nowhere does he hint that he needs a richer GPU than a HD2000, so I would strongly urge the cheaper, stronger Celeron G530 over any Llano chip.

 

[billyb0b]

I would suggest something with a little more power than an Atom. Consider a Celron G530 on an H61 or H67 board. It will run cool and quiet, but it will be substantially more powerful than an Atom (which would probably perform poorly even on some flash games).

A G530 is about $52 and the boards run $60-$100.

Example foxconn for $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813186211

Example Asrock for $87
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157238

I concur with a g530 and foxconn mobo. I recently purchased these two items to build a mini hackintosh. I'm quite happy with both. Put them in a simple $49 rosewill mini-itx case

 

[billyb0b]

"Little money" and "Lian Li case?" How does that work?

I would suggest an Apex MI-008 (Amazon cheaper than Newegg). It isn't the perfect case/PSU, but it is cheap, attractive and works. The PSU is pretty mediocre, but should be fine for a rig that draws less than 50W at full throttle such as a Celeron G530 with one HDD.

or get this cheaper rosewill case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147131

virtually the same design as the apex with a 250w PSU

 

[Zap]

or get this cheaper rosewill case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147131

virtually the same design as the apex with a 250w PSU

They are the same case, but the Apex is cheaper at Amazon because the Rosewill will cost around $4.50 more after shipping, versus free shipping at Amazon.

 

[GoStumpy]

I used this Gigabyte board (GA-H61N-USB3) in a Lian-Li PC-Q07 case, went together beautifully:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16813128526

$85 currently, I got it on sale for $65 with a rebate

 

[mcsman]

Please note that with the "cube" style Lian Li cases (PC-Q11 or PC-Q07), the mobo attaches to one of the side panels. This means that you have to, essentially, remove the board from the case to do anything with it. And with the board on the counter top, while you are working on it, the SATA cords will be stretched tight, if they stay in at all. From a service-assembly view point not the best design. But once up and running, a very attractive, and small, machine.

Dave

 

[unokitty]

I'm writing this on a system that uses a Zotac Dual Core Celeron with NVidia video. Its a simple board that comes complete with CPU, fan, and Video. Suspect that it would do everything that you have mentioned.

A lot of people seem to like the Antec Cases. And they are a little more economical than the ones that you mentioned.

Another possible way to save money would be to get an external CD/DVD rather than building one into each system.

Best of luck,
Uno

 

[dealcorn]

looking to spend as little money on this as possible.

any recommendations?
i like the Zotac IONITX-T-U Intel Atom D525 (1.8GHz, Dual-Core) Intel NM10 Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo but it seems a bit much for my purpose...

My flash reaction when you mention this Zotac board in connection with what you are trying to do is that you are nuts not to go with either Intel's D2700DC or D2700MUD which may be trading at or below $80 in about a week. They are both available on Amazon for under $85 right now and I would be surprised if the NDA's do not expire within a week so more insightful reviews may soon pop up. Compared to the Zotac your CPU gets boosted from 1.8 GHz to 2.13 GHz and your 1080P video support is built in with vastly improved energy efficiency. When reviewed they will chat up the benefits of memory bandwidth improvements. The Zotac board, like the e-350, will benchmark much better at graphics stuff but do you care if it performs fine at what your children are trying to do? I have not looked at children's stuff in a while but they used to target broad accessibly which generally means Cedar Trail will work great. If I am wrong about your kids apps, someone will proudly jump down my throat with independently verifiable documentation so read any follow up postings.

By the way, which board to pick turns on whether you want to use HDMI or VGA. It helps to be laid back because so far only 32 bit Windows drivers work ok. On the Linux side I believe its MeGoo or the highway. As a reality check on what it should cost when you pick a case and screw it together start here:http://www.amazon.com/Barebone-Embed...2075773&sr=8-2.

Other cases support a PCI card but cost more.

 

[Soulkeeper]

LianLi PC-Q11B is a nice case, I am using that with a llano system
seasonic has a cheap/good bronze 300W psu for about $40 on newegg (SS-300ET)

i3 or llano would be fine for you situation imo
possibly something else, but I wouldn't obsess over too many details personally.

 

[kinghong1970]

thank you all for your very helpful advice... i went ahead with a foxconn and it all went great.

but one thing i've noticed is that the screen resolution seems to be limited?
can't get above a specific setting and only 3 settings available...

sorry, at the office and i don't have it with me.

any thoughts?

i did not add a gpu on it... just using onboard graphics.

 

[Binky]

What OS? Win7?
How is it connected? HDMI?
What is it connected to? TV?
Did you install the full Intel graphics driver package, or did you use the default windows drivers?

 

[kinghong1970]

oops... win7 32 bit
connected via DVI
to a dell 22" monitor.

i recall i installed intel driver package.

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

This is one of the new Intel® Atom™ boards the Intel Desktop board DN2800MT and it should work well for your needs.

 

[sunilx]

IntelEnthusiast You should make it very clear that these D/N2xxx Atoms do NOT support 64-bit OS.

Please see IntelEnthusiast's comments here

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/325554-28-atom-d2700-cedar-trail

 

[dealcorn]

I think that today on the Linux side the only working video driver is the 32 bit closed source one used with MeeGo. It should get around to other distributions in due course. Has Intel gone on record whether a 64 bit Linux video driver is somewhere on the horizon?

 

[sunilx]

Best prices on Intel D2700DC or D2700MUD appear to be on Superbiiz when you factor in their frequent coupon deals and you won't need to worry about 64-bit drivers for any OS. (See post above)