Need to build a small/mini/tiny cheap hackintosh

[volcs0]

Having now built my monster quad-core hackintosh, I'd like to replace the ailing broken-screen Powerbook G4 hooked to our LCD TV in the kitchen. The G4 gets bogged down with too many heavy web pages open, and Hulu stutters.

Ideally, the machine would be tiny and be suitable for email, surfing, watching hulu and streaming movies from another machine via VLC or Plex. It needs to be unobtrusive - tucked out of the way.

I've tried googling various combinations of mini, tiny, hackintosh, etc., but I haven't found anyone in a similar circumstance.

So, I was wondering, how about a shuttle as a base, a cheap C2D processor, a stick or RAM and a small-ish HD. Could it be done for $300 or so?

Aside from the Shuttles, which is a little boxy, what other options are good? Any slimPC type options? The idea is small and functional - need not be a HTPC.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[CrackRabbit]

Might want to wait for the Nvidia Ion Platform to reach the market. Would be perfect for a mini hackntosh.

 

[Injury]

Maybe you should just get a mac mini.

The supposed price of the new model is going to be $500. I don't know if that's official yet or not, though.

 

[volcs0]

How about this? http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16856167032

 

[Zaap]

I dunno if that MSI Wind would hack it for video.

I think this setup would work great for you:

Intel BOXD945GCLF2

Dual core Atom, OSX compatible, most everything works OOB. No idea about retail install, but this board installs easily with a distro like iDeneb.

Mini ITX case

2GB DDR2 667

Add hard/optical drives as needed.

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: Zaap
I dunno if that MSI Wind would hack it for video.

I think this setup would work great for you:

Intel BOXD945GCLF2

Dual core Atom, OSX compatible, most everything works OOB. No idea about retail install, but this board installs easily with a distro like iDeneb.

Mini ITX case

2GB DDR2 667

Add hard/optical drives as needed.

The only problem is that the GMA950 driver is a bit flakey. Not terrible, but somewhat flakey at times. I'm holding out for either a new Mini or an Ion.

 

[Zaap]

I used the GMA 950 graphics fix from this guide with this board (used iDeneb v3 and upgrade to 10.5.5) and haven't seen any problems with the graphics. Maybe people have problems at resolutions higher than say, 1680 x 1050?

Of course, a Mini would be a better solution, but it's also (at least) $500 solution vs. a $300 one. I'd recommend a used Mini off ebay if it's an option for the OP.

 

[Parasitic]

Originally posted by: volcs0
How about this? http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16856167032

No DVI on that...I wouldn't go for it.

 

[dclive]

I suggest waiting until the next-gen mini comes out in a few weeks, as I think that will change a lot (and will drop prices on existing minis) given the graphics updates and other incremental improvements.

If you don't care about graphics, a used mini from yourcity.craigslist.com would work too...

 

[sjwaste]

Used mini's arent really that cheap. Refurbs are almost the same price, but at least are coming from Apple. I'd suggest that route, just check their site daily.

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: dclive
I suggest waiting until the next-gen mini comes out in a few weeks, as I think that will change a lot (and will drop prices on existing minis) given the graphics updates and other incremental improvements.

If you don't care about graphics, a used mini from yourcity.craigslist.com would work too...

I agree...if they can really debut it at $499, it will be the bomb...

 

[Marinski]

Originally posted by: Kaido

Originally posted by: Zaap
I dunno if that MSI Wind would hack it for video.

I think this setup would work great for you:

Intel BOXD945GCLF2

Dual core Atom, OSX compatible, most everything works OOB. No idea about retail install, but this board installs easily with a distro like iDeneb.

Mini ITX case

2GB DDR2 667

Add hard/optical drives as needed.

The only problem is that the GMA950 driver is a bit flakey. Not terrible, but somewhat flakey at times. I'm holding out for either a new Mini or an Ion.

I just threw together a Hackintosh yesterday and used the Intel BOXD945GCNL. The GMA950 seems to be one of the only things that actually does work. LAN, Audio are a no go. Also tried to plug in a USB stick and it didn't work.

 

[Zaap]

Originally posted by: Marinski
I just threw together a Hackintosh yesterday and used the Intel BOXD945GCNL. The GMA950 seems to be one of the only things that actually does work. LAN, Audio are a no go. Also tried to plug in a USB stick and it didn't work.

Unfortunately, just any Intel motherboard does not a Hackintosh make. Intel seems to constantly mix it up with onboard components, and more often than not, if just picking a random Intel board model, LAN, audio etc. will not work with OSX.

Luckily, if you're into messing with it, you can replace most things with add-on cards. IE: PCI LAN card, and use USB audio like the Syba SD-CM-UAD ($8 and sounds better than most on board audio anyway.) The USB problem could be related to whatever install method you used, and the ICH7 chipset driver -or lack thereof.