Take That, iMac?: Build Your Own All-In-One PC

[ojas]

Nice! Never knew that you could build your own AIO!

BTW that chassis is now at least $413 on Amazon...anyway, will you run benchmarks and all (and show us!)?

[citation][nom]idroid[/nom]Nothing like a true iMac.[/citation]
Nothing like a true troll.

 

[cmcghee358]

Chris,

This seems like a quick and easy carry-over to a custom built laptop. Is there a chassis available in notebook?

Most of my friends love the idea of a custom built PC, then ask for a laptop. At which time I try and find them the best laptop and the perfect fit SSD to replace the HDD in said laptop. It's a hodge podge fix that always leaves me disappointed...

 

[halls]

Great article, this is a really interesting possibility. Once a chassis is available that can support something better than integrated graphics, I'm sold.

 

[Guest]

Couple of things I don't like.

1. There's no slot for a video card. Let's face it, the built in HD graphics just will not do, especially at 1080p.

2. And this is just for that particular motherboard, wasn't the H61 chipset the bugged Intel chipset that has SATA ports that slowly degrade with time? Even if that is a fixed revision, I would be very scared to touch that chipset. Of course, I could be wrong, could've been another corei chipset.

3. I remember this article being on here like 2-3 months ago... the same article.

 

[Device Unknown]

I see no advantage to AIO anymore. Space constraints? You can get a VESA mounted Mini-ITX chassis AND FIT a full sized GPU in it at the same time. Also, manufacturers should consider making the monitors a little thicker to accommodate a broader array of hardware. I doubt anyone would notice .75 inch thicker monitor.
However some may just not like a little black box attached to the back of their screen.

 

[classzero]

But it runs windows

 

[face-plants]

Excellent article Tom's! I have a few customers in mind already who'd love the small footprint of an all-in-one. They've stayed away from iMacs and proprietary all-in-ones from the regular suspects in the PC market until now but the flexibility of this build is great. I'll hold off until more powerful graphics are supported before getting one for myself but I'm definitely tempted.

 

[mayankleoboy1]

we need trinity APU in these builds.

 

[Isaiah4110]

Nice build for a second surfing/media machine. If a similar mobo is available for AMD APUs, it could make a decent low-end gaming machine too. All in all, it is good to know that there are options to build an all in one DIY style.

That's exactly what I was thinking. I was actually surprised to see an Intel CPU used here over one of AMD's APUs given the lack of ability to include any sort of discrete/mobile GPU and TH affinity for creating PCs with at least some gaming capability. I'm not by any means an AMD fanboy, but you can't really beat their APUs for gaming performance when you are completely unable to include a separate GPU.

Would this build be possible with an AMD APU system? If so, what made you decide to go the Intel route?

 

[Isaiah4110]

P.S. I loved the build and article. Seeing how easy it is, I think it is likely that I will end up building one like this for someone who is space constrained.

 

[Menigmand]

[citation][nom]Device Unknown[/nom]I see no advantage to AIO anymore. Space constraints? You can get a VESA mounted Mini-ITX chassis AND FIT a full sized GPU in it at the same time. Also, manufacturers should consider making the monitors a little thicker to accommodate a broader array of hardware. I doubt anyone would notice .75 inch thicker monitor.However some may just not like a little black box attached to the back of their screen.[/citation]

It's about 'visual real estate', design and less wires mostly. I found my previous computers tended to "take over" the room, and I dont have the luxury of a basement or other room that can be dedicated to gaming.

 

[cangelini]

[citation][nom]Justposting27[/nom]Couple of things I don't like. 1. There's no slot for a video card. Let's face it, the built in HD graphics just will not do, especially at 1080p. 2. And this is just for that particular motherboard, wasn't the H61 chipset the bugged Intel chipset that has SATA ports that slowly degrade with time? Even if that is a fixed revision, I would be very scared to touch that chipset. Of course, I could be wrong, could've been another corei chipset.3. I remember this article being on here like 2-3 months ago... the same article.[/citation]
That'd be funny, since I just wrote it

 

[ram1009]

I will NEVER consider a computer as eye candy. It's just childish. A complete waste of time and energy.

 

[DigitalWarlord]

Interesting. I would love to see an A8 or A10 A-Series processor on one of these, for some nice gaming performance. I just built a small computer for a friend with an A8 for close to $300 and it rocks!!! Runs stacraft 2 on high settings, and COD 4 easily.

 

[army_ant7]

Thanks for the reply Chris! And I very much appreciate compliments from people I admire! Just saying. 😀

Both of the PCIe slots mentioned are mini--just different lengths. When you see the card-based SSD and wireless module, those both plug into the mini-PCIe slots. The standard slot remains unused.

Anyway, I was thinking that you may have been referring to the mSATA slot, but based on what I've researched before, the mSATA slot is still incompatible with mini-PCI-E and thus different. But as I double-checked now, I found info about a router chip making them cross-compatible. Does this board have such that you can use a mini-PCI-E card where the mSATA SSD is placed? Thanks!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MSATA#mSATA

 

[army_ant7]

Would this build be possible with an AMD APU system? If so, what made you decide to go the Intel route?

I think it's because only Intel CPU boards may be offered in this AIO form factor. It was mentioned in the article that other mo-bo companies make these kind of boards.
Plus Chris did say this:

I've asked AMD if they have any plans to support this form factor. Company representatives seemed interested, but not particularly sure if AMD would ever pursue channel-enabled all-in-ones. We'll almost certainly see Trinity-based tier-one boxes first.

 

[rohitbaran]

Is there a motherboard available that can include space for a discrete GPU as well?

 

[spookyman]

Its an interesting build. Shame they did not build one with say...a graphics card option like I seen on some Imacs?

 

[cangelini]

That's specifically addressed in the story 😛

 

[RedJaron]

I really don't understand why AMD wouldn't jump on this format / form factor. Didn't they say their focus now is on the mid- to low end, especially mobile space? An AIO is basically a laptop is a slightly different shaped box, I would've thought they'd be the first to market with something like this. Unless they're focused more on OEM solutions instead of DIY?

 

[Isaiah4110]

I really don't understand why AMD wouldn't jump on this format / form factor. Didn't they say their focus now is on the mid- to low end, especially mobile space? An AIO is basically a laptop is a slightly different shaped box, I would've thought they'd be the first to market with something like this. Unless they're focused more on OEM solutions instead of DIY?

Exactly what I had been thinking. The AMD APU seems like it would be a perfect fit for this type of system, unless you want to build strictly for web browsing and productivity software. Most recreational applications require more robust graphics processing power than Intel's CPUs currently provide.

However, I did notice AMD's APUs all have higher TPD than the Intel processors required for this build. The A8 line all require 100W TPD and you have to go down to an A6-3500 or an A4 to get a 65W TDP from AMD. I'm thinking they may not have reached a place where a single chip can provide that level of CPU and GPU capabilities without having a higher TDP yet. Higher power usage obviously = more heat and that could be why AMD has not released anything to allow this type of build yet?

I think it's because only Intel CPU boards may be offered in this AIO form factor. It was mentioned in the article that other mo-bo companies make these kind of boards.
Plus Chris did say this:

I've asked AMD if they have any plans to support this form factor. Company representatives seemed interested, but not particularly sure if AMD would ever pursue channel-enabled all-in-ones. We'll almost certainly see Trinity-based tier-one boxes first.

Thanks for bringing that post by Chris to my attention, army_ant7.

 

[K2N hater]

Such large screen enclosure could have been of good use for more antennas to enable 450Mbps WiFi or perhaps a TV tuner. Also USB 3.0 headers aren't much more expensive than 2.0.

 

[twztechman]

With the new Haswell processors coming soon, this could actually be a viable gaming option.

 

[cangelini]

[citation][nom]twztechman[/nom]With the new Haswell processors coming soon, this could actually be a viable gaming option.[/citation]
I won't hold my breath.

 

[army_ant7]

Sorry to repost this, but it's just that you may have missed my reply above about if the full-length mini-PCI-E is cross-compatible with mSATA on this board, because in the Wikipedia link that I sent above, it says that they normally don't have compatible signaling or something like that. Just wondering. Thanks Chris!