chefjef wrote:How does this compare in performance to something a little larger like the Asrock Ion 330-ht? The specs seem similar but this is so much less expensive.
Thanks!
Jeff
This has a slower, single-core CPU and a lesser graphics chipset. I'd like an ION or ION 2 setup with the Atom 330 dual-core CPU like the Asrock you're looking at, but as you noticed, the price difference is still substantial. This would be a good starting point; if you like the whole Nettop experience you can upgrade later on.
goansongo wrote:But why would you ever want to use a computer that is made with "netbook" hardware. I really don't see how this would take up less space than a netbook. Most netbooks are small to begin with. Adding in a monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers would take up more space than a netbook.
I suppose it is cheap since it's under $200, but I don't see why you can't just buy a netbook with HDMI for under $200. Am I missing something though? Like can this do something different from a netbook? I see it has a video card... So what do you do with this?
It's not so much that you specifically want to use Netbook hardware, it's that it's cheap to begin with and if the level of performance it provides works for your applications, then that means you save money (and space, and heat output, etc.)
The overall setup is bigger than a complete Netbook, but you have to assume a user already has I/O devices and so adding this Nettop requires very little space, and you might be replacing an older, much larger desktop anyways. Plus, it includes a VESA mount as previously discussed so it can sit right on the back of an LCD panel and take up no additional space on the desk itself.
The problem is finding a Netbook (regardless of HDMI) for under $200. It's not that they don't exist, particularly refurbished, but as is the case with laptops they cost more than their desktop counterparts. There are more expensive items to go with a Netbook/laptop such as the display, battery, keyboard/touchpad, etc. so desktops normally cost less for the same hardware (and desktops usually offer better performance than their mobile counterparts.) Your monitor & input devices did cost you money, but that's a sunk cost and doesn't add to the purchase of a new system if you reuse your peripherals.
As I mentioned in a previous post, if you don't already have a Netbook then the extra $100 or so makes it worth it. I already have a Netbook from a previous WOOT.
This can't do anything different than any other Netbook, really, but it can do all of the things I mentioned in my first post in this thread, namely all of the casual tasks that don't include heavy gaming or 1080P output. You're probably browsing the Web right now, posting in this forum, listening to music, and maybe typing in a word processor; a Netbook or Nettop can do all of that, much more efficiently than your current desktop.
Plus, if you just need a low-performing system for desktop use, while a laptop or netbook would work nicely, they don't fit in as convenient a location as the back of a monitor like this Nettop will.
