How to choose a minicomputer for home?

Question

HTPC

Now divorced quite a lot of minicomputers (or single-board). The thing is certainly good and the price does not bite, but to choose this for yourself. Its main purpose will be sitting on the couch with a mouse to watch the Internet, movies and some music. Sometimes you can take it with you to the country house, plugging it into an old TV to play something simple on the joystick. But I would also like to indulge a little by connecting various peripherals (by the way, can they be programmed in Java or Mono?). What do you advise?

Answer 1

I am conservative.
www.ulmart.ru/goods/391886
miniITX, Intel Sandy Bridge, DDR3, HDMI on board, two network cards.
It pulls HD video perfectly, it doesn't heat up, it doesn't make noise, it fits into the smallest cases (including excellent home-made ones). Bought more than five of these kids.

Answer 2

It is for this functionality that I would recommend rikomagik. But if in the future it is planned to expand the functionality, then raspberry pi. On the latest Linux. Still more possibilities. Although some people also install Linux on rikomagik, I have not been able to do this. Either the sd is not the same, or the model, or the firmware.

Answer 3

It seems to me that a simple inexpensive laptop would be more convenient. In addition to the process of carrying, of course, although there will be a more or less functional platform the size of a laptop. Nettops have a lot of pluses, and one minus - there is no monitor, no built-in UPS, no keyboard and mouse, which means that when moving, all this must somehow be provided.

Answer 4

you decide on the form factor
“sitting on the couch with a mouse to watch the Internet, movies and some music” - a modern phone can do this, display a picture from it on a TV, connect a mouse with a keyboard via bluetooth and go ahead :-)
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I myself I have been collecting HTPC for many years, one of the latter is described here - people.overclockers.ru/ronaldo/17446/Postroenie_HTPC_i_drugie_domashnie_kompjutery_chast_1
though now I have already revised the concept and swapped the hardware from the NAS ( people.overclockers.ru/ronaldo/17525/Postroenie_HTPC_i_drugie_domashnie_kompjutery_chast_2) and HTPC + Celeron exchanged with a surcharge for a Core i5 3470 (this is due to a problem with cooling, in the passive AMD could not work in the heat in the summer, and I considered buying a cooler for 2000r a crazy idea because for the same money I exchanged Celeron for Core i5, I don't understand why there are no inexpensive low-profile coolers for AMD)

Answer 5

To watch videos (including FullHD) on TV, I use Intel NUC houses based on Celeron 847 + a wireless keyboard with a touchpad from Logitech. Really like! The size of the computer itself is such that you can put it in your jacket pocket.

Answer 6

This store has interesting models of motherboards and ready-made solutions that fit your description.