Which nettop to choose?

Question

Iron

There was a need to put a piece of iron at home, which will work as a media player for TV, a file server and a torrent downloader.

At first I thought in the direction of media players. But those that you like in terms of functions - well, there, with a torrent downloader, a browser, streaming network services, etc. - they cost somewhere between 150-200 euros and more.

And for this money, simple nettops with all the consequences begin to loom on the horizon. I'm leaning more towards them, but maybe I'm wrong. More about media players - I'm unlikely to bother with firmware. Well, or rather, I’m unlikely to regularly set something for myself, I want to set it up once - and so that it works.

What I would like from a piece of iron:
- relative omnivorousness in formats and quality - so that it does not slow down on FullHD and knows mkv
- maximum noiselessness
- HDMI output
- built-in wifi is desirable, so as not to guess later with a whistle model (this is more likely about a media player, a nettop should not have problems with whistles)
- energy efficiency - I want to keep the piece of iron online 24/7
- I would like to meet the price of 200 euros

The questions are:

- Is it possible to buy a normal simple nettop for up to 200 euros?

- Am I right in general that I look towards nettops? I looked at the Q&A on players on Habré - I see that the players are quite omnivorous and smart, but, as people note, this is still not a full-fledged server.

- I see such a model on the German Amazon, for example - Foxconn NT-535 Netbox Atom D525 (HDMI, VGA). Can someone say something about her, is this one suitable?

- Advise models, please, taking into account the listed requirements.

Answer 1

Collect it yourself, it will be cheaper. I have fullhd video on Foxconn AHD1S-K, AMD E-350, including all sorts of 1920x1080 rips, no problem. Plus you can cut some new toys with min. settings. The only thing is that in summer, with passive cooling, it can overheat, so you can try to take it with a cooler.
You can look at the cases here www.dont.ru/Morex-Cubid%205689B%20P/n :%20109517.id4330.html (I took this one for myself).

Answer 2

Media players are more aimed at playing video (special microcircuits), therefore, other things being equal, a more expensive nettop may not be able to pull a powerful format, but a media player can pull it.
Passive cooling is more common in media players, and nettops often rustle with fans quite disgustingly.
Look also at alternative options
1) Laptop (you can take it with a broken screen in whole or in part - it will turn out to be kosher for the price, silence and performance are often better than nettops).
2) Tablet (modern ones are quite capable of playing most videos, plus there are pluses, sorry for the tautology, compared to other solutions).

Answer 3

Choose a mother and collect nettop yourself.
It’s problematic to fit in 200 euros if you want several sane hdds and a normal case with a quiet power supply unit (more precisely, a 200 euro filling will fit perfectly, but the case and power supply unit will not be included here).
If you just need a ready-made nettop with one hdd, just buy any nettop on ION2.
Well, my advice to you is to buy a large case for all this. I have a Zalman Z9 plus, and I clearly realize that I will almost never change it - it has already gone through 3 fillings and so far I don’t even think that there is something better. Well, this is all provided that the place is not a pity.

Answer 4

Recently, a similar question was raised here, as one of the solutions - this is the Zotac ZBOXNANO-AD10-E
platform. And the video turns any, and the card reader is on board, and Wi-Fi too, there is even bluetooth, eSata ... as for me - so ideal for a media center.

Answer 5

For myself, I chose a mother on AMD E-350 (now it's better to take with E-450), 4GB of memory, a small case and xUbuntu + XBMC.
Works 24/7, mkv in FullHD (maximum I tried a 33 GB movie) plays without brakes, does not make noise, does not heat up, low power consumption (only 120 W power supply, in fact in the load, I think no more than 50) the case includes two 3.5 hard disk (if ODD is not installed). You can even take a WiFi network PCI-E and put it in the case so that it doesn’t stick out from the outside. In 200 euros, I think, keep within.

Answer 6

intel has a very thin MP with hdmi and two mSata, you can put mini-ssd and wifi in them) the PSU is universal, the power input is right on the motherboard. sata connector is one combined with msata, one is independent) thin cases can be searched on ebay and avito, or if you need a lot of disks, a regular mini-itx will do. if you find a case for 20 bucks, ssd for 30-50 and wifi with antennas for 30, then it will also remain on disks with RAM) instead of msata ssd, you can put bluetooth or 3G, as long as there are drivers)

Answer 7

I recommend Hystou nettop. For the home - enough for the eyes, it works wonderfully. Not heard, not seen. Intel board, Chinese box.