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I've seen a few post recently where the question was asked: "What parts would give me the lowest power HTPC?".
So my question is this: Why?
A - Are you looking to "lower your carbon footprint"? (btw,..I typed that with a lot of sarcasm!!! My keyboard is a mess)
B - Are you looking to lower your electricity bill? (admirable, but I doubt you'll save as much as you hoped you would)
C - A combination of the first two?
D - Something else entirely?
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2013-04-17, 21:57
(This post was last modified: 2013-04-17, 21:59 by Dougie Fresh.)
A lot of my mini-ITX customers are from overseas. I suspect electricity rates are much higher there. I think there's a culture of smaller is better too.
But, you do have to balance that with performance. If it doesn't do what you need then it's pointless. Really, every conversation should start with "what do you want your HTPC to do?" and then we can offer components that would have the lowest power consumption but still satisfy the requirements, if that's something someone is looking for. Even with "ecosmart" in the name, that's really the goal we strive for -- it still has to perform.
Maybe the better question is what's the most efficient build I can get.
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artrafael
Team-XBMC Forum Moderator
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If, by "lowest power" we're referring to units such as the RPi or Pivos XIOS, then:
E - No noise
F - Little heat dissipation
G - Extremely small physical footprint
Of course, E & F also can be achieved with an efficient system that may offer better performance, expandability and connectivity.
Then there's also:
H - Bragging rights to see who can get XBMC to run on the most underpowered system. Similar to the exercise of seeing who can overclock processor XYZ the most and still have a functional system and not fry the CPU.
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I wanted a low powered device because:
1. I want to leave it on all the time.
2. I don't want it to heat up my TV-cabinet.
3. Why not? If it does the job and wastes less electricity, that's a double win.
I'm from Belgium, so i'm overseas and I disagree with the "small is better" argument. I think it has more to do with how much of the budget is spend on different things. We pay a lot more taxes and focus more on housing. Devices need to be power-efficient. That doesn't mean there are only small cars, but that 3.8l BMW has to have a green logo on it...
For the electricity rates: I currently pay an average of about 15,16c€/kWh (0.01978$/kWh) all taxes/fees/discounts inclusive. Is that more then in the US?
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2013-04-18, 07:26
(This post was last modified: 2013-04-18, 07:26 by Vampirebat.)
this is how "low Power HTPC" translates to me.
Lower Power = Lower Heat
Less Heat = Less Cooling
Less Cooling = Quiet Viewing Experience
Quiet Viewing Experience - Less Bitching & Moaning About How Loud The HTPC Is From The Family
Less Bitching & Moaning About How Loud The HTPC Is From The Family = Happy Headache Free Me
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I have three HTPCs in my home which correspond to three different usages:
- One mac mini (supra small, supra silent and power effective machine): On the main biggest screen of the house, I don't want any parasite noise when watching my movies.
- One half htpc/half gaming rig in the bedroom to be able to play games when my wife sleeps and I don't and yet watch tv shows and movies on an almost dead silent htpc. Here the relation power/efficiency/silence is crucial
- A gaming rig in my office which also runs XBMC for the days where I have to work supra late and playing/having a movie on the side is necessary to relax. Here it is absolutely necessary to have a silent idle htpc but the noise isn't an issue under load (huge fat gaming headset instead of speakers),
As stated before, it all depends on what you want to accomplish but overall, being a silence lover (a fly in the living room could wake me up at night...), I'd rather always go with power efficient components that are easy to cool in silence than pure performance. Who cares if your computer can play 8K movies if your TV is 720p limited?
Another side to it is that most my computer run 24/7 and not only is it better for my bills and the environment, it is also good for the overall heat of my rooms (most houses/apartments in europe don't have central heating/cooling systems)
For exemple, the new Haswell i7 35w is a gift from the skies. Can't wait to see the pricing but I think it might be awesome in well studied, adapted machine.
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2013-04-18, 14:24
(This post was last modified: 2013-04-18, 14:24 by pecinko.)
1. It's smaller, cooler, noiseless
2. it's cheaper
3. it feels a bit strange to use quad core CPU in HTPC when RPi can provide smooth playback
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All great comments and perspectives!!! Appreciate the feedback.
I suppose some of my sarcasm over products labeled as being "Green" or "Eco" is this,...(and I'm speaking strictly from a US perspective):
I'm sick and tired of seeing "products", be they in department stores, grocery stores, or on-line,..labeled as being "Green" only for a Marketing-Sell-More-Product scam.
Granted, most consumers are Sheep when buying products,..which is why there are so many commercials on TV. Hence us building our own entertainment system.
Heck I've even see a jar of Mayonnaise labeled as being Earth Friendly and being a Green product. I don't want green mayonnaise, I want White mayonnaise. But I digress.
Some of the points seen above are extremely valid points and to each their own,...
My main point in regards to HTPCs is this,...I'm disturbed when novices ask for something that might be unimportant or unattainable, or simply way too expensive.
I agree with Dougie's first post: The first question should always be,..."What are you looking to do with this computer, what are you willing to spend, and what are you willing to "give up" to attain other benefits".
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Living in Phoenix, AZ.. With summer time rolling up, taking heat generators out of the house is a good thing.
