[eskro]

[CASE/MOBO/CPU+GPU/PSU] Foxconn NTA350 / AMD E-350 + HD 6310 APU / 65W ($173)
[RAM] KINGSTON ValueRAM 2GB (1x2GB) 204-pin DDR3 1066MHz CL7 1.5V ($20)
[SSD] ADATA Premier Pro SP600 32GB SATA-III 2.5" Read:360MB/s Write:130MB/s ($50)
TOTAL: $243

Pros?
* FULL 2D 1080P Ready!!
* Built-in WiFi!!
* 1 x HDMI output!!
* 1 x SATA-II port!!
* 2 x USB 3.0 ports!!
* 4 x USB 2.0 ports!!
* 1 x Multi Card Reader slot!!

Cons?
* won't do FULL 3D 1080P!!
* won't Bitstream DOLBY TRUE-HD & DTS-HD MASTER!!
* no Built-in Bluetooth!!
* no SATA-III port!!
* no Optical (S/PDIF) output!!

[Skank]

Mm still too much
Why need an ssd with openelec?
Cant we do it without?
And for total of 100?

[eskro]

go for an android mini pc.

[N3MIS15]

eskro. It might be worth highlighting what wont work with these builds. Without looking at the other threads you posted, I wouldn't have noticed that HD audio was missing..

[Nu7s]

eskro. It might be worth highlighting what wont work with these builds. Without looking at the other threads you posted, I wouldn't have noticed that HD audio was missing..

Welcome to marketing 101

[Skank]

go for an android mini pc.

Which one?

[grin]

I know this is intended for OpenElec, but how would windows 8 run on this? I need to be able to watch netflix! Mostly 480p and occasionally 720p.

[cwide]

I know this is intended for OpenElec, but how would windows 8 run on this? I need to be able to watch netflix! Mostly 480p and occasionally 720p.

Do you just want Netflix?

Roku would probably be best.

[grin]

I want more than netflix. I want to run XBMC, so I can rip all of my DVDs to a NAS and stream from there.

[cwide]

I want more than netflix. I want to run XBMC, so I can rip all of my DVDs to a NAS and stream from there.

Probably better off with a Celeron NUC. It can do Netflix HD.

[Dougie Fresh]

No Netflix HD with E-350 or Atom -- neither are powerful enough to handle software rendering of high-def content (Netflix uses Silverlight which as of last checked does not always do GPU acceleration).

Celeron 847 (as cwide alludes to) is the minimum.

[Mick1152]

Or a DIY Celeron 847 system, some of the boards are showing up on sale for $60 after mail in rebates or $80 with 8GB memory included. Add a cheap case with a power supply and you have a system capable of running Windows and XBMC for much less than most of these pre built systems that will only be okay with OpenELEC.

[cwide]

You can literally build an Openelec DIY Celeron 847 system for around $130 right now.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6813128585 - $50 AR

http://www.amazon.com/MI-008-Tower-Black...s=ITX+case - $53

http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-ValueRAM-...=2+gb+ddr3 - $20

http://www.amazon.com/Transcend-TS16GJF7...lash+drive - $11

Total: $134 or $123 with spare USB drive.

Not the greatest case though. Add $30 for http://www.amazon.com/ANTEC-OEM-ISK110-V...=antec+itx

[Dougie Fresh]

This is a nice ITX case that comes with a power supply for $61: http://www.directron.com/emc600bl.html that works well for a Celeron 847 motherboard.

[eskro]

@SKANK: at this moment, only the Pivos XIOS seems recommended because it gives you hardware decode.
android is fairly new in the htpc scene so, expectit to be buggy and clunky working a bit.
im not ready to go full android now in my htpc because of this.
someday i will tho, its going there. just not ready for prime time consumer level as of today.

@cwide: it is cheap, but again you need to look into what suits you best feature wise.
If you need FULL 3D 1080P and HD-Audio Bitstream, then its not for you.
then, it might be a noisy system with the APEC MI-008 PSU just on top of the CPU cooler,
you'll need to add a side Fan like many did in there with that case, so you add cost there just for that.
the ISK110 is a better case since it comes with a fanless PSU or that nice Habey case Dougie posted here http://goo.gl/5c5qX,
i forgot that one! nice catch Dougie!
also, that gigabyte board has bad reviews to me.... i dunno...