PC\'s
Perhaps not quite as well known in the world of motherboards and processors, VIA has started showing up in the world of Mini-ITX formats dedicated to audio/video. Based on the new VIA C7 Esther processor and the CX700M2 chipset, VIA is clearly looking towards the general public and those interested in PC Media Centre. With a reduced size, this new platform has enough points going for it to be able to seduce users. In this article we will see what it has to offer.
To test the platform we used a Seagate 7200.10 S-ATA hard drive with a capacity of 750GB (ideal for storing different HD and HDTV files) with a Kingston HyperX PC-6400 DDR2 memory DIMM, an NEC ND-2500A DVD-RW reader/writer and an ANTEC Neo HE 500 power supply.
As for the operating system, we were disappointed that we couldn’t use GeexBox, as it doesn’t support the UniChrome graphics solution, which is unfortunately a similar problem for most Linux distributions. We therefore turned towards Windows XP Media Centre 2005 for our tests. For more comfort, since Windows is quite resource hungry, then you should look at using 1GB of memory instead of the 512MB that we had here. If you are also looking at using a program like Media Portal then its heavy memory use may also go against it on this machine.
Even with a reduced size, the 40mm cooling fan works wonderfully with the C7 Esther processor, also provides you with reduced power use.
With an aluminium heat sink and a small 40mm fan, we started measuring the temperatures and noise coming from the system. These tests were performed when the system was not installed in a case.
The sound made when the IGP processor was at full load was quite correct with only an average of 43 dBa being detected..
Overall, the EPIA EX15000G uses less electricity and is quiet.
When looking at the electricity use, with the help of a MultiMate, the electricity use was average.
As for the operating system, we were disappointed that we couldn’t use GeexBox, as it doesn’t support the UniChrome graphics solution, which is unfortunately a similar problem for most Linux distributions. We therefore turned towards Windows XP Media Centre 2005 for our tests. For more comfort, since Windows is quite resource hungry, then you should look at using 1GB of memory instead of the 512MB that we had here. If you are also looking at using a program like Media Portal then its heavy memory use may also go against it on this machine.
Even with a reduced size, the 40mm cooling fan works wonderfully with the C7 Esther processor, also provides you with reduced power use.
With an aluminium heat sink and a small 40mm fan, we started measuring the temperatures and noise coming from the system. These tests were performed when the system was not installed in a case.
The sound made when the IGP processor was at full load was quite correct with only an average of 43 dBa being detected..
Overall, the EPIA EX15000G uses less electricity and is quiet.
When looking at the electricity use, with the help of a MultiMate, the electricity use was average.
- Burn (playing a HD video 720p/1080p): 41.7 Watts
- Idle (standby): 2.4 Watts
- Idle (Word, Internet, jukebox, etc): 34.5 Watts
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