ASUS Unveils "Essentio" CS5110 Mini-Desktop PC

[Rob Williams]

From our front-page news:

Rumors have it that the ASUS Eee PC has been doing well sales-wise, so it's only natural for the company to follow-up with the same idea, but packed into a desktop. Although, while the Eee PC is rather lackluster in power, the Essentio CS5110 actually has some power, so it looks to be a good choice for HTPC use or for any other use, where a small, quiet PC, is required.

The CS5110 is designed to lay flat, and should be comparable to either an Xbox 360 or Playstation 3, when they are laid flat. The machine is pure black, and glossy, so dust will be attracted to it like a magnet (I have this same problem with the PS3, but not my Xbox 360), and total noise hovers around 24dB.

Thanks for the included 8600M GT graphics processor, the CS5110 can also handle some light gaming, and in all truth, given that there is better airflow in this machine, that GPU should perform better than how it does in a standard notebook. That all aside, pricing will of course decide the success of the machine, but if priced-well, it should fly off the shelves. After all, it boasts far more power than a Mac Mini, but those still sell, despite their inflated price.

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Despite the small dimensions, the CS5110 packs quite a punch. The desktop features an Intel G35-based motherboard and supports Core 2 Duo, Pentium Dual Core and Celeron D processors. Up to 4GB of DDR2 memory (via two SO-DIMM slots) is supported and the chassis can accommodate a single 3.5" SATA II HDD, and either a slot-loading DVD SuperMulti or Blu-ray drive.

Source: DailyTech
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[slugbug]

Might be a good HTPC if the price is right.

 

[Merlin]

So many people just check email and surf the net.......this sounds great

:techgage::techgage: Merlin :techgage::techgage:

 

[Rob Williams]

So many people just check email and surf the net.......this sounds great

:techgage::techgage: Merlin :techgage::techgage:

And looks great, in my opinion. There is not too much to come out of the ASUS' camp that I am really impressed with, but I think this would look great, no matter where you throw it.

 

[Greg King]

Look at the upgradeable parts. If you start adding on a C2D and a Blu Ray drive, your getting into some higher end pricing. The great thing about the Eee is that it's cheap and portable. What is in it for me except for some decent styling... and there are better HTPC out there at that! This isn't chic enough to be stylish and once you start to build a machine with the parts that are going to make it usable as a HTPC your going to get back up into the big boy pricing.

The only reason the Eee is so popular is that it's so portable. It's underpowered and the screen is small. I just dont see this thing doing as well as the Eee...

... unless it's priced at an ungodly cheap price point. That or if the Eee continues to sell like crazy. That alone might propel Asus PCs into near Mac status as in everyone has to have one because they are "so cool."

/end rant.