Lowest Power consumption PC with i5/i3

[newtekie1]

I didn't get what you are referring to..?

You mentioned that you were considering the N2820 so I figured I'd share my experience with the N2830. The thing is so slow. The laptop felt so sluggish. I didn't get to test it with playing video because I didn't have a lot of time with it, thankfully. But doing everything just felt like it was grinding. Even browsing the web to download some programs I needed felt like I was pulling teeth. The computer was so slow it made browsing the internet feel like I was on a 1.5Mbps DSL connection not the 50Mbps connection I was using.

 

[michael]

Hi Guys.
Thanks a lot for your valuable inputs.
I thing both NUC N2820 and AMD AM1 with ASROCK AM1 board with DC adaptor is good option .

But for me for building any new machine the case is very very important. it should look decent and eye catchy.... Would you please suggest me some miniitx cases..

I dont want these... cases..

is there something new which has come...?

 

[Mussels]

why not buy one of the zotac mitx prebuilt systems?

 

[michael]

why not buy one of the zotac mitx prebuilt systems?

NO.

 

[RCoon]

Hi Guys.
Thanks a lot for your valuable inputs.
I thing both NUC N2820 and AMD AM1 with ASROCK AM1 board with DC adaptor is good option .

But for me for building any new machine the case is very very important. it should look decent and eye catchy.... Would you please suggest me some miniitx cases..

I dont want these... cases..
View attachment 58847 View attachment 58848 View attachment 58849 View attachment 58850 View attachment 58851
is there something new which has come...?

Eye catching?
EVGA Hadron, Bitfenix Prodigy, InWin 901, Silerstone ML07B, Silverstone RVZ01 Raven, Corsair Carbide Air 240

Personally I think the plain sleek ones are far sexier for itx chassis.

 

[Mussels]

NO.

If you're asking for advice on all this, you need to give better answers.


So far you've generally asked questions, and then made an independent decision totally different to the advice offered. I still dont understand how you think saving 60W is going to add up to massive savings. If electricity is that bad, even a single traditional light globe would cost as much to run

 

[Aquinus]

If you're asking for advice on all this, you need to give better answers.


So far you've generally asked questions, and then made an independent decision totally different to the advice offered. I still dont understand how you think saving 60W is going to add up to massive savings. If electricity is that bad, even a single traditional light globe would cost as much to run

Not that I condone his response which was rude and vague, I would make the argument that he wants a PC that draws a little as possible because it will make less heat. I suspect the OP (who we know lives in India,) might want to just not add more heat to his living space, even more so if it's a small living space.

I think maybe the wrong questions have been asked, maybe what really needs to be asked is, "What are you trying to accomplish with this rig and what is your end goal?" More specific questions are only helpful if these initial questions are satisfactorily answered and understood by the public providing said answers because I'm currently not completely sure what @michael 's goal is and without that in mind, any recommendation is a bad one.

With that said, "Saving power" isn't a goal, that's a result of reaching a goal efficiently.

 

[michael]

If you're asking for advice on all this, you need to give better answers.


So far you've generally asked questions, and then made an independent decision totally different to the advice offered. I still dont understand how you think saving 60W is going to add up to massive savings. If electricity is that bad, even a single traditional light globe would cost as much to run

Ok. I agree. I was in Hurry .

 

[michael]

Finally I have decided to go with AMD AM1 5350 and asrock AM1H-ITX board. But my need is to fit these things in Vesa mount case to back of my monitor if needed.

However I feel, how can I manage to fit it in this case

Which wifi adaptor can I use which will fit in this vesa mounted case ?

 

[MxPhenom 216]

Finally I have decided to go with AMD AM1 5350 and asrock AM1H-ITX board. But my need is to fit these things in Vesa mount case to back of my monitor if needed.

However I feel, how can I manage to fit it in this case

Which wifi adaptor can I use which will fit in this vesa mounted case ?

That seems so impractical.

 

[michael]

Not that I condone his response which was rude and vague, I would make the argument that he wants a PC that draws a little as possible because it will make less heat. I suspect the OP (who we know lives in India,) might want to just not add more heat to his living space, even more so if it's a small living space.

I think maybe the wrong questions have been asked, maybe what really needs to be asked is, "What are you trying to accomplish with this rig and what is your end goal?" More specific questions are only helpful if these initial questions are satisfactorily answered and understood by the public providing said answers because I'm currently not completely sure what @michael 's goal is and without that in mind, any recommendation is a bad one.

With that said, "Saving power" isn't a goal, that's a result of reaching a goal efficiently.

My goal is to save power and play full hd movies and browse internet flawlessly.

I AM going to build one more pc 3rd one in few months too. so worry about watts.

 

[michael]

That seems so impractical.

Yes I agree or it would be..But I wanted to cross check with you guys.

 

[MxPhenom 216]

My goal is to save power and play full hd movies and browse internet flawlessly.

I AM going to build one more pc 3rd one in few months too. so worry about watts.

Maybe if you didn't have so many computers, that would solve a majority of your problems.

 

[michael]

Maybe if you didn't have so many computers, that would solve a majority of your problems.

 

[Liquid Cool]

I realize my comments here are a little different than the advice you've been receiving and I don't want to ruffle any feathers. Although, I did want to give you a little different point of view since I'm in the same boat...I like low wattage items and I'm having a hard time paying bills.

Perhaps a laptop would be the best fit for your needs. If you add an LED monitor, keyboard and a mouse you have a second desktop. Just buy a 400-450US(Intel ULV) laptop and add a monitor. They make for excellent low wattage computers and you don't have to go out and purchase an OS, speakers etc when you're doing a build. That way you would have a desktop and a laptop that can be stationary if you'd like, but not TWO desktops...which I don't think is plausible or really makes sense unless you have a bunch of people in your household that we're not aware of.

If it was me, I'd probably buy an HP Split x2 13(Max TDP 15w) and add a monitor. That way I'd have a desktop, a laptop...and a tablet. Refurbs go for 400US.

If you do build another desktop the AM1 option sounds quite a bit better than a nuc...it'll eat a pretty good size hole in your pocket before it's all said and done. The build I did ran 900 and I had to skimp on a couple of items for the client.

Best,

LC

 

[Aquinus]

Something like a Celeron J1900 might fit the bill. It's a 10-watt SoC, it's a quad core, and is seemingly powerful enough to play 1080p video and browse the web.

Something like the ASRock Q1900-ITX might be a smart move, some other J1900 boards also have mini PCI-E slots which would solve your wi-fi problem if you pair it with a good Intel wi-fi adapter.

 

[michael]

Something like a Celeron J1900 might fit the bill. It's a 10-watt SoC, it's a quad core, and is seemingly powerful enough to play 1080p video and browse the web.

Something like the ASRock Q1900-ITX might be a smart move, some other J1900 boards also have mini PCI-E slots which would solve your wi-fi problem if you pair it with a good Intel wi-fi adapter.

man i did read a lot about ASRock Q1900-ITX on net but one flaw , it should have dc power input.

 

[michael]

Antec ISK 300
AMD Athlon 5350 Processor
MSI AM1I Motherboard

So I have decided to go with these, just tell me one thing.. can this case sufficient for being used as PSU for this motherboard ......?

Just like below video..

Thanks.

 

[arbiter]

Guys, Please excuse me for possible lengthening of this topic.. But I have some new interrelated query for you all, as the latest information shows as below,( yes AMD AM1 chip looks good but I see more options) :-


http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/H81TM-ITX R2.0/?cat=CPU

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Is this xeon E3-1220LV3(C0) available in market, being xeon and just 16W and that too with this motherboard looks great... this might just be useful for me to keep some virtual machine online all the time. Can you all have you comments and suggestion about this please...?

Thanks a lot.

i would look at one the 35watt parts so it has power to handle things int he future, Looking around that is a 200+$ cpu. you could look at one Intel pentium parts which they have ones around 35watts and under 100$. you won't notice difference between 2 on your power bill. those pentium FYI are based on current haswell cpu so they are not old cpu arc, for little higher could look at 35watt i3 part as well.

 

[Aquinus]

man i did read a lot about ASRock Q1900-ITX on net but one flaw , it should have dc power input.

Get a pico-PSU or something small that could be mounted internally. I wouldn't call lack of a DC input a deal breaker.

 

[michael]

Get a pico-PSU or something small that could be mounted internally. I wouldn't call lack of a DC input a deal breaker.

Pico-PSU looks good option too. But here in my country it is almost $300 + Rs. 2199 and Yes , I agree that lack of DC input is not a deal breaker if you are buying eye-catchy mini itx case from those Lian li or Rosewill which can hold full size PSU too.

BUt honestly Intel NUC i5 is still coming my way due to its size, speed and power consumption and more over it's presence in my home for say, next 5 years if it continue to deliver. BUt yes, if it stops working then I will have to simply give it to customer care than myself trying to repair it actually when I am are finding it difficult to buy in our area.

 

[Aquinus]

Pico-PSU looks good option too. But here in my country it is almost $300 + Rs. 2199 and Yes , I agree that lack of DC input is not a deal breaker if you are buying eye-catchy mini itx case from those Lian li or Rosewill which can hold full size PSU too.

BUt honestly Intel NUC i5 is still coming my way due to its size, speed and power consumption and more over it's presence in my home for say, next 5 years if it continue to deliver. BUt yes, if it stops working then I will have to simply give it to customer care than myself trying to repair it actually when I am are finding it difficult to buy in our area.

Touché, a J1900 would cost less than an i5 and would consume less power. It's less powerful but I think it would still fit the bill WRT what you want to do with it. I don't know about your area, but here, J1900 boards all tend to be under 100 USD. I don't know what costs on these boards are like in your area of India, but I would suspect an embedded J1900 would in general still be cheaper than an i5 and a 10-watt TDP is about as low as your going to get without using more pricey mobile hardware. I also doubt that the i5 is an SoC if that makes any difference to you.

 

[michael]

Thanks for all to add this valuable inputs.. Yes this J1900 looks good too and forces me to rethink as sometimes I might just need to to play 1080P videos on TV .

 

[michael]

Update:-
Intel NUC i5 version is THE BEST OPTION. Compact , Low WATTS and FAST and I guess it will never be seen in garbage area of home as long as it works no matter how updated things and parts come in future, this little baby will still be more than useful to at least a 5-7 years old kid to work/play on even after 5 years.

Edit:-

Other options would have been Asrock H61TM-ITX with DC adaptor which can even run newly launched T and S series low watt intel processors but both are yet unavailable to buy online.

Thanks.

 

[michael]

How about Acer Iconia W4, just to connect to an Smart TV to browse a web and I saw on some reviews that it even detects 1 TB hard disk without power to play contents. Will this be a better idea in case you just want to use windows on your Smart TV as it has micro HDMI option and of course consumes less power and cheap to buy the wifi version.

Of course this does not belong to what thread is asking for, but still it can serve the most of the purpose.

Thanks.