AMD Zacate mini PC for HTPC setup

[servan$]

Now my old media player is not able to play new files. So for that reason I decided to build a new HTPC. My requirements are as follows:

• Should play full HD mkv with DTS-HD/Dolby trueHD streaming by the use of HDMI cable.
• Play angry bird on big screen or little flash game.
• Should be capable to connect internet and browse i.e. facebook, news, etc.
• Weather forecast update
• Should run personal AntiVirus software
• Less power consumption.
• HTPC should be powerful enough to play 10 bit MKV
• USB external BD-ROM and play BD movies from it.
• Need to record HDTV.

For all these requirements I am considering AMD Zacate (E350 or E450) mini PC because it has remote controller. Do you think that it is capable to fulfill the above requirements. I am not thinking about adding VGA card but if I need then I can take AMD A4 APU. Any advice will be much appreciated.

[Urjavaha]

First thing I wanna know about is how much you can spend on your new build? Then I can tell where to go to buy this motherboard. I think that it is somewhat difficult to find much on this mini device. I can see that it has USB 3.0 connectivity as well as an onboard video processor but it doesn’t mean that it can provide the best and speediest performance. I think you can get 720p playing without stuttering. But if you get over that, you may notice slight stuttering issues.

[Mayoor]

The manual and release note says that AMD E-350 and E-450 APUs do support Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA bitstreaming via HDMI. Along with this it also does not offer Blu-ray hardware decode acceleration and there is no support for DirectX 11. I am not using this but I have seen several reviews saying that it can but these APUs are also capable to handle 1080i60/1080p24 even played through Blu-Ray.

[Baldwin]

The good thing is that, building your own HTPC will give you more options and also have the ability to put together everything in a single case but it is surely going to consume much power. I have read everything about the AMD's APUs. But I am looking to build my pc around an A8 or A10 4-core APU.

[Elucidation]

In my opinion I wan to suggest you that don’t go for Zacate. If your basic requirement for this comes only with the remote, then it is not the best choice for the HTPC setup. It would be better if you go for advanced components. One time spending can help you to prevent future updates in the recent time. For a HTPC build, I will surely go for Asrock or Asus motherboards or an intel one. If you need a pre-built or pre-configured one, my best choice is Assassin HTPC. These system consumes less power due to its low wattage components.

[Laramie]

For a HTPC it would be better to have a 7.1 audio via HDMI for the receiver. But the fact is, this AMD mini pc does not support this. The motherboard specs says that it only has onboard 5.1 audio. But the major thing is DDR3 1600 memory that offers optimal performance from the built-in Llano GPU.

[Upendra]

In practice, Zacate system provides mainly just what you'd expect: multimedia power.

The online role-playing game World of Warcraft at 1,920 x 1,080 pixels and low density jerky detail around 22 frames per second could sound rather strong. In the demanding STALKER: Call of Pripyat at 1024 x 768 pixels and with DirectX 11 effects are only 14 frames per second available. In short, to play itself is not such a system without an additional graphics card

[Jokull]

There is no active cooling device that is quiet, sometimes almost silently but it is never completely silent. If the CPU has to work significantly better then the device which is audible, but when playing HD content it is mainly responsible for the GPU and the device which is significantly quieter.