HTPC Part 1 - Intel Atom

 This is the first part of a multi-part guide to putting together an HTCP. My goal was to put together a cheap(~$200), small, quiet, and efficient HTPC. The CPU dictates the rest of the hardware so let's start there.

Intel Atom processors are by far the most commonly used processor in netbooks because they are small, cheap, and don't use a lot of power. Because the HTPC I wanted was going to be sitting under my TV and on a lot, I didn't want a huge, loud, and expensive PC. Naturally, the Intel Atom was at the top of my list, but would it be able to handle media, specifically HD content?

I did a lot of searching to find a definitive answer as to whether the Atom processor would be able to handle a media center app and the different file formats that I use: Divx/Xvid, MKV (h.264 HD content), and streaming media. What I first found was that there are a few different configurations of the Atom processor:

• Atom 240 (lowest end version)
• Atom 270 (most common in netbooks)
• Atom 330 (dual 270 chips)
• Atom 330 + Nvidia ION (dual 270 chips and NVidia's GPU)

Of these chips, the 240 is too slow, the 270 is capable of running a browser and playing back some movies, the 330 can playback all the files with some tweaking, and the 330 + ION will play anything you throw at it out of the box.

I chose the Atom 330 for my HTPC for two reasons: it's the cheaper of the two capable chips and I wouldn't be playing back 1080p or BluRay discs. If you plan to do the latter, you're choice is easy since the 330 + ION is the only setup that will work. I only watch SD for 720p content so the 330 was good enough.

Now that I had my processor picked, I had to decide whether I wanted to build the HTPC myself or buy it built. The advantage of building it yourself is that you can hand-pick the parts and case, and you get some nerd cred. I found it to be a hassle trying to find compatible parts and at the cheapest price so I took the second route: pre-built. 

There are a few mainstream PCs that fit the bill, notably the Acer Revo line and the Asus EEE PCs. They are both very small, cost from $250-$400, and can be found in big box stores and most online vendors. There are also hardware companies that assemble the HTPC for you and sell it as a package. The cases for these tend to be a bit bigger but, unlike the Acer and Asus PCs, they can be upgraded and tweaked.

What I ended up getting was an AOpen BB10 kit, which included the case, motherboard, Atom 330 processor, ram, and hard-drive, all for $200. The BB10 is a barebones kit, which means it comes with the case and motherboard, but I was lucky enough to find the full kit for the same price as the barebones.  

As you can tell from the picture above, it's small. It's about as big as 4 dvd cases stacked. Despite its size, it's very sturdy and it doesn't feel cheap. It has one button, the power button, which is also the only light (displays the power state and hard-drive activity). A laptop-like charger was included and a drivers CD, which is funny since the BB10 doesn't have an optical drive. I had to put the CD in my MacBook and copy the files to a usb stick to get them over. When powered on, I can't hear it unless I put my ear really close (less than a foot) or if the room is silent and the hard drive is working hard on copying a file. 

In Part 2 of this series, I'll outline what I did to get the HTPC to boot quickly, run a media center app (XBMC), and playback 720p HD video.