Philips is about to try their hand against the ubiquitous Mac mini with an ultra tiny desktop of their own, called the LX1000, and from what we can tell, unlike many minuscule units in its class, this thing is no slouch. Featuring a 1.8GHz AMD Turion 64, 1GB of RAM, a 120GB drive, integrated analog/digital TV tuner, WiFi, a dual-layer DVD burner, and NVIDIA GeForce 6600 graphics in a 195 x 58 x 212mm (7.6 x 2.2 x 8.3-inch) form factor, it might actually make for an itty bitty Media Center with a dash of horsepower. The £999 (about $1500) price might deter those who were considering a Boot Camped $800 mini, but stacked specs don't come for free.
P.S. -It would appear our eagle-eyed readers spotted this as being a rebadge of the
Little Lluon. Nicely done, chaps! Though that doesn't make it any less sexay.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Aaron @ Sep 3rd 2006 4:42PM
Great, it's small. But for that price, I'd rather build a HTPC with a 7" touchscreen, video card with HDMI like the X1600 PRO HDMI, Core 2 Duo, gig of DD2, 500GB SATA II and still have money left over.
ryantv @ Sep 3rd 2006 4:59PM
I want to know on what planet is £999 about $1500?
At today's rates, i put £999 at just over $1900 - BIG difference and makes this product even more outrageously overpriced.
Matt @ Sep 3rd 2006 5:15PM
looks like shit to me... you can make your self a pc better than that for half the cash.. who cares about small its not like you'll be carrying it around with you so who gives a shit?
Dan @ Sep 3rd 2006 5:21PM
Yeah, that price is crazy high. You could almost get a Mac Pro for that. Haha.
Sam @ Sep 3rd 2006 5:22PM
While I agree that you could buy a full PC for less than the cost of this machine, you aren't paying for the horsepower of the machine per se, you are paying for the horsepower of the machine plus the small size. I think that the $1900 for the machine is a fair price to pay; if you don't think it is worth it to you then don't buy it.
charlie @ Sep 3rd 2006 5:32PM
seems like a reasonable price for a relatively powerful computer which appears to be about the same size as a 5.25" DVD-drive.
jc @ Sep 3rd 2006 5:37PM
HTPC is one PC type that can actually afford to be big. It's the type of PC that resides with other large-sized electronic equipments and rarely be moved in its lifespan.
So, the argument that you are paying for the size doesn't really makes sense since the size is not a big factor in a HTPC's selling point.
If this product was a desktop replacement, then yeah, I see the appeal, but not as a HTPC.
Greg @ Sep 3rd 2006 6:00PM
For the price, that is plain stupid...And where's the CD drive?
Vu @ Sep 3rd 2006 6:06PM
ehy
that looks and sounds just like the little lluon
oh wait it is
http://www.engadget.com/2005/11/30/little-lluon-small-form-factor-media-pc/
yep
trev @ Sep 3rd 2006 6:13PM
"looks like shit" thats very harsh. Its a very small and elegent looking design that would be right at home beside your tv + it packs a punch, for which you pay a premium. Yes you probably could build a cheaper one IF you have the know how, and I doubt it would be as compact or look as nice.
I think it looks like a good alternative to the mac mini, nice one Philips.
D @ Sep 3rd 2006 6:20PM
Good catch Vu, regarding Philips just being a copycat and/or licensing a lluon product.
Zeke @ Sep 3rd 2006 7:14PM
@Greg:
I'm gonna guess that there's a CD slot on the side bezel not facing us. There's an enlarged version of the image in TFA- I'll guess that it's hiding from us.
Mr. B @ Sep 3rd 2006 7:23PM
Well your obviously paying for the size, and while I wouldn't drop that much cash on one, I don't thing the price is all that unreasonable considering what's crammed in there.
Matt @ Sep 3rd 2006 7:24PM
hey trev... yeah so it was hash but its true.. id rather have a mac mini than that also... and where is the optical drive... its gone missing on us
Hong @ Sep 3rd 2006 7:28PM
I guess it is an OEM product of 'little lluon'. it is sold for about $1000, though.
Teddy-O @ Sep 3rd 2006 11:37PM
The media drive is slot-loading on the left side of the front bezel. You can't see it well though because of the angle / contrast of the photo. Also, the Lluon was reported to be about US$2300 fully tricked out and about US$1400 in its base configuration. So, I don't see the price of this phillips re-badge as being out of line.
The big draw for something like this (and hence paying that price) is that it operates silently. Which, as most of you know, isn't the hallmark of most DIY PCs. And frankly, I'd rather listen to Bae Yong Jun's dulcet tones than a PC fan any day of the week.
John Robinson @ Sep 4th 2006 4:13AM
Hmmm... your image looks a lot nicer than the one all the UK computer stores are using....
http://www.dixons.co.uk/images/571874_01_huge.jpg
Still...(imho) looks very expensive for what it is
Mike @ Sep 4th 2006 6:19AM
At current exchange rates, the price is US$1904. For $1024, you can buy a Mac Mini with everything listed (except the TV tuner, the video card and Windows). Getting OS X, in place of Windows, should be listed as a plus!
If Philips has anything to do with the manufacture of the product, I wouldn't take it if you paid me €1903! They make the worst consumer products in the world! I live in Holland (where they have headquarters) and every product of theirs I have bought has broken within 1-2 years after I bought it!
Bob Rutherford @ Sep 4th 2006 6:30AM
"you can buy a Mac Mini with everything listed (except the TV tuner, the video card and Windows)"
You mean all the constituent parts you need for a media-based system?
-Tj- @ Sep 4th 2006 10:04AM
I have to agree with Mike. I will never buy a Philips product (or anything Philips Magnavox has anything to do with) again. Not only are their products crap, but their service is even crappier. If this thing ever breaks (and it probably will) don't expect to be getting it repaired without any headaches.
andy @ Sep 4th 2006 3:26PM
Faugh! Stacked specs? The Turion is a dog compared to the Core duos, The 6600 video card is "neat" for something that small, but not enough to play real games with, so it's overkill for what you'll do with this box. So basically you're paying about 1000$ more than a Mini for what, a TV Tuner? No Thanks.
ElectroGeek @ Sep 5th 2006 5:44PM
That is one sweet looking little PC. The price tag is a bit steep for the performance but I guess you are paying for the killer form factor. That mini is great if you don't need any room for expansion. I assume the unit is fanless yes?
pughimag @ Sep 6th 2006 4:16AM
I have a Mac Mini and I use it side by side with a high definition Tivo. The Tivo gives me my HD TV recording and the Mac Mini (2GB RAM, DVD burner, Intel dual core processor)plays shared media on my HD TV from my Mac G4 located in another room using Ethernet and "Front Row".
The LX1000 looks like a good solution for those wanting a similar form factor and compatibility with the Windows media center. I enjoy the iTunes 99c download capability and I eagerly await renting movies in the same way. I am from the UK but now live in the USA and confirm that the exchange rate makes the LX1000 almost double the price of the Mac Mini. Both the LX1000 and the Mc Mini form factor make them perfect for fitting into the TV cabinet. I have no room for even a mini tower.
MPCseeker @ Mar 12th 2007 1:22PM
The LLUON+ supercedes this model, and has a bit more attractive specs... but where can you actually BUY these things outside Korea? And how do you get one with an NTSC tuner?
http://www.trigem.co.kr/tgproduct/lluon/ProductDetail.asp?p_seq=17574
luiza de oliveira @ Apr 26th 2009 1:35PM
gostaria de saber se está liberado para venda este CPU Philips LX1000 micro Media Center por estou interassada em comprar.