Dell has taken its sweet time in bringing the 7.75- x 7.75- x 3.5-inch
Inspiron Zino HD to market, but just 24 hours after it made its market debut
across the pond, this little zinger is finally available to the Yanks in attendance. Starting at just $229, the mini PC is far more exhilarating than most ho hum nettops. Oh sure, the base configuration is fairly unexciting, but thankfully Dell enables you to add up to 8GB of memory, a 1.8GHz dual-core AMD
Athlon Neo X2 6850e CPU, up to 1TB of HDD space, an optional Blu-ray drive, a 512MB ATI Radeon HD 4330 discrete GPU and WiFi to the mix. 'Course, speccing it out will obviously raise the price substantially, but it's always nice to see more power than anticipated within such a minuscule box. Of note, Dell also mentions that an optional TV tuner, wireless keyboard and mouse are available, but at least for now, the TV tuner is nowhere to be found in the
configuration pages. Other inclusions are a 4-in-1 card reader, four USB 2.0 sockets and a pair of eSATA ports. Who says HTPCs have
to breathe fire?
Update: We've just heard that the TV tuner won't be available at launch (sounds a lot like what happened with the
Mini 10), so there goes those dreams of immediately gratifying your urge for a new HTPC of the smallest scale.
posted November 12th 2009 9:59AM
The HD 4330 is actually slightly superior to the Nvidia 9400M. It has dedicated memory and is a slightly faster chip. That said, both are in the same league and are capable of accelerating video playback.
However, keep in mind that (for now at least) Flash video playback isn't accelerated. Which means if you want to playback HD Flash video, the Core 2 Duo in the Mac mini is a better choice. Otherwise, the base Zino would make for a perfectly usable media PC connected to a TV...just plan on playing standard resolution Flash video for now. In the future, it should hopefully get accelerated by the graphics chip.
Your video card advantage is wrong. :)
The Radeon 4330 is definitely faster than the Mini's 9400M GPU, by between 25% to 80% in 3DMark (averages out to 50% faster) on otherwise similarly spec'ed systems (when tested in Vista). I'd expect better real world performance (of both GPUs) in Windows 7 as I've seen 5-10 performance bumps on my desktop since switching to 7. Since the Radeon has 512MB dedicated video memory and the 9400M uses 256MB of system memory I'm guessing there would be a greater performance delta between a 3GB system at 800MHz and a 1.75GB 1066MHz Mini, but probably not too much.
I priced out a Zino HD with the mid range CPU (the 3250e instead of the 6850e), but added the Blu Ray player, and it costs five dollars more than the stock $599 Mini.
As for audio, I'd say it's a toss up, but I do know that the HDMI out on the Radeon 4330 supports 7.1 AC3, I'm less familiar with the Mini, since I've only used a friends for short durations on my HDTV, but it wasn't for media playback, so we never bothered testing the audio options.
All your other advs. I agree with, and I'd say it really DOES boil down to the OS.
For general computing, the Mini has the CPU advantage, but if your habits include a lot of GPU accelerated applications, then the faster Radeon would definitely compensate for that.
Of course, if you want OS X, you're probably gonna get a Mini anyways (hackintoshing will probably be feasible, but with similar specs and pricing overall, why go through the hassle).
If you want Windows based system, then I'd say the Zino wins, as in every spec it easily trumps similarly priced ION 330 computers like the ASRock with Blu Ray, Windows 7 Media Center kicks ass (and it's easy to set up Boxee to launch from W7MC for all your online needs) and those machines are more than capable media PCs (with the non GPU Flash caveat of course).
Look, I'm a mac guy through and through but you're comparing apples and oranges here. Windows Media Center is designed to operate as a HTPC. Macs have a lot of fine choices for HTPC but from what I've seen from Windows Media Center is far superior right now. Add the fact that Cablecard support is PC only right now and I don't think the PC v. Mac argument is even relevant here. Any other PC v. Mac argument I will fight you to the death on behalf of my macs but not in this one. ;)
> OK, here is a price-point comparison.
I can buy an ASrock 330 AND a Revo for the same price as a mini and BOTH do an adequate job of the task that I would buy a single mini for.
So it doesn't really matter what sort of games you play with the specs on the Mini, or the Dell.
If the GPU in the base model of Zino has the horsepower, then it doesn't matter if the Mac has other components that are faster.
The key with PCs always is that you can tune your hardware and price point to fit your particular requirements.
Thanks. I'm mainly looking for an XBMC machine. Boxee as well. If I go Mini, I would be using Plex because I find it to be a nicer tweak to XBMC and better experience - especially all the plugins.
I intend to play streaming content from the inernet, as well as movies / tv shows from my NAS off a gigabit ethernet network. HDD space onboard isn't a concern because I prefer NAS storage.
DVD playback is nice too, because I could get rid of yet another box. Blu ray would be nice, but not sure if I am willing to pay the premium for it.
So in the end, I'm likely to be running mainly XBMC (or Plex). Boxee perhaps. Hulu Desktop too. I won't be using Windows Media Center for live TV or anything else. I'm staying with the cable-box until I have a proper dual-tuner Cable-Card option for a PC/Windows Media Center. So WMC is out because I won't be doing live TV, and all other media I intend to play from XBMC or its cousins.
So thoughts? You think a base Zino can run this set up, playback Hi-def content from my NAS, and not hickup?
For the fellow mac people, is it really worth getting a Mini for, basically, a Plex/Hulu/Boxee (frontrow?) machine?
Go...
I just bought one :)
don't forget people first go to Bing.com and type in Dell Bing Cashback and click the sponsored link
You will save another 5%
2.1 audio and HTPC does not belong in the same sentence
If you get the Radeon 4330, it supports 7.1 AC3 audio out the HDMI. If you're concerned about using it as an HTPC, it's a no brainer to add the 4330 to the system.
Even if you don't spring for the 4330, you can "software enable" 5.1 audio for $25. It's pretty shitty to charge $25 for fully functioning drivers to run hardware that is already on the board, but whatever. You can probably find the drivers online and get 5.1 audio on the base model for free.
Looks nice and specs are kinda good but I have a no AMD policy, anyone knows if they will be available with Intel procs any time soon?
It looks a little bit bulkier than a Mac mini actually. Maybe just taller? Would be great to see Engadget do a hands on comparison photo shoot when they can.
The Mac mini does support 8 GB http://blog.macsales.com/2634-confirmed-owc-supports-8-0gb-memory-in-mac-mini-31-machines-2.
Also the mini supports HDMI video just not with audio natively, but there are options via usb: http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10428&cs_id=1042802&p_id=5969&seq=1&format=2
The 4330 looks to be a slightly better GPU, but not too far.
It is about $480/570 for one configured as close to the $599/799 mac mini specs. I would rather pay the premium for the faster Intel CPUs and faster memory bus.
Just pointing this out....as with ANY pc vs mac. Your PCs....will be crap in a year (performance). The mac however will run for 4-5x longer (performance). I've had numerous friends buy dells, Toshiba's, hp, acer, etc etc- YOUR PCs PERFORMANCE GOES TO HELL QUICK! Where as the Macs- have staying power... so yes- spend less on that...have fun...but be ready to buy another in 12months because yours now sucks.
case and point- my old white ibook, G4 @ 1.2 Ghrz. 1gb mem. 60GB hd. at age 4yo. Outperforming: a toshiba with dual core centrino @ 2.xx 2yo, outperforming a dell inspiron desktop with a centrino @ 2.xx 2yo, out performing all of our shops computers with P4ht 1yo.....the list continues.
The fact is- yes you can build PC cheap as hell, wow. I'm so surprised. Not saying apple doesn't use cheap parts in some cases, they do, it sucks. BUT- Mac OS vs Windows= no contest. Complain all you want, Windows IS (until 7, maybe vista) a horrible looking OS, that pisses off more users than not, has viruses and stability issues,is itself a controlling market (many say mac is, think about it, windows is too.) I'm glad windows fan boys can hop online as spit off at the mouth because they can play with the BIOS etc etc.... but guess what a$$clowns- Linux + user friendly + longevity = winner. This year alone I've had 3 pc lovin friends swap to Mac OSx. deal with it. Just understand that Windows is NOT.....NOT a good os. period. nt,me,xp,vista,....crap crap crap crap crap. Mac OXs is still lite years ahead.
BTW- Hope you all liked the press release regarding windows admitting MAC OSx was what they were striving for when making 7, with regards to ascetics and overall design.
All I heard was blah-blah-blah. Anyone else?
its funny how everyone just ignored you
(ass)clow(n) - all fixed
So everyone is calling this a great HTPC, does it have an IR receiver for media center? if not, then it's worthless. I don't want to navigate with a keyboard/mouse for this when everything else can use a remote. (tv tuner remote does not count)
excellent question and I can't figure out the answer. I believe there are some USB options for adding an IR receiver out there but it would seem silly if they didn't include it
If you want a remote, buy your favorite remote. You probably didn't want what they would want to bundle for you anyways.
I sure never liked the remote that Apple bundles. It got thrown straight in the trash and replaced with a PC remote.
I don't get this fixation on "bundleware" remotes. Sure, have a generic IR receiver. However, it's probably far better to use the remote that you've already standardized on with all of your other machines then throw some oddball into the mix.
I never said I wanted a bundled remote. I said I wanted an IR receiver built in, so I can use my Harmony remote with Windows Media Center.
Can I get a Mac mini with a hdmi and an esata for under 300 bucks? Even a blu-ray drive for under 400? If I'm investing in a small PC I'm not looking for power, I'm looking for convenience. I'm not looking to create movies, just watch em' and answer my email. That price point can't be beat. Fanboys need to troll elsewhere. I haven't had a Mac since my G4 tower and have no intentions of going back for the overpriced white plastic.
Now... disregarding OS... I would pose the question as to what are you using the computer for? as a media center for your tv?
to a monitor? as a stand alone computer?
The pc is good stats wise, the mac does offer a much better proc, does lack in memory (but that can be upped)- but it is running a whole different version ddr3 vs ddr2 (huge difference in the end- esp when windows starts getting slugish).
I pose the idea of- putting both on test bench. AND running both OSs on both.
Wow... Dell is doing to Apple what Apple did to the PC back in 98. If we aren't better, we'll add a splash of color and take over the world. Unfortunately, it's not 1998 anymore. It's hard enough to get the carpet to match the drapes. I don't know how much people want to match their carpet with these colors.
Seriously, I hope they come in a more neutral color selection.
I'm sure I'll get down-ranked for saying this and I'm not an apple fanboy but it's funny how we've seen a spike in Apple-cloning recently. HP started with their appropriately named Envy, then MSFT's retail stores looking very "familiar", and the Dell mac-mini-clone and yesterday MSFT's PR debacle with Win7/OSX....I guess all these companies are seeing what Apple's done quarter after quarter and the bean counters are making moves.
Apple cloning? Are you the type that thinks apple invented the mp3 player? and invented the smart phone?
These tiny boxes have existed long before Apple started making them.
For the third time in as many days - I am totally shocked that Dell would rip off the small-square-PC format from Apple, after Apple ripped it off from Shuttle fair and square.
Are you kidding me? 2.1 audio only? Are we now forced to do audio over HDMI? What gives? I think anything without optical out is no use in a HTPC setup. I wouldn't therefore call this HTPC grade.
Why would anyone want an optical out vs. audio over HDMI?
I don't believe a HTPC should have much in the way of storage. If anything, it should have a cheap, small capacity SSD drive. Put the big, hot, noisy hard drives in the basement on a NAS. It's pointless thinking you will be able to keep a decently sized and expanding video collection in a TV cabinet, and you'll want to share with the rest of your home anyway.
The GPU might be good, but at least in the past ATI cards were trouble driver-wise when it came to running Linux with acceleration, and if I were to buy one of these things it would be as a MythTV frontend.
As others have said, get an HDHomerun and put it next to the NAS in the basement. Really every Watt you can keep out of your TV cabinet is better in terms of keeping the temperature down and the fans off.
I'm a mac guy but I would consider this as a HTPC. The only question is with the TV tuner...I think they could have absolutely blown this thing out of the water if they had a built in cablecard tuner. A HTPC that runs windows media center via cablecard in the sub-$500 range would effectively put TIVO out of business and might force a paradigm shift by the cable companies. I love the theory of my set top DVR that I get through my cable company but the truth is that the interface is crap, it is buggy and slow. Nothing is more frustrating than a channel guide that is sluggish and unintuitive. If I could get rid of paying $15 a month, plus have a superior performing DVR plus stream everything in my house to this PC, I'd jump on it. I suspect many others would too. This may force the cable companies to actually innovate and/or drop their fees.
They include a VGA-out but no optical audio out? FAIL.
At $229, it's like buying a retail copy of Windows 7 and getting a free PC to run it on.
How would you guys compare this to the Aspire Revo?
If I bump up the Zino HD to the X2 processor and add wireless N, I get to the same price as the Revo ($329).
Revo has Intel Atom 330(1.6GHz), 1MB L2 Cache, 2GB DDR2 800, 160GB 5400RPM SATA, and integrated ION.
Zino has AMD Dual Core Athlon™ X2 3250e (1MB L2, 1.5GHz), 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 2 DIMM
Other than more hard drive space (250 vs 160), is the Zino still better as an HTPC?
I'm having a hard time between the two also...
At that price ($329):
Zino HD
+DVD Burner
+slightly more powerful CPU
+More HD space
Acer r3610
+Better GPU
+Wireless Keyboard and mouse (I think the KB can remotely turn on the unit)
+B/G/N Wireless
?Bluetooth? -unsure which protocol the keyboard and mouse use.
For me, the DVD burner isn't a big deal. I have a DVD player - howerver, the blu-ray add on is nice but kinda pricey. Lack of wireless at that price has me leaning toward the Acer and the wireless keyboard and mouse are nice addons (whereas Dell wants 75$).
It's a difficult call for sure.
Does not even have Coax SPDIF out; and not ION based. Might as well get a Myka (not as pretty but definitely better HTPC config).
AMD has a blog posting about this computer, it gives some more pictures and info
http://blogs.amd.com/home/2009/11/12/the-dell-inspiron-zinohd/
So how powerful is the Dell Recommended processor on this thing? What exactly would you be able to do on it if you were going to try and tax the system for what it's worth.
Cheaper, more powerfull and less pretentious than the Mac Mini. This thing is sweet! :)
Hey All,
I tested this platform for about a week and wrote the blog that JK referenced.
http://links.amd.com/ZinoHD
Overall, the platform did most things pretty well. I have seen complaints about no TV Tuner, No Ir, etc. While I agree those would be nice add ins, it would also drive the cost up. This platform is squarely aimed at the Revo 3600/3610 platforms. For similar pricing, you can get a more capable Dell box vs. the Revo.
Following totalundones list...
Zino HD
+DVD Burner
+slightly more powerful CPU
+More HD space
Acer r3610
Better GPU (define better GPU? Audio might be better but graphis are pretty equivalent)
+Wireless Keyboard and mouse (I think the KB can remotely turn on the unit)
B/G/N Wireless (this is a wash since both units have it)
?Bluetooth? -unsure which protocol the keyboard and mouse use.
Wireless is a wash because you can get Wireless N on the Dell box for that $329 price. As for the graphics capabilities, this is probably a wash as well since both perform about the same. The nVidia chipset may have slightly better audio capabilities.
Anyway, if you have some questions about the platform, feel free to leave a comment on the blog and I will try to answer them.
Oh wow...
Sorry, my mistake. I forgot I had added wireless N, so that's a check off the r3610 since they both have it. AND after more reading, the 9400m and HD3200 are pretty much on par with each other. I'm unsure about audio over hdmi for either of them... so i'll leave that alone.
However, Dell changed 1 very important thing since my last post. Win7 premium is now a 30$ addon. It now comes with Vista Home Basic. That's pretty unacceptable and kills it as an htpc (unless someone is planning on installing xbmc, mythbuntu, or whatever -of course). Hopefully Dell is playing around with options and will change it back soon...
So more accurately (and with a little more research)...
Zino HD (3250e & WiFi n)
+slightly better cpu
+DVD burner
+More HD
Acer r3610
+wireless keyboard/mouse (remote turn on)
+Win7 Premium
"AMD Dual Core Athlon™ Neo X2" as a $110 upgrade? You can buy an Intel Core 2 Duo for that price!
Are there any benchmarks on these CPUs to see what they can do and what they are really worth?
Looks nice, good job Dell
anyone else read that "Dell's Inspiron Zune HD"???
I would love to see some actual detailed comparative analysis between the 4330 & 9400M...
On the surface 4330 looks as though it would have be substantially faster, at least in 3d acceleration.
But I'd like to see how they compare with multimedia intensive tasks; video acceleration/transcoding etc
The inbuilt sound looks to be markedly superior too, but again, I'd have to see some detailed comparison.
There's no doubt there's better "bang for buck" & more flexibility with the Zino.
But that's usually always the case for PC's and that's not what I'm interested in.
I'm interested in identifying the the best "potential" performer overall with expense being irrelevant in the equation.
that thing or vaio l series?
I have a brand new MacMini and do use it with my TV. I think this is a great thing, it means that Apple will be encouraged to keep this form factor going. If you're not into Apple, this certainly might be worth a look, though I would certainly ensure it had adequate RAM.
It comes with Vista Basic, I wonder if it's Win7 compatible?
Dell jacked up the price from $229 to $249
That pc has pretty colors!
Mac mini with eyetv is htpc enough for me.
optical minitoslink with no extra pay.
Looking good and feeling gorgeous ;)
minidisplay to hdmi... Doesn't that make mac mini with hdmi?
Already owning Ps3 for Blu-Ray
Good luck waiting to get one... I ordered mine on 12/8/09, Here it is 2/8/10 and I am still waiting. My order has been "delayed" 3 times already.
A few days before the last delay, I called the customer service line and was told that my order was very far along in the process and they were sure it would ship... A few days later I get the dreaded shipment delayed email. It's borderline criminal.
If someone ordered a product from my company and we kept delaying it, we would never see that customer again. How do these companies believe they can keep getting away with these poor customer experiences.
Oh, look at that... Another delay email. Didn't see that coming This makes delay number 4. Now expected to ship on or before 2-18-10..
I know some people would say I should just cancel the order, but I am at the point that I want to see just how long they are going to make me wait for my new toy.