Shuttle's Ion 2-equipped XS35 shows off its slimline nettop credentials in hands-on video

In the market for a new HTPC? Then you'll probably be wanting the slimmest possible enclosure that can still fit an optical drive and the grunt to power through HD video. Set aside some of your attention for Shuttle's XS35, in that case, as this 3.3cm-thick slab of engineering contains an Atom D510 (yawn) paired with NVIDIA Ion 2 graphics (yay!), which should in concert deliver buttery smooth 1080p playback, whether through Flash or Blu-ray discs. The integrated optical drive can't run those fancy discs from what we know, but you could easily swap it out with a slimline BR burner, jack your favorite HDMI cable into the back, and have the perfect little movie box. It's passively cooled so there'll be no fan noise, and its price should be pretty endearing considering the aggressively priced competition from Zotac and Acer. See the XS35 in its metallic flesh after the break.

[Thanks, JC]

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[albinomexi Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:03AM]

I'll take 2!

[giyad Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:54AM]

@albinomexi

i just want one... gimme price!

[One Love Posted Mar 9th 2010 10:34AM]

Sorry, no USB 3.0

[Wowzers Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:08AM]

Would you like fries with that?

[Professor Hubert J Farnsworth Posted Mar 9th 2010 10:00AM]

No, but I would like a tissue.

[FAP FAP FAP Posted Mar 9th 2010 11:52PM]

I'd like several tissues, please.

[Mightydh Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:13AM]

O HAI! You belong right next to my projector.

[runforfun7 Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:28AM]

I would love to know when this is coming out and a price would be handy too! Looks very nice and can't wait for a review on it.

[hvakrg Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:31AM]

Why can't one of these companies soon make the logical choice and build one of these based on laptop parts? An i5 540M in combination with Mobility Radeon would be so much better and so half as thick.

[finnschi Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:39AM]

@hvakrg Laptop parts are very expensive. Nettops are made to be cheap.

Can you make i5 + mobility Radeon + mainboard + Psu + Ram, + case +heatsink

for sub 350$ ?

[hvakrg Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:56AM]

@finnschi
Yest, it will be more expensive, but it will be worth it. A laptop with the i5 540m and a Mobility Radeon 5650 costs about 6 405 NOK + taxes.This translates to about $1000 in the US since things generally are cheaper there.

Remove the screen and the keyboard and you can cut of atleast another $100.

So no, you can't get it at $350, but that's not the price point they should aim for, it's not a direct competitor to the nettop, it's something better, the same way a laptop is better then a netbook.

[saifrc Posted Mar 9th 2010 10:30AM]

@hvakrg What you're asking for is a computer in the same vein as the Mac Mini or the Dell Inspiron Zino HD. Yes, what you're looking for exists out there.

The difference is that these two examples are more like half-cubes, and not slim, vertically-mounted devices. However, except for the low-end Zino models, they'll probably do as good a job (or better) than these things. It comes at a cost, though.

The point of PCs like this one, or the EeeBox, or the Acer Aspire Revo, is to be cheeeap. And there are plenty of us who want those as well. But don't despair -- in addition to the Mac Mini and the Zino, there are probably other PCs out there that are what you're looking for -- mid-range to high-end laptop parts in a desktop form factor -- for a higher price.

[hvakrg Posted Mar 9th 2010 10:51AM]

@saifrc

As far as I know neither the Mac Mini or the Zino has the bitstreaming that the Mobility Radeon 5-series has. And the other PCs I know of with such parts are all-in-one PCs like the MSI Windtop etc.

And none in the slim formfactor that I want. And I'm pretty sure there is a big market for that form factor. Compuers like the one I dream should have the same marketshare as the Samsung "slim BR-player". It can be a crucial part of a "high-end" living room, replacing both the TV-tuner and BR-player in one smooth brushed steel/aluminum box. If I had the skill to build my own chassis I'd buy a laptop with the parts and rebuild it, but unfortunately I don't.

[jasondefaoite Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:35AM]

1080p flash videos on Atom, riiiight. Yes, 10.1 is 'supposed' to have GPU acceleration, but the beta has not delivered on Adobe's promises. Don't hold your breath.

[finnschi Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:40AM]

@jasondefaoite 1080p flash works on my ION Netbook 100% with Adobes latest Beta....

[perpetual98 Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:36AM]

It will be prohibitively expensive because of the word "Shuttle" on the side. The only thin that would make it cost more would be if it had an apple on the side.

[finnschi Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:41AM]

@perpetual98

you'll get what you pay for...

[perpetual98 Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:44AM]

@finnschi

Oh I'm not doubting that at all, and I REALLY want one of those. I just know they're going to be spendy, that's all.

[tmarks11 Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:43AM]

now that all the good Cebit news has been covered, we are shifting to the "b" newsfeed?

I was wondering if this would be covered other then with a press release. This looks very nice; it will be interesting to see if Shuttle can compete head-to-head with Asus and Acer who have almost the same form factor for low prices.

Shuttle has usually had no competition in the sff high-power desktop category. I wonder if they will be able to keep up with the competition in the very sff, low power nettop market.

And where is the news of the Asrock HD100 that was released at Cebit?

[Johannes NewGadgetsde Posted Mar 9th 2010 9:50AM]

If you want some pictures of the XS35: http://www.newgadgets.de/10602/bilder-vom-shuttle-xs35-ion-2-nettop/

[TypeEE Posted Mar 9th 2010 1:16PM]

No e-sata connection where as the zotac ion2 has that. However, this has an optical drive.

[palehorse Posted Mar 9th 2010 6:15PM]

How can I make this thing bitstream HD audio to my receiver? Any ideas?