The tried-and-true circle PC is back, this time with even more potent hardware under the hood to keep your media churnin'. First up is the VGX-TP1D, which features a white motif, 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo T8100 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, GeForce 8400M GT graphics card, integrated WiFi, a dual-layer DVD writer and HDMI / VGA outs. The black VGX-TP1DQ / B steps it up by including a 500GB hard drive and a Blu-ray burner to boot. Both units also boast four USB 2.0 ports, 4-pin FireWire, a multicard reader, TV tuner and a wireless keyboard. Look for each to land in just over a fortnight (in Japan) for ¥150,000 ($1,392) / ¥200,000 ($1,856), respectively.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Aside from the obvious PR blitz, we can't really figure out what AMD is doing here. You see, its AMD LIVE! Home Cinema platform was actually introduced way back in January of 2007, yet it seems pretty confident that this stuff is brand new at Computex. Whatever the case, we can now assume that a new aspect has been added in to "enable solution providers to address the growing home entertainment arena through a consistent, highly-capable design." The package also supports Phenom X4 9000 / X3 8000 CPUs and ATI Radeon HD graphics, and it's obviously designed to be used on HTPCs, mini-towers and otherwise vanilla desktops. If you're interested in wading through the mess that is the press release about this "new" technology, be our guest via the read link below.

Ignoring all those silly Atom shortages, Tranquil PC has their T7 and T2e Atom media PCs ready for delivery. As expected, the T7 is based on a fanless design for your uber-quiet home theater and measures only 8.8 x 9.1 x 2.2-inches with space for a 2.5-inch SATA drive. Meanwhile, the T2e can be fitted with a slot-loading DVD drive and comes in a more media rack-friendly form factor. They both pack the Intel Atom 230 at 1.6GHz and will set you Brits back starting around £189 and £284 (or $371 and $554 US), for the T7 and T2e, respectively.

[Photo by PC Pro]

Read - T7 Atom at Tranquil PC
Read - T2e Atom at Tranquil PC

Your options are fairly limited when scouring the market for a twin-CableCARD HTPC, but thanks to a new partnership between Cannon PC and Microsoft, yet another rival will be jousting for your business. Here soon, the outfit will be offering its Home and Pro A/V series Media Center PCs with dual CableCARDs pre-installed, and if you're willing to wait a touch longer, a quad-CableCARD model will also be available. Oh, and if that chassis above looks strangely familiar, that's because it is: Cannon has simply grabbed OrigenAE's famed shell, painted it black and slapped its own logo up there (though we aren't complaining or anything). The pictured EX line is just one of the many families with the new functionality, so head on over to the company's website if you're interested in shelling out.

While Shuttle's KPC most certainly wasn't aimed at the enthusiast in the crowd, its newest XPC definitely is. The XPC G5 6801M gets going with an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 320GB hard drive, LG's GGC-H20L Blu-ray / HD DVD combo drive, ATI's 256MB HD 3450 graphics card, a DVB-T tuner, 25-in-1 multicard reader and 7.1-channel audio output. Moreover, you'll find gigabit Ethernet, FireWire, a slew of USB / eSATA ports, DVI / VGA out (DVI-HDMI adapter thrown in) and a bundled remote to make your life even easier. If you're digging where this is going, you can latch on to one of these boxes for €1,091 ($1,727), and if you've turned a cold shoulder to HD DVD, a BD-only unit can be had for €167 ($264) less.

[Via Bios Magazine]

If you've been courting the idea of picking up a mini PC resembling an overstuffed history book with a glossy black finish, ASUS' got just the thing. Housing an Intel processor, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, slot-loading DVD / Blu-ray (optional) drive, up to 1TB of hard drive space, a 256MB GeForce 8600M and 7.1-channel audio out, this thing is an ATSC tuner away from being a pretty potent little HTPC. You'll also find gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, an integrated IR receiver, FireWire, 10-in-1 multicard reader, HDMI / VGA out (DVI via bundled adapter) and a multimedia keyboard / mouse combo to go along with that MCE remote. ASUS also promised that it's newest 3.4-kilogram (7.5-pound) desktop keeps ultra-quiet, but sadly, it failed to mention a price or release date.

[Via DailyTech]

Okoro Media Systems has been offering up well-spec'd HTPCs for quite some time, but it has finally seen fit to jump on the flash-based storage bandwagon. The firm's new ZX series of Extreme Digital Entertainment Systems gets going with the OMS-ZX100, which comes standard with a 32GB SSD (for the OS and such) and a 1TB HDD for media storage. Moreover, you'll find a 3.0GHz Core 2 Extreme QX6850 processor, 3GB of DDR2 RAM, NVIDIA's 256MB GeForce 8600 GT graphics card, Blu-ray / HD DVD playback and your choice of "any automotive color" on the chassis. 'Tis a shame it costs $5,995 to even join the ZX100 club, but look to spend even more if you're hankering for a built-in CableCARD tuner and WiFi adapter.

Those on the hunt for a pre-fabricated HTPC can't complain about a lack of choices these days, but if you've yet to be taken aback by anything out there, why not give Mesiro's Merium a glance? The standout feature here isn't the 1.66GHz Core 2 Duo T5500 processor, 250GB internal HDD, dual-layer DVD burner, GMA950 graphics accelerator, WiFi, 5-in-1 multicard reader or the bundled MCE remote -- oh no, it's the interchangeable chassis covers (weird, right?). Yep, you can swap out the covers on this rig whenever you feel the urge, ensuring that there's a case for every occasion. Unfortunately, those in America who'd like to get in on this won't appreciate the €999 ($1,578) price tag, and those €55 ($87) faceplates aren't any easier to swallow.

[Via MoCo Loco]

Back when the format war was still a-brewin', Inteset saw fit to offer up Blu-ray / HD DVD combo drives on its media PCs. Now that said war is behind us, the firm is plugging Blu-ray drives into its Vana VA6420-Si media extender system. The device, which can also be used in standalone form, enables users to bring content from varying locales within the domicile to a central home entertainment center, and aside from the 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo CPU, 2GB of RAM and GeForce 8400GT graphics card, you'll also find 7.1-channel audio outputs, a slew of video ports including HDCP-compliant DVI / HDMI and even an option for a CableCARD tuner. Unfortunately, we've no idea how pricey this rig will be, but with specs like that, we can't imagine it being cheap.

[Via eHomeUpgrade]

Not like it's any huge surprise or anything -- after all, the HD DVD deathwatch is already in full effect -- but Niveus has just informed us that due to "customer demand and format war influences," it will be adding support for Blu-ray and "ceasing production of HD DVD-based servers." According to CEO Tim Cutting, "incorporating Blu-ray into its offerings has always been part of the plan, but the demand from its customers, market trends, and recent announcements expedited its decision to come to market with Blu-ray support sooner rather than later." Adding more salt to the wound, he continued by saying that "while it has stood behind HD DVD as a viable high-definition platform, company engineers have been running Blu-ray in its testing facilities and are very impressed with the performance and integration with its servers." Another one bites the proverbial dust, eh?

We knew this thing was coming, and sure enough, Niveus has selected CES to officially launch its new Sierra Edition Media Server. The unit is housed in a slim, rack-mountable chassis (just over 1U in size), sucks down less than 180-watts and utilizes Intel's GM965 Express chipset / Core 2 Duo Mobile processor. As you can imagine, this one was designed to operate coolly and quietly (less than 30db noise), but it also features an optional HD DVD drive, up to 750GB of Seagate DB35 series storage and NVIDIA's GeForce Series 8 graphics with PureVideo HD technology. As for ports, you can expect digital / analog audio outs, Ethernet, four USB 2.0 sockets, a pair of FireWire connectors, and HDMI / DVI outputs to boot. Unfortunately, the media server will only be available to "volume integrators," and while pricing still remains a mystery, expect it to be available sometime during Q1.

Not pleased with any of HP's other offerings? Fret not, as we've got yet another one coming your way. The Pavilion Elite m9150f PC comes ready to handle those HD DVD / PVR duties, and it may even withstand a e-mail or two. Here's the dirt:

• 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 processor
• Intel's G33 Express chipset
• 3GB of DDR2 RAM
• Dual 360GB (720GB total) 7,200 SATA hard drives
• HP's Personal / Pocket Media Drive Bays
• HD DVD (read-only) drive
  
• LightScribe-enabled SuperMulti DVD burner
• Gigabit Ethernet / 802.11b/g WiFi
• NTSC / ATSC / FM tuners
• HP Media Center remote control with IR receiver
• Front-mounted 15-in-1 multicard reader

If you couldn't already guess, this one also packs six USB 2.0 ports, twin FireWire sockets, audio in / out, a wireless keyboard / mouse combo and HDMI / DVI outputs. As with HP's other newly announced media PCs, the m9100 series is set to ship this month and start at $1,159.

Remember those tasty Phenom chips AMD loosed back on November? We sure hope so, because that's the CPU HP's relying on in its forthcoming Pavilion Media Center m8330f PC. Here's the specifics:

• 2.2GHz AMD Phenom 9500 quad-core CPU
• NVIDIA's nForce 430 chipset
• 3GB of DDR2 RAM
• Twin 320GB 7,200 RPM SATA hard drives
• HP's Personal Media Drive Bay
• LightScribe-enabled SuperMulti DVD burner
• NTSC / ATSC / FM tuners
• HP Media Center remote control with IR receiver
• Front-mounted 15-in-1 multicard reader

Beyond that, you can expect six USB 2.0 ports, a pair of FireWire connectors, audio in / out, HDMI and DVI sockets and an HP mouse / keyboard combo. Like the s3330f PC already mentioned, this too will be landing real soon with a price tag starting at $959.

A slim PC destined to handle both of the major high-definition movie formats? Say it ain't so! Turns out, HP is indeed doling out such a machine, and it's so eloquently dubbed the Pavilion Slimline s3330f PC. Here's a look at what this mighty mini-tower will be packin':

• 2.8GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 processor
• 2GB of DDR2 RAM
• 500GB 7,200 RPM SATA drive
• HP Pocket Media Drive Bay
• Single LightScribe-enabled optical drive that reads Blu-ray / HD DVD and writes to dual-layer DVDs
  
• NVIDIA's 256MB GeForce 8500 GT
• 802.11b/g WiFi
• Built-in NTSC / ATSC TV tuners
• Front-mounted 15-in-1 multicard reader

Furthermore, you'll find 6 USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, audio in / out, DVI / HDMI ports and a wireless keyboard / mouse bundled in along with a whole suite of software. Intrigued? Be on the lookout for this one to land later this month starting at $949.

The last time we heard from Moneual, it was showing off a funky fresh tubular HTPC at CEDIA, but now it seems the firm is putting its poker face back on for the thoroughly traditional 972 Home Media Server. This rig rocks a tried and true flat black chassis, built-in display (at least it sure looks like one), a minimalist feel and a built-in Blu-ray writer to boot. 'Course, you'll find all the usual media PC amenities here including PVR functionality, but mum's the word on actual hardware configurations. Keep it locked for more just as soon as we find out.