What is Windows Home Server?

Quick Review of the Plextor PX-PH500US Portable Hard Drive

Reviews
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 31, 2010

Plextor have a 500GB portable hard drive that can be connected via eSATA for quicker transfer speeds.

Having a portable hard drive can be useful for so many different reasons, including storing off-site backups of your data easily, or just carrying additional data around with you.

However, some of the biggest problems with portable drives have been the size of the drive (not the storage size but the physical size) and the drive speed itself.

Over the years I have used many different portable drives, and I have got the stage where a lot of the time I just accept that transfer speeds can sometimes be slower than I would like.

The Plextor PX-PH500US portable drive, as well as having a USB connection, also has an eSATA port on it, which means I can connect it up to most modern laptops, my desktop or even my Windows Home Server and get faster transfer speeds.

SPECIFICATIONS

Capacity : 500 GB

OS : Windows 2000/XP/Vista (works with Windows 7), Mac OS 8.6/9.x/10.x and higher

Interface : USB 2.0 / 1.1, eSATA

Transfer rate :
USB 2.0 Max 480 Mbps
USB 1.1 Max 12 Mbps

Weight : approx. 190 g

Dimensions : 81 (W) x 130 (D) x 17 (H) mm

Hard Drive : Buffer size: 8 MB
RPM: 5400

Fast Warranty
2 year (Collect & Return) Warranty in the EU, Norway and Switzerland; 1 year in other countries: Carry-in

WHATS IN THE BOX

Apart from the PX-PH500US drive, there is a USB cable, an eSATA cable, an installation guide and a black leather carrying pouch.

USING THE PX-PH500US

Connecting up the drive to my computer was simple. Because I wanted to connect via eSATA and the drive doesn’t come with a power supply, I still had to connect the drive to the computer via USB (in fact, via 2 USB connects on the cable). Might be worth investigating a power supply if you would prefer not to connect via USB at all.

When the computer found the drive, it showed as Toshiba – you have to love Toshiba!

On the drive itself is some Plextor software called PlexTools Professional LE, which is used for various tasks, and can be installed by running the setup program.

You can get all sorts of information about the drive via the tools.

Running some tests with HD Tune Pro showed some fairly good results, although nowhere near what Plextor say of up to 480 Mbs (but different equipment used will show different results).

FINAL THOUGHTS

The drive performed as expected and I was happy with the transfer speeds. I liked that Plextor included a carry pouch as the drive will easily become dirty or scratched without one just because of the materials used to create the drive.

Cost wise, the 500GB drive costs around £100, depending on where you look, so you are paying for the eSATA connectivity.

Newegg Offering Acer Easystore H340 Windows Home Server for $299.99

Andrew Edney

-

May 31, 2010

0

Today Newegg are offering the Acer Easystore H340 WHS for under $300.

You can see our review of the Acer Easystore H340 Windows Home Server here: In-depth Review of the Acer Aspire easyStore H340 Windows Home Server

Click here to go to the Newegg page: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16859321013&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3300033&SID=

Don’t forget to use the additional offer code: EMCYSNW34 in order to get another $50 off (which brings it down to $299.99).

And on top of all that is it free shipping as well! Now there’s a bargain!

And as usual with the Newegg deals, they don’t last forever and when they are gone, they are gone!

Hands-On Review of the Aleratec 1:1 HDD Cruiser

Reviews
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 31, 2010

2

If you have ever needed to duplicate a hard drive or securely erase one without the need for a computer then the Aleratec 1:1 HDD Cruiser may be for you.

If you have a hard drive that you want to duplicate for whatever reason, you can connect it up to a computer and use software to make an exact copy. This takes time and also uses the resources of the computer. That’s fine if you only want to duplicate a single drive, but what if you wanted to make numerous duplicates of that drive – say to roll out a system for an office, or to duplicate a data drive? And also what if you wanted to securely erase drives when you had finished with them?

Rather than buying components for your computer and additional pieces of software to do the duplication and erasure, you might want to consider a stand-alone piece of equipment like the Aleratec 1:1 HDD Cruiser.

You may never have heard of Aleratec, so this is how they describe themselves:

Aleratec is a leading developer and manufacturer of “Prosumers’ Choice” solutions for the USB, HDD, Blu-ray, DVD/CD duplicating, publishing, recording, and digital imaging markets. Formerly known as Alera Technologies, Aleratec continues to set a higher standard in the industry by offering professional strength solutions at consumer prices.

Headquartered in Southern California, Aleratec’s exceptionally-skilled team of trained professionals has designed user-friendly, high-performance hardware along with intuitive software to assist corporations of any size with all their media technology needs. From copy cruisers to flash drive duplicators, Aleratec’s comprehensive line of innovative products enable businesses to cut costs, streamline workflow and increase revenues.

As pioneers in the CD recording industry, Aleratec is recognized worldwide as technology leaders with extraordinary on-target vision. Paving the way for the future of modern technology, they have envied marketing and sales track records which have consistently outperformed industry giants.

For years, Aleratec has served as a leading provider of disc duplicating and publishing solutions for specialized markets including government agencies, educational facilities, houses of worship and audio recording professionals.

Here is how Aleratec describe the 1:1 HDD Cruiser:

The Aleratec 1:1 HDD Cruiser duplicates Hard Disk Drives without a computer: an essential tool for installing new or upgrading multiple computer systems. It can also decommission computer systems by securely wiping all the data from hard drives with your choice of three comprehensive sanitization algorithms: a one-pass wipe, a three-pass wipe with verify, or a powerful seven-pass wipe as recommended by the Department of Defense 5220.22-M specification.

The 1:1 HDD Cruiser is a stand alone unit there is no need to tie up a computer for hours running complex software to duplicate hard disk drives. The 1:1 HDD Cruiser has a USB 2.0 port so any hard drives loaded in the machine can be accessed by a PC.

The 1:1 HDD Cruiser’s drive bays are equipped with quick and easy loading doors. Simply open the drive bay door to load or unload a drive. Slide the drive in the drive bay and close the drive bay door and high integrity electrical and data connections are made automatically. Each drive bay has Non Scratch SATA connectors designed for greater than 50,000 swap cycles minimizing worries about drive connection issues.

Aleratec produce versions of the HDD cruiser with various numbers of drive bays, but for this review we are looking at the 2 drive version, model number 350103.

WHATS IN THE BOX

Apart from the 1:1 HDD Cruiser itself, there is also 2 hard drive bay keys, a USB 2.0 cable, power cable, quick start guide and a CD containing the full user guide.

Quick Review of the PLDS eTDU108 Portable DVD-ROM Drive

Reviews
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 31, 2010

2

If you need a small and light external DVD-ROM drive you may want to take a look at the eTDU108 from Lite-On.

If you have a netbook then you probably don’t have any media drive with it (unless you have already purchased one). Lite-On have released a very small and lightweight DVD-Rom drive that connects via USB to your netbook, or any other computer, such as your Windows Home Server if you need to read disks.

SPECIFICATIONS

DVD Family

Read

DVD+R : 8X maximum by CAV

DVD-R : 8X maximum by CAV

DVD+R9 : 6X maximum by CAV

DVD-R9 : 6X maximum by CAV

DVD+RW : 6X maximum by CAV

DVD-RW : 6X maximum by CAV

Access time
1/3 Stroke: 170ms
Full Stroke: 300ms

Random Access 160ms

CD Family

Read

CD-ROM : 24X maximum by CAV

CD-R : 24X maximum by CAV

CD-RW : 24x maximum by CAV

Access time
1/3 stroke: 150ms

Full stroke: 300ms

Random Access: 150ms

Data Buffer / Burst Data Transfer Rate

200KB (Max) /

USB 1.1 123Mb/s

USB 2.0 480Mb/s

S / N Ration : > 60dB

MTBF (Life) : 60,000 POH

General
Environment

Operating : 5°C to 35°C; Relative Humidity: 10% to 80%

Non-Operating : -40°C to 65°C; Relative Humidity: 10% to 90%

Dimension : 141.8(W) x

WHATS IN THE BOX?

The only thing in the box is the drive itself – the USB cable is actually fitted underneath the drive (which you can see in the picture near the start of the review).

USING THE eTDU108 AND FINAL THOUGHTS

The eTDU108 is very light, so carrying it around in bag won’t be a problem, and it is small. A really nice addition is the USB cable fitted under the drive, all you have to do is pull it off and connect it up. This ensures that you don’t leave home without a cable (unless you didn’t put it back after the last time you used it).

I had no problems using it on several different machines and with several different types of media.

My only two negative comments on the eTDU108 is the noise it can generate when media is spinning and the speed. 8x is the fastest it will do, and that seems almost like the dark ages these days!

Price wise it is quite cheap – under £30 in the UK now and under $50 in the US, although you can probably find it cheaper by looking around.

The eTDU108 is available in both white and black.

Is this right for you? Only you can decide, but given that external writers are not that much more expensive, and are faster, you may want to look at one of those if you want that extra capability.

Review of the Tranquil PC T7-MP2 Media Center and Special Offer

Andrew Edney

-

May 30, 2010

10

Here we review the brand new media center pc from Tranquil PC – the T7-MP2 and we have a special very limited time offer for our readers.

Media Center pcs are great – they enable you to record and watch tv, listen to music, view photos and do so much more all from the comfort of your sofa in your living room or bedroom, or any other room in the house for that matter.

Tranquil have released a new media center pc, called the T7-MP2, and here is how they describe it:

Powered by the ION chipset from Nvidia, you can now enjoy HD movies etc with ease
Intel dual core Atom CPU ensures low energy consumption with excellent performance
Near silent operation – there are no fans to be heard, or suck in dust
Integrated Media Centre Receiver and Media Centre remote control
Tiny foot print – the size of a hard back book
Connect to almost any screen, HDMI (1.3) – DVI or VGA
and almost any audio player HDMI – SPDIF (Coax or Optical) – Analog
Expand storage with 6x rear USB2 ports and 1x eSATA port
Built in WiFi (802.11 b/g/n) and GigaLAN interface
Desirable quality – made from all extruded aluminium parts
Ideal for Media Centre Playback of your media files, web browsing etc
or Live TV / Recorded TV playback, or CD/DVD/BluRay playback – via optional USB devices
Runs Windows 7 Home Premium with Media Centre + IP TV services
Optional VESA TV bracket, to mount the T7-MP2 on the back of your large screen TV
(75×75, 100×100 or 200x100mm VESA mount points)

Enjoy new IP services from :
SKY Player – BBC iPlayer – ITV Player – Channel 4 Watch Online – FIVE Demand – etc

We have been talking to Tranquil about the T7 for a while now, and have been sworn to secrecy, and so were very happy when our T7 arrived earlier than expected.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Unit dimensions : 387 (w) x 356 (d) x 66 (h) mm

Unit construction : Aluminium and steel (typically >70% recycled materials)

System heat sink : Aluminium with custom heat pipe cooling system (TranCool3)

CPU : 64 bit ready Dual Core Intel Atom D510 (2 x 1.6GHz)

Chipset : Nvidia ION

Graphics : Nvidia GeForce 9xxx (up to 1920 x 1440)

Memory : 2x DDR2 667/800MHz (up to 4GB)

HDDs : 1x or 2x 2.5″ SATA

Colour options : Satin Black

Front panel : Power switch and Power / HDD activity LEDs / IR RX (suitable for All MCE remotes, not MCE keyboard)

Rear panel : 12V DC power in / 6x USB2.0 / 10.100.1000 LAN / Audio In / Audio Out / Mic In / COAX SPDIF / TOSLINK SPDIF / PS2 / HDMI / DVI / VGA / eSATA / WiFi / Power in

Weight : Base unit (nett) 4Kg

Power supply : External AC/DC with country specific power cord

Working temp : Maximum 48’C ambient

Mounting options : Desk or Wall

Power consumption : from 21W (base unit)

Acoustics : 17dBA (incl 1x HDD) or 0dBA with SSHDD

Software :

Windows 7 Home Premium
IP TV Add Ins
Video Decoder pack (incl MKV HD video)

WHATS IN THE BOX?

Apart from the T7, the box also contains a power supply, a full copy of Windows 7 Home Premium, a wireless aerial and a Philips Media Center remote control (complete with a Green Button).

Sony Dash Personal Internet Viewer Gets An Update

Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 30, 2010

2

Sony’s Personal Internet Viewer, the Dash, is getting a software update.

Back at the start of April we talked about the Dash: https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2010/04/02/the-sony-dash-personal-internet-viewer/

Owners of the Dash have received an email from Sony telling them of a new update that will introduce some new features this month.

I still haven’t got my hands on one yet, and I know that Tim was disappointed that it couldn’t be mounted so he hasn’t got one yet either.

Have you got one? What do you think?

Here is what the email says:

Dear Valued Sony Customer,

Thanks for purchasing the new Dash™ Personal Internet Viewer. We hope that you’re finding it a fun and useful addition to your home.

As a connected device, we’ll constantly be improving Dash to better meet your needs. At the end of this month, we’ll send out our first over-the-air software update. This update will provide usability and utility enhancements, including:

• USB functionality for MP3 music playback and photo viewing
• A new theme called “Full Screen App” that allows your apps to scroll in full-screen mode
• Enhanced alarm functionality, including adjustable snooze duration for custom alarms and simplified one-touch alarm dismissal

When the update arrives, a black dialogue box will pop up on your Dash screen, informing you that an update is available. Simply choose “Now”, and after the download is complete, your Dash will restart with these improvements. (Quick tip: If you choose “Later”, putting your dash into Night mode and then resuming normal operation by touching anywhere on the screen will bring up the dialogue box again.)

Watch for other updates next month, including new themes and the addition of expanded Internet radio options. And remember, if you ever have questions about Dash, visit http://www.sony.com/dashforums. Also, be sure to join the Dash community at http://www.facebook.com/Sonydash.

Media Browser 2.2.4. for Media Center Released

Microsoft

Andrew Edney

-

May 29, 2010

1

The latest version of the very popular media aggregator for Windows Media Center has been released.

If like me you have a lot of recorded TV and movies on your Media Center you may be interested in using a media aggregator, which basically pulls down information, artwork and various other things about your content, and also displays it all in a very usable and friendly way.

Probably the one of the best applications out there is Media Browser, and the latest version, 2.2.4. has just been released.

I have been using Media Browser for a very long time and its one of the those applications that frankly I couldn’t do without!

The latest version includes:

The Media type is now retrieved from locally stored metadata.

Better support for using MyMovies and Media Browser side-by-side. The user can now set the preferred order of local artwork.

Watched status indicators are working normally again.

It is now possible to Clear the Cache from the Media Browser Configuration Wizard.

Various sort-order bugs for Media Collections have been fixed.

Lots of other bugs have been fixed.

You can use SQLite and share playstate settings & display settings.

Better rotating backdrop support. It is now possible to randomize the order in which they appear.

Using the custom entrypoints no longer results in a full library refresh.

Improved installer interface that can create optional shortcuts to Media Browser.

Overall performance increase due to various changes to the cache mechanism.

Last but not least, Media Browser can now be localized by theme developers and the community.

You can download it here: http://code.google.com/p/videobrowser/downloads/detail?name=MCE_Media_Browser_2_2_4.msi&can=2&q=

Be aware that this release will need to re-build your entire item cache as changes were made that are not backward compatible. This may take some time the first time you enter MB with this version so be patient while everything re-builds.

WHS Vail Launchpad and its Extensibility

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

May 28, 2010

1

This week saw the release of another Vail article from the MS Engineering team – this one on the Vail Launchpad.

The article begins:

Hi there! We are on to our second edition of Vail Engineering blogs, and this time we are talking about Launchpad – what it is, how it can be extended and why developers should care about it. I also want to point out that we got pretty good response to Vail SDK with some of our MVPs covering it pretty well by now. You can check out some of these very informational posts here:

http://asoftblog.wordpress.com/2010/05/05/developing-an-add-in-for-vail/

http://blog.tentaclesoftware.com/archive/2010/05/07/89.aspx

http://blog.tentaclesoftware.com/archive/2010/05/08/90.aspx

To read the full article, click here: http://blogs.technet.com/b/homeserver/archive/2010/05/24/test.aspx

It’s worth a read, especially if you are interesting in building your own add-ins.

We have talked about the Vail Launchpad here: What is the Windows Home Server Vail Launchpad

AdminiMe 2010 Update Release 1 for Windows Home Server Released

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

May 28, 2010

0

This week Nick Asseloos has released update release 1 for his great Windows Home Server add-in AdminiMe 2010.

To learn more about AdminiMe 2010, click here: AdminiMe 2010 Add-In for Windows Home Server

Here is the huge list of updates in this release:

Update Release-1

APP:CA002 Cpu Analyzer Index (zero based) must be greater than or equal to zero and less than the size of the argument list.
A proper message is now shown to indicate that the CPU is overloaded.
Isn’t possible to change the network card, Apply button doesn’t enable
The button now gets enabled and selecting a card should work.
Documentation on using the mail functionality in the Communication dialog has been increased.
Server: Nag screen contains control characters
Control characters have been removed.
The part of the add in that shows the add in is registered says: ‘Registrd to:Name’
Changed to: ‘Registered to: Name’
Sent emails are german and contains formatting code \\r\\n in the text, right before the text \””In der registrierten Version …\”” ”
Control characters have been removed.
Server: Console crashes when invalid license file is on the server
An extra check is done and handled.
Server: Settings aren’t all saved
Now when changing settings (like events,…) these are saved as well.
Server: In some cases, selecting the networkcard wasn?t persisted
Now when changing the networkcard in the config settings the selected card is saved.
Server: Error when starting ?There was a problem while checking the registration file:The device is not connected.?
Now an extra check is done and this error should be handled.
Server: Checking the last item in the list of Application Logs (Config tab) doesn’t submit the change, isn’t saved
Now you can select the last item and save the change too.
There was a problem while checking the registration file:The type initializer for ‘Microsoft.HomeServer.Controls.ShareManager’ threw an exception.
This led to problems that mails were sent as unregistered, while the license file was present.
Now an extra check is done and this error should be handled, in some cases it could still occur.
If this is the case, send a mail to support@asoft-ware.com for a workaround.
Server: When a user chose to ignore messages, in the WHS Console then these messages were also reported.
Now when you choose to ignore messages, they will not be reported anymore.
Server: In some cases where there was high memory consumption it could be that AdminiMe reported this, while the treshold was not yet reached.
This was not a bug but the algorithm has been changed slightly so that it is more sensitive.
The links to the registration page/AutoExit page on the console toolbar where opened locally in the console
Now they are opened on the client itself.
You can now disable the monitoring of a disk’ usage, by setting the treshold to 0.
The disk id’s in the disk overview tab are now padded with a zero and sorted correctly
The disk rate is now converted to the best format (Kb/s,MB/s,…)

The Media Center Show – Show 258

Andrew Edney

-

May 28, 2010

0

Ian over at the Digital Lifestyle has released the Media Center Show podcast number 258.

Here is what Ian says about this week’s show:

This week I am talking to Tranquil PC’s David Thompson, Tranquil are based just down the road from me in Manchester so I popped down to chat with David about them returning to developing Media Center systems as well as their Windows Home Server solutions. I also have a round up of the weeks news including new Windows Media Center remote control apps for WebOS and Windows Phone 7.

As usual you can listen to the show here: http://thedigitallifestyle.com/cs/TDL/b/podcast/archive/2010/05/28/the-media-center-show-258-tranquil-pc.aspx?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheDigitalLifestyle+%28The+Digital+Lifestyle+and+Media+Center+Show%29

Synology Release DS Cam Version 2.0 App for iPhone

Andrew Edney

-

May 27, 2010

0

Today Synology have released an update to their free DS Cam iPhone app.

For users who own a Synology DiskStation, DS cam allows you to stream the live view (in MJPEG format) and event playback (in MJPEG format) of the IP cameras set up on your DiskStation where network connection is available. For users who does not own a Synology DiskStation, you can also access any authorized IP camera directly and stream its live view on DS cam. Before using DS cam, we recommend you to upgrade DiskStation to DSM2.3-1157 and onward.

With DS cam for the iPhone/iPod touch, you can:

-Live view all authorized cameras managed by your Surveillance Station.
-Search and replay recorded events.
-Take snapshots and utilize PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) function during live-view.
-View and manage saved snapshots.
-Access any authorized IP camera and stream its live view directly.

Here is the full press release:

View Live IP Camera Feeds on iPhone® and Newly Supported iPad® –

Synology® DS cam Version 2.0 is Now Available on Apple® App Store

Taipei, Taiwan—May 27, 2010—Synology^® Inc. today announced that the Synology iPhone^® application DS cam version 2.0 is available for free download on the Apple^® App Store. Users of iPhone or iPod^® touch can now directly access any IP camera and stream the live view with the Synology DS cam application. In addition, DS cam now supports Apple iPad^®, allowing iPad users to live view their IP cameras, take snapshots, and view recorded events from Surveillance Station and take advantage of the much larger screen size.

“Synology DS cam 2.0 provides iPhone users the ability to directly access their IP cameras without using Synology DiskStation to manage, and it is totally free,” said Rosiel Lee, product manager of Synology Inc. “Synology continues to deliver applications which make life easier and the Synology DS cam is a prime example,” added Lin.

Other features of the Synology DS cam 2.0 include the ability to live view multi-channels simultaneously for IP cameras managed by the Synology DiskStation, and MPEG4 event replay.

Availability

The Synology DS cam version 2.0 works with Synology DSM 2.3-1157 and is now available for free download on Apple App Store.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ds-cam/id349087111?mt=8

Synology at a Glance

Founded in 2000, Synology is a young and energetic company dedicated to developing high-performance, reliable, versatile, and environmentally-friendly Network Attached Storage (NAS) products. Our goal is to deliver user-friendly solutions and solid customer service to satisfy the needs of businesses, home offices, individual users and families.

The Home Server Show – Podcast 92

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

May 27, 2010

2

Dave and the guys over at the Home Server Show have just released podcast number 92.

Here is what Dave has to say about this weeks show:

The Home Server Show 92

In today’s show John, Chris, and Dave go over the week of news for Home Server and for the site. It was moving week for homeservershow.com and we will discuss a little bit about the move. The Icy Dock wallpaper competition is going strong in the forums and we talk a little about the submissions. Plenty of Add-Ins and craziness in this episode. Happy Birthday Jim. Enjoy!

Add-In: WHS Thumbnailer

Add-In: Admini-Me has been updated

Debug board for MediaSmart Server owners

HomeServerSync Exclusive look

Tranquil Media Center

Windows Phone 7 Media Center Remote on TDL

Google Storage

As usual you can listen to the show here: http://homeservershow.com/the-home-server-show-92.html

And Tim, I think the drinking game is back on!

Tranquil ixL Power PCs Ready for Pre-order

Andrew Edney

-

May 27, 2010

2

We have mentioned the forthcoming Tranquil ixL Power PCs previously, and now they are ready for pre-order and shipping in June.

You can read what we said earlier this month here: Tranquil Talk Media Center PCs and ixL

Today Tranquil PC have released information on the ixL Power PCs (ideal for demanding office / design duties, and Media centres)

Supplied as ‘specify your own’ – these units will appeal to the home builder, as well as those users who want a ‘ready to go’ system.

Also note the ‘unique lasering’ service – that means a customer (if requested) can have his own name / logo / coat of arms etc on the front panel (the example has my signature) – this is similar to Apple’s iphone branding service.

The product will also be available as a Tranquil Media Centre and the enhanced AVA Media ixVL series too.

These units will be listed early in June 2010.

There is also a quick video you can watch:

The specs are as follows:

For the ixL i3 (prices start from £389 + VAT):

Unit dimensions : 387 (w) x 100 (d) x 100 (h) mm

Unit construction : Aluminium and steel (typically >70% recycled materials)

System heat sink : Aluminium with custom heat pipe cooling system (TranCool4)

CPU : 64 bit ready Intel i3-530 (2.93GHz) Dual Core with HT

Memory : 2x DDR3 1066MHz (up to 4GB)

HDDs : Internal bays for 1x 2.5″ SATA 1x 3.5″ SATA, 1x slim Optical (SATA) drive
3x eSATA to rear panel. All SATA support 3GB/s

Colour options : Satin Black

Front panel : Power switch, Power LED, IR RX/IR RX LED, Media card reader / 2x USB

Rear panel : 12V DC power in / 6x USB2.0 / 10/100/1000 LAN, 3x eSATA, DVI-I, HDMI
Optical SPDIF, Mic in, Line in, Line Out (front), Rear Surround, Centre (subwoofer)

Weight : Base unit (nett) 6Kg

Power supply : External AC/DC with country specific power cord

Working temp : Maximum 48’C ambient

PCIex expansion : 1x slots 1x – 16x Low Profile only

Mounting options : Desk or cabinet

Power consumption : 33W – 90W (base unit)

Software : As ordered

For the ixL i5 (prices start from £459 + VAT):

Unit dimensions : 387 (w) x 100 (d) x 100 (h) mm

Unit construction : Aluminium and steel (typically >70% recycled materials)

System heat sink : Aluminium with custom heat pipe cooling system (TranCool4)

CPU : 64 bit ready Intel i5-650 (3.2GHz) Dual Core with HT + Turbo Boost

Memory : 2x DDR3 1066MHz (up to 4GB)

HDDs : Internal bays for 1x 2.5″ SATA 1x 3.5″ SATA, 1x slim Optical (SATA) drive
3x eSATA to rear panel. All SATA support 3GB/s

Colour options : Satin Black

Front panel : Power switch, Power LED, IR RX/IR RX LED, Media card reader / 2x USB

Rear panel : 12V DC power in / 6x USB2.0 / 10/100/1000 LAN, 3x eSATA, DVI-I, HDMI
Optical SPDIF, Mic in, Line in, Line Out (front), Rear Surround, Centre (subwoofer)

Weight : Base unit (nett) 6Kg

Power supply : External AC/DC with country specific power cord

Working temp : Maximum 48’C ambient

PCIex expansion : 1x slots 1x – 16x Low Profile only

Mounting options : Desk or cabinet

Power consumption : 33W – 90W (base unit)

Software : As ordered

You can pre-order yours here: http://www.tranquilpc-shop.co.uk/acatalog/i_power_systems.html

There is also a £49 off early discount code!

We should have one for review soon, as watch this space.