When it comes to PC if you want good hardware in small size you pay more than the normal size price
case sizes from big to small
ATX--->mATX--->mini-iTX
Do you want it to be portable so you can take it with you any place ?
Then you must go for NUC as these are designed for that use
These are the smallest PC ever , however alot of features is cut from the NUC (not something you would use in your usage)
Do you want a small size PC that will not eat up space in the room with good features and options ?
You need to go for mini-itx size , these are the smallest full features PCs , they are priced alot better than the NUC however you are limited to certain models in a hardware line
For example in a graphics card series there are 5 models , you will only find 1 with ITX size
Generally PC are going to ITX size as technology advances towards small size
PC components is :
CPU : this is the central processor of your computer and it handles all data you do , better processor means less time in rendering and generally in any thing you do , only 2 companies make PC cpu : amd and intel , currently amd does not offer much in ITX size so you have to go with intel .
GPU : this is the graphics processor it process any 3d data you may draw or render like for example when you play a 3d game
generally it gives you better screen quality , ability to design large 3d projects and normal drawing too , gives you smooth game play too
There are integrated graphics and dedicated graphics , integrated has advanced too much in past years , it now can give you good screen quality and rendering however it still can not touch medium or even low cards ... Intel makes integrated graphics / AMD makes both integrated and dedicated graphics / NVIDIA makes dedicated graphics
Memory : called RAM you need it to store your programs live sessions data , when you open a program it loads the needed data in RAM and when you close it the data gets removed from the RAM
Storage : this is the HDD/SSD you need it to store your data permanently or delete it whenever you want ; HDD are in large storage size and comes cheap they have really long lifetime so you can store a lot of data in it / SSD are in small storage size and comes pretty expensive , they are advanced technology they are extremely fast where you need like 5 seconds to go into working desktop from pressing power button ; however they have short lifetime and they have a lot of errors . honestly it is not worth it for it's price
maybe in the future it will become better in sizes and less erros
Motherboard : This is where you plug in all your components , there are many many models , it provides the socket for the CPU , PCI-E slot for graphics card , SATA ports for storage , RAM slots for ram , internet+audio on-board + maybe WIFI/bluetooth in some models
PSU : This is the power generator for your PC comes in watt models like 500 watt PSU or 600 watt PSU
XFX / SEASONIC makes the best PSUs , do not cheap on it as the cheap models can explode or make fire / kill your PC / could kill you too
I made you a price list of a mini-itx build which the case has size of 261(W) x 394(H) x 426(D)mm :
Fully working so you do not need to buy anything for it .
PCPartPicker part list /
Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($71.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 380 2GB ITX Compact Video Card ($211.97 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman M1 Mini ITX Tower Case ($109.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($78.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $844.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-12 15:53 EDT-0400