Giada Launches Mini PC for Pro Gamers
In February, we reported that Giada launched a new Haswell-based barebones mini PC called the F300. Although its main focus was on the digital signage market, the spec list showed that it could also serve as the perfect home theater PC: lots of punch with a small footprint. Now the company is back with a new mini-PC that's built for PC gaming: the D2308U.
The D2308U packs an Intel Core i7-4500U Haswell processor (1.8 GHz, 3.0 GHz), Nvidia's GeForce GTX 750 Maxwell GPU with 2 GB of GDDR3 VRAM, and 8 GB (2x 4 GB) of DDR3L-1600 MHz memory. The gaming rig's storage consists of a 1 TB 2.5-inch 5400 RPM hard drive (SATA 2) and an optional mSATA SSD (SATA 3).
In addition, the D2308U provides one DVI-I port and two HDMI 1.4b ports for a triple display setup. The audio is handled by Realtek, which provides headphone and microphone jacks on the front, and a SPDIF combo jack on the back. Realtek also provides the unit's Gigabit Ethernet port, located on the back.
The mini gaming rig has Wireless N and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, two mini-PCI Express slots, one USB 3.0 port on the front, two USB 3.0 ports on the back, two USB 2.0 ports on the back, and one 4-in-1 card reader. There's also an on-board IR module and an infrared sensor on the front panel, and a "smart" fan keeps everything cool while owners game on care-free.
Finally, the overall dimensions are 9.05 x 2.14 x 6.83 inches, making it a great fit in the living room. This device retails for $1,099, and can be purchased at local outlets like Circuit City, CompUSA, Newegg and TigerDirect.
Based on pricing, Giada's biggest competitor could be Xi3 Corporation's $999 Piston console. This device sports an AMD Trinity processor clocked at 3.2 GHz, Radeon HD 7660G graphics, 8 GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 128 GB SSD. If you want to add your own memory and hard drive, Gigabyte sells a BRIX gaming barebones PC for around $489.99. This mini-rig includes an Intel Core i5-4570R processor, Iris Pro 5200 graphics, support for 2.5-inch hard drives and two SO-DIMM DDR3L slots for memory.
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Not really a competitor at all, unless price is the only comparison!
You're trading those features for a real decrease in size. Having a very crowded entertainment center already, I appreciate the decrease in size. At a low enough entry point, I don't care about upgrades. So this one could drop a bit in price to be really attractive.
This could make a decent media center PC as well as a Big-Screen Steam display. You're not really losing much in the processor (that i7 turbos to 3.0GHz), and a mSATA drive will make it really snappy. Even the GTX750 is decent enough for gaming.
It also functions well as a working desktop where you can game on it as well as using it for work-related purpose. Multiple screens are really useful in the workplace. Finally, that small footprint saves a lot of space on your desktop, in addition to adding a little wow factor when co-workers come into your office.
Some Intel NUCs are replacing some PCs at my office, so these smaller sizes can definitely find a home.
For "pro" gamers? Really? As in professional gamers? On a GTX750?
Also, the i7 is a dual-core CPU (2C/4T) with a 15W TDP which makes me really nervous considering the i5-4200M is also 2C/4T but has a 37W TDP.
So what's the deal, does the 3GHz Turbo only work with the 2nd core not running?
Looks like a lot of compromise to save a little volume on a computer that is unlikely to be moved much. Yes, it's a niche item. but.... why would anyone buy it for that price?
95% of the world know what a foot is, and they also know a foot is 12 inches
An inch is roughly the length of your thumb tip and that is no coincidence.
weren't you on the internet when you wrote this? If only there were some way to search the vast amounts of information contained online for what you need to know. Like some kind of engine the drove searches. Man, whoever comes up with that idea would probably be worth at least thousands of [insert your currency of choice here].
Woah woah, did you not see my handle? That's a pretty complex maneuver for me, I'm not a hacker or something
But I shouldn't have been so rude, I live in the states, but so much of the content I watch in regards to tech is in metric so I can understand the desire to want things measured in that system. But then, if it weren't for being interested in computers I wouldn't have learned Centigrade (which has, at this point, become just a way to annoy my friends when they ask how hot I think it is outside, "Oh about 25 degrees").