Shuttle has released a new barebones XPC system this week, featuring the Intel G45 Express chipset and the new H7 aluminum chassis.
The new Shuttle XPC SG45H7 is pretty much everything you would expect from a Shuttle XPC barebones system; a small form-factor PC with a mix of style and powerful abilities. Although its appearance is not much different than many previous Shuttle XPCs, the SG45H7 is using the new H7 chassis, which features slightly larger dimensions compared to those of the previous G-Series. This increased space allows for a larger and quieter power supply fan to be equipped, while still leaving enough room for a dual-slot graphics card and up to four memory modules.
The SG45H7 comes only in the color black, has a single 5.25-inch bay and two 3.5-inch bays; one of which is internal. Keeping things classy, the storage bays feature “stealthed” drive doors, which have worked well in past Shuttle systems. Also hidden away are the front panel connectors, which include audio ports, two USB ports and an eSATA hotplug. Unlike with some other Shuttles, an integrated multi-card reader is not present, but adding an internal card reader to the 3.5-inch bay could work.
The motherboard used in the SG45H7 is the FG45, which features the Intel G45 Express chipset and uses solid capacitors for increased durability. Intel Socket 775 processors with bus speeds of 1333, 1066 and 800 MHz are supported, including Intel Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Duo processors. CPU cooling is achieved with the included Integrated Cooling Engine (I.C.E) that uses heatpipe technology and a quiet fan, which also insures airflow within the case. Four modules of DDR2 667/800 MHz memory can be equipped, with support for up to 16 GB in total size.
The motherboard has two expansion slots; a PCI-Express v2.0 slot and a PCI slot. The PCI-Express slot is large enough for a double-width graphics card to be installed, which could make for a powerful gaming system, but doing so will take up the PCI slot as well. The included energy-efficient 300-watt power supply should be enough to power most graphics cards, but for less demanding needs, the included Intel GMA X4500HD integrated graphics solution is already enough. The Intel GMA X4500HD supports full 1080p HD video playback and includes VGA and HDMI video output ports, which could allow the Shuttle XPC SG45H7 to function as a great multimedia center. A DVI-to-HDMI adapter is also included, for those needing DVI connectivity.
Other features include Gigabit LAN, 8 channel audio, optical SPDIF, FireWire and optional WLAN. The Shuttle XPC Barebone SG45H7 is now available from specialist retailers with prices online listing for as low as $349.
