8 SFF PCs: Small, But Not So Quiet

Mini-PCs For The Living Room?

The shapes and sizes of small form factor (SFF) PCs are an alternative worth consideration when you want a discrete machine that takes up very little space, offers standard CPU computing power and comes at a cheap price compared to notebook PCs. In many cases, their sleek designs are also nice to look at in an office or home environment.

But what about their fan noises, which represents a significant factor since SFF PCs require ample cooling due to their shrink sizes? Aware of this concern, vendors say they have made design improvements to compensate, but as our previous tests show, success in this area has been sporadic.

So while less of a concern in an office environment, is the latest crop of SFF PCs still too noisy for your living room?

The SFF PC is supposed to be quiet.

The comparison should show what the latest SFF models can do with Intel P4 CPUs. How loud do mini PCs get when they are run at full capacity? Are they suited for use in the living room or bedroom? Expansion options and hardware assembly also play an important role in purchasing decisions compared to traditional tower PCs.