Close Encounters of the Small Kind
by Jarred Walton on December 8, 2004 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Reactions to the Small Form Factor
Depending on whom you ask, what happened next is up for debate. Either the SFF was a colossal success, or else we simply have a case of "monkey see, monkey do." Whatever the reason, the reaction of the industry was clear: SFF became a hot topic, and virtually every motherboard manufacturer came out with their own design.As is often the case, the quality of the derivative efforts varied. Some were better in certain areas and worse in others; other designs were cheap, quick copies that failed in nearly every aspect, but few and far between were the designs that wholly improved on the original. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but flattery isn't worth much in the business world - just ask Xerox how much money that they had earned off the "flattery" of both Apple and Microsoft.
(Those who follow computer games have witnessed a similar phenomenon with the "revolutionary" genres: Wolfenstein 3D created the first-person shooter, and in a short while, there were dozens of knock-offs. Then it happened again with Doom and Quake; Dune II and Warcraft spawned the real-time strategy genre, and there followed a slew of clones of varying quality.)
Meanwhile, it's difficult to say what actually happened in the computer community. For all the reviews that have been written on the emerging world of SFFs, they don't seem to be that common. This is a personal view, but I have never been asked to service a computer that was in a SFF case, I've never been asked to build a SFF system for someone, and I never really gave the subject that much thought. With all the choices out there, what did people buy? I think a lot of people simply felt overwhelmed and went with what they knew: the old, reliable ATX case.
Why would all these companies put so much effort into this market when it doesn't seem to be all that popular at retail? Perhaps the manufacturers like creating a complete system, with a power supply and case that they approve for use with their motherboard. They might even be able to make more money off the sales - case manufacturers have to make money to survive, as do the power supply manufacturers; combining all three would give you all the profits, assuming the margins make it worth the effort. It could also be that the cases are actually selling very well and I simply don't run in the same circles as the typical SFF purchaser.
Regardless of the explanation, the fact remains that until recently, I had read plenty about SFF cases, but I had never actually touched one. Why would anyone want to spend more money for a system that had less expansion possibilities? I certainly couldn't see a reason for it! After all, if a new CPU socket came out, your case would now need to be replaced along with your motherboard and CPU.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
45 Comments
View All Comments
fitten - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
I have had two Shuttle SN41G2s for almost two years now and I like them a lot. However, for my next SFF build, I'm going to go with an Antec Aria case and a microATX motherboard because it gives more options than the barebones SFFs while being only a little larger (but still plenty small enough to carry to our frequent mini-LAN parties).As a sidenote, my wife really likes her SN41G2, even more than the A64 3000+ I built for her a few months ago (mid-tower case), just because the Shuttle is "cute" and small.
jediknight - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
Maybe it's just me, but personally I don't find the idea of spending more money for something that's less expandable appealing.Certainly, for some a SFF case is a godsend.. but for me, it's the big 'ol beige case or bust :->
Scott333 - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
For the roundup, please mention the number of front and back USB ports, not that Anandtech would leave it out ;)My only complaint about the article was the description of the lacking Parallel port (like ieya). It's practically a non issue for most people, and in a sense I have distaste for computer makers that insist on essentially useless legacy support. For example, I want my next PC to not have a 3.5 inch floppy drive nor a cd-rom, so even if they came free I wouldn't buy it.
The option for people who need it is exactly what they should have. Besides, you can get USB printers for free (plus 50 dollars for ink of course :).
Then again, I'm sure most readers wouldn't see your comment as a true fault of the Shuttle, just that I agree with Ieya, its very far from a deal killer.
Good article, looking forward to the details.
nastyemu25 - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
jkostans, software has changed since 200mhz was top of the line... and it has also changed since 1.13ghz was top of the line. i use office suite 2003 apps at work on my p4 2ghz that run significantly faster than they do on my 1 ghz tb at home.jkostans - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
I'm sorry but if you feel you need patience to use a 1.13Ghz P3 computer then you've got some problems. You must have been going out of your mind when the pentium pro 200Mhz was top of the line....... I use a 600Mhz SPARC processor at work everyday and it's no slower for browsing than my XP 3000+ back home.ieya - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
As to the lack of parallel port on the Shuttle SFF, it's almost certainly an option; I built my mum a Shuttle box recently, using the nForce2 based one with integrated graphics.It, too, lacks a parallel port (interestingly enough the newer and higher-end SN84G4, which I built my dad's XPC around, does have a parallel port), however there's a cutout at the top of the case for one, and it's a cheaply available option from the same suppliers as you get the Shuttle XPCs on. Basically a parallel port with a cable which plugs onto a header on the mobo ...
So basically just to note that the lack of parallel port needn't be a 'deal killer' on the XPCs :)
athrap - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
One thing I want to be addressed in the next article on SFF is the heat issue. I live in a HOT area and my computer room does not have air-conditiong. Even with a normal case, heat builup becomes a problem here in summer. Therefore, I want to know how much difference is there between an ATX case and SFF case as far as cooling is concerned.bandrade - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
I'm also looking forward to the roundup. Especially if it includes high end SFF with 939 sockets and the best mid-level ones according to price vs. performance. This will definitely help me decide what to get.IceWindius - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
I really wish Shuttle would get with fixing the Cold boot, SATA and incorrect temp problems with the SN95GJarredWalton - Wednesday, December 8, 2004 - link
Thanks for the comments! I believe the front image is now fixed - I missed the standard format size initially and had to tweak it.If this wasn't entirely clear, I *really* like the change from a large ATX case to a SFF. The Shuttle in particular is really sleek. Now I just need to get around to the actually replacing most of my furniture. Brown particle-board desks that have seen better days with a hodge-podge of couches and chairs - it's pretty bad. (And we won't even talk about all the computer boxes and parts around the house.) :)