Asetek Shows Off Liquid-Cooled All-in-One

All-in-one computers definitely can't be said to exist in small numbers, but there is one thing about them that has, so far, held mostly true. Basically, because they emphasize compactness and, thus, can't implement very efficient cooling mechanisms, AiO's never really seem capable of truly matching a desktop's performance, which is not exactly a favorable fact considering their prices. Knowing this, Asetek decided to try its skill and eventually managed to put together a fairly impressive machine, though it's still a prototype.

Basically, Asetek claims that its system is, more or less, equal to the iMac but its thickness of only 58 mm. Not all the insides are revealed, likely because they are still subject to change, but the video demonstration does, at the very least, indicate the presence of an Intel Core i7-920 central processing unit. The other major component revealed is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280M GPU. Put together, these two have a TDP (thermal design power) of 200W.

Now comes the part that Asetek claims allows its product to match, performance-wise, a 'regular desktop' without overheating. Apparently, a proprietary radiator design is integrated into the stand of the AiO. Said radiator chills both the CPU and the GPU. Unfortunately, the company does not say how much memory is included in the offer, nor did it elaborate upon its connectivity, I/O and storage capabilities. Depending on how well the PC maker promotes its invention, and how willing companies are to experiment with it, this prototype may, eventually, turn into an actual product.

Granted, considering the smooth performance demonstrated in the video, there doesn't seem to be many reasons why it won't. If all goes well, a marketing-viable model may eventually be put together and might even have more recent hardware, though the GTX 400 series may still be too hot and power-hungry for it. All that remains is for consumers to wait and see.