14 DAY TRIAL // Hardware manufacturer MSI has just introduced a fully-fledged computer in a miniature form factor. Called the Titan 700, the device is built on the Mini-ITX form factor and is powered by VIA's CN700 northbridge paired with the 8237R southbridge chip.
The Titan 700 Mini-ITX computer offers the same functionality as a regular desktop computer, while providing a plus of portability for field operation. The CN700 / 8237R chipset sports a strong memory architecture and can hold up to 2 GB of DDR2-400 memory. Moreover, the V-Link interface delivers a northbridge-to-southbridge data transfer rate of 533MB/s.
The Mini-ITX motherboard offers the computer industrial-grade stability and reliability, while preserving the technical design similarities of a modern notebook computer. Measuring 185 x 240 x 70 millimeters, the Titan 700 is built using a small chassis with a notebook-style power supply. The device can operate in any position, and can be placed either horizontally or vertically.
The system is powered by a VIA C7-series of energy-efficient processors running at a blistering core speed of 2 GHz. It comes with only one GB of system RAM that can easily be extended with another 1 GB card. Given the fact that the chipset fully supports the SATA standard, the Titan 700 features a 2.5-inch 250 GB SATA hard disk drive as well as a slim-sized DVD burner.
Other hardware specifications include a Gigabit LAN port from Realtek, AC'97 Mic In, Headphone Out, two USB 2.0 ports, two PS/2 connectors, VGA output, as well as a single TV out connector. The system comes with integrated sound based on the AC'97 codec, able to support 5.1 speaker setups.
The miniature-sized computer is extremely energy-efficient, as it only takes up 60 watts of power while operating at full load. The absence of a conventional power source unit makes it extremely silent with an operating noise of less than 35dB during full operation and 20dB in standby mode.
Although there is no availability date yet, the company estimates that the Mini-ITX desktop PC will come with an estimative retail price of $460.