14 DAY TRIAL // Up until now, we've seen quite a few machines combining Intel's Atom CPU with NVIDIA's ION (and even with Next-Generation ION, also known as ION 2) graphics chipset, but it seems that the people over at Giada are taking this combo to a whole new level, given the fact that they've paired the aforementioned ION 2 platform with Intel's Core CPUs, resulting in a much more powerful machine, the D2301 nettop.
So, the D2301 allows users to choose between the available Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 CPUs, combined with an Intel HM55 chipset and complete with the aforementioned graphics unit from NVIDIA, the next-generation NVIDIA ION GPU.
Additionally, the tiny nettop also supports up to 8GB of memory, available via the 2 x So-DIMM slots that support DDR3-1066 memory modules, as well as a 2.5-inch HDD unit, supporting storage capacities of up to 2GB.
The Giada D2301 Nettop offers plenty of surprises in the field of connectivity as well, featuring 4 x USB 2.0 ports, one USB 3.0 interface, one eSata port, HDMI and DVI video outputs, not to mention a memory card reader supporting SD/MMC/MS/MS PRO memory cards.
Furthermore, the nettop packs Gigabit LAN+ WiFi 802.11n networking, a built-in Bluetooth module, audio out and mic-in ports, as well as an ATSC/DVB-T/DMB-TH/ISDB-T tuner.
Plus, there's also a Super Multi DVD-RW optical unit present that, should the user decide to do so, can be easily replaced with a Blu-ray optical unit, available as a separate option.
To sum things up, the Giada D2301 nettop is, in fact, quite an interesting machine, that, depending on the user's choices (and budget), can go from a device meant to simply play HD content and support some basic browsing to a full-fledged home entertainment/multimedia machine that can even do some basic gaming.
Unfortunately, pricing and availability details have not yet been provided, but we certainly hope that this thing will arrive in stores worldwide, perhaps even in time for Christmas.