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Ruggedizing a Mini-PC

Introduction

What is a mini-PC? The term means whatever you want it to mean in the end. The term usually applies to a PC which prompts your spouse to say, "Ooh, it's so small" as if it were a good thing... which, in this case, it is.

Why am I so interested in mini-PCs? My father is a radio amateur who has recently started taking his equipment underground. At first, I thought he was involved in some sort of cult. I was right: he has joined the CREGgies. Fortunately, they are a happy, law-abiding lot, except for this member on the right. His fur is really white but he doesn't bathe as often as he should. He cannot fit into a regular bathtub, you see. Thankfully, his mother keeps a vat of rainwater by the shed, but sometimes it gets leaves in it and you know how leaves can stick to the fur, so he tries not to bathe any more frequently than is absolutely necessary. He is useful in confined spaces because his fur is naturally iridescent, thanks to the radium-enriched carpet shampoo he uses when washing it.

Where was I? Oh yes, ruggedizing a mini-PC...

If you want to take a PC underground with you, which could happen if you are a dedicated GREGgie and want to conduct various CPU-intensive tasks underground for your own nefarious porpoises, you'll want a PC which meets the following stringent criteria. The process which a PC undergoes in order to meet them is often known as ruggedizing. Some PCs are more compatible than others with the needs of a CREGgie. In a few minutes, we shall be examining mini-PCs with a view to ruggedizing them. First, though, what do we expect from a potentially ruggedizable mini-PC?

Wookie

  1. It must be sealable. Ergo, it must not require a cool air input in order to run properly. A typical PC has a fan on its CPU, a fan in the power supply and sometimes one on its graphics card. If you seal the box, you turn it into a rather expensive convection oven and rapidly bake your chips. This is better than making them soggy but still, this will not do.

  2. No moving parts. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, any moving parts can become clogged, dirty, or worn from regular use. Secondly, if the PC has a traditional hard disk then it will be sensitive to movement and susceptible to failure in the event of sudden knocks or shakes.

  3. Small and light. These two criteria require no explanation.

  4. Easy to use, topside. The user must be able easily to plug into the PC on the surface and talk to it with a keyboard and monitor.

  5. Easy to use, undeground. It is sometimes important that the user be able to talk to the device underground. This importance will vary with the nature of the experiments being carried out at the time.

  6. Value for money. There is no such thing as a cheap, reliable, ruggedized mini-PC. The best we can hope for is a PC which costs less than £1000 including ruggedizing. It is better to buy one £1000 PC than two £500, so value is more important than cost.

Note that the absence of CD-ROM or hard disk does not necessarily pose a problem. In fact, a PC without a hard drive is less likely to be damaged by jars and knocks. I propose to use a USB solid state disk instead anyway.

All units have external power bricks, usually 12v or 15v, not built-in PSUs.

Name

Width (mm)

Depth (mm)

Height (mm)

Chassis

Weight (kg)

Drives

Expandable?

Price

Hush PC

370

340

59

Aluminum

8

Hard disk
CD-ROM

1 PCI slot
USB sockets

Book PC

295

270

65

Steel

3

HDD, CD (both opt'l)

1 PCI slot
USB sockets

£600

Tranquil PC

330

225

65

Steel + acrylic

5

Hard disk
CD-ROM

1 PCI slot
USB sockets

Nimble V5

52

195

195

Plastic

1.5

Hard disk

PCMCIA
type II slot

E680

SaintSong Espresso

106

32

150

Plastic?

0.9

Hard disk

Docking station
USB sockets

£230

52mm x 195mm x 195mm --- Weight ~1.5 Kg

 

Hush PC

Pics: [front] [helicopter] [rear L] [rear R] [power socket] [inside]

Pros: Good cooling system. No fans. PCI slot for an additional board.

Cons: You mustn't run it at over 35 degrees Celcius or you'll void the warranty. Any additional PCI board is typically 1mm too long for the case, so you have to file it down.

The case is one big heatsink. Nice.

See a detailed review here.

Suitability: 7

 

Book PC

Pics: [front] [rear] [inside]

Pros: Light.

Cons: It is optionally fanless. That's not a good sign.

Suitability: 6

 

Tranquil PC

Pics: [front] [rear] [inside]

Pros: Looks like something your cousin stole from the set of Star Trek.

Cons: Design of case indicates that cool airflow is required. Case front is acrylic.

Suitability: 2

 

Nimble V5

Pics: [front] [close-up] [side] [rear] [inside] [specifications] [review]

Pros: Draws only 12-14W or so. Small. Cute. Fanless.

Cons: If you open the case, you void the warranty of the PC.

Suitability: 7

 

SaintSong Espresso

???

http://www.computerbargains.co.uk/shop/customer/product.php?productid=16172&cat=&page=&PHPSESSID=5b47c53236d4f36470528c193b3d0a02

Can you seal it & deactivate the hdd?

 

 

 

http://linitx.com/shop/product_info.php/cPath/6/products_id/10?osCsid=4cbffd1981e69ffbd7d5279fa33dae28

 

http://www.mini-itx.com/#story0256

http://www.zflinux.com/

http://www.northernmicro.com/

http://www.saintsong.com.tw/english/

http://www.norhtec.com/index.html

http://www.netbox.co.uk

http://mini-itx.com/

http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/

http://www.epia-power.ch

http://www.lart.tudelft.nl/

http://www.bcl-online.de/home.asp?status=en_home