Your Everywhere Mini-PC. From the living room to the kitchen, the ZOTAC MAG delivers a premium multimedia experience. The ZOTAC MAG packs fluid high-definition video playback capabilities into a slim, compact system that is silent and perfect for all home environments. Includes 2gb DDR2 memory, 160GB HD. PLEASE NOTE - NO OPERATING SYSTEM INCLUDED
Technical Details
- Zotac mini-PC with Intel Atom N330 and nVidia ION chipset- 2GB DDR2-800, 160GB HD
- 6x USB 2.0, WIFI, Gigabit LAN, 8 channel Audio, VGA, HDMI, 1x eSATA port, SPDIF optical output
- 4-in-1 built in media card reader, included stand, VESA mount, AC adapter
- Low power usage, NO OPERATING SYSTEM
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2010-08-27By D. Beckman (East Coast USA)
Not much to add from the previous comments. I would like to simply say I am satisfied with the product 100%. The one weakness I have found is the previously mentioned crappy wireless. My router is upstairs and this machine is downstairs next to my PS3. My PS3 wireless works flawlessly, but this machine has serious issues. It says it's a good signal and connected at full speed, but i get about 100kb/sec through it. I am unable to stream the simplest of media with the router at that disance.
My solution was to move the wireless router downstairs and plug the MAG into it.
2010-08-20By Jitaroo
I just received my Zotac box and since it doesn't come with an OS I was going to install it from a hard drive, but I had some troubles booting from the hard drive, which I eventually figured out; which is why I'm writing this. All you need to do is plug in a keyboard and then make sure you hold the delete key on it. Once your in the BIOS you can move onto the boot order, but you will have to change the main hard drive to your external drive and then tell the BIOS to boot into that drive. That should work fine to install. I'll update this review after i've gotten windows installed and xbmc and aeon up and running.
2010-08-07By Peter K
I purchased the item from Amazon with the intention of streaming internet tv. I received the item loaded ubuntu as recommended from another buyer. Setup was a snap and software upgrades a breeze. I havent been able get audio from the computers hdmi cable to the tv. Aside from the heat it generates, its been working great as a desk top computer. I would definitely recommend the product to others.
2010-07-19By Karl Burrows (Charlotte, NC)
I am an IT consultant (I know, I repeat myself in my reviews, but just adding some validity!) and wanted something to replace an old Shuttle Mini I had build for my wife many years ago. It was getting to be too slow and it was time to replace it. I researched options through Dell (my main PC vendor) and found most mini systems were pushing $600 or more by the time you get them configured. In my research, I came across the HTPC (Home Theater PC) subset of computers. Of course, there are lots of opinions and lots of options to choose from. I chose this model for the following reasons:
* The NVidia Ion GPU seems to be tops in the market for video processing and takes a lot of load off the CPU, which allows the Atom processors to work more with the PC processes. This makes the Ion/Atom combination work well with general PC applications like Office, lightweight photo editing software, Internet, etc. Multi-tasking is quite acceptable running basic programs.
* I liked this particular Zotac model because all it needed was the O/S. I looked at the NS-01, which had a newer Atom processor, but required a hard drive, memory and the O/S. Pricing moderate components, I was over $500 with the total configuration. As with all the reviews, these aren't going to blow you away with speed, but they are going to be respectable machines for a specialized market. I didn't see that there was going to be that much difference in performance between between the two, so I chose the easy way out.
* Finally, the Shuttle Mini barebones I built many years ago was about the smallest footprint you could get in a mini PC at the time. I looked at some of the HTPC's that were no bigger than a set of playing cards with a fanless system. The Zotac is still very small. I think the pictures and the discussions make you think they are smaller than they really are. If you imagined a slightly oversized CD/DVD carrying case, you can get a better idea of the size. I mounted the monitor on the wall and set the Zotac right behind the monitor, wrapped and tied all the cables and it takes up no space at all. I also like that you can mount it in the VESA mounts behind the monitor, but I'm not convinced that works well if you need to get to a USB port or want to plug in your SD card. Luckily, some Dell monitors come with USB ports, so I had an SD card reader and just use that and the other USB ports on the monitor for connections.
I installed Windows 7 Pro 64-bit without a hitch. I didn't need any driver updates and all hardware installed properly. Windows Update picked up any hardware updates that weren't installed with the Windows install disk (you can install Windows 7 with a flash drive configuration or just get an external USB DVD drive, which I used). There was no need to even use the supplied drivers CD. 160GB hard drive is plenty for my wife's use and there is an eSATA port for additional space if you need it. I would imagine hardcore home theater enthusiasts will have network drives for media sharing and geeks like me have servers or network storage for media storage.
This system comes with 2GB of DDR2 800 RAM, which is adequate and upgradable to 4GB for about $40. DDR3 1333 is more likely to been seen in better PC configurations, so this memory is a few generations old (I had it in an old Precision 380 workstation that is about 4 years old), but again, these are built for streaming video, which requires more ability to buffer the video than playing games which requires instant GPU response. The Atom processor is a dual core with hyperthreading, so it does show as 4 processors in Task Manager. Again, you probably can't run many apps that will utilize all 4 cores, but it does make it easier to multi-task (email, multiple Internet tabs, viewing pics, Word doc).
My only knock on this unit is the wireless. I have a pretty good wireless bubble around the house and the Zotac just doesn't want to connect at more than 11mbps. I would think they could come up with some fix for this. I didn't have an issue since I had a CAT5 connection there already, but I can see where some users wouldn't have wired connections behind their TV's or in their kitchen. Zotac, do you have a fix for this??
Spending most of my day dealing with computer issues, the last thing I wanted was to deal with issues at home (what do they say, the cobblers kids have no shoes!). I have had this up and running for a few weeks now and my wife seems very pleased, which makes me very pleased. I think it is a great option for a second PC in the house. It's at a great price point, configuration is very easy and it offers lots of features for a home user. Don't expect it to blow you away with speed, but do expect it to blow you away with ease of use, small footprint and lots of features. I have already thought of several options for these for my customers.
2010-07-14By Ken staten (Lehigh,fl)
The worst product I've ever bought in my 9 years of ordering from Amazon.No sound weak Wi-Fi.
