Looking for a small form-factor, low-power computer but not happy with the Intel NUC or Gigabyte BRIX models available for purchase? You can build your own… although you’ll probably end up spending more money on parts than you would on a complete system.

There are a number of mini-ITX motherboards which come with Intel Bay Trail processors. And now Gigabyte is introducing a new Mini-ITX PC case which makes assembling your own system look pretty easy.

essence_02

The Gigabyte ESSENCE case features a frame that you can slide a motherboard, storage device, and power supply into. There’s a power button on the front of the case along with audio and USB ports, and large vents on the sides which help keep the system cool whether you’re adding a fan or trying to build a fanless system.

Links.co.jp reports that the system will be available in Japan starting August 9th, where it will sell for about $134. It’ll likely be cheaper if and when it goes on sale in the US.

via FanlessTech

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7 replies on “Gigabyte ESSENCE is a mini-ITX case for DIY PC builders”

  1. That just seems expensive for what you get. I just bought a cracked screen Lenovo miix 2 8 for $50 on ebay. Hook that baby up to a monitor and I’m good to go (though it can be troublesome to setup at first.)

  2. I’ve made it a bit of a hobby over the years to try and stick ridiculously overpowered systems into these sorts of cases, so this might be a fun buy, just for the giggles. Using a PicoPSU, I recently built a Hackintosh around a i7-4790K and a Gigabyte Z97N Mini ITX board in an AOpen S120 case – a case that officially only supported a single motherboard with a ULV Pentium 3-based Celeron. I sadly had to give it up because OS X only supports 4K over miniDP and no other supported board has a miniDP connector, but the temperatures were good – in the mid-40C range at idle and about 55C at most, which is about 50C cooler than the Mac Mini that replaced the Hackintosh. Maybe one day when the price comes down a little on this and support for the Z97 takes off, this will be my Hackintosh.

  3. Antec ISK110. Not as pretty, but it’s $80 instead of $134. Antec has been making these mini-itx cases for many years… My ISK100 is 4 years old and the PSU works without any issues. The PSU is the most important part of these SFF cases, you need to buy a whole new case if the PSU fails.

    1. Agreed, I’ve had a J1800-based fanless system in an ISK 110 for the last ~ 4 months, it works fine (though it is kind of plastic-y and cheap, and I know some people complain about RF interference). The Gigabyte’s pull out cage is a nice design, though.

    2. That case is a pain in the butt to build with. I do not recommend it at all. As for the PSU, its just an ac charger, you can buy a replacement.

    3. Hopefully, the source link is right when they say it “should not exceed $100 in the West.” $20 doesn’t sound much when you get a higher wattage PSU and a significantly (my opinion) better external design.

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