DIY HD HTPC Extravaganza - Part 1: The Cases

34. Conclusion

That wraps things up for our look at the contenders for our HD HTPC's case. So that we don't keep you in suspense, we chose the nMediaPC HTPC 200 for one of the two HTPCs we ended up configuring. (We're not revealing the second choice at this point, since we need to keep a little intrigue going!)

This case met our requirements for expandability and upgradeability through the use of standard hardware throughout. But we also liked it for its looks, as well as its capabilities. The overall dimensions of the HTPC200 are workable, especially its case depth. And the nearly 11 pound aluminum/steel case comes with a built-in multi-function VFD and multimedia memory card reader tucked behind its swing-down front panel door. Finally, it includes AV ports for many uses, including video-in and video-out applications.

Next time we'll look at motherboards, CPUs, memory and power supplies to complete everything we'll need to make our PC ready for its multimedia duties.