A brief 3D Mark 06 run yields a score of 3078 marks, and we're pretty sure that a significant performance boost can be achieved if we pop in another stick of 2GB SODIMM for dual-channel operation. This is definitely not too shabby for a machine of this size!

A nice glow is emmited from the optical drive slot when the system is powered up.

 The Asus Essentio is definitely one of the mini-desktop systems that's HTPC-worthy with the introduction of the slot in Blu Ray drive. I'm pretty sure that the the Essentio with this option will cost an arm and a leg to boot, but the enthusiast seeking out for the best HTPC option might just choose to wait no more and fork out that sum of money to end their quest for the best HTPC. With the discrete G84 MXM solution, optical out and the almighty Blu Ray writer equipped, there isn't much more a home theater enthusiast can expect from their machine.

The bundled processor, the Core 2 Duo E4600 is definitely fast enough for most applications, and for the more demanding users, the G35-based mainboard readily accepts any other Core 2 Duo processor that you might throw at it, without the restrictions that we faced previously on the Nova with its 946GZ chipset.

The MXM format has been around for quite a few years, but was never popularly adopted till 2008, where Asus launched a series of graphic solution utilizing the MXM format, a key example would me the Asus Trinity 3850X3 graphics card that we've reviewed in our labs about a month back. Asus might end up leading another revolution by rolling out more MXM solutions out into the market, creating opportunities for other smaller players to enter the market with solutions, in a completely new foray.

The only daunting point - We have yet to recieve any form of pricing from Asus regarding this unit. Nevertheless, we like what we see, and the Essentio definitely deserves something worthy with all that features packed in.

Discuss This Review In Forum

Return Home

Check Hottest Deals