A look at Shuttle’s Small Form Factor Barebone PCs at COMPUTEX 2018
Many may be unaware of the Shuttle brand. Back in the late 2000s and early 2010s, Shuttle barebone systems were rather popular in Singapore with the enthusiast audience, as they were able to bring high performance into a small form factor desktop computer. They are one of the pioneers who focused on highly customized barebone PCs. This means that when purchasing a Shuttle PC, you would only get an incomplete system with its chassis, power supply, cooling solution and motherboard that comes together. You will then have to purchase your own CPU, RAM and storage drives and other peripherals to get a fully working system.
As the Mini-ITX form factor became more common as a solution for mass market, Shuttle had to reposition and pivot their business to target a more application specific businesses in order to stay relevant. We were at their booth at Nangang Exhibition Centre during COMPUTEX Taipei to learn about the latest innovations and verticals which the company is currently into.
End-to-End Business Products and Solutions
Shuttle has transformed and is not the same company which we have known years ago. They have started to develop complete solutions from its hardware to software, in order to capture a wider enterprise market. At their booth, we saw some of the different applications from them.
Smart Visitor Management System
For a start, we were introduced to Shuttle’s Smart Visitor Management System. This is enabled by the company’s All-in-One PCs with touch screen capabilities. We can see how Shuttle evolved from solely a hardware design and manufacturing company into a solutions provider. We do understand that they do provide the licensing of their software for use with their hardware devices as well.
Of course, the Visitor Management System allows visitors to register their visit to a specific facility or restricted location. They have also included a keyboard for easy typing of personal information and credentials.
Point-of-Sales System
Next up, we moved on to Shuttle’s own Point-of-Sales (POS) solutions. With their P20U hardware, we can also see how their mini PCs can be adapted into a POS application, which is integrated with the peripherals of a POS system, such as the receipt printer, cash drawer, barcode scanner and magnetic strip reader.
User Authentication System
Shuttle also produced solutions for Human Resource business processes. The BR06 All-in-One user authentication system can help companies to allow identification and authentication of the users for access to restricted areas, or it can even be used for attendance taking as well. It comes with various features, such as facial recognition, fingerprint recognition and NFC/RFID access for multi-factor authentication support.
Surveillance and User Profiling System
One of the most impressive showcase at Shuttle’s booth was their surveillance and user profiling system, which we saw could have many practical usages in today’s connected world where security is a large concern.
Shuttle placed multiple CCTVs at their booth areas, and each video feed were proceeded by an individual thin PC that connects to it. These data are then processed and then fed to a central server system for analysis. Such a system allows the identification of specific face, and therefore, creates the chance of movement tracking throughout different locations where the CCTVs are placed. Their software system also has a unique user counting feature, which could be applicable for different scenarios, such as customer profiling at shopfronts.
Based on our own experience, we understand that such an example of real-time computation and tracking was no simple feat, as it would require a significant amount of computational power to be done for high resolution video feeds. We believe that Shuttle established a distributed computing architecture in order for such a system to operate effectively. As mentioned, moving away from a traditional hardware company, the Shuttle representative also mentioned that this whole end-to-end system can be licensed to customers.
Customizations can also be possible for their customer’s different needs.
Thin Clients for Powering High Resolution Displays
Shuttle has been showing a lot of their thin PCs devices that are used for providing compute capabilities to displays. Think about digital signages which are required to be operating perpetually 24/7. Reliability and durability will be the most important quality attributes of their PCs. Moreover, they still have to be small enough, so as to be easily hidden away from the sight of passerby.
This is where Shuttle’s expertise in their customized hardware will shine. Their specially designed thin PC systems that drives high resolution displays are made with these considerations in mind.
Dh370
The Dh370 is a thin PC that supports up to 3 x 4k UHD display. As expected the unit remains to be extremely thin and energy efficient for continuous operations. There is also a RS232 port for the control of external devices as well.
DH02U
At the top of the line is the DH02U, which even comes with an integrated NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 GPU. It’s simply amazing how Shuttle manage to squeeze a dedicated GPU into their thin PC. This allows the DH02U to provide content to 4 x 4K UHD displays single-handed. Isn’t that amazing?
DS77U
Next, we saw a passively cooled solution that was kept within a fabricated enclosure which also contained an interactive display. The DS77U is a passively cooled thin PC that brings smart features to a simple display. This unit is powered by either a Intel Celeron or Low Voltage notebook class Intel CPU for its compute capabilities.
General Small Form Factor Gaming and Compute Systems
Not forgetting their die-hard fans who knew the brand because of their power small form factor (SFF) PC systems, Shuttle also showcased their SFF systems for gaming and general compute.
SZ270R9
The SZ270R9 system runs on the Intel Z270 chipset. This means that it will support either an Intel Kaby Lake or a Skylake processor. Of course, as what you will be purchasing will be a barebone PC, you will have the ultimate choice to choose and purchase your own CPU, RAM, graphics card and storage drives to be installed on the system for your own requirements of a PC. The SZ270R9 was shown as a VR-Gaming ready system, as it even has a front-panel HDMI port for easy connection to the VR headset.
X1
Challenging the limits of a SFF gaming system, the Shuttle X1 changes the perception of a powerful gaming system. This SFF PC comes built-in with a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 graphics processing unit integrated on its motherboard. Such a design allows all the hardware to be kept very compact within a small chassis, but still adequately cooled by its custom cooling design. We have never seen a GTX 1060 based system placed in such a small desktop PC before!
Xh210G
Moving on, the Shuttle Xh210G barebone unit aims to target the users who are seeking for great performance, but does not want their system to be too big like the SZ270R9.
The Xh210G is considerably thin, and it will only support CPUs of up to 65W TDP, unlike the SZ270R9, which can support up to 95W. Similarly, the Xh210G also will work with the Skylake and Kaby Lake CPUs.
The Xh210G also comes with a single PCI-e x16 expansion slot that is by default modified to be placed parallel to the case with the use of a riser. For showcase, Shuttle explained how the Xh210G can be adapted into a video streaming and video selection device by adding a video capture card which can take in 4 HDMI input simultaneously.
Final Notes and Comments
It is interesting to see how Shuttle innovates by leveraging on their core strength in customized small form factor PC design and manufacturing to apply to many industries and applications. In the times when many countries and cities are focusing their efforts on bringing smart services and Internet of Things to a reality, each of Shuttle’s hardware solution will fall nicely into the value chain that enables the next generation of connected systems and services.
We can also see the company’s strategy to allow local compute, rather than allowing all processing to be managed by a central remote server. This is probably where they try to differentiate themselves from other IoT hardware companies. While Shuttle place their bets on the distributed computing architecture for the future of computing and strategizes their products towards that, only time will tell if they made the right step forward.
Shuttle Computer Group Upgrades Mini Cubes with Faster
| Source:
Shuttle Computer Group
Shuttle Computer Group
CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif., Sept. 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Shuttle Computer Group, Inc., one of the world’s leading designers of small form computers, announces three new Rocket Lake-based barebone Cube PCs: the SH510R4, SH570R6 and SH570R8, for a good, better, best line-up.
Like all of Shuttle’s computers, their size belies their power; they deliver higher performance for processing-intense tasks for engineers; gaming and graphic designers; scientists, researchers, and more, from a footprint that is a third of a standard desktop, with a cost-effective price point.
“With so many people working remotely, desktop space is at a minimum. Our new Shuttle cubes provide the computing power professionals need, even when they’re set up on a dining room table or a kitchen counter,” said Tosh Akhgar, director of sales and marketing, Shuttle Computer Group. “And, because they’re so powerful, but so small, our new cubes are perfect for driving video wall applications in power plants and transportation hubs, too.”
Shuttle’s top SH570R8 is built for data-intensive, multi-tasking workloads and users that need enhanced storage capacity and a robust 500-watt power supply. It supports the latest Intel® 11th Gen Core processors, integrated Intel® Xe engine, dual DDR4-3200 high-speed memory, and fast and reliable performance for demanding software applications.
This cube can accommodate up to four 3.5-inch hard drives and PCI-E 4.0×16 for a graphic card or other add-on cards for content creators, media streamers, and professional designers. Designed for increasing productivity, the SH570R8 supports up to three independent displays via HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort 1.4.
Shuttle’s new SH570R6 adopts an LGA 1200 CPU socket for increased flexibility, supports 10th/11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors (up to 125W), as well as dual-channel DDR4-3200MHz high-speed memory with up to 128GB. The SH570R6 runs smooth 4K UHD content with the integrated Intel®Xe graphics while driving three displays from HDMI and DisplayPort outputs. Although compact in size, the SH570R6 delivers expandability and connectivity where it matters, by supporting a dual-slot graphics card, multiple hard drives & M.2 SSD installation, up to twelve USB ports, including one type-C for efficient connection to peripherals. Network connectivity includes Dual Gigabit LAN built-in and an M.
2 slot for Wi-Fi module expansion. The SH570R6 is equipped with an 80 PLUS Bronze certified 300W power supply and Shuttle’s exclusive I.C.E. 2 heat pipe technology for highly energy-efficient and stable long-term operation.
Shuttle SH510R4 is a new entry-level mini cube provides scalability and high performance and is more affordable than users might expect. It features up to six cores and 12 threads, along with integrated UHD graphics, and has more power to handle demanding 4K applications. With HDMI, Dual DisplayPort outputs, users gain better flexibility for simultaneous dual displays. There is enough room to accommodate 64GB of DDR4, a fast M.2 SSD, a dual-slot graphics card, and space for three storage drives. The front panel is changeable, so users can customize their computer’s appearance, too.
Shuttle Computer Group offers integrators imaging services and customized BIOS, which provides integrators a way to quicken deployments and reduce costs while maintaining consistency.
Shuttle’s new Cube Series computers come with a three-year limited warranty on parts and labor and are currently available.
About Shuttle Computer Group
Shuttle Computer Group is the North American subsidiary of Shuttle Inc., a publicly traded company established in 1983. Shuttle specializes in small form factor PC hardware for digital signage, point-of-sale (POS) and interactive kiosks in the retail, restaurant, food service and hospitality industries as well as motherboards and bare bones systems.
For more information, visit http://us.shuttle.com or call 1-888-972-1818.
Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation; HDMI is a trademark of HDMI Licensing. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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XPC: new form factor | KV.
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XPC: new form factor
XPC — this is the name received
personal computers assembled
on downsized motherboards
format and in small
cases — «cubes». Similar
devices are very
nice alternative
bulky ATX form factor machines.
Moreover, Shuttle (www.shuttleonline.com) kits in
soon necessarily
appear in Belarus.
Shuttle SS50 kits represent
a very small body
measuring 20.32×12.7×29.21 cm and
original motherboard for
SiS 650 chipset with integrated
video/audio and Socket-478 connector. On
board are also placed one by one
AGP and PCI slot and two DIMMs. external
kind of personalki new
form factor reminiscent of the PowerMac G4 Cube
manufactured by Apple.
Design XRS Ultimate
compact.
On the front
housings placed SPDIF audio output,
headphone and microphone jacks,
two USB ports and one IEEE-1394a. Such
the configuration is much more convenient
traditional ATX scheme, in which
These connectors are located on the back
side of the hull. At HRS there, by the way,
almost every millimeter is occupied
space.
Obviously so compact and
original case design would be
impossible without development
new motherboard
form factor. So it is — this fee
called Shuttle FS51. Very
modern board supports
modern Pentium 4 processors and
has a reserve for the future: northern
bridge SiS 651 (bus frequency up to 533 MHz, AGP 4X,
DDR333, video SiS 315), southbridge SiS 962
(audio AC’97, interfaces Ethernet MAC, ATA/133,
controllers for six USB 2.0 ports and
three IEEE-1394a ports). power unit
manufactured by ACHME mounted on
right side inside the body and
provides standard 200 watts.
The developers used in HRS
non-traditional cooling system.
Solid heat sinks connect
between each other fan on the back
body parts and plate on
processor.
In the BIOS settings
temperature is set
processor, in which the fan
should accelerate from 2000 to 3000
rpm. Thus,
XPC, thanks to its small size
fan and its control
speed, running, independent
tested, 10-15% quieter than average system
ATX: 51-58 dB vs. 64 dB.
According to reviews, the Shuttle XPC computer in
bundled with LCD monitor especially
blends harmoniously into the kitchen
interior or children’s room. TO
Unfortunately, the current price
Shuttle XPC is not very affordable ($249 is
still too expensive for the case and
motherboard), but she,
may be slightly reduced
after the end of the traditional
cream-picking campaigns
wealthiest
buyers. However, now in
there is a cheaper one for sale
modification for Socket 370 on VIA chipset
VT8606T for $195.
Anatoly ALIZAR
Printable version
Number:
No. 33 of 2002
Heading:
Hardware
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What is the motherboard and its device
Ask a question:
what is the motherboard?
and the answer is simple:
Motherboard ( Motherboard ) is the main component of every PC. It is called main ( Mainboard ) , or system, board.
This is an independent element that manages internal communications and interacts with external devices. Motherboard is the main element inside the PC that affects the performance of the computer as a whole.
Or in short: the main board on which the rest of the PC elements are located.
Communication between all own and connected devices of the motherboard is carried out by its buses and logic devices located in the chips of the microprocessor kit ( chipset) . In modern computers, the functions of the PCI bridge are performed by microprocessor chips ( chipset ).
Motherboard device detailed picture
Structurally, motherboard is the main board of the PC, on which all its main elements, connection lines and connectors for connecting external devices are located.
The type of motherboard installed determines the overall performance of the system, as well as the ability to upgrade the PC and connect additional devices.
The most famous motherboard manufacturers at present are Intel, FICO, LackyStar, ASUStec.
I hope after this you will not have any more questions: motherboard what is it
1 shows the structure of a typical motherboard:
- processor installed in a special socket and cooled by a heatsink with a fan;
- L2 cache chips (external). In modern processors, these microcircuits are installed on the cartridge board of the central processor;
- slots for installing RAM modules:
- slots for installing expansion cards. As a rule, motherboards have slots for ISA and PCI cards. Modern models of motherboards are equipped with an additional AGP slot. The presence of slots and the ability to install any expansion cards in them (video adapter, sound card, modem, ADC card, and others) determines the open architecture of the PC;
- flash memory chip that stores BIOS programs, PC test programs, operating system boot, device drivers, initial settings;
- connectors for connecting HDD, FDD drives.
All components of the motherboard are interconnected by a system of conductors (lines) through which information is exchanged. This set of lines is called information bus , or simply bus ( Bus ).
Interaction between PC components and devices connected to different buses is carried out using so-called bridges implemented on one of the microcircuits Chipset . For example, in Figure 1, the bridge for connecting the ISA and PCI bus is implemented in the 82371 AB chip.
The dimensions of the motherboard, as well as the holes inside the motherboard that connect it to the bottom of the case, are standardized. The main sizes of motherboards of various standards are given in Table 1.
When choosing a motherboard, it is necessary to coordinate its dimensions with the type of PC case, and when installing it, it should be avoided contact with the bottom and side metal panels of the case to avoid short circuit.
Form factor motherboard — the general strategy for the location of the main chips, slots on it, its shape and size.
Basic sizes of motherboards of different standards
9×19.1 The Baby-AT motherboard format appeared in 1982. Motherboards of this format can be installed in almost any case, except for cases of reduced height and Slimline. That is why they are the most popular. Intel has now phased out Baby-AT motherboards and switched to ATX motherboards.
In 1995, Intel introduced a new ATX specification for the motherboard and PC case. The ATX specification for motherboards provides:
1) integration on the motherboard of standard peripheral devices: controllers for disk drives and hard drives, parallel and serial ports, as well as (as needed) video and sound adapters, modems and LAN interfaces;
2) the presence of a built-in double panel of input / output connectors measuring 15.
9×4.4 cm, located on the back of the motherboard;
3) changing the location of the CPU and memory modules on the motherboard. CPU and memory modules are located near the power supply fan: they do not interfere with expansion cards, they are easy to replace;
4) moving the connectors of the I/O controllers integrated in the motherboard closer to the drives, which helps to reduce the length of internal cables. All the benefits of an ATX motherboard come into play when installed in the right chassis. The following modifications of ATX motherboards have been developed: Mini-ATX, Micro ATX, Flex ATX.
In 1997, Intel introduced the new NLX standard, which was a further development of the ATX standard. According to the NLX standard, the so-called riser card , which has standard PCI and ISA slots, in which all necessary expansion cards are installed. The main difference between the riser card is that the motherboard is installed in a special slot called NLX Riser Connector .
This connector contains not only the data bus, but also the power bus. Thus, after installation, the motherboard is automatically connected to the power rail. The riser card has various connectors that were previously located on the motherboard — FDD, USB, power supply, etc. Advantages of the NLX standard:
- guaranteed motherboard replacement;
- easy access to cables, expansion cards, memory modules;
- Significant reduction in cable lengths;
- the ability to replace the CPU;
- the possibility of using dual-processor systems.
Fig.1. Structure of a typical motherboard
Table 1
0181
0x22.9 Motherboard — connector
To increase your erudition, I will add that in English the “motherboard” is called by two names. These are «Motherboard» and «Mainboard». If you meet these designations, you will know what we are talking about.
One of the main parameters of a part is its form factor. It determines the dimensions of the board, power connectors, requirements for the cooling system, mounting holes. All this plays a big role in assembling a computer.
The most popular form factor is “ATX”. This type of computer motherboard is used in most home computers. It supports all the necessary slots and connectors. Power is connected via a 20 or 24 pin connector. Latest computers use 24.
Form factor “BTX” is gradually replacing “ATX”. This is the newest standard. During its development, great importance was attached to the cooling of the components of the system. Now such boards are used to build small computers.
I’ll add that there are a fairly large number of form factors, but there are boards that do not fit any of them. Such details are used in highly specialized computers, whose task is quite specific and known in advance.
What is a motherboard for the average user? What brands of parts can be found in our market? The most popular are «Gigabyte», «Biostar», «Intel», «MSI» and others.
What is the essence of the processes taking place on the motherboard? Based on the fact that all parts are attached directly to it, we can conclude that it is the board that unites all the work of the system and coordinates it.
What the motherboard consists of
And now let’s take a closer look at the device of the motherboard and the parts of which it consists.
Of course, its main part is the central processing unit. All modern motherboards come with an integrated processor. This is both a plus and a minus. Keep in mind that if one thing breaks, both parts will have to be replaced.
The second element of the board is the chipset (set of system logic). This element is responsible for the operation of the CPU and RAM, as well as for connecting peripheral devices. All their work is built on the basis of two VLSI (Very Large Integrated Circuits). We are talking about the north and south bridges.
The northbridge is responsible for nodes that use high-performance elements: RAM, graphics controller.
It connects these nodes to the CPU.
The southbridge is responsible for peripheral devices (hard drive, audio systems, and so on). It is also used in connecting devices to the system that require minimal throughput.
Both bridges are most often presented as separate VLSI, but there are also single-chip solutions.
Any computer motherboard must contain slots for RAM. Each such cell has its own address, which is important for the computer as a whole. The RAM itself is a separate microcircuit block. It is worth remembering that not every OS sees all the RAM installed on the computer. For example, Windows XP sees only 3 GB (read about units of information), even if set to 4 or more. In other words, if you want to improve the performance of your computer, then you should think not only about spare parts, but also about software updates.
Finally, the last part is the ROM. This essential element is responsible for storing all the software that starts functioning immediately after turning on the computer.