Jetway Mini-Top Atom Based Nettop PC

Nettop or Desktop

So the idea of a small computer in your living room, bedroom, or kitchen  appeals to you. You like the idea of a computer that consumes very little power, makes almost no noise, and yet still allows you to do you daily tasks. You are concerned that the this little PC may not have the power to watch movies or do everything that your desktop or laptop can do. Well the short answer is you are right AND you are wrong.

Today we are going to take a look at the Jetway Mini-Top Nettop PC which is an Intel Atom based machine which utilizes nVidia’s next gen ION2 chip. The ION2 is supposed to give them graphics subsystem enough of a kick in the pants to allow you to watch movies and do some very basic 3D tasks. Something most integrated Intel graphic chipsets can’t do. It is supposed to accomplish this while at the same time not consuming a lot of power and having a small thermal footprint.

The Jetway Mini-Top is a step up from your standard netbooks on the market utilizing single core Atoms as the Mini-Top we are looking at is using a dual core Atom 510 or 525.

Lets take a look at the Specs.

Model No.	JBC600C99-52W
Product No.	HBJC600C99-52W
Motherboard Specification
CPU	Intel® Atom Dual-Core 525 CPU (45nm, 1.80GHz, 1MB L2, 13W)
Chipset	Intel NM10 (Formerly Tiger Point) + NVIDIA Next Generation ION (ION2)
Memory	2 * SO-DIMM Slots Support DDR2-800/667 Single Channel DIMM slots (up to 4 GB)
VGA	NVIDIA ION2 Graphics Processor
LAN	1 * Realtek RTL8111DL PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet 1 * Atheros 802.11 b/g/n Mini PCI-E WiFi Card
Audio	C-Media CM108AH Audio with SPDIF out (Support AC3 & DTS) Nvidia L-PCM digital audio (HDMI 1.3) can support 7.1 output with external decoder
Storage	1 * Serial ATA2 3Gb/s connector (For 2.5″ SATA HDD only) 1 * eSATA Port
USB	Embedded 5 * USB 2.0/1.1
BIOS	AMI 8MB Flash ROM
Barebone Specification
Product size	205(W) x 185(D) x 30(H)mm
Colors	Black / White Color
Front I/O Port	2 x USB 2.0 1 x SD/MS 3 In 1 card reader (SDC/MMC/MS) 1 x MIC & Headphone w/SPDIF out 1 x Power Button 1 x Power LED
Rear I/O Port	2 * USB 2.0/1.1 ports 1 * eSATA/USB port 1 * HDMI 1.3 1 * DVI-I 1 * RJ-45 ports 1 * 12V DC in connector 1 * WiFi Antenna hole
Expansion Slots	mini PCI Express x1 Slot (with a 802.11 b/g/n WiFi Card)
Standard Accessories	60W AC-DC Adapter x1 Power Cord x1 Stand x1 CD Disk x1 Manual x1 mini PCI Express 802.11 b/g/n WiFi Card x1 WiFi Antenna x1 Jetway Remote Control x1
Optional Accessories	LCD VESA Mount x1 Wireless Keyboard x1 Wireless Karaoke Microphone x1
Functional	Set Top Box, Thin Client, Carputer, Smart Mini PC, POS/POI, KIOSK, HTPC
Packing	Color Box Dimension：417(W) x 137(D) x 296(H)mm Gross Weight：3.65KG Net Weight：3.02KG
Certificate	CE,FCC For Barebone CE,FCC,TUV,UL,CCC,CB For Power Adapter

As we mentioned the Mini-Top comes in two flavors:

• JBC600C99-52W (Intel® Atom Dual-Core 525 CPU (45nm, 1.80GHz, 1MB L2, 13W)
• JBC600C99-51W (Intel® Atom Dual-Core 510 CPU (45nm, 1.66GHz, 1MB L2, 13W)

While both processors are rated at the same wattage the truth is the Atom 510 model will consume slightly less power. The difference is negligible and the computing power of the 525 more than makes up for the power consumption.

The Power of a Full PC in the Palm of Your Hand

The Mini-Top will technically run nearly all the programs that your desktop will. With a few exceptions. . . It is not designed for processor intensive applications. In fact the Mini-Top is designed to run and internet browser, light office applications, and play movies. This is of course what most consumers are using their PC’s for which is why the Mini-Top is perfect for so many people.

Look Ma no Wires!

As an added benefit and showing some good forethought by Jetway the Mini-Top includes wireless N, an HDMI output as well as DVI. The Mini-Top comes packaged with a remote control which is fully functional with Windows 7 allowing you complete system control in a media center setting.  With the included optional stand the Mini-Top can be used vertically or horizontally giving you your choice on placement and look.

What you wont find with the Mini-Top is an integrated optical drive or extra storage capabilities. The Mini-Top gives you the ability to install a single 2.5 inch hard drive and two ram slots. The good news is the Mini-Top has not been handicapped like 99% of the Atom’s based platforms on the market and will allow you to install up to 4GB of DDR2 ram in a single channel environment. With the cost of 2.5 inch hard drives falling and the capacities on the rise we don’t expect this would present much of an issue. We were happy to install a 640GB 5400rpm Seagate Momentus drive which would easily accommodate enough episodes of Big Bang Theory and complete collections of MP3’s to last you for a few weeks. If this is not enough storage for you the Mini-Top includes an e-SATA port in the rear for external expansion not to mention the two USB ports in the front and rear for a total of 4 USB 2.o ports.

If the Mini-Top is designed to be used in an home theater setup then no review would be complete without a discussion of the audio capabilities of the device. In this regard the Mini-Top holds its own without shining or falling down. While the Mini-Top won’t win awards for its audio quality it does include the C-Media CM108AH controller which is 2CH DAC with headphone amplifier. The Nvidia L-PCM digital audio (HDMI 1.3) can support 7.1 output with external decoder.

We would have liked to see 7.1 audio on board as we found the C-Media audio to be a bit on the tinny side. If  audio is of a great concern you would be best served with the purchase of an cheap external USB X-Fi adapter.

Testing

The model we have before us today is the JBC600C99-52 which comes equipped with the higher end 1.8GHz dual core atom. Before we proceed much further lets take a look at the actual machine.

The Mini-Top is specifically targeted towards allowing you to view FULL HD (1080P) video on your TV.

As per the box advertisement “Enjoy 1080P Full HD Video on your TV”.

We do find it interesting that the icon at the opposite side of the box shows HDMI 1080P when the unit has a DVI connector as well. We did find that the DVI connector supports 1080P as well.

Our Test Machine:

• Jetway Mini-Top JBC600C99-52W
• 2GB of DDR2 PC-5300
• Seagate 640GB 5400rpm Momentus
• Windows 7 Home Premium

One of the great things about the Mini-Top is that you simply need to drop in your favorite Ram, hard drive, and operating system and you are all set to go. The bad thing about the Mini-Top is that some consumers will find out after the fact that they will need the operating system on a USB drive or have access to an external USB DVD drive to load their favorite operating system.

Once the OS is installed you can install the optional software that comes on the included DVD. We found that Windows 7 correctly identified and installed all of the Mini-Top’s hardware leaving us the choice of which software we really wanted.

The DVD comes with an evaluation version of Norton as well as drivers for linux lovers.

Software Included on the DVD

Video Playback:

As part of our testing we played full 1080P content loaded directly to the hard drive as well as streamed wireless from our NAS storage and through the gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45) jack.  In all three instances we experienced no issues and FMV was observed throughout the length of the video.  We tested the following file types and codecs:

• H.264
• AVI
• MPEG
• DIVX
• MKV

All of the files were full 1080P and ran smooth. All video playback was done through HDMI as well as DVI. We experienced better playback as well as audio quality through the HDMI cable than via the DVI connector. As far as audio we do feel that Jetway should have located the optical TOSLINK on the rear of the unit instead of the front which really doesn’t make sense for a media setup. You should definitely make sure you have nVidia HD selected as your audio output for the highest quality. Other than that the unit is very well made and thought out.

Analysis and Conclusion

The Jetway Mini-Top belongs to a growing category of products aimed at bringing the computing experience to your living room. The Mini-Top does accomplish what it sets out to do and lives up to the claims of full HD 1080P video playback via the nVidia ION2 chipset. We were relatively pleased with the setup of the device, included options and accessories, and overall performance.

On the downside the Mini-Top had the tendency to switch its fan on and off instead of maintaining a low continual operational state. Additionally the Mini-Top occasionally makes an electrical whine for a second or two which we were unable to track down or figure out.

The ION2 is the saving grace of this unit and allows for FMV Full HD video playback as well as some very basic 3D applications/games. We wouldn’t suggest anything intensive as the CPU and GPU simply can’t handle it. Instead the ION2 works perfectly for most applications, will allow you to use the Aero interface, and watch all of your movies on a device that fits in the palm of your hand.

At a roughly ~$250 online price the Mini-Top includes everything you need to begin your HTPC setup. Its a very well designed unit that is flexible enough to allow you to do light computing, browse the web, and watch your shows and movies while at the same time consuming a mere 45Watts with a small footprint. If you are considering a HTPC setup the Jetway Mini-Top is a worthy contender and certainly worth a close look.