Aopen's XC Cube Shows Barebones is Getting Better All the Time

XC Cube AV: Slick, black design.

Small living-room PCs, also known as barebones or mini PCs, are getting better all the time, and now can do everything that a "normal" PC can. All that is needed are a CPU, some RAM, a hard drive, a DVD drive and, of course, an operating system for DVDs, MP3/audio codecs and a TV/radio card.

For this barebones from AOpen, a WindowsXP OS alternative, based on Linux, is included. Once this is installed on the hard drive, it lets you operate various modules (TV, DVD, MP3 or radio) at any time with the remote control or the controls without Windows. This is the first barebones to be able to do this. Even Shuttle, the inventor of the mini PC, has nothing like this in its product range.

The display is multifunctional and shows all activities in addition to the time.

The AV cube is black, which only makes the packaging even snazzier.

The connections on the rear are color-coded.

The front connections are located behind a flap.

All video and audio functions can be controlled remotely.