Hasta La Gadget!

Lest you think ASUS‘ Computex 2013 range is all tablets and glossy ultrabooks, never fear: the company also has some new desktop PCs, kicking off with the Mac mini-rivaling VivoPC and its matching hybrid VivoMouse controller. Angling for a spot under your TV, the ASUS VivoPC is a compact Windows-powered media center, while the VivoMouse tries to take on the duties of a mouse, a touchpad, and a remote control all in one.

ASUS hasn’t fully detailed the VivoPC’s specifications yet, though an Intel processor inside seems more than likely. It’s also been designed with upgrade potential in mind, not something you could normally say about a SFF computer of this scale: lift off the lid, and you can pull out the hard-drive and RAM for replacement. There’s a standard SATA 6GB/s connector inside.

Connectivity, meanwhile, includes WiFi a/b/g/n/ac, an SD card reader, two USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports, and HDMI. There’s also an optical digital audio output, a legacy VGA port, wired ethernet, and audio in/out. ASUS is pretty keen on its use of SonicMaster audio, too, and is positioning the VivoPC as an ideal hub for squirting music and video wirelessly around the home.

The whole thing stands 56mm tall, and ASUS says it takes up less of a footprint than an A4 sheet of paper (that’s under 8.3 x 11.7 inches).

ASUS VivoPC:

You’ll need something to control all that from your couch, of course, and that’s where the ASUS VivoMouse waddles in. The round-faced peripheral slaps a touchpad on top of a standard mouse, which means you can fondle and stroke it around the screen as well as use Windows 8 gestures.

There’s also remote control functionality, for playing/pausing and skipping through content you’re watching on the media center. It’s wireless, of course, though like the VivoPC there’s no word on how much it will cost when it reaches store shelves in Q3 2013.

ASUS VivoMouse:

ASUS VivoPC and VivoMouse make a high-design play for your living room is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

We know you’ve got questions, and if you’re brave enough to ask the world for answers, here’s the outlet to do so. This week’s Ask Engadget inquiry is coming to us from Is from Martin, who is looking for a hyper-efficient media streamer for his retro caravan. If you’re looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

“My partner and I are renovating a small ’70s caravan and would like a power-efficient media center/PC purely to watch our library of movies and TV shows. We’re in Australia, so getting hold of kit like the Raspberry Pi would be difficult, we’re looking for something that’s equally power efficient, even up to $300 AUD (around $310 USD). Cheers!””

That’s this week’s challenge, Engadgeteers — do you feel up for it? Can you help our southern hemisphere friends find a power-efficient HTPC for under $310 that won’t drain a retro-caravan’s batteries? Can we help these people turn the temporary home into a rockin’ media-streamin’ paradise? Hit us up in the comments if you’ve got some expertise to share.

Ask Engadget: Best sub-$310 power-efficient HTPC for a caravan? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 07 Jul 2012 22:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments