Asus EeeBox PC EB1501P Review

When attached to the included stand, the EeeBox PC EB1501P has what Asus calls a "standing diamond" form factor. Really, it's an attractive, yet basic design that most will be happy displaying on their desk. When not mounted to the stand, the EeeBox is thin enough to easily fit with your home theater setup or attach to the back of a monitor to save space. The EeeBox PC EB1501P is available with either a black or a white case.

Considering that Asus really touts the multimedia capabilities and HDMI-output of the EeeBox PC EB1501P, we were a little disappointed to learn that our test model didn't come with a Blu-ray drive. Although the system will support full 1080p playback, you'll only be able to fully take advantage of the system's high def capabilities using local files. The EeeBox PC EB1501P may claim to be the world’s smallest PC to have a slot-in ODD, but without a Blu-ray drive, it's not the most home theater-friendly nettop out there.

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Thanks to the Intel Atom D525 Dual Core Processor and next-generation NVIDIA ION, this machine is definitely better equipped for multimedia than the lower performance nettops of yesterday. The system is still somewhat limited by the included 2GB of DDR3 SO-DIMM memory, but you have the option of increasing the memory capacity to 4GB if you choose.

The included 320GB HDD in our test model provides enough storage for everyday files, but if you find yourself viewing and storing a lot of high-def content, you'll find yourself filling the hard drive quickly. Of course, you can always connect additional storage via the eSATA or USB 3.0 ports.

On the front of the EeeBox PC EB1501P, you'll find a 4-in-1 card reader, two USB 3.0 ports, headphone-out jack, mic jack, power button, and the slot-load DVD player. The back of the device houses the Wi-Fi antenna, four USB 2.0 ports, HDMI out, VGA connector, eSATA, audio jack (S/PDIF out), a RJ-45 jack, and the power connector.

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