This was the first time when I played with a small barebone for a longer period of time. I have to confess that I fell in love with this Shuttle SB62G2. Small dimensions and black stylish appearance gives this unit a certain feeling that can't be copied. Performance was at par with regular desktop setup, PCI and AGP slots offer good expansion possibilities and two network ports great access to different networked resources.

While I have mentioned that small dimensions might be a good thing for most of us, there are still users that need something bigger. You want to install two or three hard drives, optical drive and a DAT backup drive or TV-tuner card and sound card? People have different needs and to fullfill them with one system is not an easy task. I just feel that Shuttle's concept of XPC meets the needs of most users. When you think about all the office workers, moms and dads at home, students at school, this kind of small system with one hard drive and perhaps a DVD-burner works very well. Combine the system with a TFT display and wireless desktop and you have one of the most functional computer systems that you can imagine at your home or office.

It is great to see high quality products that are both good looking and highly usable. It doesn't matter which CPU manufacturer you prefer because Shuttle's XPC lineup have something for everyone. SN85G4 with nForce3 150 for Athlon 64, SN45G with nForce2 Ultra 400, ST61G4 with ATI RS300 or perhaps you prefer SIS chipset; SS56G with SIS661FX to name the few. There are a lot of modding parts available and case colors to choose from so you can alter your Shuttle XPC to suit your own taste. Little box with endless possibilities!