Computers for new flat

[dhicks]

Hello All,

 

I'm moving in with my girlfriend in a few weeks to a new-build, one-bedroom flat. It's small and compact, so I'm going to need some small and compact computer equipment to go in it. This means my three-monitor PC is going to have to go and I'm going to have to figure out how best to squeeze a PC in to the lounge.

 

I was thinking of replacing the TV with a computer monitor. I might go for a Windows 7 multitouch compatible device. PC World do this one:

 

PACKARD BELL Viseo 200T Touch Edition 20" Widescreen LCD Monitor at cheap prices | PC World

 

Can anyone recommend anything better? Can you get multitouch screens with built-in TV tuners?

 

How's about a projector for home use - is there anything particular I need to consider for a home projector? For a classroom I'd spend £800 and get a bulbless Casio, bright enough to be seen by 30 children and with a decade-long lifetime, but that seems like overkill for one small flat.

 

For a PC, I was simply planning to go with the PC Pro A-List for motherboard, processor and graphics card:

 

Gigabyte GA-H55M-UD2H | Motherboards | Reviews | PC Pro

Intel Core i5-750 review | Processors | Reviews | PC Pro

ATI Radeon HD 5450 review | Graphics cards | Reviews | PC Pro

 

and put the lot in a microATX case:

 

Antec - NSK 1380 - UK

 

I'll keep my external RAID box to attach via the eSATA port on the motherboard and my Mac Mini can act as a server. We also have an Acer nettop machine which I'm planning to mount inside the kitchen cupboard and attach to a pico projector to project a display on to the kitchen worktop. Anyone any ideas for an interface for that machine? Are those laser-projected keyboards any good? Or is there a camera-based interface I could use? What OS? The projector is quite low resolution (640 by 300-odd, not very good for films) - does Android work okay on an Atom-based PC?

 

--

David Hicks

[robyholmes]

You might want to take a look at this on bit-tech recently

How to build a touchscreen all-in-one PC | bit-tech.net

 

Mind give you some idea's.

[dhicks]

You might want to take a look at this on bit-tech recently

 

Thanks - good idea, but I was aiming for something I could project on to a kitchen work surface and work with messy/wet hands. Anyone know if those laser keyboard devices will project on a wall?

 

--

David Hicks

[Tricky_Dicky]

I've seen demos of those laser keyboards and they look great, ideal for a kitchen where you don't want anything to get physically messy.

 

For a projector, I wouldn't put one of those Casio projectors in. Yes they are great when used in a school everyday due to lack of maintenance but you aren't going to use it that much at home. They are also not high definition which when you are going to blow it up on to a large screen can really make a difference.

 

If you are going to go down the projector route it would be well worth running cabling into walls and ceilings before you move in if you can and also buying some very heavy curtains, preferably with blackout lining as this will give a much better effect.

 

Have fun with the move.

 

Rich