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Mini Itx $200 build

M

Mark Stilwell

n00b
Joined
Aug 12, 2016
Messages
13
Thinking of trying to put together an itx build for general use.
Lets see what ya guys can come up with!
 
Okay first of all: I believe AMD wins the value at this budget, however I believe you will be much more satisfied with going used with the budget than buying new if at all possible also I have never built AMD so my build is going to be intel. Considering the use case being everyday computing I'd recommend a minimum of 4gb RAM however with 8GB RAM you will be kind of future-proof a lot longer. I assume you have an old hard drive (any old hard drive) or if not at least a couple flash drives. The ssd is highly recommended but optional as that is besides the 8gig ram the biggest upgrade in usability. Next you can downgrade to 4gb ram but i advise against for reasons above.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G4400 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($57.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: PNY CS1311 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($39.99 @ Best Buy)
Case: Silverstone SG05BB-LITE Mini ITX Desktop Case ($39.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Silverstone 300W 80+ Bronze Certified SFX Power Supply ($48.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $296.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-11-16 16:25 EST-0500

edit: I completely forgot to mention as you didnt say whether wireless was required or not I listed the wireless model but the one without is a couple bucks cheaper if you dont need wireless.

Please note this is the lowest specs I feel comfortable recommending even if I'm fifty bucks over budget without ssd and nearly a hundred with which is why i recommend either used or possibly matx
 
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Awesome, that seems like a pretty sweet build! Would you recommend using a usb wifi adapter if the mobo didnt have one? Or try to go with a pci-e wifi card?
 
Since I don't know about your needs I will just offer knowledge for you to make the best decision suited to your needs instead of me just assuming something.

First USB 3 is completely adequate for current wireless standards and depending on your wireless access point (usually the box that came with your internet subscription) you may even be fine with USB 2. The main difference I believe between PCIe and USB 3 (for everyday use) is which type of connector you'd rather sacrifice, ease of installation/removal and cost.

For USB 2/3 you just find an empty USB 2/3 port and plug it in vs powering down your system adding in the pci express card (Note: PCI (no e) is NOT compatible with this build) and booting it again. Second is the standard you're going to use 802.11n vs 802.11ac. n is the older but slower standard whereas 802.11ac is newer and faster. HOWEVER BOTH your adapter as well as access point have to support 802.11ac for it to work. If your access point supports only 802.11n you will be restricted to that speed. Second the speed which usually limits internet transfers is not the wireless adapter or your wireless access point but your contract with your Internet Service Provider.

----

edit: The cheapest option is to go with the onboard wireless so if you see yourself needing the wireless just pay the ~5 bucks more and skip the adapter completely and additionally get the better of the two standards for a fifth to a tenth of the price
 
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Dhekhanur said:
Okay first of all: I believe AMD wins the value at this budget, however I believe you will be much more satisfied with going used with the budget than buying new if at all possible also I have never built AMD so my build is going to be intel. Considering the use case being everyday computing I'd recommend a minimum of 4gb RAM however with 8GB RAM you will be kind of future-proof a lot longer. I assume you have an old hard drive (any old hard drive) or if not at least a couple flash drives. The ssd is highly recommended but optional as that is besides the 8gig ram the biggest upgrade in usability. Next you can downgrade to 4gb ram but i advise against for reasons above.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G4400 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($57.99 @ SuperBiiz)
......
Click to expand...

Here is the AMD version:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/X3LCD8
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/X3LCD8/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD A4-6300 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($33.33 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A78M-ITX+ Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Elite 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA Premier SP550 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone SG05BB-LITE Mini ITX Desktop Case ($39.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Silverstone 300W 80+ Bronze Certified SFX Power Supply ($48.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $256.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-11-18 11:07 EST-0500

Though I have to say it would probably be better to buy either a used PC or buy used parts. I would say you could buy a similar pc for about 100$ this way.
 
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