Don’t let the miniscule form factor fool you, the Giada i53 packs a mean, mean punch in terms of performance. This mini PC from Giada is intended for media consumption and the stylish design will surely complement any type of living room.
The Giada i53 configuration we have here is equipped with a 3rd Gen Intel Core i5 processor, though they also offer an i3 and i7 configuration; 4GB of DDR3 RAM; 500GB HDD; Intel GMA HD4000; and built-in Wi-Fi 802.11n.
Inside the box you’ll get a power adapter, an HDMI cable, the PC unit, CDs and manuals and a remote control. It is user-friendly once you put everything together.
Our unit came with Windows 7 Home Premium and I suggest you use the Windows Media Center since the remote control is pretty much useless in the Windows 7 environment. Another great tip would be to install XBMC. XBMC is an open source media player designed specifically for HTPCs for consumption of digital media.
Design
As with any mini desktop, this one comes with no optical drive, but the number of USB ports make up for it. The Giada i53 has 5 USB ports, with 1 being USB 3.0.
There’s a hinged door at the top which reveals the Card Reader, the USB 3.0 port and headphone/mic jacks. The chassis is pretty light and at the back you’ll see the VGA port, HDMI output, Ethernet port, and four USB 2.0 ports.
Performance
The unit we got here is equipped with Intel’s 3rd Gen Core i5-3317U mobile CPU which clocks at 1.7GHz.
The 500GB HDD somewhat lacks performance because Giada used a 5,400RPM instead of the standard 7,200 RPM drive, for lesser power consumption I guess. That said, the i53 is rated at 30W of power consumption.
Streaming via Wi-Fi is a breeze and is much better when paired with an 802.11n router. Although my 802.11g router is supported, streaming 1080P content is somewhat choppy. However, watching 1080P movies straight from the hard drive is seamless and smooth.
Because of its modest specs, don’t expect to use the Giada i53 for hardcore tasks like big Photoshop projects or video editing and rendering. The i53 is targeted for media consumption and not much for media creation.
Verdict
Priced at Php28,000, the Giada i53 makes a pretty decent media center for your living room. If you want a decent system that can do basic apps like surfing the web, word processing and have a tight room then the i53 is just right for the budget and packs a mean punch for its size. It consumes less electricity than your typical desktop and would blend well on your bookshelf.
This system is being distributed by GTI Software and you may contact sales@gtiinfotech.com for orders.
Specifications
CPU: Intel i5-3317U 1.7ghz
GPU: Intel GMA HD4000
Storage: 500GB 5,400RPM
Connectivity: Gigabit Lan, Wi-Fi 802.11N, Bluetooth
Power Consumption: 30W
Dimensions: 192 x 155 26mm
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
4 comments
almost the same with mac mini
for ahome media center mTaas specs kaya pati price mataas. pang touchscreen laptop price nya. stick to streamer na lang aq for home media.
San po makabibili nyan?
Where can i see giada stores here in the philippines? or office rather. do you have email of giada. thank you .