[conspire] Reminder: CABAL this Saturday, Oct. 21st

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Daniel Gimpelevich (daniel at gimpelevich.san-francisco.ca.us):

> The price for non-refurb units w/o RAM or storage is comparable or lower:

Well, sure, but unless you have a lead on free RAM and storage (or have
some sitting around unused), I'm not really sure what your point is.

> https://store.zotac.com/ci320-nano-zbox-ci320nano-u

One notes that _this_ has only one SODIMM slot, thus system maximum of
8GB.  As with other Zotac units, perfectly nice as long as you're aware
of design limitations (along with small compromises in parts quality
such as using Realtek NICs).  Your point duly noted:  $130 (barebones
without RAM or storage).

All of the 'C' series (past and present) use the same 127mm x 127mm x
45mm (5" x 5" x 1.8") vented, passively cooled case, which puts severe
limits on what hardware can be supported.  You get one 2.5" SATA device
only.  (There is only one SATA connector on the motherboard.)  All units
have an SD/SDHC/SDXC reader slot, so your options for ancillary or RAID1
storage in addition to the internal 2.5" device are limited to that or
external USB.

I gather that _some_ of Zotac's motherboards have M.2 sockets or MSATA
inside, but my newly acquired CI321 nano PLUS does not
(https://store.zotac.com/ci321-nano-plus-refurbished-zbox-ci321nano-p-u-r).
So, the real Achilles Heel (IMO) of the Zotac units in general is
mass-storage I/O options.  But people with a higher opinion of USB 3.0
than mine might differ.  ;->

I have only a vague idea of what M.2 sockets and MSATA are, and have
never yet seen them in the flesh.  An MSATA storage device is about the
size of a business card.  Apparently, the big idea was to leverage a
PCIe mini-card connector to interface to small SATA, so 'mutant PCIe':
http://searchsolidstatestorage.techtarget.com/definition/mSATA-SSD-mSATA-solid-state-drive
http://searchsolidstatestorage.techtarget.com/definition/M2-SSD
Those pages clarify that M.2 is a very similar storage interface and but
more flexible and intended to replace MSATA.  An MSATA SSD storage
device will function only if plugged into an SATA motherboard socket,
whereas an M.2-qualifed SSD storage device will function plugged into
any of the following:  SATA 3.0, PCIe 3.0, or USB 3.0 motherboard
interfaces.

I'm unclear on whether the Zotac motherboards spec'd as having _both_
the standard SATA 2.5" bay inside and also M.2 have room for _both_
a 2.5" SATA drive and a second M.2-connected one.  That would be
attractive in a 'could support RAID1 without USB bullshit' way --
but my particular $125 unit lacks M.2 ability (and MSATA).


> https://store.zotac.com/ci322-nano-zbox-ci322nano-u

Again, 8GB maximum RAM because of only one SODIMM slot, and ditto other
remarks.  $130, nice price (barebones without RAM or storage).


> https://store.zotac.com/ci322-nano-plus-zbox-ci322nano-p-u

This could be a winner (and is new-in-box rather than refurb), but what
does that cryptic remark in the specs about 'System memory: 4GB' mean?
Does that mean 4GB as provided in two SODIMM sockets, but with
higher-density SODIMMs you could have up to 16GB maximum?  They don't
say.

This article say it's a Bay Trail-class SoC (Celeron J1900) at a higher
clock speed than mine, while mine is Celeron 2961Y Haswell-class.
Article says mine w/Haswell is better for graphics performance, while
the Bay Trail is better for multitasking.  I personally don't care.  
Any of these SoCs has more grunt than I need.  All I really care about
is support for high amounts of RAM plus low (11.5W) TDP so my power
bills remain low and the machines don't heat up the room in the summer
or require fans.

Article says that their review unit of the CI322 nano PLUS came with 8GB
RAM, so the implication is that it has either one or two SODIMM sockets.
Two would be better.  ;->  I'd want that question cleared up before 
deciding whether to spend $150 for one, personally.

Again, maxing out at 8GB might be great for many buyers and
applications.  I suggest only making sure you know what limitations 
you're buying into.  I strongly suspect (per your remark, below) that
this unit has one SODIMM socket, ergo the 4GB can be expanded to 8GB
tops, by putting the 4GB stick in a drawer and buying an 8GB
replacement.


> https://store.zotac.com/ci327-nano-zbox-ci327nano-u

See, this one puzzles me, because again there's a strange thing with the
RAM.  The APU is reasonable -- Intel Celeron N3450 quad-core 1.1GH (and
you can swap that out for up to 2.2GHz if willing to throw money at the
CPU-grant problem, and actually do consider this a problem, which I do
not) -- but it says that the _two_ SODIM sockets max out at only 8GB.
But at least it's faster RAM (DDR3L-1866).  You're certainly right that
$160 is an attractive price (albeit barebones without RAM or storage).

But, I mean, what the hell?  _Two_ SODIMM sockets, but still an 8GB
system design maximum?  In 2017?  Bah.  8GB is a lot, but this seems
short-sighted.


> All I did was go to Zotac's download page and look at the filename of the 
> NIC driver for Windows. I didn't even click the download link.

Aha.  I found it in a Linux distro discussion this morning.

 
> The CPU seems to support dual-channel RAM, so you would likely see a 
> speed benefit from matched sticks.

Yeah, I suspected do.  FWIW, in my typical use-cases, speed of RAM (and
of CPU) tends not to matter very much.


> Sadly, all of those currently in the C series except the Kaby Lake 
> behemoth seem to have only one RAM socket, too. (8GB max.)

Yeah, that's a shame, isn't it?

Here's _that_ one, C1527 Nano, $330 full retail ($320 at Newegg):
https://store.zotac.com/ci527-nano-zbox-ci527nano-u
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883218076

Whoa, supports up to 32GB DDR4 in two 260-pin SODIMM slots.  APU is
Intel Core i3-7100U, dual core 2.4 GHz 'Kaby Lake'.  Standard C-series
mass-storage limitations.  Skylake-U architecture.  Intel HD Graphics
620.

That puppy's going to be fast.  Look for it to be a steal in a year or
so on the used market.