XPC SN41G2 / SN41G2V2

Well performances and first class endowment shows that size doesn't metter.
The barebone was appreciated for the connectors (front and back) and the low temperature (49 celsius degress on full-load).
Conclusions: In a small-place context can be ideal combination with a TFT monitor. It is the best/ideal solution for home and office.

+ Sehr gute Performance 
+ Brilliantes Design 
+ Gute Kühlkörperkonstruktion 
+ Größe 
+ Guter Onboard-Sound, LAN, Firewire 
+ Hochwertige Verarbeitung 

Introduction

Small form factor PC's (commonly known as SFF's) have become one of the few new products in the computer industry which everyone seems to be excited about. Sure, the big stories like Intel vs. AMD and nVidia vs. ATI dominate the headlines, but SFF's are something everyone can enjoy. They're stylish, quiet, and they fit into nearly every nook and cranny of your office. The small size of the Shuttle XPC family has multiple benefits, and goes far beyond what this motherboard company originally wanted to sell, small desktop replacements.

The small size of the Shuttle XPC systems makes it easier for gamers to bring their own systems to LAN parties. Multimedia lovers can shove them in an entertainment center and have them work as a media PC. Business users who need powerful systems for presentations and off-site computing can also make use of the XPC. In some of the more extreme cases, we have seen entire shelves of rackmount systems replaced by Shuttle SFF boxes, as their use of off-the-shelf components and low-cost compared to rackmounts makes them overall a better value for clustered computing environments. The uses are truly endless. 

(...) We often get asked if we can recommend the "best" SFF box on the market right now. Of course, "best" is a loaded word, as this term could mean best performance, best features, or best value. In terms of performance and features, there are two of the Shuttle XPC boxes which really stand out from the rest for these areas. These two are the newly released SN41G2 for the Athlon XP and SB51G XIB for the Pentium 4. These two have instantly become the most popular XPC boxes in their respective fields, and with good reason, they're simply the best two XPC systems Shuttle has ever built. (...)

The Final Word

Both of these Shuttle boxes have sold fairly well, and really, anyone who has purchased one of these system can tell you first hand that they are quality boxes. Both are sturdy, stable, perform well, and are quite small and quiet to boot. (...)

When you look at overall performance with our high-end configurations, the numbers are fairly even comparing the SN41G2 with the Athlon XP 3000+ and the SB51G XIB with the Pentium 4 3.06 GHz. The Pentium 4 is a faster chip, but runs on a slower chipset. The Athlon XP isn't as fast as the Pentium 4, but its superb nForce2 chipset running with it allows it to achieve new levels of greatness. Each platform wins its fair share of benchmarks, neither is the clear winner. (...)

In terms of features, the SN41G2 simply blows the competition away. The audio controller is far and away the leader in terms of quality and audio features. Similarly, the SN41G2's integrated GeForce4 MX graphics controller is in another complete world compared to the somewhat crummy Intel 845-GE "Extreme Graphics". Other nifty things like TV Out and the dual channel DDR memory architecture just catapult the SN41G2 further up the ladder.

Obviously, I feel that the SN41G2 is the better of the two boxes. It looks nicer (in my opinion, looks are subjective), it's got a much better feature set, and performance is on-par or higher than the SB51G XIB. The SN41G2 is actually a bit more expensive compared to the SB51G XIB (Yes, an AMD system that's more expensive than Intel!), but the difference in pricing is really quite minimal for the amount of features which Shuttle includes in their little nForce2 box.

(...) For now though, the SN41G2 is the SFF to beat. For all the other motherboard manufacturers out there looking to get into the SFF market, take note, this is how a SFF should be made.

Translation:

Plus: compact dimensions, fast integrated graphics
The Shuttle's Mini-PC-concept is ideal if you have only small space (...) The graphics unit profits from Nvidias fast dual-channel memory
architecture, which also supports DDR400 modules. No other integrated graphics solutions offer similar performance and also supports two monitor connectors. It features an AGP 8X for expansion with a graphics card and one PCI slot as well. (...) its size is almost like a shoe box. It has low noise thanks to its special cooling system. (...)

PCPro rating: good
Performance: good
Features: very good
Ergonomy: good
Service: good

Translation:

Headline: "Racing Cube"
"(...) the usual mainboard manufacturers just offer their nForce2-S-boards to the market. Finally, we have now received a mainboard with integrated graphics, the Shuttle FN41. (...) We are convinced by the system performance with office applications (...) There is no noticeable loss of performance, when graphics core and processor are accessing the main memory at the same time. It even outperforms the VIA KT400 in some benchmarks. (...)  the nForce2 graphics achieve the level of the GeForce4 MX420 which is similar to ATI Radeon 7500. (...)

Conclusion:
(...) The 3D performance is sufficient for a majority of the current games. We like the barebone XPC SN41G2 because of its nice design, the fast mainboard and the good connectivity. (...) At the first glance the price seems pretty high (...) however, Shuttle delivers added value by well co-ordinated components including a set of accessories, and the case is very nice and compact, even in comparison to other barebones of this performance class.

English:
www6.tomshardware.com/...

Fazit: Ausbaufähiges PC-Konzept mit guter Verarbeitungsqualität 
Zusammenfassend lässt sich feststellen: Beide Mini-Systeme bieten eine hohe Performance, die durchaus mit gut konfigurierten konventionellen PCs vergleichbar ist. Während in der Vergangenheit besonders die 3D-Grafik-Leistung schwach ausfiel, bietet jetzt das Shuttle SN41G2 für die AMD-Plattform selbst bei 3D-Spielen akzeptable Bildwiederholraten. Wer auf Top-3D-Grafik wert legt, kann bei beiden Systemen eine Highend-AGP-Grafikkarte installieren. Unter dem Strich bieten die Shuttle-Barebone's auf äußerst knappen Abmessungen bei niedrigem Gewicht eine hohe Gesamtleistung. Zudem gibt es alle erdenklichen Schnittstellen von Firewire über USB 2.0 bis hin zu optischem SP/DIF. Nicht zuletzt sind die Systeme mit Aluminiumgehäuse ein optischer Blickfang im Umfeld der konventionellen Blechkisten im Kübel-Format. Beide Rechner bieten wesentliche Highlights: Während des Intel-System mit 845GE-Chipsatz die P4-CPUs mit Hyperthreading unterstützt, verfügt das AMD-System über zwei VGA-Ausgänge und Dual-Channel-DDR400. Allein diese Tatsache zeigt, dass ein PC mit äußerst kompakten Abmessungen keine Einschränkungen bei Hardwareausstattung mit sich bringen muss. 

Mini-PCs auf der Überholspur: Mit schneller 3D-Grafik und potentem Speicherinterface machen sie den Standard-Rechnern bald ernsthaft Konkurrenz.

Der Redakteur zeigt sich sehr beeindruckt von der Geschwindigkeit, Qualität, Dokumentation und den Leistungsmerkmalen des Systems, welches in der Endwertung 9,2 von 10 Punkten erhalten konnte. Außderdem hat es die Auszeichnung "Empfehlung von DIV.ro" erhalten. DIV.ro ist eins der wichtigsten Hardware-Foren in Romänien.

Qualität: 10/10
Ergonomie: 9,5/10
Dokumentation: 10/10
Performance: 9,5/10
Preis: 7/10
Gesamt: 9,2/10

Title: Shuttle SN41G2 mini-pc with nForce 2 motherboard – maximum power in minimum volume

The author was really impressed by the performance, quality, documentation and ergonomy of the system which has a final rating 9,2/10. It also obtained the recommendation of div.ro, which is one of the most important hardware forums in Romania.

Quality: 10/10
Ergonomy: 9,5/10
Documentation: 10/10
Performance: 9,5/10
Price: 7/10
Overall: 9,2/10

(...) the 845GE based SB51G performed similar to a regular ATX sized motherboard which made Pentium4 owners happy. Of course AMD owners constitute a large part of the DIY market and Shuttle had to make sure to keep them happy as well. And they did the best possible thing - make an XPC based on the nForce2 chipset which is definitely the most exciting chipset for the Athlon right now. (...) The SN41G2 is just what Shuttle needed to release - a power house for the AMD users. We feel that they have made an excellent decesion in chosing nForce2 instead of any other chipset as it brings the best performance along with the best integrated video solution for the AMD platform at the moment. (...) the SN41G2 is an excellent product - Shuttle have got it perfect for the AMD crowd.

Übersetzung:

Ausgezeichnet mit "Empfohlenes Produkt" für das best-mögliche

(...) das SB51G mit 845GE-Chipsatz wies die gleiche Performance auf, wie reguläre ATX-Mainboards, was Pentium-4-Besitzer glücklich machte. Natürlich machen AMD-Besitzer einen großen Teil des Do-it-yourself-Marktes aus und Shuttle mußte sicherstellen, daß auch sie glücklich gemacht werden. Und sie taten das best-mögliche: einen XPC mit nForce2-Chipsatz, der zur Zeit definitiv der interessanteste Chipsatz für Athlon ist. (...) Das SN41G2 ist gerade das, was Shuttle jetzt herausbringen mußte - ein Power-Teil für AMD-Anwender. Wir denken, daß sie damit eine exzellente Entscheidung gemacht haben, daß sie den NForce2 anstatt eines anderen Chipsatzes verwendet haben, weil dies momentan die beste Performance und auch die beste integrierte Grafik-Lösung für die AMD-Plattform ist. (...) das SN41G2 ist ein exzellentes Produkt - Shuttle hat es perfekt für die AMD-Leute hinbekommen.