Piixl's Jetpack PC straps high-end gaming hardware to the back of your TV

[Scorpus]

Next year, prospective PC gamers will have an impressive range of choice when it comes to Steam Machines and other gaming systems. We've already seen Xi3's Piston gaming PC for $999, iBuyPower's $500 Steam Machine with a discrete GPU, and Valve's own prototype system, with system builder Piixl now wanting a slice of the action.

While not an official Steam Machine as such, Piixl's 'Jetpack' PC will attach directly to the back of your TV, hiding powerful hardware from your eyes completely. The Jetpack is a fully-customizable "open PC architecture", meaning you can swap out the graphics card or CPU whenever an upgrade is needed, rather than having to purchase an entirely new system.

The PC itself is roughly 2.5-inches (50mm) thick but still able to accommodate high-end hardware such as Nvidia's dual-slot GeForce GTX 780 graphics card and overclocked Intel Core i7 processors. Piixl hasn't revealed the final specifications for pre-built Jetpacks at this stage, but it looks like the gaming PC will be no slouch.

Anyone wanting to purcahse the Jetpack will be able to do so from January 1st, 2014, with prices starting at $1,000. The gaming PC is optimized for SteamOS, but it will naturally be able to run Windows as well.

Meanwhile, Valve is planning to unveil the full lineup of Steam Machine hardware and manufacturing partners at CES 2014, where we're expecting to see a number of systems ranging from afforable console-like systems to high-end beasts.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/54924-piixls-jetpack-pc-straps-high-end-gaming-hardware-to-the-back-of-your-tv.html

 

[oldikes]

Starting at $1k...I have fears that you wont be getting much for 1k. But ive been wrong before.

 

[wastedkill]

Finally a all in one that's both innovative and is a all-in-one Which I will admit the picture alone is quite a turn on!

Also noticed the CPU has no heatsink or anything so is it just gonna be air cooled without a fan or heatsink on it? As it also looks like their is virtually no space for a heatsink for it lol

 

[Guest]

Seriously? A thousand dollars when you could just buy longer wires and hide your PC in a closet or something? I don't mind paying premium prices for most things, but this is useless to me. I mean, if you're spending that kind of money then your TV is already mounted to the wall. So either your TV sticks off the wall ridiculously, you have an unaccessible computer, or you run a longer wire through the wall and hide the PC. :s

 

[Guest]

Seems like it would be a better idea to just sell the case by itself for like $100.

 

[Forg0t2]

Seems like it would be a better idea to just sell the case by itself for like $100.

Ur not getting the Tv,... just the box with the setup inside.

 

[Forg0t2]

Seriously? A thousand dollars when you could just buy longer wires and hide your PC in a closet or something? I don't mind paying premium prices for most things, but this is useless to me. I mean, if you're spending that kind of money then your TV is already mounted to the wall. So either your TV sticks off the wall ridiculously, you have an unaccessible computer, or you run a longer wire through the wall and hide the PC. :s

Seriously? A thousand dollars when you could just buy longer wires and hide your PC in a closet or something? I don't mind paying premium prices for most things, but this is useless to me. I mean, if you're spending that kind of money then your TV is already mounted to the wall. So either your TV sticks off the wall ridiculously, you have an unaccessible computer, or you run a longer wire through the wall and hide the PC. :s

You know TV and PC will be integrated in future generations right? It is one of the most logical steps and this idea is one of the first to get that integration going.

 

[Forg0t2]

Finally a all in one that's both innovative and is a all-in-one Which I will admit the picture alone is quite a turn on!

Also noticed the CPU has no heatsink or anything so is it just gonna be air cooled without a fan or heatsink on it? As it also looks like their is virtually no space for a heatsink for it lol

Finally a all in one that's both innovative and is a all-in-one Which I will admit the picture alone is quite a turn on!

Also noticed the CPU has no heatsink or anything so is it just gonna be air cooled without a fan or heatsink on it? As it also looks like their is virtually no space for a heatsink for it lol

There is no Heatsink because the dummy is still in the socket. Would be kind of ridiculous to put a heatsink on top of that

 

[Mr WW]

A TV should be like a computer screen, no logic behind.

 

[Forg0t2]

A TV should be like a computer screen, no logic behind.

Smart TV?

 

[wastedkill]

There is no Heatsink because the dummy is still in the socket. Would be kind of ridiculous to put a heatsink on top of that

You really didn't get what I was saying huh?....

 

[cliffordcooley]

Also noticed the CPU has no heatsink or anything so is it just gonna be air cooled without a fan or heatsink on it? As it also looks like their is virtually no space for a heatsink for it lol

You really didn't get what I was saying huh?....

Should be enough room for a stock cooler.

The PC itself is roughly 2.5-inches (50mm) thick

2.5 inches is closer to 63mm
50mm is less than 2 inches

Although I'm not sure if they are saying the case is 2" or 2.5" thick.

 

[tipstir]

High-end Gateway laptops could be use and stick good cooling pad under it, then attach it to the HDMI port 2 of SONY 40 -inch or higher HDTV. I do this in the MBR = master bedroom. Of course that laptop is use a DVR. Other one is in the LVR living room. Both have SONY 7.1 TrueHD with 8x speakers connected.

 

[Forg0t2]

You really didn't get what I was saying huh?....

I have to edit my comment almost completely I suppose. Looking at Piixl's website you can see pictures where the CPU does not have a heatsink so I think you can say that it should be able to run without this cooler. However I think that an overclocked i7 will definitly need more than just a fan blowing the heat away. It does show room between the casing and the CPU to place a heatsink but I'm not sure if a standard heatsink will fit,...

********Before Edit**************

There should be room for a cooler. I dont really see it getting sufficiently aircooled on the picture. the fan located to the right seems to cool the CPU but I dont think thats enough. (Edited this part because I was wrong about the fan's direction)

The article also says that it has room for: "Nvidia's dual-slot GeForce GTX 780 graphics card". dont ask me how they will fit that when the case is 2.5 inches thick but if that fits a CPU cooler should definitly fit.

*********End***********

 

[penn919]

Seems like it would be a better idea to just sell the case by itself for like $100.

Agreed.

 

[psycros]

You can make money selling average gaming PCs with a minimal extra charge for assembly. You can sell really expensive high-end gaming PCs with a large markup for unique cases and first class service. What you *can't* do is sell average gaming PCs at a ridiculous markup just by putting them in a small case meant for the living room. First off, not that many of us want to game in the living room. Why? Because half the draw of the PC is the superior control setup of keyboard + mouse. We also don't need to be tying up the television with our computers..this is also why most people have a second TV just for their gaming consoles. How can these companies not know what's common knowledge to the consumer?

 

[Guest]

It seems a great idea provided it won't be noisy and won't affect the TV's performance (you know, signal interference). Otherwise I think it's cool to have just a TV, it's like Apple's iMac. It would work as a media centre too - I just wonder how it can be remote controlled if it's behind the TV, IR signal won't easily reach it.

 

[Adhmuz]

It seems a great idea provided it won't be noisy and won't affect the TV's performance (you know, signal interference). Otherwise I think it's cool to have just a TV, it's like Apple's iMac. It would work as a media centre too - I just wonder how it can be remote controlled if it's behind the TV, IR signal won't easily reach it.

Wireless keyboards and mice use RF frequencies that don't require line of sight like IR. Noise however could be a valid concern, cramming a GTX780 and a high end i7 will produce a lot of heat in a 2.5" enclosure.

Also the $1000 price tag doesn't tell you much. What's the wattage on the PSU (a custom unit which I would think should be at least 500 watts, if not 600). Does that price include an ITX mother board? The PCI-E riser/extender will be mandatory, what will the CPU heatsink be like, will it just be the standard pos included with the CPU, or some elaborate solution designed to be ultra quiet? Probably not the ladder, and what else is included, do you get a whole system ready to go for $1000 or do you then need to add RAM, HDD/SDD, DVD, CPU, ect. Not enough information is provided to give positive or negative feedback at this point.

I see this being good for some people if the price is right, but irrelevant to others, ie those who don't mind shoving a PC in the closet and getting long cables, myself included. The mounting depth shouldn't be a problem, remember when flat screens weren't less than an inch thick and people still hung them on the wall and didn't care about them sticking off the wall 5". That being said, if I were to ever to such a thing it would only be logical to mount the TV in the wall so the screen is flush, and not just on the wall. But again, I'm not most people.

 

[cliffordcooley]

if I were to ever to such a thing it would only be logical to mount the TV in the wall so the screen is flush, and not just on the wall. But again, I'm not most people.

Then you would not have access to the I/O ports or DVD drive. Maybe you could have hidden cabinet doors to allow for access. But then recessing the monitor would box it in limiting cooling as well.

 

[Forg0t2]

You can make money selling average gaming PCs with a minimal extra charge for assembly. You can sell really expensive high-end gaming PCs with a large markup for unique cases and first class service. What you *can't* do is sell average gaming PCs at a ridiculous markup just by putting them in a small case meant for the living room. First off, not that many of us want to game in the living room. Why? Because half the draw of the PC is the superior control setup of keyboard + mouse. We also don't need to be tying up the television with our computers..this is also why most people have a second TV just for their gaming consoles. How can these companies not know what's common knowledge to the consumer?

Because currently its PC gamers they are feeding but in the near future PC's will be massivley used as entertainment systems like an xbox or playtation. In the future almost all electronics will be controlled by a central computer, like in most sci-fi movies.

 

[Adhmuz]

Then you would not have access to the I/O ports or DVD drive. Maybe you could have hidden cabinet doors to allow for access. But then recessing the monitor would box it in limiting cooling as well.

The DVD drive being blocked is the least of my concerns, I haven't used the one on my PC in a while, and if I really needed it I could use a separate PC to rip the DVD into an ISO and mount it. IO ports could be extended and made to be accessible behind a small door, cooling would be designed into the wallcabinet with a single large and quiet fan. Things I can easy foresee doing myself if I ever wanted such a solution.

 

[h4expo]

1U server rack case with holes for attaching it to the back of a TV! Cool idea, but I'd rather drill the holes my self.

 

[Guest]

Funny how nobody mentiones the PSU format. It looks smaller but longer than a standard ATX PSU and might therefore be either TFX or SFX. In both cases you get like 300W out of it, which is quite little for a dedicated gaming pc. Works just fine for other purposes, though.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Funny how nobody mentiones the PSU format.

Thats because all three measurements of a standard PSU is longer than the width of the case. The case is only 2 to 2.5 inches in depth. This should have been easy to see back when the topic of CPU cooler was mention.