Acer's penchant for the AMD Vision platform in 2010 seems to be extending to its various secondary brands as well, since more and more products built around the aforementioned chip manufacturer's CPUs are starting to pop up on the market. And this time around, we'll talk about the eMachines Mini-e ER1402 model, an ultra small form factor computing system that targets directly the HTPC segment, by providing plenty of home-entertainment-related options.

The Mini-e ER1402 measures just 7.1 inches in diameter and weighs just 9 pounds, which, combined with its attractive design, makes it a very good solution for one's home entertainment system. Nevertheless, this system is a lot more than just a pretty face, since it has built-in 802.11 b/g/n wireless, making it easy to connect to the Internet, while the HDMI interface allows it to instantly connect to a big screen TV and the S/PDIF port can be used for connecting to a home audio system.

The system is powered by Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, an AMD Athlon II NEO Processor, NVIDIA GeForce 9200 graphics and 2GB of memory, which makes it powerful enough to be employed for basic computing tasks, such as word processing, VOIP calls, email, spreadsheets or managing family finances.

Additionally, its intelligent design provides very good airflow around the CPU, while ports and slots arranged around the sides allow quick and easy access and convenient cable management. The ER1402 also includes four USB 2.0 ports, a multi-in-one digital media card reader and a 160GB hard drive.

"Today's cost-conscious consumer will find style, features and affordability come together beautifully in the low-cost eMachines Mini-e," said Steve Smith, senior business manager, consumer desktops for eMachines. "It's an inconspicuous, streamlined computing solution for any room of the home where consumers want to enjoy movies, photos, music and other online entertainment."

According to eMachines, their ER1402-05 is already available in stores and sells for somewhere in the vicinity of $299.99, which, as far as HTPCs are concerned, is quite an attractive price point.


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