A pleasant surprise on this Tuesday afternoon, a package arrived on my doorstep from Israel.  Perplexed by its origin I ripped open the bag to find a brand-spanking-new fit-PC2 nettop computer in my hands.  This little guy has been getting a lot of attention recently for its incredibly small size (fits inside the area of DVD almost) and interesting hardware configuration.  The fit-PC brand might be new to you - they have only had one other model, which was released last year, the fit-PC. 

I thought before I sat down with the box for the next week or so of testing I would show the basics on the exterior and interior and give a brief overview of what it claims it can do. 

The image on the box paints a clear picture of the fit-PC2 and its most striking feature - size. 

The back of box highlights what hardware resides in the machine and what typical usage scenarios might be for a system this size: HTPC, security or home automation, desktop replacement, thin client, server or car PC. 

The hardware in this tiny box is limited, but still impressive:

• Intel Atom Z530 1.6 GHz
• Intel US15W SCH chipset
• 1GB DDR2 memory
• Integrated Intel GMA500 graphics
• 2.5-in SATA 160GB hard drive

Because this system uses the Menlow-based Atom Z-series processor and 'Poulsbo' chipset, rather than the N-series CPU, it has support for HD video decode acceleration and CompuLab, the manufacturer, claims it can play back 1080p video with just 20% CPU utilization.  We will have more on the hardware side of things in our full product review.

Early stages of the instruction manual.

Even the package that the fit-PC2 is sent in is packed tightly - this company has a thing for small spaces!

Included in the box with the PC are the power adapter, WiFi antennae and HDMI-to-DVI converter cable. 

The fit-PC2 is incredibly small and you can see HOW small by looking at the SD memory card slot located on the front.  There is a power/reset button on the left, IR receiver panel, micro-USB ports and three status LEDs for power, WiFi signal and HDD access. 

To REALLY put it in perspective, I placed a copy of Transformers on Blu-ray on the fit-PC2. 

The back of the unit has the power plug, 802.11g WiFi connection, Gigabit Ethernet, four USB 2.0 ports, HDMI output and support for 6-channel analog audio output.

On the bottom of the fit-PC2 are the access screws to get inside the box - check below for the dissection. 

The back of the device can get busy when you start plugging things in.

Next Page - Inside the fit-PC2