Getting to the guts

With the thumbscrews retaining it removed, the bottom panel easily slides off to reveal the Zbox's internals. Behold:

Ok, so maybe the motherboard isn't that exciting. It actually looks quite barren, but that's what you get with a small-form-factor nettop whose CPU and core-logic chipset are spread across just two chips. Both are hidden under a shrouded heatsink that hosts the Zbox's only fan.

The fan is reasonably quiet, and the BIOS offers a handful of tweaking options for those who want to balance cooling performance with noise levels. Users can set minimum and maximum CPU temperature triggers between 0° and 100° C in fine-grained 1° increments. The fan's minimum and maximum duty cycle (its speed, essentially) can also be configured via the BIOS, which is more than can be said for some desktop motherboards. I'm looking at you, Gigabyte.

Decent fan-speed controls are vital in a system like this, and Zotac didn't stop there. The BIOS lets one overclock the system by raising the speed of the front-side bus, memory clock, and even the core and shader clocks on the integrated GPU. It's possible to underclock those elements, as well, but you won't find much in the way of voltage controls. Only the chipset's voltage can be adjusted, and then between just two values.

Although overclocking controls have dubious value in a system like this one, Zotac deserves props for putting a full suite of memory timing options into the BIOS. These timing controls could come in handy if you're using obscure SO-DIMMs whose SPD settings aren't detected correctly.

Because the Zbox shares system memory with its integrated GPU, you'll want to populate both of its memory channels. I slipped in a couple of 2GB DDR3-1066 modules pillaged from a CULV-powered notebook. 4GB of RAM is probably overkill, but it's what I had kicking around the lab. A 2x1GB memory configuration should be more than sufficient for most folks' needs, at least with a system of this caliber.

Installing the SO-DIMMs couldn't have been easier. The modules are keyed to fit one way only, and they snap neatly into place with little effort.

The only other bit of hardware to add is a 2.5" storage device. Seagate's Momentus XT flash/mechanical hybrid is an intriguing option for this kind of system, but I ultimately settled on Western Digital's latest Scorpio for testing. The Scorpio Black 500GB is WD's first attempt at that capacity in a 7,200-RPM mobile drive, and its five-year warranty is a nice boost over the three years of coverage typical of consumer-grade hard drives.

If you're looking for more storage, Seagate offers 7,200-RPM mobile drives with capacities up to 750GB. That's also a common capacity point for 5,400-RPM drives, although you'll obviously sacrifice some performance with the slower spindle speed.

The 2.5" bay will also accept thicker 12.5-mm drives. Mobile drives typically limit their thickness to 9.5 mm to maintain compatibility with most notebooks. However, a number of 12.5-mm drives have been released with 5,400-RPM spindle speeds and terabyte capacities, and the Zbox accommodates them nicely.

The Zbox can accept thicker 2.5" drives in part because its hard drive retention mechanism is so slick. One thumbscrew tightens a hinged clamp that secures drives in place. Installation takes only seconds, and the drive is cushioned by a series of vibration-absorbing pads that line the retention bracket.

If you're willing to break the warranty-voiding stickers covering two of the four screws anchoring the motherboard to the chassis, you can flip the mobo over and gain access to a pair of Mini PCI Express slots. The first is occupied by the system's Wi-Fi card, whose exposed leads should make it easy for enterprising hobbyists seeking to add an external antenna. The empty second slot could be used to add PVR capabilities with this Mini PCIe tuner card. Or you could add a low-capacity SSD to serve as an OS and applications drive.

You won't be losing out on much if you void the Zbox's warranty. Zotac only offers one year of coverage for the system.