WE'VE REVIEWED A NUMBER of Shuttle's cubes, going all the way back to the SV24, the original Socket 370 Shuttle cube. Since then, Shuttle has introduced Athlon and Pentium 4 cubes, as well. With each iteration the XPC systems have gotten better features and cooler looks. With space for two 3.5" drives and a 5.25" drive, as well as USB and Firewire ports, even enthusiasts could make an argument for having a cube as their main system. Except, of course, for the lack of an AGP slot.

Needless to say, that omission is a deal-breaker for many of us, especially those interested in games. Shuttle has addressed this concern with its Pentium 4 line, with both the SS51G and the SB51G. Athlon fans, however, were forced to wait, though Shuttle has showed off the nForce2-based SN41G2 at a trade show here and there.

The SN41G2 isn't yet available for purchase, but those wanting an Athlon-based AGP Shuttle cube have another option: The SK41G, based on VIA's KM266 chipset. The KM266 is missing features present in other VIA chipsets, like AGP 8X and support for 333MHz Athlons, but many consumers might eschew those features for a small form factor. Does the SK41G bring AGP magic to Athlon cubes? Read on to find out.