Are HTPC’s Ready To Go Mainstream?

Is it me or does it seem like more and more manufacturers are coming out with PCs labeled HD, or coming out with smaller form factors that would be more appealing as part of a Home Theatre setup. This got me thinking, are HTPCs finally moving from the “geek gadget” to a more mainstream audience? If so I think this is great news as HTPCs might finally be taken more seriously (I am looking at you Microsoft, fuly integrate WMC into WHS already!!!). I was scanning through Engadget this morning and came across a few posts of PC Manufacturers (Lenovo and Dell) coming out with PCs designed specifically as a home entertainment PC.

Lenovo is introducing the Q700, which comes with a Pentium Dual Core E5200, 4GB of RAM, a 320GB HDD, DVD Rom Drive, and Intel X4500 IGP. Price starts at $499. There appears to be no option to customize the system (I just attempted) and I am not partciularly a fan of the X4500, so for me this is a fail.

Dell is introducing the Inspiron Zino HD. Details are currently very scarce, but the form factor appears to be very similar to a mac mini. Hopefully in the coming days/weeks we should start seeing more details.

You can visit the Lenovo site here.

Engadget’s post on the Q700 can be found here.

Engadget’s post on the Inspiron Zino HD can be found here.