Technology & IT | Friday 29 May, 2015 1:52 am |

Giada Technology, the leader in embedded computing and servers for small and medium enterprises, has introduced its F300 barebone mini PC in the Middle East. The F300 is tailor-made for deployment in digital signage applications in enterprises, government organisations, public institutions, and transportation departments.

The F300 offers strong performance, silent operation and a compact form factor thanks to Intel’s fourth generation Core i5-4200U 'Haswell' processor, which runs at 1.8 GHz (2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost). The CPU features an integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400 graphics system. The mini PC's heatsink and sleek aluminum case work in tandem to maintain cooling efficiency, and as a result of its fan-less design, the machine is dust-proof and virtually noiseless. Cooling efficiency is further enhanced thanks to the F300's fully corrugated surface.

With dimensions of 260mm x 175mm x 35mm, the F300 sports a compact frame, which makes it portable and a natural fit just about anywhere but especially for use in digital signage applications where high performance, low noise and a dust-proof design are mandatory. With integrated Trusted Platform Module (TPM) technology, which provides hardware security for user data, the F300 is the ideal choice for business and government use where the privacy of data is critical.

Designed as a DIY (do it yourself) barebones system, the F300 can easily be customised to meet demands - just two screws have to be undone before the internal components can be accessed. The machine can accept up to 8GB of 1600MHz DDR3L RAM via a single memory slot, while expansion cards and storage capacity can be added quickly and easily. Card expansion is offered via three mini PCI Express slots (full-length for mSATA III SSD; full-length for PCI-E/USB/3G; and half-length for PCIe. The machine can also accept 2.5-inch SATA II/III HDDs or SSDs.

The F300 comes standard with several I/O ports to cater to various customer needs. With two DisplayPort 1.2 ports, the mini PC supports two ultra-HD mosaic screens with a maximum resolution of 3200 x 2000 pixels. The two DP ports also support 5.1-channel surround sound audio, can deliver stereoscopic 3D (to supported display devices), and can output content at HD (720p) and Full HD (1080p) resolutions. The DisplayPorts can also be used to connect multiple monitors in a daisy chain, which makes the F300 ideal for use in high-level digital signage systems. HDMI 1.4 is also supported with a converter to output 720p, 1080p, and 2160p with 5.1-channel digital surround audio, thus allowing the F300 to be connected to large Ultra HDTV screens.

The onboard IR module can be used to control the entertainment system via a remote control, which is sold separately. The machine also offers three connector cables to make 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity available. Standard network connectivity is provided via a gigabit Ethernet port, while WiFi support can be added to the system via its mini PCI-E ports. The system also has four USB 3.0 ports and two USB 2.0 ports and there are two serial ports to connect legacy devices.

Giada has applied its patented JAHC technology to the F300. JAHC - Active Hardware Control Technology - provides built-in capabilities for unattended operations such as auto power-on when connected to power, or scheduled power on/off, and IR Remote Control functionality before the OS even boots. These features offer excellent flexibility, particularly relating to applications in the industrial space.

The system is equipped with a Phoenix EFI BIOS with support for an ACPI interface, and is fully compatible with the majority of popular operating systems including Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Linux.