Review: Enlight LP-772 computer chassis

Most barebones PCs are a small rectangular box, to which you still need to attach a separate monitor, along with all the other components needed to make a computer.

The Enlight LP-772 takes a different approach; it's a 17in LCD monitor - there's a 19in version available too - with mountings for a motherboard and hard disk to be fixed, backpack-style, behind the screen. The monitor base has space for a 220W power supply, a couple of speakers and a DVD or CD drive.

The clever thing about the LP-772 is that it's designed to take any micro-ATX system board. This means it's possible to build a computer based around a basic processor and memory, possibly with integrated graphics.

Alternatively, it's versatile enough to support much faster components, such as a fast dual-core processor, separate graphics card and possibly a couple of TV tuners, which would create a home entertainment computer. In essence, there's quite a bit of room to mix and match.

There's a separate slide-in tray to hold a 3.5in hard disk and, like other aspects of the system, you can upgrade with off-the-shelf components at any time.

All the cables you need to plug in are already there and once you've fitted the micro-ATX system board, complete with an insulating sheet supplied with the chassis, it's no more complicated to get your head around than a mini tower and rather less fiddly than a typical micro-ATX case.

In fact, the fiddliest bit is fitting the DVD or CD drive into its base. There's barely enough length in the box to fit a standard 5.25in device and you may have to re-jig some of the internal cables.

Down the left-hand side of the decent 17in screen, which is of similar quality to those found in £100 to £150 monitors, is a pre-fitted memory card reader, complete with twin USB 2 sockets.

Like many aspects of this chassis, it's designed for ease of build and maximum flexibility and gets a thumbs up from us.

Also consider
Shuttle SD36G5M
Overall: A small form factor barebones system built around Intel Viiv specification.
Rating: 4
Price: £289

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