Shuttle X27-D Atom dual-core barebones SFF

Building the barebones one Atom at a time

Outside the little box measures no more than 185 x 230 x 70mm in size, however unlike other Atom mini-PCs (dare I utter "nettop") like the Asus EeeBox and MSI Wind Box (that sounds like something else) it doesn't come with VESA mounts to stick it to the back of a monitor or on the wall to save space.

I suppose you could always install it in your top drawer - it's thin enough to fit!

This dinky little thing is literally littered with holes though which, while we accept is great for keeping the innards cool, disappointingly detracts from the sleek, glossy black finish. We have to ask if a single 2.5-inch hard drive, a DVD drive and a motherboard that dissipates no more than 25W of heat need ventilation holes along both sides and a square in the top of the chassis cover?

We doubt it unless your top draw is lined with foam, but more ventilation is better than not enough even if it does detract from the X27-D's overall looks.


The power button is actually that little silver speck on the side (there's no reset button) and the power on and HDD LEDs are stealthed behind the silver bar in the middle.

Underneath, there are some chunky rubber feet to stop it scratching the paintwork and to dampen any vibration from the hardware. The front pops down in the top and bottom to reveal the space for the optical drive, a pair of USB ports, 3.5mm microphone and headphone jacks.


Pulling the top off requires all unscrewing the two thumbscrews and slide it backwards. Unfortunately you don't get a free G.Skill 128GB SSD - that's there just to show you where everything goes, but getting the top mount for the hard drive and optical drive out is just another two screws (Philips this time, so fetch your toolkit) and sliding it backwards.