Tiny HTPC Movie and Hulu Box Part 3 Hardware Test

Posted in Computers, HTPC by JarrettV on 6/14/2009 1:02:00 AM - CST

The parts arrived from Newegg and I put it together. The Intel fan that came with the CPU was not very tall. The fan may have fit the short height of the case, but it would have been tight. I'm glad I ordered the other fan.

Here is a picture of it after I turned it on.

I rescued some buttons, LEDs, and speaker off of an old case.

I fired it up, loaded Windows 7 RC1 and the new Hulu Desktop app.

Unfortunately, watching fullscreen Hulu is choppy. I've played many different video formats (MKV, Bluray, DivX) and they all play smooth regardless of resolution (720p, 1080p, etc). This is definitely a bug in the Hulu desktop app as even CBS, Youtube, and Vimeo HD videos playback fine. I plan to try some various changes to resolve the Hulu video stuttering.

Update: Hulu is only choppy within the desktop application. It is smooth when played through the browser.

Update2: Found a thread in their forum: Lag in fullscreen mode

It is also mentioned in many other threads so this seems to be a common problem. Let's hope they fix it soon.

In the next part, I'll mount the parts into their tiny new home (see part 1) and fabricate a front-panel.