The home theater PC, or “HTPC” as it is often called, has never really gained a lot of traction – it seems doomed to forever remain a niche product, especially as home video game consoles like Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s Playstation step up and become high-definition media devices.

Still, with streaming video Web sites like Hulu confined to PCs, the HTPC can still have a place under many TVs, and the low cost of decent computing equipment these days makes it more affordable than ever to put one together.


In this, the first post in a two part series, I’ll cover why Windows 7 is an ideal operating system to use in an HTPC – in the next post, I’ll show you what I used to put together my own HTPC and why.




The first question to ask when considering any HTPC: What kind of a computer does it need to be? The ideal HTPC should fit in a small amount of space, usually in one’s home entertainment center under one’s television, and it should be quiet – nothing will ruin a movie or TV show like the whir of one or more loud fans.



So, small and quiet. To keep things suitably inaudible, most people will need to use a slower processor that generates less heat – less heat means less fans means less noise. Unfortunately, this means the computer isn’t going to be breaking a lot of speed records.



This is where Windows 7 comes in – Windows XP will run well on low-end and low-power hardware, but it takes more time to setup. Installing Windows XP on a new PC nowadays involves hunting down a lot of drivers, downloading a lot of updates and doing a lot of fiddling with its rapidly-aging user interface. You’ll also need to find DVD codecs and, unless you happen to have the Media Center edition of the OS, some good third-party HTPC software. Also, let’s face it, XP is rapidly nearing the end of its useful life.



Windows Vista improves the situation somewhat – the Windows Media Center application is built-in to the Home Premium and Ultimate editions, DVD codecs are included, and it looks better on a wider variety of screens. Still, depending on your configuration, Vista might be too slow for your taste even after a couple of service packs and dozens of patches. Intel’s Atom processor is a great choice for an HTPC – it is generally fast enough for most applications, and it doesn’t generate a lot of heat. Vista just isn’t going to be happy on such a processor, however.



Windows 7 is great on an HTPC because it marries the look and functionality of Vista to the hardware requirements of XP (it gets pretty close, anyway). The Media Center application, which we’ve written about before, makes organizing, watching and listening to audio and video convenient, and Windows 7 handles larger fonts and icons better than the aging XP.



So, using Windows 7 as a base, I’ve put together a cheap, low-power, reasonably functional HTPC that wouldn’t have been nearly as good if I had built it before October 22. Tune in tomorrow, when I’ll let you know the particulars of the components I’ve picked. In the meantime, check out the Windows 7 Media Center PC Everton built for less than $300.