Foxconn SFF R40-H1 Intel Core i7 / i5 / i3 (LGA1155) Intel Socket H2(LGA1155) Intel H67 none 1 x HDMI Barebone

Pros: - looks sharp
- small, but big enough for standard (short length) optical drive
- nice and quiet (using i3-2100)
- boots *very* fast with SATA III SSD
- included card reader

Cons: - forget the foxconn web product page support for it (horribly out of date -- get current drivers from foxconn H67S motherboard area, Intel, and Realtek)

- updating the BIOS was a pain (google for guide on how to do it)

- attachments for provided heatsink (offset shape to make room for optical drive) seem flimsy

Other Thoughts: tight fit with optical drive (and you better have shorter length one at that!)

until you get the hang of it, front bezel cover clips are a pain (included instructions were no help to me at least)

Pros: Fairly easy to work with and assemble. While not a fan of molex connectors in small builds, I really appreciated it's presence for the LED bar on the front. It made it easy to disable (at the end user's request!).

This case looks really sharp (even without the front LED on), yield a small footprint and Foxconn's heatsink cools the CPU effectively enough (~30 Celsius when idle, ~45-50 Celsius when under load).

Cons: You must use Foxconn's heatsink if you're installing an Optical Drive in this barebones. It wouldn't be an issue if Foxconn included a quieter CPU fan.

This case isn't meant to be laid on it's side, but when I did so while building, the power supply would make a rattling noise against the interior of the case. This is a non-issue when the case is standing vertical, but it does suggest the build quality of the case could be better.

Other Thoughts: Overall, this is a worthwhile barebones to use for a simple PC build. It made a great Fathers Day gift, for a Dad who uses a PC for Email, Internet, and Taxes.

Specs:
Intel Core i3-2105
OCZ Vertex 3 120GB SSD
G.Skill Value Series RAM (2x4GB)
Sony Optiarc DVD+/-RW

Pros: None

Cons: *DOES NOT* work with i5 Ivy Bridge 65W.
Included heatsink is terrible and awkward. Does not fit properly. I've tried with 2 systems now. It simply will not mount. The Intel heatsink does fit fine.

Other Thoughts: I got this system and an i5 processor (65W Ivy Bridge). System would not power up. I RMA'd the system (Now I am out the money for shipping). New system came, exact same problem. It turns out this system *does not* support the i5 Ivy Bridge processor. You have to get a BIOS update for it to work. Guess what? I can't update the BIOS without a working processor (this unit wont even power on with an i5 Ivy Bridge). Catch 22 at it's finest. I'm anxiously waiting to see how Newegg / Foxconn resolve this situation.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valuable customer,

Thank you for purchasing Foxconn products and taking the time to provide us with valuable feedback. Your business is appreciated.

This board can support Ivy Bridge but you will need to update the BIOS to at least C31F1P01 BIOS revision. Please contact our support team via link below or call 909-978-6556 for a replacement BIOS chip. If all of our support reps are currently on the phone or if you are calling after business hours please leave us a message with your contact info so we can call you right back. Our hours of operation are (M-F from 830am-530pm, PST, excluding public holidays). Or you can submit your email to our online support team via the link below.

http://www.foxconnsupport.com/inquiry.aspx

Best regards,
Foxconn support team

Pros: Used this as a starting point for a friend as a lightly used home computer. It was priced perfect and did exactly what I needed it to do. The case looks nice. The card reader was a nice touch. I was worried about getting the cdrom door to work, but was happliy surprised when it worked perfectly.

Cons: Getting the components into the case was tricky. The supplied heatsync was difficult to get locked in place. The instructions were a bit off in places. Just nitpicking really.

Other Thoughts: If you need to build a light duty computer where space is a premium, this is just the ticket.

Pros: These Fox Con cases are great. They are small and quiet. Perfect if you need a small office box or a day to day computer for your home. I have built 4 computers with this case and they all look really good and have been working great since.

Cons: A little tight to work with during the build but that is going to be expected.

Other Thoughts: Out of the 4 boxes I have built one have given me a problem and that was with the power supply. 30 bucks and i was up and running again. I don't think is was FoxCon because it was in a tight area and didn't get much air flow

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valuable customer,

Thank you for purchasing Foxconn products and taking the time to provide us with valuable feedback. Your business is appreciated.

Best regards,
Foxconn support team

Pros: Great for the money and will get you in the I line of Intel chips. I am using this for every day computing and so far it runs great and cool in a very small FoxCon box.

Cons: None

Pros: It's a good small case and the motherboard is surprisingly good. It looks nice with a white LED band across the front and has a card reader.

Cons: The spring that holds the dvd door shut was missing when I opened it. Other reviewers have had this issue too. Without this spring, the door falls open unless the case is up on it's side, but then it does not close by itself. This does not make or break the case but it is a major flaw, it affects the appearance, and I wish I know what type of spring to use so I could replace it. Because of this missing part, this diminishes the experience of owning the case and I will probably never buy a foxconn product again out of apparent lack of QA.

Also, the PSU is located directly in front of the PCI-E slot which makes for a VERY tight fit for a graphics card. I had to order another GPU that has passive cooling since the PSU and GPU fans seemed to be fighting each other for air and making the whole system hot. I really hope the new card will be cooler.

All in all, this case was a bad experience. I've never had this kind of trouble with other brands.

Other Thoughts: I am really mad about the spring but I cannot justify sending the case back to newegg over a tiny piece of metal. I will have to find some way of ghetto rigging the case now. This was a custom build for a customer and now they will have to deal with a case that is missing a part. I will choose a different brand next time I need an HTPC case for a customer.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear valueable customer,

First of all, we do apologize for the inconvenience. If the spring is missing please let us know your shipping address and we will be happy to send out the replacement for you.

Pros: I searched for a nice HTPC case for about a month before I finally ended up picking this one. The reviews on this were a little iffy but they seemed contradictory to each other, so here is my opinion.

Here are the things I wanted to debunk for others which were my concerns while researching this.

1. The front of the case is NOT flimsy. Sure its plastic and if you have Hulk hands you could break the clips. But I took the front off 4 or 5 times and never broke anything. Just be careful.

2. The case is not loud. I have it sitting in an open media center cabinet and it's quieter than my XBOX 360. So if you can play Xbox games and not notice the fans you wont notice this.

3. It plays 1080p videos flawlessly. I bought an i3 processor to match this and I can watch 1080p videos through itunes without a hitch.

The case is slick looking and thin. You dont need anything other than memory, hard drive and CPU to get yourself a nice HTPC.

Cons: The only problems I had were with the design of the components of the case/mobo.

1. You have to buy low profile memory or it will hit the top of your optical tray (I bought the kingston value-RAM and it fit no problem). Not a big issue though.

2. You have to buy a slim or shorter optical drive if you want it to fit. I bought a 30 dollar one at Best Buy because I wanted to return it easily if it didn't fit. Well...it didn't fit. The back of it hits the CPU and presses it back. It was 6.7" in depth. I'm guessing you'd want a drive of at most 6" in depth. They give you a little SATA clip that allows you to take a few millimeters off the size, but it still didnt fit. I just installed the OS and returned the optical drive. All they had to do was change the placement of the CPU on the mobo or change the front of the case a bit to make larger optical drives fit.

Neither of these are a big deal so I only took one egg off the rating.

Other Thoughts: Works awesome with Windows 7 ultimate. Media center is slick, looks great on a TV and is snappy with an SSD. I love this thing!!

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valuable customer,

Thank you for taking the time to provide us with a valuable feedback. We are greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.

Best regards,
Foxconn support team.

Pros: For price its sturdy, the manufacturer covered many of the gaps you would run into building a micro pc this size. Case is very nice, and looks worth more than the listed price. Front panel has micro card reader, usb and audio outputs.

Cons: The cpu fan it comes with is VERY noisy, and you must use their fan/heatsink otherwise the OEM cpu heatsink will not fit. It sits flush with the CDROM unless you get a low pro ROM or a low pro heatsink. Front of case feels flimsy, clips will break easily. Construction of case is worth the money, but could have built to suit more traditional CD/DVD drives, and OEM fan.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,
We apologize for the experience you had with your Foxconn product.
Which version BIOS are you using?The latest version is A41F1P03(Updated: 12/15/11 )Please flash it have a test.
Please donwload BIOS file from our official webiste.
http://www.foxconnsupport.com/download.aspx?models=en-us0000515&category=C000000001&series=en-us0000014&keywords=&sort=BIOS
About How to flash BIOS pls check this link as below
http://www.foxconnsupport.com/faq.aspx?faqid=F000000066
Any other query in the future, please contact us freely.
Best Regards
Foxconn Technical Support

Pros: Cost, compact.

Cons: 1 of 2 PSUs failed within 24 hours. Cheap design. I lost one of the tabs on the front bezel as a previous reviewer complained about. CD-Rom drive would not fit with stock cooler. Many additional parts and man-hours needed to build working system.

They are your typical scenario of "get what you pay for". I was left disappointed after thinking these would be quick builds.The hard drive mount is not a full standard 3.5" mount, so the 2.5 adapter for my SSD would not line up with the holes. I had to get "creative" and mount the SSD underneath the 5.25" bay with some modifications to the case.

If you put a CD drive in the 5.25" bay, it sits FLUSH with the included CPU cooler. You will not be fitting any SATA cables in to the drive, even if you use the right-angle adapter included. I was able to find a super low-profile heatsink from Akasa elsewhere to complete this build.

Other Thoughts: At the end of the day you get a case, motherboard, and PSU for a good price. It's for you to decide if the hassle and a potential restocking fee is worth it.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,
We apologize for the experience you had with your Foxconn product. Please contact officiate warranty via RMA center in US,Please dail below tel number and ask for RMA.
Tel: 1.909.978.6556 (8:30am - 5:30pm PST; excludes national holidays)
Best Regards
Foxconn Technical Support