Quiet, compact and yet extremely capable. That's the recipe for a great home theatre PC. Getting hold of the right ingredients is another matter, however. Especially if pricing is a sensitive issue for you.

But what if there was a genuine HD-ready HTPC platform that combined motherboard and CPU for just £100? Enter AMD's new affordable, efficient and HD-optimised 780G PC platform. It really does look like the killer home theatre solution we've been waiting for.

AMD's new 780G chipset

The key components include AMD's latest mainstream 780G motherboard chipset, complete with fully DirectX 10 compliant integrated graphics, and a new low-power variant of its Athlon 62 X2 dual-core CPU.

Startlingly low power consumption, full hardware decode for high definition video disks (i.e. Blu-ray) and a revolutionary leap in integrated graphics performance are just some of the bullish claims AMD has been making for the new platform. Then again, AMD seemed pretty damn confident about the Phenom quad-core processor in the lead up to launch late last year. And we know how that turned out...

With all that in mind, we're much more intrigued than we otherwise might be. Does this mainstream computing solution, which majors on features and efficiency rather than outright grunt, truly have what it takes to deliver a great high definition experience?

Mainstream multimedia machine

On paper, there's little doubting that the 780G motherboard chipset has one of - if not the - most comprehensive feature sets of any mainstream integrated solution. Socket-wise, we're talking AM2+. That translates into support for all the latest AMD processors, including single, dual and quad-core chips.

Memory support takes in various flavours and speeds of DDR2. The specifics depend on the processor you plump for (remember, AMD CPUs have integrated memory controllers). But whatever the case, odds are it'll be cheap. DDR2 prices have hit rock bottom.

In terms of expansion and ports, 780G is largely predictable. Support for discreet graphics is provided by 16 full speed PCI Express 2.0 lanes, with a further four for additional peripherals.

Where it does differ from the norm is the full compliment of digital and analogue video connections. Along with good old VGA, the 780G is wired up to provide DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort video outputs. Add in HDCP compliance and you have an affordable PC platform that ticks all of our HD boxes.

By the power of Radeon

Much of the 780G's multimedia prowess is thanks to its Radeon HD 3200 graphics core.