Shuttle SG31G2 review

The SG31G2 is the cheapest Shuttle barebones kit here, at just under £200.

It's not designed for use as a media centre PC like the SG33G5M, or for gaming like the SX38P2 Pro. Even so, it's attravailable, thanks to its black metal case, and is just as easy to build as the other Shuttle models.

The instructions are illustrated with colour photos and are easy to follow. The one-piece case cover is easily removable. The internal drive cage can be removed, which makes screwing in a disk straightforward. You'll need an optical drive with a black fascia to match the black case, as there's no external flap.

Like all the Shuttle barebones kits in our round-up apart from the SX38P2 Pro, the SG31G2 has a proprietary combined fan and heatsink assembly. It's held in place by a series of thumbscrews and screws and is easier to remove than a stock Intel cooler.

The SG31G2 has a PCI-E x16 slot, but its power supply lacks a PCI Express connector. As there's only one molex power adaptor, you'll need to buy a splitter and a molex-to-PCI Express adaptor with one molex connector (most adaptors have two plugs). The internal graphics failed our Call of Duty 2 test, but our X1950 Pro managed a respectable 38.2fps.

The SG31G2's performance in our Windows benchmarks was in line with what we'd expect, but it was noisy when running our tests. Although it's not as distractingly loud as Asus's P3-P5G33, it's not as quiet as Shuttle's SG33G5M.

We were impressed by the SG31G2's easy assembly and clear instructions. Although it's not the quietest barebones kit here, its small size makes it an attractive option as an office computer. The SG31G2 is a well-built and powerful barebones kit that can take a graphics card with the right adaptors. However, it's almost £100 more expensive than Asus's T3-P5945GC, which is a better choice if you don't want to play games.