Asus motherboard box doubles as a PC case

IDG News Service - In the quest to cut down on shipping waste Taiwan's Asus has a novel idea: What if the shipping container became the PC case?

That's the idea behind a box the company will begin using from June to ship one of its Mini ATX motherboards. It holds the motherboard snug for shipping and is constructed so additional components required to make a PC can be added, said Debby Lee, a spokeswoman for the Taipei-based company.

The product is on display at this week's Cebit trade show in Hannover, Germany.

There are punch-out holes for ventilation and a real panel that houses the PC's connectors and interfaces.

Asus said the box is intended to allow PC enthusiasts to get their new computers up and running quickly while they search for the perfect case.

"Some people spend a long time looking for a case, so this box is all they need until they find something," said Lee.

Asus gives it a lifetime of at least a year.

Martyn Williams covers Japan and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Martyn on Twitter at @martyn_williams. Martyn's e-mail address is martyn_williams@idg.com