PC Motherboard And Chipset Reviews And News
There's nobody quite like Mom and when it comes to performance desktop computers or business class workhorse machines, motherboards are always what bring the computing family together. Motherboards house all PC components from the processor, to memory and storage. Here you'll find our coverage on big motherboard brands and products from ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI, EVGA, ASRock and many more, along with the chipsets from AMD and Intel that power the PC Master Race.
When AMD's Athlon 64 was initially introduced, all of the major players in the core logic chipset business immediately jumped on board, and introduced, or released, full-featured chipsets for the new processor. And although SiS, ALi, VIA and NVIDIA all had similar Athlon 64 chipsets on their respective road maps, it was VIA and...
Read more...
With the release of each new processor platform comes the inevitable wait for "enthusiast-class" motherboards to support them. We've seen the same scenario play out time and again. When Intel released its Socket 478 Pentium 4 processors, for example, it was a few months before tricked-out motherboards, with a full complement...
Read more...
Some of us love lusting after the finer things in life: a Mercedes-Benz SLR, Akoya pearls, Beluga caviar, and Clos du Mesnil champagne. While Intel's 925X chipset doesn't exactly fit in with those other high-end luxuries, it does happen to sit atop a long list of distinguished core logic products, offering the latest...
Read more...
It has been about eight weeks since Intel officially launched their i925X (Alderwood) and i915 (Grantsdale) chipsets, and their new LGA775 "pinless" Pentium 4 processors. Since the launch, we've taken a look at two i925X based motherboards from Abit and Asus (seen here), and we had tested Intel's own D925XCV motherboard in...
Read more...
While the AMD Athlon XP still remains popular, it is no longer the sought after enthusiast part it once was. This isn't because the Athlon XP is a poor performer, but rather it's because a new era of AMD processors are now in the limelight. Regardless, there are still plenty of reasons to consider a system based on the Athlon...
Read more...
Intel's recent new platform launch of the i915 and i925X chipsets marked a major overhaul of the Pentium 4 system level architecture and brought with it a host of new features and technologies. At the processor and IO levels, the addition of DDR2 memory and the PCI Express interface significantly...
Read more...
Since the release of AMD's Socket 939 processors, motherboard manufacturers have wasted little time transitioning to the newer design, but that doesn't mean previous AMD platforms are now completely obsolete. Like the older Athlon XP, the 754 pin Athlon 64 processors still have some life left as a relatively economical alternative. With...
Read more...
It has been barely over a week since we first took a look at AMD's new Socket 939 Athlon 64s, and motherboards equipped with the new socket have already started to arrive in the HotHardware Labs. The first motherboard to land on our test bench is the fully-loaded Asus A8V Deluxe "Wireless Edition". The A8V Deluxe...
Read more...
Back in October of 2003, we had the opportunity to take a good look at several new Athlon 64 motherboards. We had two high profile boards from ASUS and MSI that came packed to the gills with features, extras and a promise of high performance courtesy of VIA's K8T800 chipset. A third, less prolific motherboard from Shuttle was a...
Read more...
Foxconn is a relative newcomer to the commercial motherboard market, but they are no stranger to the industry. Like we reported when we reviewed the Foxconn 875A02, they have been producing computer parts for quite a long time, but mostly as a component maker for different OEMs. With the manufacturing facilities already in place,...
Read more...
Being successful, especially in the computer hardware industry, is no easy task. While some companies struggle to win over customers with just a smattering of products, NVIDIA's brand recognition almost seemed to guarantee them success on a regular basis. What seems like not so long ago, the nForce2 Ultra chipset was taking the...
Read more...
For those of us that like to piece together our own computer systems from the ground up, deciding which piece of hardware to buy can tough. With more and more companies coming to market with competitive products, its never easy to choose which component best suits both your needs and budget. And it's not like one component will...
Read more...
The computer industry has been in a state of flux for the past few years. As the market continues to grow and new technologies continue to evolve, manufacturers are becoming more creative with their products. One of the most successful of these new offerings is the mini-PC, which has given the industry a nice shot in the arm. ...
Read more...
Foxconn's 875A02-6EKRS Motherboard A New Motherboard From a Not-So-Familiar Face By: Jeff Bouton April 5, 2004 While computer enthusiasts may not have Foxconn on their "short list" of favorite motherboard brands, chances are they have some Foxconn parts in their rig and just don't...
Read more...
DFI LANParty NFII Ultra B vs. ABIT AN7 The Clash of the nForce2 Ultra's By: Tom Laverriere February 29, 2004 Fast, stable, feature-rich and affordable, these are just some of the words we have chosen historically, when speaking about NVIDIA's nForce2 chipset. Over the past year we have seen quite a...
Read more...
Albatron's PX875 Pro Motherboard Power, Performance, and Good Looks By: Jeff Bouton February 5, 2004 Since the advent of Intel's i865 and i875 chipsets, the two have performed similarly, with a slight advantage going to the 875 and its PAT (Performance Acceleration Technology). Soon after the release of the 865 however, motherboard...
Read more...
Asus A7N8X-E Deluxe Wireless Edition Performance Anywhere You Want It By, Tom Laverriere February 5, 2004 Ever since its inception, the nForce2 chipset has taken off and never looked back. It brings a lot to the table in terms of stability, performance, and most importantly affordability for the Athlon XP platform. The latest...
Read more...
Soyo's SY-CK8 Dragon Plus Motherboard A New Enthusiast Board for the Athlon 64 By: Jeff Bouton January 29, 2004 If all goes as planned for AMD, 2004 will be the year of the Athlon 64. They gave us a taste of their new product line in the last quarter of 2003, with a limited supply of Athlon...
Read more...
ASUS SK8V K8T800 Motherboard Review Socket 940 Platform Featuring VIA's K8T800 Chipset By: Chris Angelini January 4, 2004 They say it takes years to establish a solid reputation and minutes to destroy it, which is why the office Christmas party requires a delicate balance of business and pleasure. Dating back to 1997, the folks...
Read more...
The Asus P4S800D-E Motherboard Pentium 4 Powered Performance With The SiS 655TX Chipset By: Dave Altavilla December 22, 2003 All year we've been waiting for a chipset manufacturer to get into the Pentium 4 chipset arena with a Dual Channel DDR capable offering that finally gave Intel something to sweat over. We've seen offerings...
Read more...
ABIT AI7 865PE Motherboard Review The i865PE board with "µGuru" By: Jeff Bouton December 18th, 2003 When it comes to overclocking an Intel based system, no processor has shown more potential than the Pentium 4-C. More specifically, Intel's Pentium 4-C at 2.4GHz has proven to have a ton of headroom, with many user's hitting...
Read more...
VIA PT880 Chipset Preview A Performance Preview of VIA's Dual-Channel P4 Chipset By: Chris Angelini December 8, 2003 For the first time since NVIDIA unveiled its nForce2 chipset more than a year ago, VIA is in a very promising position. To begin, AMD's Athlon 64 is upon us, bringing...
Read more...
