SOYO Mini DRAGON 651 Review

     
Primary and Secondary enclosures that constitute the Mini DRAGON
 

CPU:

• Supports Socket 478 for Intel Pentium 4 with 400/533MHz front side bus

• Supports Hyper-Threading technology

Chipset:

• SiS 651 North Bridge

• SiS 962 South Bridge

• Unified Memory Architecture (for graphics memory)

• Connected via bidirectional 16-bit bus for 533MB/s of bandwidth

Memory:

• One 184-pin DIMM with support for DDR200/266/333

• Single channel operation for up to 2.6GB per second of bandwidth

• Up to 1GB of memory

Graphics Features:

• Built-in 256-bit 3D engine

• Integrated 2D engine

• Integrated MPEG 1/2 decoder

• One VGA output

Power Supply

• External, 200W power supply

IDE:

• Two channels for IDE - one inside the main unit and one inside the expansion unit, available through USB 2.0 connector.

LAN:

• Integrated 10/100 Ethernet controller

Expansion:

• One AGP 4x/2x expansion slot

• One IEEE 1394 port

Audio:

• Two channel audio output via AC'97 codec

Other :

• Accommodates one 2.5" HDD in main unit

• Secondary unit accommodates one 3.5" HDD and one CD/CD-RW drive

USB 2.0:

• 6 USB 2.0 ports

It is interesting that SOYO opted for the SiS 651 chipset as a foundation for its Mini DRAGON.  Acceptable in its prime, the chipset has since been dated by Intel's 865G and SiS' own 661FX.  Quite simply, the Mini DRAGON seems to be the unfortunate victim of delays and as a result, it has been outdated even before release.  Nevertheless, the SiS 651 chipset has a few redeeming qualities.  The memory controller supports a single channel of 64-bit DDR333 memory, making it more affordable to upgrade than a modern dual-channel DDR400 monster.  Along the same lines, support for 400 and 533MHz front side bus Pentium 4 processors gives the Mini DRAGON a definite 3.06GHz ceiling. 

The chipset's integrated graphics core is certainly nothing to write home about.  It does provide acceptable 2D quality, but 3D performance is dismal at best.  Fortunately, a combination of IEEE 1394, USB 2.0, and integrated 10/100 Ethernet give the platform comprehensive connectivity, adding appeal as an Internet appliance or vehicle for multimedia playback.