Taiwan Pre-CES Technology Tour Part 2
by Gary Key on December 12, 2006 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Trade Shows
Gigabyte
We spoke at length with Rockson Chiang, Product Manager, and Liliana Wen, Marketing Specialist, about Gigabyte's upcoming product releases and the new Gigabyte United joint venture with ASUS. The details of the merger can be found here but in essence the current Gigabyte motherboard and graphics division along with related support functions will become the new company with support being provided by ASUS in areas such as procurement leverage and manufacturing expertise to reduce product costs. Other positives about this deal will be an emphasis by Gigabyte United on expanding their research and development capabilities along with higher quality products designed around performance and affordability. We have already witnessed a greatly improved product in Gigabyte's latest product releases this past summer and the next revision of motherboards should build upon this success.
One of the new products Gigabyte was displaying is their GA-N680SLI-DQ6 motherboard based on the NVIDIA 680i SLI chipset. The board features Gigabyte's updated Silent Pipe cooling system, new 12-phase power deliver system, and BIOS tweaks that should make this board very competitive with the current 680i offerings. The expected launch date is after CES and we will have further details and a preview of the board in early January. The current lineup of DS3, DS4, and DQ6 P965 motherboards are being redesigned currently with improved quad core performance, new heatsink designs, layout tweaks, and a Micron D9 friendly BIOS. We expect to have final board specifications and photos in the near future.
abit
Universal Abit was showing some interesting products and after speaking with Kiner Lau, Technical Marketing Manager, we became really excited about the new P965 based abit AB9 QuadGT motherboard. We are also interested in some upcoming product releases featuring their ultra high performance NVIDIA 680i motherboard, new iB-90 HD Intel G965 mATX motherboard for the digital home, and additional multimedia products such as a consumer level GPS unit. The 5.1 iDome speaker set also holds promise.
abit showed us their new AB9 QuadGT motherboard based on the P965 chipset. This board addresses the layout issues of the AB9 Pro and improves upon its performance with 500FSB level overclocking expected along with terrific stock performance. This board will also feature support for ATI CrossFire, digital PWM design, quad core support, and a solid capacitor design. We expect this board to be one of the better P965 boards in the near future.
abit also presented us with a retail sample of their new NF-M2 nView AM2 mATX motherboard featuring the NVIDIA 6150/430 chipset combination, Realtek ALC883 HD audio codec, Gigabit Ethernet based on the Realtek RTL8211BL controller, DVI or VGA output, and overclocking capability. The board is available now and we will be reviewing it shortly.
Albatron
Albatron recently provided us with their KI51PV-754 socket 754 mini-ITX motherboard that we are currently testing. Albatron told us this motherboard has proven to be very popular but one of the main suggestions from users was to move to a socket AM2 design. Albatron will be doing this sometime next year but until then we highly suggest that anyone interested in a high-performance mini-ITX platform take a look at the current offering.
For those of us looking for an Intel based mini-ITX motherboard, Albatron will be releasing one based on the Intel 945GT/ICH7 chipsets that feature mobile on desktop technology. This offering will fully support the Yonah (Core Duo mobile) and Merom (Core 2 Duo mobile) processor series, DVI/VGA/TV-output, and up to DDR2-800 memory support. While based on the GMA-950 video engine, it should offer good performance for typical home applications and video processing support.
Compro
Compro was not part of the OCZ summit but they managed to grab us in the hotel lobby during our visit and we were glad they did. Compro is in the process of rolling out some new multimedia products during CES and we were able to look at one of their first new products.
Their new VideoMate V600 analog TV box allows you to watch analog TV shows on your CRT/LCD/PDP monitor at 1680x1050, 1600x1200, or 1440x900 resolutions now. The unit also supports 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, and 1280x960 resolutions. The unit is fully plug and play compatible and does not require drivers. It features a built-in 2D+3D Y/C separation and noise reduction chipset along with progressive scan video output. The unit can be connected via S-Video or composite video inputs, stereo audio, and supports 480i component video input. The unit is designed so that you can connect your Xbox or Playstation 2 to the unit and output the game video/audio content to your monitor. Unfortunately, one minor drawback is that the output is limited to a D-sub (VGA) connection at this time. We will have a review of this unit coming up in the near future.
Closing Thoughts
We certainly enjoyed our time in Taiwan and want to thank all of the companies that we met with for their generous hospitality. We were able to view some exciting new products, discuss product plans, and gather information that we will be able to share with you in the near future. In the meantime, you can look forward to reviews of several of the products that we've discussed in the coming weeks, along with some that we can't mention -- although they fit nicely in our luggage for the trip back home.
We spoke at length with Rockson Chiang, Product Manager, and Liliana Wen, Marketing Specialist, about Gigabyte's upcoming product releases and the new Gigabyte United joint venture with ASUS. The details of the merger can be found here but in essence the current Gigabyte motherboard and graphics division along with related support functions will become the new company with support being provided by ASUS in areas such as procurement leverage and manufacturing expertise to reduce product costs. Other positives about this deal will be an emphasis by Gigabyte United on expanding their research and development capabilities along with higher quality products designed around performance and affordability. We have already witnessed a greatly improved product in Gigabyte's latest product releases this past summer and the next revision of motherboards should build upon this success.
One of the new products Gigabyte was displaying is their GA-N680SLI-DQ6 motherboard based on the NVIDIA 680i SLI chipset. The board features Gigabyte's updated Silent Pipe cooling system, new 12-phase power deliver system, and BIOS tweaks that should make this board very competitive with the current 680i offerings. The expected launch date is after CES and we will have further details and a preview of the board in early January. The current lineup of DS3, DS4, and DQ6 P965 motherboards are being redesigned currently with improved quad core performance, new heatsink designs, layout tweaks, and a Micron D9 friendly BIOS. We expect to have final board specifications and photos in the near future.
abit
Universal Abit was showing some interesting products and after speaking with Kiner Lau, Technical Marketing Manager, we became really excited about the new P965 based abit AB9 QuadGT motherboard. We are also interested in some upcoming product releases featuring their ultra high performance NVIDIA 680i motherboard, new iB-90 HD Intel G965 mATX motherboard for the digital home, and additional multimedia products such as a consumer level GPS unit. The 5.1 iDome speaker set also holds promise.
abit showed us their new AB9 QuadGT motherboard based on the P965 chipset. This board addresses the layout issues of the AB9 Pro and improves upon its performance with 500FSB level overclocking expected along with terrific stock performance. This board will also feature support for ATI CrossFire, digital PWM design, quad core support, and a solid capacitor design. We expect this board to be one of the better P965 boards in the near future.
abit also presented us with a retail sample of their new NF-M2 nView AM2 mATX motherboard featuring the NVIDIA 6150/430 chipset combination, Realtek ALC883 HD audio codec, Gigabit Ethernet based on the Realtek RTL8211BL controller, DVI or VGA output, and overclocking capability. The board is available now and we will be reviewing it shortly.
Albatron
Albatron recently provided us with their KI51PV-754 socket 754 mini-ITX motherboard that we are currently testing. Albatron told us this motherboard has proven to be very popular but one of the main suggestions from users was to move to a socket AM2 design. Albatron will be doing this sometime next year but until then we highly suggest that anyone interested in a high-performance mini-ITX platform take a look at the current offering.
For those of us looking for an Intel based mini-ITX motherboard, Albatron will be releasing one based on the Intel 945GT/ICH7 chipsets that feature mobile on desktop technology. This offering will fully support the Yonah (Core Duo mobile) and Merom (Core 2 Duo mobile) processor series, DVI/VGA/TV-output, and up to DDR2-800 memory support. While based on the GMA-950 video engine, it should offer good performance for typical home applications and video processing support.
Compro
Compro was not part of the OCZ summit but they managed to grab us in the hotel lobby during our visit and we were glad they did. Compro is in the process of rolling out some new multimedia products during CES and we were able to look at one of their first new products.
Their new VideoMate V600 analog TV box allows you to watch analog TV shows on your CRT/LCD/PDP monitor at 1680x1050, 1600x1200, or 1440x900 resolutions now. The unit also supports 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, and 1280x960 resolutions. The unit is fully plug and play compatible and does not require drivers. It features a built-in 2D+3D Y/C separation and noise reduction chipset along with progressive scan video output. The unit can be connected via S-Video or composite video inputs, stereo audio, and supports 480i component video input. The unit is designed so that you can connect your Xbox or Playstation 2 to the unit and output the game video/audio content to your monitor. Unfortunately, one minor drawback is that the output is limited to a D-sub (VGA) connection at this time. We will have a review of this unit coming up in the near future.
Closing Thoughts
We certainly enjoyed our time in Taiwan and want to thank all of the companies that we met with for their generous hospitality. We were able to view some exciting new products, discuss product plans, and gather information that we will be able to share with you in the near future. In the meantime, you can look forward to reviews of several of the products that we've discussed in the coming weeks, along with some that we can't mention -- although they fit nicely in our luggage for the trip back home.
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mikedice - Monday, December 18, 2006 - link
When will we see these Generation 2 P965 boards start showing up and what can we expect from them? Are they worth waiting for?sprockkets - Wednesday, December 13, 2006 - link
Are you going to review any of the Via C7 cpu boards either? I'd love to see if they do have more performance per a watt than the older PM chips, as via claims.Gary Key - Thursday, December 14, 2006 - link
We talked to VIA about this, hoping to get a complete system from them after the first of the year. They are still discussing where they want to go as a company at this time.therealnickdanger - Tuesday, December 12, 2006 - link
I have been waiting for a review of this thing for quite a while! I'm glad Intel is finally releasing a driver for it. I hope it pans out!MadAd - Tuesday, December 12, 2006 - link
Is it just me or are others getting fed up with these honking great heatpipe setups on motherboards?Ok the Abit NF-M2 solution is quite neat and compact, definately +1 to them for making a sensible design consideration but the rest? omg give me my space back, ive enough damn fans to cope.
I mean what about the gigabyte board? Looks like it wraps around the backside too!! What are they thinking?!?
I know joe consumer thinks they vanish away the heat with some voodoo magic but we all know they just move it from one place to another in an attempt to catch a better airstream from power high/airflow low systems without having to re-site components.
Its a cludge dressed up as enthusiast parts and I for one are sick of them already.
kleinwl - Tuesday, December 12, 2006 - link
The heat pipes are just doing what your fans are doing... moving one heat source to another area to diffuse it. If heat pipes reduce the heat concentrations inside the case so all I have to worry about is evacuating the air from the case I am for one happy. All those small fans on the motherboard to keep things cool were annoying. Heat pipes are much better solution in my estimation.In addition, I like the fact that the motherboards are uping the phase calibration for cpu voltage. A more accurate signal means that I can potentially achieve higher overclocks with lower voltage. Now if we could all agree to change the PSU so it only outputs 12V and let the motherboard do all the voltage regulation, I for one would be happy. After all the motherboard is already doing voltage regulation... let the PSU become simplier!
MadAd - Tuesday, December 12, 2006 - link
But fans evacuate it as well as move it about, heatpipes are just moving it from one place to another _inside_ the case (and taking up space doing it) and has no access to the outside world.There is no more or less heat being produced by the components nor is there any more or less heat evacuation to the outside world. You still need the same amount of in>out airflow with or without them.
Its a cludge made to look all shiny and colourful. This cannot be the best way to replace the cheap and nasty wizzy noised little fans (that you rightly notice as annoying) can it?
sprockkets - Wednesday, December 13, 2006 - link
True, but have you felt how hot those 6150 chipsets get? The MSI one doesn't have any active cooling on it, and you can burn your finger on it. The heat moves up to a larger heatsink on the mosfets, and is near a rear fan for cooling.MadAd - Thursday, December 14, 2006 - link
yes of course, my a8n32-sli has a hot southbridge too but where can I point the finger for these hot chipsets? Inefficient power planning, the Prescott of the mobo world.Instead of moving to a more efficient chipset design when the power densities rise, we get the same old process redesigned with a gargantuan heatpipe setup dressed up as something for the enthusiast. Its spin.
Its like Intel trying to push BTX over a year ago because of their own power density troubles, except that one did'nt wash, noone bought the spin and intel stayed in the doghouse until the more recent C2D developments.
Shame heatpipes are not also seen for what they really are- a cludge to keep selling us new designs of old processes.
sprockkets - Friday, December 15, 2006 - link
True, but those chipsets from SiS, and perhaps even via are very cool.