VIA Unveils the World's Smallest x86 Quad Core System, ARTiGO A1250

[Cristian_25H]

VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient computing platforms, today announced the world's smallest x86 quad core system, the VIA ARTiGO A1250 slim system, featuring a 1.0 GHz VIA QuadCore processor and the latest VIA VX11H media system processor (MSP), in chassis the size of a paperback novel. The ultra-compact VIA ARTiGO A1250, is suitable for a myriad of applications in the home or office, including home server, home automation, hotel management, media streaming, digital signage and surveillance as well as medical and healthcare applications.

The VIA ARTiGO A1250 leverages the VIA VX11H MSP to deliver an immersive multimedia experience complete with 3D stereoscopic and HD display support in a low power envelope, which a typical power consumption of a mere 32W TDP. The VIA ARTiGO A1200 can fit easily into any environment, whether it is behind a monitor or on the wall with a 10 x 10 cm VESA mount or placed alongside other home media devices. For system developers, VIA provides third party software security through a unique hardware/software design.





"By leveraging the ultra compact Pico-ITX form factor, the VIA ARTiGO A1250 is able to deliver a powerful x86 quad core computing experience in the smallest system design on the market," said Epan Wu, Head of the VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. "The VIA ARTiGO A1250 boasts the latest technology with 3D stereoscopic display and USB 3.0 support for an unparalleled ultra compact computing experience, making small truly beautiful."

VIA ARTiGO A1250

The VIA ARTiGO A1250 is the slimmest full featured quad core system on the market today with an ultra low-profile design measuring a mere 17.7 cm x 12.5 cm x 3.0 cm (W X D X H), a full ten percent smaller than the VIA ARTiGO A1150 series. A power efficient 1.0 GHz VIA QuadCore E-Series processor is combined with the latest highly integrated all-in-one VIA VX11H MSP which features the integrated VIA Chromotion 5.0 video processor with DX11 support for richer textures and 3D stereoscopic display. The VIA ARTiGO A1250 delivers an exceptional multimedia experience with advanced filtering and cutting edge post-processing to perform ultra smooth decoding of H.264, MPEG-2, VC-1, and WMV9 for smooth playback of the most demanding multimedia titles at resolutions up to 1080p without incurring a heavy CPU load.

The unique dual-sided I/O coastline interface includes one HDMI and one VGA display port, one GigaLAN Ethernet port, two USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0 ports, audio jacks (Line-in/out and mic-in) and 12V DC-in power.

For more information about the VIA ARTiGO A1250 please visit:
http://www.viaembedded.com/en/products/systems/1990/1/ARTiGO_A1250_(Pico-ITX).html

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[mtosev]

at least it has a HDMI connector

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Typo: It has no DisplayPort, just VGA and HDMI.


That screw in thing on the back I was hoping was a TV tuner but it is a "cutout" for a WiFi antenna if you get the 802.11b/g/n option for it. Still, that is quite appealing. I wonder what the price will be. It would be great for powering a Windows 8 touchscreen.

 

[HossHuge]

There are quad-core phones that are smaller than this.

How can they call this the world's smallest?

 

[FordGT90Concept]

x86, not ARM.

 

[mtosev]

will this run windows acceptably?
most via cpus are shit

 

[XoR]

new Via Nano are decent CPUs with OoO execution. Much better design than Intel Atom.
it was C3-C7 series that was slow (very weak FPU). Via Nano are made from scratch and have nothing to do with C3

IPC wise Via Nano is not so bad. If this quad core were made in normal form and clocked 4GHz it would be very good competitor to AMD FX (ie. better than eg FX-4100)

 

[TheLostSwede]

Typo: It has no DisplayPort, just VGA and HDMI.


That screw in thing on the back I was hoping was a TV tuner but it is a "cutout" for a WiFi antenna if you get the 802.11b/g/n option for it. Still, that is quite appealing. I wonder what the price will be. It would be great for powering a Windows 8 touchscreen.

You could always replace the Wi-Fi card, assuming there's a mini PCI-Express card slot in there somewhere... http://www.avermedia.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?Id=370&SI=true

 

[Fourstaff]

Its so small you will not be able to see them in retail

 

[Nordic]

new Via Nano are decent CPUs with OoO execution. Much better design than Intel Atom.
it was C3-C7 series that was slow (very weak FPU). Via Nano are made from scratch and have nothing to do with C3

IPC wise Via Nano is not so bad. If this quad core were made in normal form and clocked 4GHz it would be very good competitor to AMD FX (ie. better than eg FX-4100)

Can you back that up?

 

[3870x2]

Can you back that up?

He does not owe you that. If you disagree, I hear Google has a great search engine.

That was easy:
http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1540/intel_atom_vs_via_nano_platform_comparo/index10.html

Looks like he was right, in the past atleast.

 

[Nordic]

He does not owe you that. If you disagree, I hear Google has a great search engine.

That was easy:
http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1540/intel_atom_vs_via_nano_platform_comparo/index10.html

Looks like he was right, in the past atleast.

Did I demand him back that up? No. I just asked if he could. The words "back that up" could imply I did not believe him. My first thought was "interesting" and I was looking for more validation. I can't just blindly trust all posts...

Thank you for the link. Could tone down the sarcasm a little. I did google it and came up with nothing. You must of used a different search term I did not think of.

Via nano was very good compared to the atom. I am not one to know much about cpu's and ipc's but this makes me wonder what via is capable of. Via was on 65mm compared to atom on 45mm in that test. Via performed better and used less power. WIN WIN

 

[Static~Charge]

I wonder how well the ARTiGO could handle an external, USB, TV tuner, especially the multi-tuner models like the Ceton InfiniTV 4 or SiliconDust HDHomeRun PRIME?

 

[3870x2]

Did I demand him back that up? No. I just asked if he could. The words "back that up" could imply I did not believe him. My first thought was "interesting" and I was looking for more validation. I can't just blindly trust all posts...

Thank you for the link. Could tone down the sarcasm a little. I did google it and came up with nothing. You must of used a different search term I did not think of.

Via nano was very good compared to the atom. I am not one to know much about cpu's and ipc's but this makes me wonder what via is capable of. Via was on 65mm compared to atom on 45mm in that test. Via performed better and used less power. WIN WIN

There have always been people who demand others prove what they have said. I come with the firm belief that if you want to disprove it, go ahead, don't demand for them to validate themselves, it is rude and you wouldn't do it face-to-face (and if you do, you are probably not a very well liked individual).

We might order one for our thin-client ubuntu setup (running thin-client windows 8 via VMWare through ubuntu, transparent to the user.) This is a great idea if you have aging hardware.

 

[m1dg3t]

They could have at least spent 5 minutes on the design of this thing. It's 2012 and beyond, wTf wants a small, black rectangle Why no SSD? mSATA can be had up to 256Gb...

Neet lil' PC just the same

How can they call this the world's smallest?

They obviously have never met any midgets! lol

 

[suraswami]

downloaded the manual, looks like very easy install for memory and 2.5" hdd/ssd (slide out tray is good feature).

hopefully the price is low.

 

[Nordic]

There have always been people who demand others prove what they have said. I come with the firm belief that if you want to disprove it, go ahead, don't demand for them to validate themselves, it is rude and you wouldn't do it face-to-face (and if you do, you are probably not a very well liked individual).

I did in fact google it before I asked and could not find any info. What search term did you use to find that link?

I did not demand, I asked. I would of asked in a face to face situation and it would not of been rude. I guess you do not like my wording. Would it of been better if I had asked "Can you provide any more info on the matter?" I still do want to know more about vias performance vs intel/amd. This is the best I can find.

I did not make the claim. I do not hold the burden of proof.

When debating any issue, there is an implicit burden of proof on the person asserting a positive claim. "If this responsibility or burden of proof is shifted to a critic, the fallacy of appealing to ignorance is committed". This burden does not necessarily require a mathematical or strictly logical proof, although many strong arguments do rise to this level (such as in logical syllogisms). Rather, the evidential standard required for a given claim is determined by convention or community standards, with regard to the context of the claim in question.

This is hardly a debate but he made a statement that I would like to see more info about. To see his source. I am not looking to disprove him, but to further my knowledge.

 

[M3T4LM4N222]

I want to see the price. Finally a x86 box... sick of seeing all this ARM stuff that I cannot install Windows on.

 

[Completely Bonkers]

This system would be quite powerful enough to run MS Office and other productivity applications. Even some basic games. Too bad it doesnt come with DP or DVI-D to drive a "proper" screen. I'd get one in a heartbeat if it did. Replace all those old P4 that are still knocking around the family...

 

[3870x2]

I did in fact google it before I asked and could not find any info. What search term did you use to find that link?

I did not demand, I asked. I would of asked in a face to face situation and it would not of been rude. I guess you do not like my wording. Would it of been better if I had asked "Can you provide any more info on the matter?" I still do want to know more about vias performance vs intel/amd. This is the best I can find.

I did not make the claim. I do not hold the burden of proof.

This is hardly a debate but he made a statement that I would like to see more info about. To see his source. I am not looking to disprove him, but to further my knowledge.

That is a great way to become disliked. Very quickly.

I guess not everyone is socially fluent.

 

[Completely Bonkers]

Calm down people. Let's not get clever with insults.

LETS GET BACK TO TALKING ABOUT THE PRODUCT

 

[Fourstaff]

That is a great way to become disliked. Very quickly.

I guess not everyone is socially fluent.

That unfortunately includes you, not reading the tone of the first post correctly. There is no need to go all out aggressive for his simple request to ask for proof. One must readily support any claim he makes, after all.

 

[3870x2]

That unfortunately includes you, not reading the tone of the first post correctly. There is no need to go all out aggressive for his simple request to ask for proof. One must readily support any claim he makes, after all.

You misunderstand severely. I don't like people getting aggressive with others, being hostile for no reason. It happens far too often, though less than it used to.

This includes you, not reading the tone of my post, which was not aggressive.

Start asking people IRL to back their information up, and see how long it takes before you get your ass handed to you.

 

[Fourstaff]

Start asking people IRL to back their information up, and see how long it takes before you get your ass handed to you.

I do that all the time, and my ass has never been handed. Its more related to how you ask it, and how information driven your life is. I think you will relate since you have been around in TPU for quite a long time: make claim and back it up. Otherwise I can run around like a headless chicken claiming GT640 is the best graphics card out there.

 

[3870x2]

I do that all the time, and my ass has never been handed. Its more related to how you ask it, and how information driven your life is. I think you will relate since you have been around in TPU for quite a long time: make claim and back it up. Otherwise I can run around like a headless chicken claiming GT640 is the best graphics card out there.

You must be a pretty big dude

Make sense. I agree with backing up your information, especially if it is a ridiculous claim

Back on topic:
I am waiting on the price for this, if it is low enough we will order one for testing. Good competition can be found for around $180, not including RAM and HDD.