After displays of socket AM3+ motherboards based on AMD 990FX chipset, by ASUS, and MSI were pictured by various tech sites, it's quite expected of Gigabyte's offering to somehow make it to the web. Gigabyte is going full guns with its top AM3+ motherboard, with the GA-990FXA-UD7. Based on the same Black+Graphite+Gold color scheme as the socket LGA1155 "UD7" models based on Intel P67 and Z68, the GA-990FXA-UD7 comes with zesty dimensions that almost make it an EATX form-factor board, although it's not. The AM3+ socket is powered by a 10-phase VRM that is cooled by a long heatsink that appears to be contiguous with the northbridge heatsink, which in turn shares heat with the southbridge over a heat pipe. The socket is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots supporting DDR3 frequencies in excess of 1866 MHz.

Gigabyte utilized each of the seven expansion slots, packing in six PCI-Express 2.0 x16 neatly spaced out to support NVIDIA 4-way SLI and AMD 4-way CrossFireX; two out of six slots two are electrical x4, wired to the southbridge. A legacy PCI slot is thrown in, just in case you hate to throw away that expensive PCI sound card that still sounds great. Storage connectivity includes eight internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, six from the SB850 southbridge, and two from a third-party controller. There are two eSATA ports, of which one appears to be power-eSATA.

ASRock just couldn't hold its rocks. The third-largest motherboard company released the first picture of its upcoming socket FM1 motherboard that supports AMD's upcoming performance A-series accelerated processing units. The ASRock A75 Extreme6 as it's called, is based on AMD's Hudson-D3 A75 single-chip chipset. With the northbridge component completely relocated to the APU die, what's left of the chipset is a little more than a southbridge. The 905-pin socket is significantly different from the 940-odd pin sockets from AMD in recent times, though its cooler retention brackets haven't essentially changed. So most AM3-supportive coolers should fit on FM1.

The FM1 socket is powered by a 10-phase VRM, it is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel DDR3-1866 MHz memory support; and to two of the three PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots. The first two PCI-E x16 slots switch to electrical x8 when both are populated. The third slot is electrical x4, and wired to the chipset. Expect a big chop in CPU to discrete GPU latencies. Other slots include one PCI-E x1, and three PCI.

With the socket AM3+ platform, ASUS wants to rally around its top motherboard brands, including Republic of Gamers (ROG), with the ASUS Crosshair V Formula, and the The Ultimate Force (TUF) Sabertooth 990FX, for AMD's next top of the line 990FX chipset that is designed to run up to four discrete graphics cards. The 990FX Sabertooth keeps up with the color scheme of the other TUF-series members. It boasts of highly durable components. The AM3+ socket is powered by a 10-phase Digi+ VRM. It is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots supporting dual-channel DDR3-1866 MHz memory, and connects to the 990FX chipset over a HyperTransport 3.1 link.

Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (configurable as x16/x4/x8/x8, x16/x4/x16/NC, depending on how they're populated); The electrical x4 slot is wired to the SB950 southbridge, and is placed there to hold PCI-Express SSDs. One each of PCI-E x1 and PCI make for the rest of the expansion. Storage connectivity includes six internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports supporting RAID, two internal SATA 3 Gb/s from a third-party controller, one power-eSATA/USB combo, and one normal eSATA on the rear panel.

One of AMD's design goals for its Fusion architecture must have been its application in mobile processors, where AMD isn't the brightest in terms of energy efficiency. The company's fastest product for the notebook platform is based on the Llano silicon, will release in 2011, and is a quad-core APU. Enter the AMD A8-3530MX.

Built on the 32 nm process with FS1 package, the A8-3530MX is an accelerated processing unit (APU), it combines a quad-core processor with a powerful GPU and northbridge component. With a default clock speed of 1.90 GHz and TurboCore speed of 2.60 GHz, the A8-3530MX packs 4 MB of L2 cache, and a dual-channel DDR3-1600 MHz memory controller, that also supports DDR3L-1333 MHz.

The GPU component is the DirectX 11 compliant AMD Radeon HD 6620G, with 400 stream processors, and engine clock speed of 444 MHz. To drive it, the northbridge component is entirely integrated into the APU, which packs a PCI-Express 2.0 hub to support discrete graphics. Despite so much machinery, the top-of-the-line chip maintains a TDP of 45W (common for notebook quad-core chips).

HighPoint Technologies, Inc., a leading HBA and storage solutions manufacturer, announces the arrival of new high port-count PCI-Express x16 SAS 6Gb/s HBA's. Available with up to 32 dedicated ports, RocketRAID high port count SAS HBA's provide maximum port count for minimal investment while delivering a connectivity bandwidth up to 19200 MB/s; ideal for a wide-range of high-performance and high-density storage applications.

It is becoming increasingly clear now, that Gigabyte will have two parallel lines of socket LGA1155 motherboards based on the same Intel Z68 B3 chipset, one that does away with display connectivity to make room for other ports and is geared for discrete graphics, while the other has display connectivity at the expense of additional ports on the rear panel, and also gives you everything you'd expect from Z68, including overclocking. In mid-April, pictures of GA-Z68-UD3P-B3 surfaced, which is a motherboard of the first kind explained above. Now, there's deck of pictures of the GA-Z68-UD3H-B3, its counterpart of the second kind.

The GA-Z68-UD3H-B3 features a much lighter CPU VRM, consisting of 7 phases, against 14 on the UD3P. It gives you the same expansion slot layout consisting of two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (x8/x8 when both are populated), supporting ATI CrossFire and NVIDIA SLI, three PCI-E x1, and two PCI. Gigabyte made full use of the display connectivity options that come with Sandy Bridge, there is one each of DVI, D-Sub, HDMI, and DisplayPort. Audio is at the helm of Realtek ALC889 8+2 channel HD audio CODEC, with optical SPDIF output.

Among a large selection of new Intel Z68-based socket LGA1155 motherboards taking shape at Gigabyte, is a cracker of a micro-ATX motherboard called GA-Z68MX-UD2H. Based on the Cougar Point B3 Z68 chipset that combines the overclocking capabilities of P67 and integrated display features of H67, the GA-Z68MX-UD2H squeezes in as many features as one can onto the 240x240 mm PCB. The LGA1155 socket is powered by a 7-phase VRM, and is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel DDR3 memory.

Expansion slots include three PCI-Express 2.0 x16. The first and third are wired to the LGA1155 socket, with electrical configurations of x16/NC or x8/x8, depending on if the third slot is populated. A PCI-E x1 and another x16 slot separates the two, creating room for graphics cards with dual-slot coolers on the first slot. The second x16 slot is electrical x4, and is wired to the Z68 PCH along with the x1 slot. Both NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFire are supported.

With no new GPUs in the works by either of the two main manufacturers, AMD and NVIDIA, this year's Computex event isn't going to be a very big exhibition of graphics cards. Instead, Intel's LGA2011 and AMD's AM3+ platforms are going to steal the show. It does leave graphics card manufacturers some attention, if they come up with something really out of the ordinary. PowerColor wants to be one of them. Flexing its in-house engineering muscle, the company is readying a dual-GPU graphics card that makes use of two 40 nm "Barts" GPUs for a CrossFire on-a-stick solution.

The two Barts chips will feature the BartsXT (Radeon HD 6870) configuration, with the card being designed to offer performance on par with HD 6870 CrossFire, with 3-GPU and 4-GPU CrossFireX support, and lower power draw than two single-GPU HD 6870 cards. The PCB design is the same as every dual-GPU AMD card ever made, there are two GPUs sitting on either sides of a PLX-made PCI-Express bridge chip, and each GPU system having its own VRM. There's 1 GB of GDDR5 memory over a 256-bit wide memory interface per GPU. Power is drawn from two 8-pin PCI-Express power connectors. The cooling solution is not pictured, but expect a multi-fan heatsink that spits hot air into the case.

Here is the complete socket AM3+ motherboard first-wave of ASUS, the M5A series, short and sweet. Based entirely on AMD 9-series chipset, including 9-series southbridge chips, the first-wave caters to gamer, performance, and enthusiast market segments, and only includes those chipset models that rely on discrete graphics (leaving out AMD 980G, 990GX). The lineup even includes models from ASUS' gamer/enthusiast-oriented Republic of Gamers (ROG) family, and The Ultimate Force (TUF) family.

The lineup starts with three models based on AMD 970 + SB950 chipset, which is a single discrete graphics card platform. The M5A97 is the entry-point, it bases itself entirely on what the chipset offers, plus two USB 3.0 ports. Moving up is M5A97 Pro, which has everything its little sibling has, plus a stronger 6+2 phase Digi+ VRM, and two eSATA ports. The M5A97 EVO, which was pictured a little while ago. This has everything the Pro variant has, plus two front-panel USB 3.0 ports, and FireWire.

At Computex 2010, motherboard vendors across the board displayed socket LGA1155 motherboards that support Intel "Sandy Bridge" processors, based on P67, H67 chipsets, months in advance of the platform actually making it to the market. This year, the motherboard industry will do something similar and show off socket LGA2011 motherboards based on the Intel X79 "Patsburg" chipset.

Detailed to much length in older articles, the platform schematic of Sandy Bridge-E surfaced, confirming X79's feature-set, including a PCI-Express 3.0 based supplementary interconnect between the processor and chipset to bolster enough bandwidth for the massive 10-port SATA 6 Gb/s controller, and a 8-port PCI-Express 2.0 hub. Sandy Bridge-E processor itself comes in three main variants, an all-enabled 6-core Extreme Edition, a 6-core unlocked variant, and a limited-OC 4-core variant. The platform is slated for late 2011.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading designer, manufacturer and distributor of high-performance solid state drives (SSDs), today unveiled the VeloDrive PCI-Express SSD. Designed to meet the needs of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), enterprise clients and system integrators, the VeloDrive optimizes high-performance computing and storage applications, providing unparalleled versatility and simplified integration.

"The VeloDrive is the latest addition to our comprehensive lineup of PCIe SSDs. A truly configurable solution, it helps a range of customers accelerate their application performance," said Daryl Lang, VP of Product Management, OCZ Technology Group. "The ability to run the VeloDrive in multiple modes provides clients with the freedom to use the raid stack of their choice. This maximizes performance and creates faster, more seamless deployments with RAID stacks that may already have been qualified for their unique usage model."

Amidst speculations that Gigabyte has put a stop to its P67 chipset-based lineup of LGA1155 motherboards and is planning a transition to Z68 top-to-bottom targeting several price points, pictures of the Z68X-UD3P-B3 surfaced. The new UD3P board is based on Z68, features a hybrid-EFI BIOS (dual-BIOS with >3 TB bootable volume support), and is designed exclusively for discrete graphics setup, it lacks FDI display connectivity. The CPU is powered by a 14-phase VRM that uses driver-MOSFETs, and cooled by simple heatsinks.

Expansion slots include two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x8, x8 when both are populated), with 2-way NVIDIA SLI and AMD CrossFireX support. Storage connectivity includes four SATA 6 Gb/s (two from the Z68 PCH, two from a Marvell-made controller), and four internal SATA 3 Gb/s from the PCH. Other connectivity includes four USB 3.0 ports (two internal/by header), a number of USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, gigabit Ethernet, and 8-channel HD audio. The Z68X-UD3P should join the rest of Gigabyte's Z68X series, for an early May launch.

Some time in the first half of 2012, Intel will release its next generation of desktop processors for the LGA1155 socket, based on the new Ivy Bridge silicon. Ivy Bridge is a 22 nanometer die-shrink of Sandy Bridge, with a few features added/improved. Ivy Bridge's smaller die size will allow for increased clock speeds and reduced production costs. A presentation was leaked to the press, which reveals quite a bit about the new chips. To begin with, Ivy Bridge processors are seamlessly compatible with existing LGA1155 platforms, and "Cougar Point" P67, H67, H61, Z68, chipsets, although it will come with its own 7-series chipset.

For the most part, Ivy Bridge is identical to Sandy Bridge, being an optical shrink from existing 32 nm to 22 nm. It will feature a new dual-channel DDR3 memory controller with official support for DRAM speeds of up to DDR3-1600 MHz. There's the usual PCI-Express 2.0 x16 hub that can drive up to two discrete graphics cards with electrical x8 connections. The integrated graphics controller will face an overhaul, it will be DirectX 11 compliant. It will also support the next version of Intel QuickSync GPU-accelerated video encoding technology. Turbo Boost 2.0 will be carried forward. TDP ranges in the usual 95/65/45/35W options.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that it has shipped its one millionth solid state drive.

"Solid state drives continue to represent a game-changing technology for both consumers and enterprise clients, and we are proud to achieve this milestone," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of OCZ. "But most of all, I wanted to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all of our loyal customers and partners, without whom this success would not be possible."

Gigabyte sneaked in its latest motherboard for SFF (small form-factor) fans, the GA-H67N-USB3-B3. This mini-ITX motherboard supports socket LGA1155 Intel Core processors, and is based on the Intel H67 chipset (B3 revision). The board supports every LGA1155 Core processor released till date, its designers didn't have to worry much about its electricals since you're not going to overclock on H67. Yet, the board packs a 4+2 phase VRM for the CPU, that's compliant with Intel's VRD 12 specification. The socket is wired to two DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel memory support, and a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slot.

In the storage department, there are two SATA 6 Gb/s ports from the chipset, two SATA 3 Gb/s, and one eSATA 3 Gb/s, also from the chipset. Its display connectivity surprisingly includes two HDMI ports, and one D-Sub. Audio is care of the high-grade Realtek ALC889 HDA CODEC, which can deliver 108 dB signal-to-noise ratio, the board also provides coaxial and optical SPDIF output connectivity. Other connectivity includes two USB 3.0 ports, gigabit Ethernet, and a number of USB 2.0 ports. The board features dual-BIOS with an EFI module that allows you to boot from a 3 TB+ volume. Gigabyte's H67N-USB3-B3 is expected to be priced around the $120 mark. This one for the HTPC.

Here are the first pictures of MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3), the company's first socket LGA1155 motherboard based on Intel's new Z68 PCH. Intel is weeks away from launching the Z68 PCH, which is a middle-ground between P67 and H67. P67 let you overclock, while it didn't feature Flexible Display Interface (FDI); H67 featured FDI, but didn't let you overclock. Z68 features FDI, it also lets you overclock to the potential of P67. MSI's Z68A-GD80 makes use of the B3 revision of the Z68 PCH. It intends to offer loads of overclocking features, ample discrete GPU expansion, as well as FDI connectivity to let you use the processor-embedded graphics.

The LGA1155 socket supports 2011 Core i5/i7 "Sandy Bridge" processors. The LOTES-made socket on the Z68A-GD80 is powered by a 15-phase VRM that uses "solid-state" chokes that don't buzz on load. The VRM is cooled by two heatsinks that share heat over a heat pipe. The socket is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots that support dual-channel memory. Expansion slots include three PCI-Express x16 (electrical x16/NC/x4 or x8/x8/x4), two PCI-E x1, and two PCI.

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced their CoreStore line of SSD solutions designed to bring a new level of performance to the SSD market.

By combining the very latest Marvell controller (88NV9143), new DDR ONFi 2 flash and plugging directly to the PCIe bus, Super Talent is now able to create two solutions that deliver unforeseen performance.

Shuttle Inc., a leading developer and manufacturer of multi-form-factor solutions such as the world-famous XPC Mini-PC Barebones, showcases two models for Intel's new 32 nm-technology processor generation (code name: Sandy Bridge) at CeBIT 2011.

Shuttle, as the Mini-PC pioneer, is set to launch the XPC Barebone SH67H3 and SH67H7 at the end of March 2011. Both are based on the Intel H67 Express chipset and boast extremely impressive technical features to support all Intel Core 2nd generation i3, i5 and i7 processors with LGA1155. There are four DIMM slots that enable DDR3 memory support with a maximum capacity of 16 GB.

Japanese cooling specialist Scythe announces the availability of the new Gouriki 3 power supply series. These power supplies are now available with an output of 500 W, 600 W and 700 W both as a plug-in version with cable management for comfort, as well as a standard version with sleeved mesh cables.

The Gouriki 3 power supplies meet the 80Plus Bronze certification and reaches an efficiency of 82 to 89% at 20/50/100% load. As usual for Scythe, all components are designed for long life in accordance with Japanese standards. In addition, the Gouriki 3 series was equipped with an improved dual 12V rail, which ensures stable and interference-free operation. The 45 to 55 cm long cable strands of the plug-in, as well as the standard version are completely encased in durable, black mesh tube.

Better late than never. ASRock finally unveiled its mini-ITX motherboard based on the AMD Brazos platform, featuring AMD Fusion "Zacate" E-350 accelerated processing unit (APU). The APU integrates two x86-64 processing cores based on the "Bobcat" architecture with a DirectX 11 compliant AMD Radeon HD 6310 graphics processing core. The ASRock E350M1 is a typical mini-ITX embedded platform motherboard. The board draws power from a standard 24-pin ATX power connector (20-pin will do), though from the looks of it, the same PCB can be reconfigured to have a 2-pin 12V DC power external input for use in some very tight cases.

The APU is wired to two DDR3 DIMM slots, the lone expansion slot is a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical 2.0 x4). The E-350 APU and Hudson M1 chipset have separate heatsinks, the one over the APU is ventilated by a small fan. The chipset gives out four SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and one eSATA 6 Gb/s. Display connectivity includes one each of DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI. Other connectivity features include 8-channel HD audio with optical SPDIF output, gigabit Ethernet, mouse/keyboard combo PS/2, and a number of USB 2.0 ports.

Here are the first pictures of Intel's new high-end CPU socket, the 2011-pin land grid array (LGA2011). A selection of pictures of an unannounced motherboard by MSI made it to the internet. LGA2011, coupled with a new chipset, the Intel X68 Express, will drive the company's new high-end and enthusiast-grade processors that feature 6, 8, or 12 cores, and quad-channel DDR3 memory controllers. At first sight, the LGA2011 is huge! Its retention clip looks to be completely detachable by unhooking the retention bars on either sides. With all LGA sockets till date, you needed to unhook one retention bar, letting you open the retention clip along a hinge.

Since the processor has four DDR3 memory channels, there's room for only one DIMM per channel on a typically-sized ATX motherboard. On this particular motherboard, we can make out that there are two DIMM slots on either sides of the socket, accommodating two channels each. With this platform, Intel transferred the northbridge component completely to the CPU package, much like LGA1156/LGA1155. Therefore, the 32-lane PCI-Express controller is housed inside the CPU package. What remains of the chipset is a PCH (platform controller hub). Like P55/H55/P67/H67, the X68 is a PCH, a glorified southbridge. It will house a smaller PCI-E hub that handles various connectivity devices, a storage controller, a LPCIO controller, USB and HDA controllers, and the DMI link to the processor. We will get to know more about this platform as the year progresses.

PowerColor is ready with its mini-ITX motherboard based on the AMD "Brazos" platform. The unnamed motherboard that is yet to get its heatsink(s) on, uses an AMD Fusion "Zacate" E-350 APU that embeds a dual-core x86-64 processor clocked at 1.60 GHz, and an AMD Radeon HD 6310 DirectX 11 compliant GPU. The APU is wired to two DDR3 SODIMM slots (notebook memory). Power is drawn in from a standard 24-pin ATX connector. The lone expansion slot is a PCI-Express 2.0 x4 with an open-end (to let you fit x16 graphics cards).

Storage connectivity includes four internal SATA 3 Gb/s, other features include 8-channel HD audio with optical SPDIF output, gigabit Ethernet, two USB 3.0 and a number of USB 2.0 ports. Display outputs include DVI and D-Sub. The motherboard is best suited for entry-level home PCs and office PCs.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and memory modules for computing devices and systems, will showcase the Company's latest SSD solutions at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada January 6-8. OCZ's commitment to advancing flash technology for enterprise, professional, and consumer applications makes this year's CES an ideal opportunity to demonstrate the latest solid state storage solutions at the nation's most exciting CE tradeshow.

"We are pleased to introduce ground breaking solid state drive technology at this year's CES show, including next generation enterprise class SATA, SAS, Fibre Channel and PCIe SSDs that bring to the forefront both throughput levels and capacities that push speed, reliability and densities to previously unheard of levels," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of OCZ Technology. "These exciting products represent OCZ's commitment to driving solid state storage innovation in both the client and enterprise space to the highest levels."
Introducing an array of next generation storage, as well as power supplies during the show, OCZ will continue to exhibit solutions designed for a wide range of customers including gamers and prosumers to enterprise and OEM. OCZ will showcase live SATA 6Gbps MLC-based Vertex 3 Pro SSDs, built with the next generation enterprise SandForce controller technology with incredible new performance of up to 80,000 IOPS* and 550MB/s transfer rates.

Closely trailing other, ASUS also made its AMD Brazos platform motherboard public. The E35MI-I Deluxe from ASUS is filled to the brim with features, its most significant being a completely silent passive heatsink design that keeps the system cool without eating into precious mini-ITX board space. A large monolithic heatsink covers the central portion of the motherboard, cooling both the AMD Fusion E-350 dual-core processor and the Hudson M1 chipset. It uses a dense aluminum fin array to which heat is supplied from its base by heat pipes.

The processor is wired to two DDR3 DIMM slots, the lone expansion slot is a PCI-Express 2.0 x16. There are five internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and an eSATA 6 Gb/s. The rear panel is an equally crowded place. There's 6-channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, four USB 3.0 (two rear + two internal) and a number of USB 2.0 ports, Bluetooth, WiFi b/g/n, optical SPDIF, and display connectivity that includes DVI and HDMI. Featuring Turbo Key II, the board can overclock the processor at the turn of a small switch. ASUS is also readying a "lite" version of this motherboard, which is likely to lack some features, such as WiFi.

MSI is ready with its motherboard based on the AMD Fusion "Brazos" platform. The motherboard major announced E350IA-E45, its first motherboard based on the platform in mini-ITX form-factor. It is intended for use on most entry-thru-mid range desktop PCs, office PCs, and HTPCs. At the heart of it is the AMD Fusion E-350 dual-core processor based on the "Bobcat" architecture. It embeds an AMD Radeon HD 6310 graphics processor that is DirectX 11 compliant. The processor is aided by Hudson M1 single-chip chipset.

The processor is wired to two DDR3 DIMM slots and supports up to 8 GB of memory in x86-64 mode. It is powered by a 3+1 phase VRM. The lone expansion slot is a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical 2.0 x4). The chipset gives out four SATA 6 Gb/s ports supporting high-speed SSDs and HDDs. Connectivity is aplenty: 8+2 channel HD audio with optical and coaxial SPDIF connectors, two USB 3.0 ports, ten USB 2.0 ports, gigabit Ethernet, and PS/2 mouse/keyboard combo connector. Display connectivity includes D-Sub and HDMI 1.4a. The MSI E350IA-E45 will ship toward late January or early February.