Intel's upcoming Sandy Bridge processor architecture which uses the new LGA-1155 socket seems to be closer than one would think, with motherboard vendors such as Biostar being ready with motherboards that run those processors. The motherboard vendor showed off two socket LGA-1155 motherboards that are based on the Intel P67 and H67 chipsets. The P67 is engineered to be the chipset for processors that need discrete graphics, the chipset lacks the Intel FDI technology needed to connect the processors' embedded graphics controller to display outputs on the motherboard, whereas the H67 does, and is designed for processors with embedded graphics.

The first spot is the TP67XE, based on the P67. This ATX motherboard has all the features of a mid-range performance board. The processor is powered by a 4+2 phase VRM, it is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel memory. It is said that the Sandy Bridge processors will have higher reference DRAM speeds than present Nehalem/Westmere chips (which have DDR3-1066 and DDR3-1333 depending on the model), expansion slots include one PCI-Express x16, one PCI-E x16 (electrical x4), two PCI-E x1, and two PCI. While the board has padding for a 2-port 3rd party USB 3.0 controller, it is indicated that Intel 6-series chipsets will finally introduce native SATA 6 Gb/s.

ASUS showed off its latest high-end motherboard, and latest entry into its premium Republic of Gamers line, the Rampage III Gene. The "Gene" identifier tells that the board is of the micro-ATX form-factor, while Rampage III is the latest series of socket LGA1366 motherboards based on the Intel X58 Express chipset. Compared to the Rampage II, Rampage III embraces latest technologies as well as ASUS innovations, this includes support for USB 3.0, SATA 6 Gb/s, and ASUS ROG Connect, to name a few. The CPU is powered by an 8-phase PWM circuit, 2-phase for the six DDR3 DIMM slots for triple-channel memory support.

Expansion slots include two full-bandwidth PCI-Express 2.0 x16, an open-ended PCI-Express x4, and a legacy PCI. NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossfireX are supported. The ICH10R southbridge drives six SATA 3 Gb/s ports, while an additional Marvell-made controller drives two SATA 6 Gb/s ports. Connectivity includes 8-channel audio (probably SupremeFX X-Fi), two USB 3.0 ports, a number of USB 2.0 ports including one which holds a Bluetooth module, gigabit Ethernet, and FireWire. ROG-exclusive features include ROG Connect, which allows you to control overclocking with any Bluetooth-enabled cell phone that has the ROG device installed and is Bluetooth-paired with the board, a more flexible BIOS, iROG motherboard management system, and power, reset, and clear-CMOS buttons at convenient locations. Pricing and availability are yet to be known.

EVGA is readying a new high-end socket LGA1366 motherboard building on its FTW (for the win) moniker, the X58 FTW3, carrying the EVGA SKU code of 132-GT-E768-KR. The new motherboard was spotted on the North American online retailer NCIX.com, where it was listed for US $342.39 and CA $319.99, before EVGA even launched the product or gave it a product page on the company website.

The 132-GT-E768-KR is a standard ATX motherboard. The CPU is powered by an 8-phase standard VRM, it is wired to six DDR3 slots for triple-channel memory support. The X58 IOU is cooled by a larger than usual heatsink, which slants towards the socket to give clearance to large CPU coolers. The X58 and ICH10R stick to the specifications, with no additional bridge chip. Expansion slots include three PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (x16, x8, x8 when all three are populated, x16, x16, NC when the first two are), supporting 3-way SLI, 2-way SLI, and ATI CrossFireX. Connectivity includes two SATA 6 Gb/s and six 3 Gb/s ports, two gigabit Ethernet controllers, 8 channel audio, two USB 3.0 and 8 USB 2.0 ports, and support for the EVBot OC module. EVGA should officially introduce this board soon.

Sapphire is back to its vocation of being a motherboard vendor, the popular ATI Radeon board partner designed a new socket AM3 motherboard based on the new AMD 890GX + SB850 chipset, dubbed the Sapphire Pure CrossfireX 890GX. The board is built on the ATX form-factor, though comes with only four expansion slots spaced out. The AM3 CPU is powered by a 10-phase VRM, it is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel memory. The AMD 890GX northbridge is cooled by a large heatsink which shares its heat with one of the VRM heatsinks. The ATI Radeon HD 4290 IGP is assisted by 128 MB of SidePort memory apart from sharing the system memory.

Out of the four expansion slots, two are PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x8 when both are populated) with some sort of manual PCI-E lane switching, and one each of PCI-E x1 and PCI. The SB850 southbridge gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s internal ports, while an additional controller provides an IDE connector (for two IDE devices). The eSATA port is driven by manually connecting it with one of the internal ports. Connectivity includes 8 channel audio with optical and coaxial SPDIF, USB 3.0, and display connectivity, which includes DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI with 7.1 channel audio. Available soon, Sapphire is yet to disclose its price.

ASRock introduced its newest high-end motherboard for the AMD platform, the 890FX Extreme3. This socket AM3 motherboard is based on AMD's 890FX + SB850 chipset, and is geared for high-end discrete graphics setups. The CPU is powered by an 8+2 phase VRM that is cooled by an elaborate active heatsink that also draws heat from the 890FX chip. The board BIOS carries memory multipliers to support DDR3 1800 MHz with ease. Expansion slots include three PCI-Express x16, of which the blue slots are PCI-E 2.0 x16, while the third white slot is PCI-E 1.1 x4; and two each of PCI-E x1 and PCI. All six SATA 6 Gb/s ports from the SB850 are internal, while an additional VIA storage controller handles eSATA and IDE. Connectivity includes gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0, eSATA, and 8-channel audio with SPDIF connectors. The ASRock 890FX-Extreme3 should reach stores in a few weeks.

MSI unveiled the 870A-G54, a value socket AM3 motherboard based on the AMD 870 + SB850 chipset. The 870 is AMD's value discrete graphics chipset, which supports one graphics card over a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 link, or two cards over two electrical x8 links, as implemented on this board. The CPU is powered by a 5+1 phase VRM which uses high-C capacitors. Expansion slots include two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x8 when both are populated), supporting ATI CrossfireX; three PCI and one PCI-E x1. The SB850 southbridge gives out six internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, an additional controller drives the IDE. Connectivity includes 8-channel audio with optical SPDIF, two USB 3.0 ports, a number of USB 2.0 ports, and gigabit Ethernet. The MSI 870A-G54 will be released in the coming weeks. This is the second board from the company based on this chipset, the other being the Lucid Hydra-equipped 870A-GD60 Hydra.

ECS is ready with a low-cost ATX motherboard based on the upcoming AMD 880G chipset, the ECS A880GM-A2. The board uses a PCB nearly identical to that of the ECS IC890GXM-A, except for the skimpier heatsinks. The board features a simple 3+1 phase VRM which can power AM3 processors, including the Phenom II X6, with TDPs of up to 125W. Solid-state capacitors are used only for some important circuits. The 880G chipset embeds an ATI Radeon HD 4250 IGP, with 128 MB of DDR3 SidePort Memory. It supports dual-channel DDR3 memory, with speeds of up to 1600 MHz.

Expansion slots include one PCI-Express 2.0 x16, one PCI-E x16 (electrical x4), two PCI-E x1, and two PCI. The SB850 southbridge gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, of which five are internal, and one eSATA. Connectivity options include 8-channel audio, gigabit Ethernet, eSATA and USB 2.0. Display connectivity includes DVI and D-Sub. It is expected to be released next week, at an affordable price.

Intel plans a pair of new sockets for launch with its new processor architecture that succeeds Westmere, codenamed "Sandy Bridge", which are due for 2011. As part of its "tick-tock" product launch strategy, the company is currently transitioning between the 45 nm "tock" (Nehalem architecture), and 32 nm "tick" (Westmere architecture). In 2011, it will transition from the 32 nm "tick" (Westmere architecture), to the 32 nm "tock" (Sandy Bridge architecture). The company uses a "tick-tock" model of process development, where each processor architecture gets to be made in two successive manufacturing processes, while each process gets to build two succeeding architectures. It seems to have become clear that with Sandy Bridge, Intel will also switch to new socket designs, making existing motherboards obsolete then. Architecturally, Sandy Bridge will introduce new feature-sets that make the CPU more powerful, clock-to-clock, such as AVX - Advanced Vector Extensions, an evolution of the SSE instruction set, native AES engine which has been introduced with Westmere, and so on.

The present LGA-1156 package on which Intel builds value-through-performance processors including a bulk of mainstream processors, will be succeeded with the LGA-1155 package. Though similar, LGA-1155 and LGA-1156 are not inter-compatible, meaning that LGA-1155 processors will not work on existing LGA-1156 motherboards, and LGA-1156 processors will not work on LGA-1155 motherboards, either. For these processors, the arrangement of vital components is similar to the LGA-1156 package, except that every LGA-1155 processor - dual-core or quad-core - will feature an on-die display controller.

MSI is working on its third motherboard that makes use of Lucid Hydra multi-GPU technology, this one aimed to be a more affordable model than the Big Bang Fuzion, for the socket LGA-1156 platform. Lucid Hydra technology allows users to mix and match graphics cards from across brands and models to upscale performance. A newly-release driver (1.5.106) for Hydra is said to increase functionality by adding full support for DirectX multi-GPU scaling, as well as expects significantly higher performance upscaling compared to older drivers. The new motherboard from MSI is the P55-GD88 Hydra, also to be known as P55A Hydra.

Built on a PCB that's different from that of the Big Bang Fuzion, the P55A Hydra uses High-C capacitors only for the CPU VRM, with normal solid-state capacitors for the rest of the board. Unlike the Big Bang Fuzion it has only two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots, but these slots work at x16 speeds. Perhaps the only selling point for Hydra on this setup (since Intel P55 platform already supports both SLI and CrossFire, and tests have shown performance hit between x16 and x8 to be insignificant for even high-end GPUs), is the ability to mix and match different kinds of graphics cards, including mixing an ATI Radeon card with an NVIDIA GeForce card.

ASRock is ready with its premium motherboard based on the AMD 870 + SB850 chipset, the ASRock 870 Extreme3. Either the company seems to have jumped the specifications of the 870 by adding external PCI-Express lane switching that gives it proper CrossFire capability, or that the 870 will indeed support 2-way CrossFire with its lone PCI-Express 2.0 x16 link split into two x8 links between the two cards, leaving no room for a "890X" chipset. The 870 Extreme3 supports socket AM3 processors with a 4+1 phase VRM that can take 140W TDP processors. It will support upcoming Phenom II X6 and Phenom II X4 T series processors. It integrates ASRock's proprietary UCC chip that unlocks disabled cores on certain processors.

The board is advertised to support DDR3-1800 MHz memory by overclocking. Expansion slots include two each of PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x8, when both are populated), PCI-E x1, and PCI. The SB850 southbridge gives out five internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, with one eSATA. Other connectivity features include 8 channel HD audio, a 2-port USB 3.0 controller, a number of USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, and gigabit Ethernet. Diagnostic LED display and onboard power and reset switches make for the rest of it. The ASRock 870 Extreme3 will retail a little later this month.

BIOSTAR, a professional manufacturer of motherboards today reveals its new AMD 870X chipset motherboards; both models "TA870+" and "TA870" are from the T-Series family representing high quality components and excellent overclocking capability. "TA870+" supports existing and upcoming socket AM3 processors, including Phenom II X6 core processor. "TA870+" is ATX form factor, powered by a 5 phase PWM supporting 140W processors; 100% X.D.C. solid capacitor, with two PCI-Express 2.0 slots and five SATA 6 Gb/s ports; on-board 8 channel audio with Blu-Ray support.

BIOSTAR's AMD 8xx series chipset family motherboards have adopted 3 unique features to differentiate with others; they are "GTO 6³", "BIO-unlocKING" and "BIO-Remote". "GTO 6³", it allows 60%+ overclocking capability on CPU frequency; it also supports true SATA 6 Gb/s for fast data transfer rate; and fully compatible with AMD Phenom II X6 six-core processors.

WD announced today that it is now shipping WD VelociRaptor 450 GB and 600 GB hard drives, the next generation of its 10,000 RPM SATA family of hard drives. The new WD VelociRaptor hard drive is designed for blade servers, high-performance PCs, Mac computers, professional workstations, as well as 1U and 2U rack servers that require a balance of high performance and capacity. As the only 10,000 RPM SATA hard drive on the market today, and a favorite amongst enthusiast and enterprise groups, the WD VelociRaptor hard drive now comes packed with twice the capacity and up to 15% performance increase over the previous generation.

The most popular hard drive for high-performance enthusiasts who demand the ultimate SATA drive, the WD VelociRaptor hard drive is built with enterprise-class mechanics that provide 24x7 durability under high-performance demands and packs up to 600 GB of capacity into a 2.5-inch enterprise form factor. The WD VelociRaptor drive is also available in the IcePack enclosure, a 3.5-inch mounting frame with a built-in heat sink - a factory customization that fits the drive into a standard 3.5-inch system bay and keeps this powerful drive extra cool when installed in a high-performance desktop chassis and 3.5-inch HDD form factor enterprise chassis.

ASUS is readying one of its first motherboards based on the AMD 880G chipset, the M4A88TD-V EVO / USB3. This model comes in two variants, with or without USB 3.0 support, designated with the -USB3 suffix in the model name. It is a socket AM3 motherboard, supporting the upcoming line of Phenom II X6 and Phenom II X4 T series processors. The CPU socket is powered by a 10-phase VRM, it is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel memory. Even as ATI CrossFire is not part of the 880G's feature-set since it won't support an external PCI-Express lane switch like the 890GX, ASUS found a way around and provided a second PCI-Express x16 slot, only that this one is electrical PCI-Express 1.1 x4, wired to the SB800 southbridge chip.

The 880G embeds an ATI Radeon HD 4250 IGP with 128 MB of DDR3 sideport memory. It connects to its display with DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI. The board supports ASUS' Core Unlocker feature that attempts to unlock disabled cores on some processors. Other expansion slots include one PCI-E x1, and three PCI. The southbridge gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, five of which are internal, and one eSATA. An additional VIA-made controller drives an IDE connector. Other connectivity options include a number of USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.0 ports on the USB3 variant, 8-channel HD audio, FireWire, and gigabit Ethernet. The new boards will be released in a few weeks' time, probably targeting the sub-$150 price points.

Gigabyte is looking to share some of its latest innovations in motherboard design with its AMD platform lineup, with a new enthusiast-grade motherboard in the works that rivals up with some of the company's highest-end products from its Intel platform lineup. The GA-890FXA-UD7 is the newest in the league. The model stays above the recently revealed GA-890FXA-UD5. It is a socket AM3 motherboard geared up for AMD's newest six-core processors, based on AMD 890FX + SB850 chipset. It has six PCI-Express slots (electrical: x16/x8, x4, x8, x4, x16/x8, x8), and supports 4-way ATI CrossFireX. The CPU is powered by a 10-phase VRM, with 2-phase memory VRM.

For the first time on the AMD platform, Gigabyte uses its Hybrid Silent-Pipe cooler. The cooler connects the CPU VRM, 890FX northbridge, and SB850 southbridge using a heatpipe, and the heatsink over the northbridge has provision for a water-block (included), or a large and complex aluminum heatsink that fits into the top expansion slot. The SB850 natively supports six SATA 6 Gb/s ports complete with RAID 0,1,5,10 support. An additional GSATA2 controller gives out two SATA 3 Gb/s ports and the IDE connector. Connectivity includes 8+2 channel HD audio with optical and coaxial SPDIF connectors, two gigabit Ethernet controllers, two USB 3.0 ports, a number of USB 2.0 ports, and FireWire. It is expected to be out in a month.

Following AMD's launch of the 890GX chipset which marked the entry of certain new features native to the chipset, the company is readying a slightly scaled-down version of it aimed at more mainstream consumers, business PC users, as well as HTPC and home PC users. The AMD 880G succeeds the 780G is being a mid-range integrated graphics chipset that supports a range of new features using the SB800 series southbridge chips.

While the 880G is based on essentially the same chip (RS880) as the 890GX, certain features such as ATI CrossFire are disabled, and board makers are directed to use this chipset on micro-ATX form-factor designs. The 880G northbridge packs an RV620-core based ATI Radeon HD 4250 IGP which supports DirectX 10.1, with 40 stream processors, and DDR3 SidePort memory support apart from the usual UMA. The IGP supports native HD video decode features, as well as HDMI with on-chip 7.1 channel audio. While the chipset supports one PCI-Express 2.0 x16 link for discrete graphics, it also gives out PCI-Express 2.0 x1, x4 lanes from the northbridge. Additional controllers such as USB 3.0 can benefit from a direct PCI-E 2.0 path. The SB800 class southbridge has a native 6 channel SATA 6 Gb/s controller complete with RAID support.

EVGA just released two of its most indigenous designs that marks a complete evolution from being a reference-design products vendor to an enthusiast-grade hardware giant: the much talked about EVGA Classified SR-2 dual-LGA1366 enthusiast-workstation motherboard, and power supply unit (PSU) tailor-made to suit systems based on the SR-2 motherboard. To begin with, the Classified SR-2 motherboard is a dual-LGA1366 motherboard supporting two dual-socket capable Intel Xeon E5500 series, and X5600 series quad-core and six-core processors. It is based on Intel's enterprise-grade 5520 chipset with ICH10R southbridge.

The Intel 5520 supports two QuickPath Interconnect paths to each of the sockets, which in turn can communicate with each other. Since each socket (processor) has its own triple-channel DDR3 memory controller, it has its own six DDR3 memory slots. The 5520 gives out two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 lanes which connect to two NVIDIA nForce 200 chips that give out two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 links each. With external x8 switching thrown into the mix, the motherboard manages a staggering seven PCI-Express x16 slots.

OEM major Foxconn made additions to its own channel brand of motherboards with two Digital Lifes series models based on the AMD 890GX chipset, supporting socket AM3 processors. The nearly identical Foxconn Digital Life A9DA-S and A9DA (pictured in the same order below), are ATX boards building on the features the chipset provides. The CPU is powered by an 8-phase VRM. The AMD 890GX embeds an ATI Radeon HD 4290 class IGP with 128 MB (+UMA) SidePort memory and connectivity which includes DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI.

Expansion slots include two each of PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x8 when both are populated), PCI-E x1, and PCI. The SB850 southbridge gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s ports. Other standard features include 8-channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, and a number of USB 2.0 ports. The A9DA-S is the more premium variant, it has a heatsink over the CPU VRM, and a VIA 2-port FireWire controller. The two should be available in stores soon.

At the ongoing CeBIT event, Gigabyte showed off its latest offer of motherboards including an interesting one based on AMD's upcoming 890FX chipset. Made for socket AM3 processors from AMD, the GA-890FXA-UD5 is based on the AMD 890FX chipset with SB850 southbridge. It expands a little on the chipset's features. The CPU is powered by a 10-phase VRM. It is wired to four DDR3 memory slots that are powered by a 2-phase VRM. The AMD 890FX drives four PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots (electrical x8 when all are populated, x16 on alternate slots otherwise). There are two PCI-E x1 and one PCI. All six of the SATA 6 Gb/s ports from the southbridge are internal, while an additional GSATA2 controller gives out two SATA 3 Gb/s ports, and drives the IDE connector. Connectivity options include 8+2 channel audio with Dolby Home Theater, two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, FireWire, and two USB 3.0 ports, apart from a number of USB 2.0 ports. The board is expected to release later next month.

MSI has undertaken a very interesting project: to use the Lucid Hydra chip on an AMD platform motherboard, its second design with Lucid Hydra. The 870A-GD60 Hydra is a socket AM3 motherboard based on the AMD 870 + SB850 chipset. The AMD 870 chipset succeeds the AMD 770, in being suited for single discrete-graphics setups. The chipset packs no PCI-Express external switching, and hence there is only one PCI-Express 2.0 x16 link it can give to a graphics card. MSI connected this link to a Hydra Engine chip, to give out two full-bandwidth PCI-Express 2.0 x16 links. "Why not simply use the 890FX?" could be a question for many, but its answer lies in Hydra's advantage over it: it allows you to pair two NVIDIA graphics cards, two ATI graphics cards, or even mix an NVIDIA and an ATI card in a mixed multi-GPU array, as has been demonstrated with MSI's P55 Big Bang Fuzion motherboard.

The AM3 socket is powered by a 10-phase DrMOS based VRM. The CPU connects to four DDR3 DIMM slots for dual-channel memory. It connects to the AMD 870 northbridge over the HyperTransport 3.0 interface. Its lone PCI-E 2.0 x16 port is taken up by the Hydra Engine chip located between the two PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots. Other expansion slots include three PCI-E x1, and one PCI. The SB850 southbridge gives out six internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports. Connectivity includes 8 channel HD audio with SPDIF connections, eSATA by an additional controller, FireWire, two USB 3.0 ports, and a number of USB 2.0 ports. The 870A-GD60 Hydra could be released late next month.

At its displays at the ongoing CeBIT event, ASUS surprised many with a pair of Crosshair IV Series motherboards showing a renewed interest at the very high-end of the AMD platform. Incidentally, the company is also preparing a mid-range motherboard based on the AMD 890FX chipset, the M4A89TD PRO. The new board builds entirely on what the chipset has to offer with a slight addition of a two-port USB 3.0 controller. The AM3 socket is powered by a 10-phase VRM, supporting 140W CPUs. It is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots with its own 2-phase VRM.

The 890FX chipset gives out two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 full-bandwidth slots, other expansion slots include an open-ended PCI-E 1.1 x4, a PCI-E x1, and two PCI slots. All six SATA 6 Gb/s ports the SB850 southbridge gives out are internal, an additional JMicron controller gives out IDE and eSATA. The board boasts of ASUS' "Core Unlocker" switch which simplifies unlocking disabled physical cores on some dual, triple, and quad-core chips. Other features include 7.1 channel audio, gigabit Ethernet, and USB 3.0 for connectivity. The M4A89TD PRO should be released around the time when AMD unveils its latest processors.

Biostar is readying a mid-range motherboard in its T-Series lineup based on AMD's upcoming 890FX + SB850 chipset. The T-Series TA890FXE was pictured at the ongoing CeBIT event without its cooling assembly. It supports existing and upcoming socket AM3 processors, including Phenom II X6. The CPU is powered by a 5+1 phase VRM, supporting 140W processors. The 890FX chipset gives out four PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots supporting ATI CrossFireX technology, apart from two legacy PCI slots. The SB850 southbridge gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, of which five are internal, probably one external. An additional storage controller by VIA drives the lone IDE connector. 7.1 channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, and FireWire make for the rest of it. The TA890FXE is expected to be out later in April, when AMD unveils its latest processors.

ASUS today launched the M4A89GTD PRO Series motherboard that delivers added core processing power by enabling the instant unlocking of latent AMD CPUs. Incorporating the latest AMD 890GX chipset with an advanced AMD graphics core, the M4A89GTD PRO Series also supports both ATI CrossFireX and Hybrid CrossFireX technologies. Combined with advanced rendering from the DX10.1 graphics API, the series offers spectacular visual output.

"By supporting both integrated and discrete graphics processing, the M4A89GTD PRO Series delivers enhanced graphics performance that will excite and impress both hardcore gamers and multimedia users," said Joe Hsieh, General Manager of ASUS Motherboard Business.

MSI seems to have finalized design of its first motherboard based on the AMD 890FX chipset, the 890FXA-GD70. A possible prototype of this, then called the 890FX-GD70, was pictured back in early December, 2009. The 890FXA-GD70 has five PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots in all. Their electrical configuration, when all are populated, could be x8, x8, x8, x8, 1.1 x4, or x16, NC, x16, NC, 1.1 x4, supporting ATI CrossFireX. A PCI-E x1 and PCI make for the other two expansion slots. A large rectangular heatsink cools both the AMD 890FX chipset, and the 8-phase VRM, while a heat pipe connects this to the heatsink over the SB850 southbridge chip. The CPU is connected to four DDR3 memory slots with one-sided retention clips that don't come in the way of graphics cards in the first slot.

The SB850 gives out six SATA 6 Gb/s ports with RAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10, JBOD support, while a JMicron made controller gives out an additional SATA 3 Gb/s port, an IDE connector, and possibly an eSATA connector. Connectivity options include 8+2 channel HD audio with optical and coaxial SPDIF connections, two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, two USB 3.0 ports (and a number of USB 2.0 ports), FireWire, and eSATA. This motherboard is ready for upcoming Phenom II X6 and Phenom II X4 processors, apart from existing processors in the AM3 package. It should be released in time for the six-core chips, late April.

AMD and its motherboard partners today unleashed ATI Radeon HD 4290 Graphics with the AMD 890GX Chipset, a versatile, affordable and exceptionally energy efficient solution for an incredible, high definition visual computing experience.

The AMD 890GX chipset redefines the way you play with versatile graphics configurations, including DirectX 10.1 graphics on the motherboard and support for up to two high-performance ATI Radeon Premium Graphics cards with ATI CrossFireX technology. The same AMD 890GX motherboard which can be used to build an efficient and slim home theater PC using the integrated ATI Radeon HD 4290 Graphics, can be augmented with ATI Radeon HD 5450 Graphics for a dual-graphics performance preview, or upgraded to a gaming powerhouse with ATI Radeon HD 5870 Graphics and the visual realism of DirectX 11.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co., Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards and other computing hardware solutions today proudly launched their latest AMD AM3 Socket GA-890GPA-UD3H motherboard, delivering loads of performance enhancing bandwidth for applications such as high end gaming and high speed data transfer on systems featuring new AMD 6 core CPUs.

The first motherboard featuring the AMD 890GX chipset paired with the all new SB850 South Bridge, the GIGABYTE GA-890GPA-UD3H offers the industry's first native support for Serial ATA 6Gbps for up to 6 devices. The AMD SB850 also offers the industry's first Serial ATA 6 Gbps RAID support, allowing users to configure RAID 0,1,5 and 10 for maximum data performance or enhanced data backup. Also equipped with GIGABYTE 3x USB Power Boost and USB 3.0 support by utilizing the industry-leading NEC controller, the GIGABYTE GA-890GPA-UD3H ensures users are ready to take advantage the next wave of high speed data transfer and storage technologies.