To make a 'great value' socket FM1 motherboard, there are two approaches, either add dual discrete graphics support by adding a second PCI-Express x16 slot, like on the Gigabyte A75-UD4H, or by adding a boat-load of connectivity while leaving single discrete graphics option, an approach taken by Sapphire on its Pure Platinum A75. This ATX form-factor motherboard comes fully loaded with a 8-phase VRM for the FM1 APU socket, four DDR3 DIMM slots supporting dual-channel DDR3-1600 MHz, powered by a 2-phase VRM, and overclocker-friendly voltage measurement points.

Expansion slots include a PCI-Express 2.0 x16, an open-ended PCI-Express x4, and two each of PCI-Express x1 and legacy PCI. There is also an mSATA slot to hold SSDs in the mSATA form-factor. Storage connectivity includes four SATA 6 Gb/s internal ports, an mSATA slot, and eSATA. Other connectivity includes four USB 3.0 ports (of which two are by header), 8-channel HD audio, Bluetooth, gigabit Ethernet, and a number of USB 2.0 ports. Display connectivity includes D-Sub, DVI, and HDMI 1.4a.

Japanese manufacturer Scythe is hereby announcing the third version of its popular multifunctional Kama Panel, which comes with new features to ease your PC-life. Kama Panel 3 combines 4 major functions to utilize your free 5.25" Bays in most useful way. These 4 major functions are including a card reader, a mobile rack, a 2 channel fan controller and a I/O Panel for advanced connectivity.

Built-in card reader is supporting the most popular memory card formats such as MicroSD/MicroSDHC, Memory Stick Micro, SD, Memory Stick, Multi Media Card. By using a separately purchased adapter users are able to use MiniSD/MiniSDHC, RS-MMC, MMC-micro cards as well. Connection to the PC is achieved by using the USB 2.0 Header-Pin Cable supplied with the Kama Panel 3. Furthermore 2 novel USB 2.0 and Power eSATA combo connectors are located in the front. Hence allows the connection of either USB or eSATA Cable into same port. To further improve connectivity a headphone and a microphone connector are implemented. In case the power and reset switch of the pc case are impractically located, users now have the chance to use the power and reset switch of Kama panel 3.

Buffalo Technology released a new line of SSDs in the 2.5-inch SATA form-factor, supporting the SATA 6 Gb/s interface. One of its first models is the 250 GB SSD-N256S/MC400. Making use of the bandwidth at its disposal, the drive manages read speeds of 405 MB/s, and write speeds of 223 MB/s. Its controller makes use of 256 MB cache. It supports market-standard features such as the TRIM garbage-collection feature, and NCQ. The Buffalo SSD-N256S/MC400 will reach markets in Japan for 72,200 JPY, about US $880.

Mach Xtreme Technology Inc., a worldwide leader in top performance, high reliability and user friendly designed PC components, today unveiled the SATA MX-KATANA Series SSD modules. Based on an innovative design, the sleek KATANA Series modules deliver an enhanced mobile computing experience with much faster application loading, ultra-fast data access, shorter boot-ups, and longer battery life of today's and future laptops and netbooks with new type low-profile SATA interface.

This series maintains the highest level of read and write performance though the life of the SSD. In addition, highly intelligent wear leveling design optimizes longevity of MX-KATANA series drives. This SSD module is the ideal upgrade option from standard storage of some popular notebooks like MacBook Air Rev.3.X series, making it a must have item for any serious notebook DIY enthusiast. The MX-KATANA drive delivers best-in-class read and write speeds clocking in at up to 275MB/s read and 225MB/s write along with the stunning maximum of 20,000 IOPS, low power consumption and superior durability (1.0 million MTBF) compared to rotating hard disk drives.

AMD's new Fusion A-Series "Llano" accelerated processing unit (APU) is shaping up to be a credible home and entertainment platform, but it is also carrying the responsibility of making it to office spaces. Part of that initiative would rest with the motherboard manufacturers to come up with inexpensive and durable sub-$100 motherboards that can be bought and deployed in bulk. Enter the Gigabyte A75M-UD2H. This micro-ATX form-factor motherboard relies entirely on the platform's feature-set.

The FM1 APU socket is powered by a simple 4+1 phase VRM, it is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots supporting dual-channel DDR3-1600 MHz memory. Of the four expansion slots, there's one PCI-Express 2.0 x16, a PCI-E x16 that's electrical x4, and one each of PCI-E x1 and legacy PCI. To further make for its business PC outlook, there are headers for legacy ports such as LPT and COM (for dot-matrix printers in banks, etc.).

Here are some of the first proper pictures of ASUS ROG Crosshair V Formula motherboard, a set of press-shots leaked to the Czech press, which has since been retracted. The ROG Crosshair V Formula comes in two packages, with and without ASUS Thunderbolt card (an addon card by ASUS that provides Bigfoot Killer NIC and Sound Blaster X-Fi hardware-accelerated audio). The Crosshair V made its first appearance with a box-shot disclosure by NVIDIA announcing SLI on AMD chipset motherboards; later a table listing out specifications of some of ASUS' fist socket AM3+ motherboard was published.

The Crosshair V Formula is a socket AM3+ motherboard based on AMD 990FX + SB950 chipset, supporting AMD's upcoming FX-series processors based on the Bulldozer architecture. It combines the best features ASUS has to offer, targeting both gamers and overclockers. The AM3+ socket is powered by a strong 10-phase Digi+ Extreme Engine VRM, it supports dual-channel DDR3 memory with speeds of over DDR3-2133 MHz. Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 2.0 x16, which configure as x16/x16/NC or x16/x8/x8, with the fourth slot being electrical x4, wired to the southbridge. NVIDIA 3-way SLI and AMD CrossFireX are supported.

Lian Li Industrial Co. Ltd, maker of high-end, all-aluminum computer chassis since 1983, today launches three new computer cases: The mid-tower PC-Z60, the full-tower PC-Z70, and the full-tower PC-P80N inspired by Lian Li's classic Armorsuit PC-P80, released in 2008. All three cases are made with Lian Li's trademark features like tool-less installations for HDDs, ODDs, PSUs, graphics cards etc., washable air-filters over fans, anti-vibration mounts, cable clamps for organization, ventilation for improved air flow, USB 3.0, fan speed controllers, rubber-ringed holes for LCS, and of course all-black anodized aluminum. These high-end, fantastically designed, all-black PC chassis are now available.

Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) introduces the latest AMD based motherboard series - ECS Black Deluxe A75F-A, and ECS mainstream series A75F-M and A75F-M2 motherboards. ECS A75 series motherboards powered by AMD Hudson D3 chipset support the latest AMD A series APU.

As one of the ECS Black Deluxe series, ECS A75F-A has passed 50°C burn test, presenting high quality and unbelievable durability. ECS Black Deluxe A75F-A also equips with complete expansion slots from PCI Express 2nd generation x16, x4 to PCI 1st generation for users to enlarge the power of yours computers with every possibility. To match the amazing graphics power of APU, ECS A75F-A has full video output options: HDMI/DVI/D-Sub with optical audio output for you to enjoy the ultimate entertainment moment.

ADATA Technology, a leading manufacturer of high-performance DRAM modules and NAND Flash application products, today announced the release the S511 Solid State Drive (SSD), which employs the latest SATA 6Gb/s specification. With this cutting edge implementation of the latest data transfer standard, the performance of this SSD has been dramatically raised over conventional SATA II products.

The S511 utilizes the new generation SandForce SF-2200 series chip, with native support for the SATA 6Gb/s platform. Its read and write speeds are twice that of SSDs using the older SATA II specification, and in real world test simulations reached 550/520MB read and write speeds respectively, with 4K random write speeds as high as 60,000 IOPS. For consumers, this means transferring 5GB media archives can be completed in as few as 15 seconds. In actual testing of Windows 7 boot speed, the S511 cruised to an impressive 25 second system boot time.

Newcomer into the flash storage industry, MyDigitalSSD, announced its new line of SSDs in the mSATA form-factor, called "Bullet Proof". It is being offered as an upgrade option for a number of netbooks and tablets made by the likes of ASUS, Dell, Lenovo and Google (Chrome netbook). Offering capacities of 32 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB; Bullet Proof can provide read speeds of up to 270 MB/s, and 200 MB/s write speeds, with 4K random read throughput of 35,000 IOPS. CrystalDiskMark measured both read and write speeds to be around the 200 MB/s mark.

The SSD uses 50 nm MLC NAND flash memory, and supports TRIM, RAID, NCQ with command chain length of 32, power failure recovery, dynamic bad-block management, hardware monitoring, and SMART. With an MTBF of 2 million hours and backed by a 2-year replacement warranty, the 32, 64, and 128 gigabyte variants are priced at US $80, $140, and $280, respectively.

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced the Force Series 3 family of solid-state drives. The newly announced Force Series 3 models take advantage of the new SATA 6.0 Gb/s (SATA 3) interface to deliver impressive speed at an attractive price. The Force Series 3 features the highest performance version of the latest-generation SandForce SF-2281 SSD Processor with out-of-box read and write speeds of up to 550 MB/s and 520 MB/s respectively, and an impressive 85000K IOPS for measurably faster system response, boot times and application load times than SATA 2 solid-state drives.

All Force Series 3 models are also backward compatible with SATA 2, and include an easy-to-use 3.5" adapter to allow owners of both desktop and notebook PCs to enjoy the cool, quiet operation and enhanced system performance made possible by replacing their traditional mechanical hard drive with an SSD.

As Intel's Smart Response technology and 311 Series "Larson Creek" SSD gain market traction along with the Intel Z68 chipset platform jointly released on 10th May, Gigabyte is designing four new motherboards that come with a mSATA slot. Smart Response is a technology that uses SSD to cache large hard drives, improving storage performance and system responsiveness. To propagate it, Intel released an inexpensive low-capacity SSD line, the 311 series, which uses SLC NAND flash that features higher erase cycles.

Intel's Larson Creek SSDs are available both in conventional 2.5-inch SATA form factor, and mSATA module form-factor that makes it easier to deploy in notebooks, alongside bulkier 2.5-inch hard drives. mSATA also gives the "cache SSD" a more compact component feel than a product feel, that helps builders organize their desktop builds better, and stop looking at Larson Creek as a "badly performing, and tiny primary storage," which isn't its purpose to begin with. The GA-Z68XP-UD3, GA-Z68XP-D3, GA-Z68AP-D3 and GA-Z68P-DS3 are four new entry-mainstream segment motherboards featuring an mSATA slot with adequate clearance and retention mechanism to hold the Larson Creek mSATA module.

BIOSTAR MICROTECH INT'L CORP., A professional manufacturer of motherboards, introduces Intel Z68 chipset based motherboard that supports Intel 2nd generation Sandy Bridge processor family, it is special designed for advanced gamers and overclocking fans. BIOSTAR "TZ68A+", the only solution supports both built-in graphics and external overclocking among Intel Sandy Bridge processors; it is also equipped with Lucid Virtu GPU Virtualization - a dynamic switching between built-in processor graphics and high-end 3D performance discrete graphics cards. Moreover, it also fully supports Intel Smart Response Technology - enabling SSD like performance with HDD capacity.

Facing global changes in the memory storage products industry, despite the technical threshold of industrial class and military class memory products are higher; they have the advantages of steadier market demand and supply when compared with their consumer class counterparts. As a result, products of industrial and military applications have become a very competitive field for major module manufacturers. Team Group Inc. has been actively cultivating industrial class products, taking advantage of its strong research and development abilities and its keen grasp of market trends.

Using IFM (Industrial Flash Module) SATA SSD as a pioneer, Team Group Inc. is committed to increasing the performance of integrated system products, and will further move towards to the more stringent industrial specifications in the future. Team Group Inc. aims to provide integrated solutions of more competitive embedded platforms and storage devices for telecommunication, transportation, automation and tablet system developers.

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.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today unveiled the Agility 3 and Solid 3 SATA III SSD product lines. The Agility 3 and Solid 3 are designed to cater to speed-seeking enthusiasts in search of the best value for performance. Using the latest technology, these new series deliver nearly double the performance of the previous generation and offer a more cost-effective alternative to current SATA 6Gbps SSDs on the market.

"With increased availability of SATA III platforms, the demand for the latest generation SSDs has grown rapidly," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of OCZ technology Group. "We are addressing this demand with new products that offer both the best performance and value for consumers. The new Agility 3 and Solid 3 SSDs make it easier than ever for consumers take advantage of the new SATA III interface. When coupled with the speed and reliability benefits that our SSDs offer over traditional hard drives, it makes the two new series the ideal choices for mobile and desktop 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.

Intel's much talked about "Larson Creek" 311 Series entry-level SATA solid state drive (SSD), which forms the foundation of Intel Smart Response technology was pictured and tested. The SSD comes in a standard-looking 2.5-inch shell resembling many other Intel SSD models. Unlike the more popular X25-M series, the 311 Series SSDs use 34 nm single-level cell (SLC) NAND flash memory, and comes in low capacities such as 20 GB. That's not even enough capacity to install the OS and important applications (which is barely possible on 40 GB SSDs), but that's not the purpose of the SSD. It assists hard drives, acting as a fast "cache", storing only the most important system and program files. Upon opening, one can see Intel-made controller and NAND flash chips. The 311 Series "Larson Creek" 20 GB SSD was put through a run of CrystalDiskMark, where it clocked transfer rates of nearly 199 MB/s sequential read, and 114 MB/s sequential write.

HP today expanded its notebook PC line with products and services that provide an optimal combination of sleek style, ultra-portability and high performance to deliver an outstanding mobile experience.The company also launched HP DataPass, a pre-paid 3G mobile broadband service available in the U.S. across HP's business notebook lineup and expanded HP Beats Audio technology to a business notebook and consumer Mini PC. HP furthered its FORGE business notebook design framework with the HP ProBook m-series and EliteBook p-series models and built upon its MUSE consumer notebook design philosophy with the HP Mini 210, Pavilion dv4 and ENVY 14.

FinalWire today released the latest version of AIDA64, the industry's popular system diagnostic tool for IT administrators, engineers, and PC enthusiasts. Version 1.70 of AIDA64 includes mainly updated device support database. To begin with, AIDA64 features the ability to tell LGA1155 motherboards with B3 stepping Cougar Point chipsets from the older stepping; it features preliminary support for AMD's upcoming FX-Series CPUs, and A-Series APUs.

A host of new SATA SSDs are supported, including Intel 320 series, OCZ Vertex 3 series, and Samsung PM810. Support is added for AMD Mobility Radeon HD 6770M and Radeon HD 6790 GPUs. Support is also added for a scores of NVIDIA GeForce 500 series GPUs, including GT 520, GT 520M, GT 550M, GT 555M, GTX 550 Ti, GTX 590.DOWNLOAD: AIDA64 v1.70 EXE Installer, ZIP Portable Package

SSD Caching has become the "Hot" Storage topic of the PC industry. In the near future, motherboards based on the Intel SandyBridge (Z68) will bring SSD Caching to the desktop PC. SSD Caching boots system performance by using high-speed solid state disks to offset slower, but high-capacity hard disk drives. Once limited to enterprise server applications, SSD Caching is now within the reach of PC users. The mainstream consumer market has embraced SSD's sub $100 models are now commonplace; ideal for caching applications.

Recently, HighPoint Technologies has launched a pair of 6Gb/s PCI-Express 2.0 HBA's that deliver SSD Caching solutions to any PCI-Express Platform, sharing the high-performance benefits of this technology with PC users worldwide. HighPoint SSD Caching HBA's combine any SSD and HDD of any capacity into a single storage drive. SSD Caching Drives can be used to boot the system, host applications or simply serve as libraries for file storage and Home Media Networks. HighPoint SSD Caching HBA's provide two distinct modes of operation: Safe-Mode stores all permanent data safely on the HDD for security, while Capacity Mode uses the space provided by each device to optimize storage and performance.

Plextor, a leading developer and manufacturer of high-performance digital media equipment, announces the newest addition to its Blu-ray lineup with the new PX-LB950UE external 12X Blu-ray Writer - the fastest Blu-ray writer available in the market today. This drive features the latest superspeed USB3.0 and eSATA connections, providing bandwidth for high data transfer rate.

Supplied with advanced Blu-ray and DVD playback software and recording applications, the PX-LB950UE offers a full Blu-ray HD experience. The drive is designed to provide smooth and quiet HD Blu-ray movie playback with excellent sound reproduction and a crystal clear picture quality. This drive also supports 3D playback and is able to convert 2D contents to simulate 3D effects.

Patriot Memory, a global pioneer in high-performance memory, NAND flash, storage and enthusiast computer products, today announces the new high-performance Torqx 2 - a new SSD that delivers the perfect balance of price and performance. The Patriot Torqx 2 series enables users to boost performance of existing desktops and notebooks to achieve maximum performance with SATA II 3.0 Gb/s interfaces.

By combining a cutting-edge newSSD controller with high-performance 3x-nm NAND flash memory, the Patriot Torqx 2 SSDs achieve up to read speeds up to 270MB/s for a noticeable performance boost with daily computing tasks. Write speeds up to 230MB/s ensure the Patriot Torqx 2 series can write virtually as fast as it reads for lightning-fast software installations and large-file creation.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today unveiled a new addition to the highly-awarded Vertex 3 SATA III Series. The Vertex 3 Max IOPS edition drives extend the company's industry-leading Vertex 3 SSD product line to support users that require greater transactional throughput.

"Following the successful launch of our Vertex 3 SATA III 6Gbps solid state drives we are pleased to introduce the new Max IOPS edition," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of OCZ Technology Group. "Vertex 3 Max IOPS drives increase random write performance, and are the ideal storage solution for applications that require high aggregate workloads and increased IO throughput."

Netlist, Inc., a designer and manufacturer of high-performance memory subsystems, today announced the expansion of its Embedded Flash product portfolio with two new mSATA module additions to the SSD Flash product line. The mSATA mini SSD module offers storage capacity of up to 32GB with onboard 64MB DRAM cache. The mSATA slim SSD module offers storage capacities up to 128GB with onboard 64MB DRAM cache. Both products' smaller form-factor and SSD support for ultra-dense applications makes the mSATA mini and slim modules ideal for datacenter equipment and embedded systems.

"As datacenter equipment becomes increasingly compact, Netlist is tackling space limitations with an innovative Flash product portfolio," said Steve McClure, vice president of worldwide sales and marketing for Netlist. "With our new mSATA mini and mSATA slim SSDs, Netlist addresses the constrained space requirements by providing 2x to 5x the storage density of legacy form-factor solutions."