GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced official certification of the latest dual port Thunderbolt 2 technology on the GIGABYTE Z87X-UD7 TH motherboard. Code-named 'Falcon Ridge', the new Intel Thunderbolt 2 controller supports an incredible 20 Gb/s aggregated data transfer simultaneously across two channels per port.

"GIGABYTE is delighted to announce official certification of Intel's latest Thunderbolt technology on our flagship 8 series motherboard," commented Henry Kao, Vice President of GIGABYTE Motherboard Business Unit. "This underlines our commitment to offering our customers the absolute fastest connectivity options, placing GIGABYTE at the forefront of technological innovation."

In addition to the Z87N-WiFi mini-ITX motherboard, GIGABYTE showed off a couple of its top ATX products from its mainline Z87X series, the Z87X-UD4H and Z87X-UD5H. The two mark GIGABYTE's complete breakaway from the blue color scheme, and lack the color even on their heatsinks. The Z87X-UD4H features a hot-rod red+silver+black color-scheme, while the Z87X-UD5H features gold+silver+black. Both boards are based on the company's Ultra Durable 5 construction. Both boards appear to offer overclocker-friendly features that are reserved for the high-end, such as redundant BIOS, diagnostic LEDs and measurement points for each power domain, and high-grade electrical components.

The Z87X-UD4H offers a 16-phase CPU power supply, three each of PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots (electrical x16/x8/x4), PCI-Express 2.0 x1, and a legacy PCI. It offers eight internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, two eSATA 6 Gb/s, ten USB 3.0 ports (six on the rear panel, four by headers), 8-channel HD audio, and display outputs that include DVI, D-Sub, HDMI, and DisplayPort. The Z87X-UD5H, on the other hand, offers the same 16-phase CPU VRM and the same expansion slot layout as its sibling, but tops it up with ten internal SATA 6 Gb/s ports, dual gigabit Ethernet, a second DVI connector instead of D-Sub, and FireWire (by header). The two will most likely be part of GIGABYTE's first wave of socket LGA1150 motherboards, and could be priced above $150.

At a media event held in its Taipei headquarters, GIGABYTE demonstrated its AMP-UP integrated audio solution that will feature on some of its upcoming motherboards. On that pretense, it even got to show of two of its top socket LGA1150 motherboards, built for Core "Haswell" processors, the G1.Sniper 5, and the G1.Sniper M5. Positioned in gamer-overclocker targeted G1.Killer series, the two boards are based on Intel Z87 Express chipset. The G1.Sniper 5 is the larger standard ATX motherboard; while the M5 is a compact micro-ATX offering. The pictures also confirm that socket LGA1150 retention module and bolt-spacing is identical to sockets LGA1155 and LGA1156.

The G1.Sniper 5 appears to feature a 16-phase VRM, which uses ferrite-core chokes, and the same International Rectifier PowIRstage components as Ultra Durable 5 motherboards from the previous generation. This time around, the CPU plays a greater role in voltage regulation. The driver-MOSFETs on the board are cooled by an active fan-heatsink, which also has a liquid channel running through it, so you could make it part of your CPU loop. Thankfully GIGABYTE didn't let its imagination run away with designs of the other heatsinks on the board, one of which cools the Z87 Express chipset, and the other we imagine, a PLX PEX8747 48-lane PCI-Express 3.0 bridge chip. This chip gets you 4-way SLI/CrossFireX support.

With NVIDIA clamping restrictions on graphics card makers' ability to make custom design PCBs for its flagship GeForce GTX TITAN GPU, the likes of GIGABYTE are opting for the next best thing - creating accessories that enthusiasts can mod their GTX TITAN graphics cards with, at the cost of product warranties. A little earlier this month, the company unveiled its WindForce 450W VGA cooler, which is capable of handling GTX TITAN. At a more recent event, it showed of G-Power, a supplementary voltage regulation module, which is similar in principle to EVGA EPower and ASUS Matrix PWM.

The device is a small PCB with high-capacity power leads on one-end, which need to be soldered on to the reference GeForce GTX TITAN PCB, and a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS connectors on the other. Between them is a 6+1 phase VRM, with components that appear similar to the ones used on GIGABYTE Ultra Durable 5 motherboards, consisting of 60A ferrite core chokes, International Rectifier PowIRstage IR3550 driver-MOSFETs, and International Rectifier IR3563A controller. The G-Power module stabilizes power on the GTX TITAN PCB, preventing voltage droop from breaking the overclock. There's no word on how GIGABYTE plans to sell these.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced the record highest clock speed 7.86GHz on AMD's A10 5800K APU using the GIGABYTE F2A85X-UP4 motherboard.

Attending an AMD Extreme OC show on 20th Nov. in Taipei Taiwan, GIGABYTE's overclocking team, The Killers (featuring HiCookie, S.Dougal and John Lam), took part in an overclocking demonstration achieving two new records on AMD's new Vishera and Trinity platforms. The GIGABYTE F2A85X-UP4 motherboard was able to push the AMD 5800K to an incredible 7.86GHz, more than twice the 3.8GHz stock clock. The AMD FX8350 processor was pushed to 8.47GHz using a GIGABYTE 990FXA-UD3 board.

AMD today announced retail and distribution channel availability of its second generation AMD A-Series Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) for desktop, small form-factor and home theater PCs. These new APUs target do-it-yourself (DIY) PC builders, mainstream gamers and value-added resellers who want to upgrade their PC infrastructure with affordable performance, discrete-level graphics, multiple cores and fast processing for outstanding responsiveness.

The second generation desktop AMD A-Series APU is available at prices ranging from $53 to $122 USD. Compared to similarly priced competitive offerings, the new APUs offer more cores, more speed, best-in-class entertainment experiences and an easy upgrade path based on a stable socket infrastructure. AMD APU users also gain access to the AMD AppZone and a comprehensive list of accelerated applications that leverage the full compute power of the APU. With hardware-accelerated support for DirectX 11 on AMD Radeon graphics and AMD Eyefinity technology delivering a more immersive experience, the AMD A-Series APUs are the ideal solution for systems running the highly-anticipated Microsoft Windows 8 and today's Microsoft Windows 7 operating systems.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today launched its latest FM2 series motherboards supporting next generation AMD A-Series APUs. The GIGABYTE F2A85X-UP4, the flagship of the GIGABYTE FM2 series, incorporates GIGABYTE Ultra Durable 5 technology, digital power delivery and other exclusive features that guarantee you're getting the most from AMD's new 'Trinity' technology.

"A number of new features and technologies make their debut on the AMD platform, including Ultra Durable 5 technology, Dual UEFI 3D BIOS, Digital Power delivery, triple display support and Lucid Virtu MVP," commented Tim Handley, Deputy Director of Motherboard Marketing at GIGABYTE. "These new FM2 series motherboards offer outstanding value for any DIY builder looking to harness the improved performance of AMD's Trinity APUs."

Gigabyte unveiled its flagship socket FM2 motherboard, designed for upcoming AMD A-Series "Trinity" APUs, the F2A85X-UP4. Based on the new AMD A85X FCH chipset, the board implements Gigabyte Ultra Durable 5 motherboard construction, which includes 2 oz copper PCB layers, humidity-proof glass-fabric layers, solid-state capacitors, new high-current ferrite core chokes, and PowIRstage IR3550 driver-MOSFETs. The FM2 socket is powered by an 8-phase VRM. It is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, supporting up to 32 GB of dual-channel DDR3-2400+ MHz memory; and three PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots.

The three PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots are electrically configured as x16/NC/NC, x8/x8/NC, or x8/x4/x4, depending on how they're populated. AMD CrossFireX is supported. Other expansion slots include three PCI-Express 2.0 x1, and a legacy PCI. The AMD A85X FCH gives out a total of eight SATA 6 Gb/s ports, seven of which are assigned as internal, and one eSATA, on the F2A85X-UP4. Display connectivity includes DVI, D-Sub, HDMI, and DisplayPort. Other connectivity includes six USB 3.0 ports (four rear, two by header), 8+2 channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, and keyboard/mouse combination PS/2 connector. The board is driven by dual-UEFI BIOS, with a graphical 3DBIOS setup program. We expect the F2A85X-UP4 to be priced anywhere in the US $150-$200 range.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced the GIGABYTE Classic Challenge II, the latest GIGABYTE overclocking competition hosted on HWBOT.org.

Open from September 1st through September 30th 2012, the GIGABYTE Classic Challenge II combines two exciting stages based on classic 3DMark01 and SuperPi 31M benchmarks. The overclocker with the highest points tally from both rounds will win a recently announced GIGBAYTE Z77X-UP7, with a 2nd place finish earning a GIGABYTE Z77X-UP5 TH. Another Z77X-UP7 will be awarded to the entrant with the most GIGABYTE Classic Challenge II submissions on HWBOT.

Gigabyte cracked Core i7-3770K clock speed record, achieving 7102 MHz. The feat was made possible with its newest Ultra Durable 5 motherboard, the Z77X-UP7. The UP7 is geared for overclocking, but unlike some of its predecessors such as the X79-UD7 and X58-OC, the new board focuses as much on graphics card overclocking and multi-GPU capabilities, as CPU overclocking. In the CPU overclocking department, it is armed by over 32 phases of CPU VRM that use PowIRstage chips.

With graphics card overclocking, not only does the board provide up to four PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots using PLX PEX8747 chips, but also a PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot that's directly wired to the CPU, for single card overclocking. This is done by wiring all 16 lanes from the CPU through 2-way switches before making it to the PEX8747 chips. If a graphics card is populating the black PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, the PEX8747 is automatically cut off, and all 16 lanes from the CPU root complex it routed to it. This way, single card overclockers overcome the latency issues of bridge chips. The Z77X-UP7 is armed with countless such OC-friendly features, find out more at the source.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced the GIGABYTE Classic Challenge, its latest overclocking competition hosted on HWBOT.org. Open until August 15th 2012, the GIGABYTE Classic Contest combines two classic stages, great prizes and a small twist.

Overclockers are asked to compete on two classic benchmarks 3DMark 01 and Super Pi 32M with a GIGABYTE X79S-UP5 motherboard and a GIGABYTE X79-UP4 up for grabs. The twist? Simple. If one entrant has the raw talent to claim both stages, GIGABYTE will also award a bonus prize of a forthcoming GIGABYTE F2A85X-UP4.

GIGABYTE did not leave out the Sandy Bridge-E HEDT platform when designing its new Ultra Durable 5 line of motherboards, the company showed of two new socket LGA2011 parts, the X79S-UP5 WIFI, and the X79-UP4.

The X79-UP4 is designed to be a sub-$300 offering, being a notch above the X79-UD3 (and perhaps even the X79-UD5). It uses a 6+1 phase CPU VRM, which consists of high-current ferrite core chokes, and PowIRstage IR3550 driver-MOSFETs. GIGABYTE added eight DDR3 DIMM slots, four on either side of the socket, supporting up to 64 GB of quad-channel DDR3 memory. Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 3.0 x16 (x16/x8/x16/x8), two PCI-Express 2.0 x1, and one legacy PCI. The X79-UP4 otherwise has a similar connectivity load-out as the X79-UD3.

Among GIGABYTE's new motherboard extravaganza, are some of its first socket FM2 motherboards, which based on the new AMD A85 FCH chipset (higher price-points) and previous-generation A55 FCH (lower price-points) and support next-generation "Trinity" APUs. Among these are the high-end F2A85X-UP4 with Ultra Durable 5 construction, mainstream F2A55-DS3, and entry-level F2A55M-DS2 Ultra Durable 1 motherboards.

The F2A85X-UP4 is loaded with top-tier VRM components, including high-current ferrite core chokes, IR3550 PowIRstage driver-MOSFETs, which make up an 8-phase CPU VRM. The FM2 socket is wired to four DDR3 memory slots, with support for dual-channel DDR3-2400 MHz by overclocking; and two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots (x8/x8, when both are populated). Other expansion slots include three PCI-Express 2.0 x1, a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x4), and a legacy PCI, all of which are wired to the A85 FCH.

GIGABYTE showed off some of its first Ultra Durable 5 motherboards, which included its first Thunderbolt-equipped ones, the Z77X-UP4 TH and the Z77X-UP5 TH. The two are slated to be notches above the current-generation Z77X-UD3H and Z77X-UD5H, respectively. Their most striking feature is the Thunderbolt interface, which gives high-bandwidth devices (such as DAS) access to 10 Gb/s of bandwidth. The Thunderbolt interface is also wired to the Intel Flexible Display Interface (FDI), which routes the Intel HD 4000/2500 series graphics of the processor through a common Thunderbolt + mini-DisplayPort, which can then be daisy-chained between 6 devices, including a monitor. The two also feature high-grade CPU VRM, which utilize new high-current chokes and PowIRstage IR3550 driver-MOSFETs, and a VRD12-compliant VRM controller, also made by IR. The Z77X-UP4 TH and the Z77X-UP5 TH are otherwise similar to the UD3H and UD5H, respectively, in terms of other features.

It's good to see GIGABYTE back to doing high-end motherboards with overkill CPU power designs. Its latest creation, the Z77X-UP7, was shown to sections of the media, at a private exhibition, ahead of Computex. The Z77X-UP7 is the company's first motherboard to feature its Ultra Durable 5 motherboard construction technology, which is basically Ultra Durable 4 augmented with higher current 60A chokes, and International Rectifier PowIRStage IR3550 ICs (a highly potent driver-MOSFET implementation). The Z77X-UP7 is based on the Intel Z77 Express chipset, and supports Core "Ivy Bridge" and "Sandy Bridge" processors in the LGA1155 package.