The makers of inexpensive systems do not seem to favor the next generation Nvidia ION platform that adds a discrete Nvidia GT218 graphics adapter to the standard features and functionality of Intel Pine Trail. However, we managed to get our hands on the barebone Zotac ZBOX HD-ID11 system that allows you to easily build a miniature computer system on Intel Atom D510 processor and Nvidia ION2 platform.

This product is based on Intel X58 Express chipset, supports Nvidia 3-Way SLI and ATI Quad-GPU CrossFireX configurations, features all necessary interfaces including IEEE1394, USB 3.0 and SATA 6 Gbps, but is available at a very affordable price.

In this roundup we are going to discuss the features and functionality of four Socket AM3 mainboards based on AMD 870 chipset: Asus M4A87TD EVO, Biostar TA870+, Gigabyte GA-870A-UD3 and MSI 870A-GD54. In reality, however, we tested eight different mainboards.

This is a compact mainboard with lots of highs and but a few lows. It is just as good as other mainboards in its specs, BIOS options, CPU compatibility and even CPU overclocking functionality.

This review will talk about a compact mainboard on Intel H57 Express chipset that doesn’t boast any specific advantages, but has no serious drawbacks either.

Today we are going to talk about six mainboards on AMD 890FX chipset, namely: ASRock 890FX Deluxe3, Asus M4A89TD Pro and Asus M4A89TD Pro/USB3, Biostar TA890FXE, Gigabyte GA-890FXA-UD5 and MSI 890FXA-GD70. We will compare their technical specifications, BIOS functionality, overclocking potential; will check out their performance and power consumption.

We are going to test four Radeon HD 5870 graphics cards in CrossFireX configuration and compare them to a 3-way SLI configuration of three GeForce GTX 480 cards using the newest super-expensive mainboard with seven PCI Express slots onboard, four of which work in 16x mode.

Our today’s article is devoted to a comparison between two top mainboards based on the latest and highly functional AMD 890FX chipset. We are going to study their features, investigate CPU and memory overclocking potential, compare performance, USB 3.0 speed and power consumption.

These two top-of-the-line models won’t cause any problems during system assembly and operation in nominal mode; they will allow you to easily overclock your system due to extensive BIOS functionality. Both of them have a lot of additional onboard controllers, including the today’s acute SATA 6Gbps and USB 3.0. Each of the two mainboards has its unique distinguishing features and its unique shortcomings.

This mainboard is based on Intel H55 Express chipset and supports contemporary LGA1156 processors. Mini-ITX form-factor allows building a powerful system in a compact case. Despite tiny size, the board is equipped with numerous controllers, and can even overclock processor and memory if needed.

This is a review of a fully-functional microATX mainboard that has all necessary features and additional controllers, including USB 3.0. We will not only determine the performance improvement provided by this new interface, but will also check the mainboard performance in nominal mode and during overclocking, and test its power consumption in different conditions.

This mainboard is very well designed, its technical specifications meet all today’s requirements, its BIOS allows fine-tuning the system to your liking. It boasts a number of features typical of higher-end mainboards, but has not very high price point.

A full-size mainboard on Intel H55 chipset has a number of obvious advantages over microATX modifications, which are more numerous these days. Unfortunately, performance, energy-efficiency and overclockability are not among these advantages.

These two products offer a very successful and neat combination of all features and interfaces a contemporary platform might need, including a popular USB 3.0 standard. Among the great features we should also list rich BIOS functionality, good overclocking potential and flawless operation.

If you are impressionable and susceptible to depression, then you should probably skip this review. A mainboard with unsuccessful design and extremely limited functionality has a very oppressive effect and may seriously influence your state of mind and overall mood.

The H57M-ED65 is standard in many respects. It is a typical MicroStar product and a typical microATX mainboard based on the Intel H57 Express chipset. It has several minor shortcomings and no remarkably special features, but you can use it successfully even for overclocking.

The new AMD 890GX chipset offers a faster Radeon HD 4290 core and incorporates an SB850 South Bridge that supports Serial ATA 6 Gbps. We will study the new chipset's features using two mainstream mainboards from ASUS and Gigabyte.

In our today’s review of the most extraordinary mainboard we are going to dwell not only on its features. We will also take a glance at solutions from other makers, reveal their peculiarities and discuss the existing tricks for successful overclocking of new processors.

Manufacturers of miniature nettop mainboards offer solutions equipped with single-core as well as dual-core Intel Atom processors. However, are the differences between these two modifications really so significant? We tested two ION platforms and tried to answer this seemingly obvious question.

This small mainboard is rather simple, yet not primitive. It features a number of exciting extras but keenly lacks some necessities.