Conclusion

ASRock 4Core1333-eSATA2 mainboard is relatively new but looks like it was designed a while ago: COM, LPT, 20-pin power connector, huge electrolytic capacitors, jumpers… I couldn’t get rid of the impression that it was an older mainboard, used for quite a while before it got into our lab. I cannot agree with those web-sites that awarded ASRock 4Core1333-eSATA2 with a “Highly Recommended” title. I couldn’t find any advantages in the ASRock 4Core1333-eSATA2 mainboard that the other mainboards out there do not have. However, I can list quite a few things that are obviously missing.

Unfortunately, I have to admit that ASRock engineers failed to reveal the potential of the Intel P31 Express chipset. However, I cannot promise that we will continue reviewing solutions from other mainboard makers based on this core logic set. It turned out that mainboards on this chipset are pretty rare in the market. For example, abit, and Asus have no solutions like that at all. BY the way, I assumed that the new chipsets from Intel’s third series differ from their predecessors by Penryn (Yorkfield and Wolfdale) support. However, I came across an amazing I45D mainboard in abit’s product range that turned out to be no mistake! Their solution on Intel 945G chipset promises to deliver not only 1333MHz FSB but also support for the upcoming 45nm processors.

But coming back to the Intel P31 Express chipset, I have to say that I found solutions based on it among Gigabyte’s and MSI’s products. Maybe we will check them out, to show you how good this chipset actually is.