Cases / Chassis
List of computer case manufacturers:
Akasa
Antec
AOpen
AplusCase
Arctic Cooling
ASUS
Chassis Plans
Chieftec
Cooler Master
Enermax
Foxconn
Gigabyte Technology
HEC Compucase
Intel
Lian Li
NZXT
IXIUM
RAIDMax
SilverStone Technology
Sunbeam Tech
Supermicro
Thermaltake
Ultra Products
Zalman
CD/DVD
AOpen
ASUS
Philips-Lite-On Digital Solutions (PLDS) (PBDS before Lite-On's acquisition of BenQ's optical drive division)
Hewlett-Packard
Hitachi-LG Electronics Data Storage (HLDS)
Panasonic
Pioneer
Plextor
TEAC
Toshiba-Samsung Storage Technology (TSST)
Sony-NEC (Sony NEC Optiarc)
Central processing units
List of x86 central processing unit manufacturers:
AMD
Intel
VIA Technologies
Other architectures:
ARM Limited (ARM)
IBM (POWER)
Marvell Technology Group (ARM)
Sun Microsystems (SPARC)
Texas Instruments (ARM)
Controller cards
3ware
Adaptec
Areca
HighPoint Technologies
Promise Technology
Supermicro
Tekram
Digital video interface
AJA Video Systems
BlueFish444
DELTACAST
Display screens
List of computer display manufacturers:
3M
Apple Inc.
Acer
AG Neovo
ASUS
BenQ
BTC Korea Co., Ltd. (brand name NFren)
Chassis Plans
Chi Mei
Dell
Eizo
Hewlett Packard
IC Power
LG Electronics
NEC
Philips
Samsung
Sharp
Sony
ViewSonic
Westinghouse
Graphics cards
AOpen
ASUS
ATI Technologies
BFG Technologies
Chaintech
Club 3D
Colorful
eVGA
EPoX
Foxconn
Gainward
Gigabyte Technology
HIS
Inno3D
Jetway
Leadtek
Matrox
MSI
Palit
PNY Technologies
Point of View
PowerColor
Sapphire Technology
Sensoray
Universal abit
XFX
Graphics chipsets
ATI Technologies
NVIDIA
S3 Graphics
Intel
Silicon Integrated Systems
Hard disks
List of hard disk manufacturers:
ExcelStor Technology
Fujitsu
Hitachi GST
Samsung
Seagate Technology (also Maxtor)
Toshiba
Vantec hard disk enclosure
Western Digital
List of defunct hard disk manufacturers
Keyboards
List of keyboard manufacturers:
Alps
A4Tech
BTC
Chassis Plans
Cherry
Chicony
Fujitsu Siemens Computers
Genius
Ideazon (Zboard)
Key Tronic
KeyScan
Labtec
Samsung
Logitech
Microsoft
Mitsumi
mahendra Ltd
Saitek
Loudspeakers
List of computer speaker manufacturers:
Altec Lansing
Bose
Creative Labs
Edifier
Harman Kardon
JBL
Klipsch
Logitech
Midiland (out of business?)
Trust
Mice
List of mouse manufacturers:
A4Tech
Creative Technology
i-ball
Logitech
Microsoft
Mikomi
Mitsumi
OCZ Technology
Razer USA Ltd
Trust
Modems
List of modem manufacturers:
3Com
Aopen
Agere (formerly Lucent)
Motorola
Rosewill
U.S. Robotics
ZyXEL
Motherboards
List of motherboard manufacturers:
Abit
AOpen
Arima (Flextronics)
ASUS
ASRock
Advansus (Industrial Motherboards)
BFG Technologies
Biostar
Chassis Plans
Chaintech Ceased manufacturing motherboards.
DFI
ECS (also PCChips)
EPoX
eVGA
FIC
Foxconn, manufacturer of Intel motherboards
Gigabyte
Intel
Jetway
Magic-Pro
MSI
Sapphire Technology
Shuttle
Soyo
Supermicro
Tyan
Universal abit (ABIT)
VIA
XFX
Network cards
List of network card manufacturers:
3Com
Belkin
Broadcom (chipset maker)
CNet Technology
D-Link
Intel
Linksys
Netgear
Realtek (chipset maker)
SMC Networks
Via Technologies (chipset maker)
Zoom Technologies
Aztech
Pendrives
List of USB flash drive manufacturers:
AMKETTE
SanDisk
Kingston
Sony
Transcend
IBALL
TREK
ORCHID
PQI
SENSEI
VERICO
Seagate
Quantum
Umax
Power supplies
List of power supply unit manufacturers:
Akasa
Antec
Channel Well Technology
Chieftec
Codegen Technology
Cooltek
Cooler Master
Corsair Memory
Enermax [1]
FSP Group (Fortron Source brand)
Gigabyte
HEC Compucase
Hiper
LC-Power
linkworld
Mushkin
NesteQ
Nexus
OCZ Technology Computer Memory
PC Power and Cooling Power Supplies
Rosewill
Seasonic
Seventeam
SilverStone Technology
Tacens
Tagan Technology
Thermaltake
Trust
Tuncmatik Iyi Elektrik
Vantec
Xilence
Zalman
Printers
List of printer manufacturers:
Brother
Canon
Olivetti
Epson
HP
Lexmark
OKI
Dell
Samsung
Konica Minolta
Xerox
TVS| TVS Dot Matrix Printers
RAM
List of RAM manufacturers:
Apacer
Adata
Centon Electronics
Corsair Memory
Elpida Memory
Fujitsu
G.Skill
Hynix
Hyundai
Infineon
Kingston Technology
Kyocera
Micron Technology - Manufacturer of Avant, Crucial, K-Byte & Spectek brands
Mushkin
Novatech Solutions
OCZ Technology
Patriot
PQI
Qimonda
Rambus
Renesas Technology
Samsung
Sony
Supertalent
Toshiba
Transcend
Tyan
Solid-state drives
Adata
BiTMICRO
Fusion io
HyperOS Systems
Lexar
Memoright
Mtron
PNY
PQI
Samsung Electronics
SanDisk
STEC, Inc.
Super Talent Technology
Transcend
Scanners
List of Image scanner manufacturers:
Canon
Epson
Fujitsu
HP
Microtek
Mustek Systems
Ricoh
Umax
KeyScan
Sound cards
List of sound card manufacturers:
ASUS
C-Media
Creative Technology
E-MU Systems
M-Audio
Razer USA Ltd
RME
TerraTec
Turtle Beach Systems
VIA Technologies
TV tuner cards
List of TV tuner card manufacturers:
ASUS
AVerMedia Technologies
Elgato
Hauppauge
TerraTec
TechnoTrend AG
KWorld Computer
Leadtek
LifeView
Pinnacle Systems
Prolink Microsystems
Webcams
List of webcam manufacturers:
Creative Technology
Genius
Intel
Labtec
Logitech
Microsoft
Philips
Trust
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
List of computer hardware manufacturers
Saturday, May 31, 2008
What kind of laptop is right for me?
To choose the right notebook--one with the right set of features at the right price--you'll need to figure out how you'll want to use your machine. Match your needs to one of these user profiles to get started.
Home user | Student | Frequent flier | Business power user | Multimedia author or gamer
Home user
Home users are increasingly turning to notebooks as their primary PCs; they like that laptops can offer similar performance and features to those of a desktop PC and can be easily moved from room to room. Though of course almost any notebook will do for typical home use, there are two types of notebooks most suitable for home users: midsize notebooks, which tend to be budget-friendly, and desktop replacements, which are usually packed with features.
Key features
| AMD Turion 64, AMD Turion 64 X2, Intel Core Duo, or Intel Core 2 Duo |
| At least 1GB of memory |
| Large hard drive for storing digital photos and video |
| 14.1-inch display or larger |
| Fixed or swappable DVD burner |
| Wired and wireless networking |
| Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium or Apple Mac OS X |
Student
Students and others on a tight budget should look for a laptop that delivers the most bang for the buck. In particular, students need a notebook that is small and light enough to lug back and forth across campus but rugged enough to withstand bouncing around in a backpack.
Key features
| AMD Turion 64, AMD Turion 64 X2, Intel Core Duo, or Intel Core 2 Duo |
| At least 1GB of memory |
| Big hard drive to hold all those MP3s |
| DVD burner for backups and class projects |
| Wired and wireless networking for network-equipped classrooms and dorm rooms |
| Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium or Apple Mac OS X |
Frequent flier
If you spend a lot of time on the road, size and weight are the two most critical factors in choosing a new notebook--even if it means sacrificing a little on performance and features. The smallest and lightest notebooks, ultraportables, weigh less than four pounds and are no thicker than a spiral-bound notebook.
Key features
| AMD Turion 64, AMD Turion 64 X2, Intel Core Solo, or Intel Core Duo |
| At least 1GB of memory |
| A 13.3-inch display or smaller |
| Wired and wireless networking |
| Extended battery for those cross-country flights |
| Media slice or external CD-RW/DVD drive |
| Port replicator for the desk |
| Microsoft Windows |
Business power user
If you rely on the same notebook at work, at home, and on the road, you need a well-balanced system. And it has to deliver the performance to keep up with a wide range of applications. A thin-and-light is just the ticket.
Key features
| AMD Turion 64 X2 or Intel Core 2 Duo |
| At least 1GB of memory, preferably 2GB for Windows Vista |
| Midsize hard drive |
| A 14-inch or 15.4-inch display |
| Dual-layer DVD burner |
| Wired and wireless networking |
| Extra battery |
| Microsoft Windows Vista Business or Windows |
Multimedia author or gamer
If you demand more from a notebook, you'll need a true desktop replacement. Whether you're designing a Web site, editing home movies, or mowing down aliens, your notebook will demand a powerful processor, plenty of memory, great graphics, and a healthy hard drive.
Key features
| AMD Turion 64 X2, Intel Core 2 Duo, or Intel Core 2 Extreme |
| 2GB or more of memory |
| A 15.4-inch display or larger |
| Advanced graphics card with 256MB or 512MB of its own memory or dual SLI graphics |
| The largest and fastest hard drive available |
| Dual-layer DVD burner, possibly HD-DVD or Blu-Ray compatible |
| Multimedia connectors, such as S-Video, HDMI, FireWire, S/PDIF |
| External keyboard and mouse |
| Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium or Ultimate, or Apple Mac OS X |
Which Desktop PC is best for me?
Like most consumers, you probably have an idea of how much you want to spend on a desktop. But how do you ensure that you get exactly what you need? The different shapes and sizes, the wide range of configurations, and the seemingly constant arrival of new and faster technology all make for a difficult decision. To help you find the right mix, we've outlined the four basic types of PC user.
General purpose user | Power user | Home theater enthusiast | Home office worker
General purpose user
These days, $500 to $1,500 will net you a desktop with a dual-core CPU and enough power to run productivity apps, view and edit vacation photos, manage MP3s and videos, and even play many of today's games--the core activities most common to families, students, and the general purpose PC user. At $1,000 and up, you should easily be able to perform those tasks. Spend around $500, and in most cases you'll still be able to run common tasks without delay, although 3D gaming becomes a stretch. You will definitely find a dual-core chip in a $500 PC (you should insist on a dual-core chip these days, unless your budget keeps you under the $500 mark), but
If you're leaning towards Apple, you should keep in mind that Apple's OS X operating system is due for an update in October. We recommend waiting until then to purchase a new Mac, so you don't have to worry about updating the operating system yourself later on. We also wouldn't be surprised if Apple came out with a new desktop between now and then. We can't say what it might look like, but any Mac Mini or iMac will get the job done for most of today's day-to-day users. We have no reason to doubt that Apple will continue to offer relatively affordable, capable home systems.
Key features:
| AMD Athlon 64 X2, or Intel Core 2 Duo processor |
| 1GB of DDR2 memory |
| 250GB to 500GB hard drive |
| 128MB, DirectX 9-capable graphics card from ATI or Nvidia |
| DVD burner |
| 17- to 19-inch LCD |
| 2-piece or 2.1 speaker set |
| Windows Vista Home Premium or Apple OS X Leopard (when it becomes available) |
| Apple iLife or Microsoft Works Suite 2006 (students might want full-blown Office 2007 or iWork '06) |
Power user
It's easy for the price to get out of hand with a power PC. Take, for instance, any of these quad-core PCs. If you shop around, you should be able to find a more than adequate gaming or digital design box for between $2,500 and $3,500. Look for an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU and up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM.You'll also need a large, fast hard drive--perhaps two or more if you plan to transfer and edit movie files--and of course, a DVD burner or, if you have an HD display, a Blu-ray or HD DVD drive. If your goal is digital design, Apple's Mac Pro continues to shine in this arena. We still won't recommend an Apple for gaming, though, so if that's your aim, it's Windows for you.
The graphics card issue is a bit stickier. Right now, we recommend either of Nvidia's GeForce 8800 GTX or 8800 GTS cards, or one of ATI's newer Radeon HD 2900 XT cards. Each shows promise in current generation games. Which one will be better for next-gen DirectX 10 games we can't say, because the games with which to properly test them aren't here yet. If gaming is your chief concern and you can put off your purchase for a little while, you might wait until the shooter Crysis comes out (allegedly this September). That game represents the next leap forward in PC 3D graphics, and while it won't be the only game that matters, most performance junkies will rely on it to determine which graphics card is the most advanced.
Key features:
| Intel Core 2 Duo E6600, E6750, or E6850; Core 2 Quad Q6600 or Q6700, Core 2 Extreme QX6700, QX6800 or QX6850 |
| 2GB to 4GB of 800MHz or 1,066MHz DDR2 memory |
| 500GB to 1TB 7,200rpm hard drive(s) |
| 512MB ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT, 768MB Nvidia GeForce 8800 GTX, 640MB or 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS |
| Blu-ray, HD DVD, or DVD+/-RW drive |
| 19- to 21-inch LCD |
| Digital 5.1 speakers |
| Windows |
| Microsoft Office 2007, DVD-authoring program |
Home theater enthusiast
If you demand high video quality, you might sacrifice some of that caability if you opt for a lower-end system. As an alternative, you can get a larger A/V component-style case with a full-fledged video card in it to help with the video processing. We've had mixed experiences with Windows Vista's new CableCard support. If you're set on compressing all of your home theater hardware into one box, it might be the solution you're looking for (just don't do it in
Another question to ask yourself with a media PC: do you want to use your TV as your primary display? Flipping through your recorded TV shows
Key features:
| Intel Core or Core 2 Duo or Athlon 64 X2 CPU (quiet and cool operation is more important than raw power) |
| 1GB to 2GB of RAM |
| 500GB or more hard drive space (or Windows Home Server, in a few months) |
| 256MB or better graphics card from ATI or Nvidia |
| Analog or CableCard tuner (optional) |
| Blu-ray, HD DVD or combo optical drive |
| 21-inch or larger LCD or a direct connection to your home-theater display |
| Wireless keyboard and mouse and |
| Front Row, Windows Vista Ultimate or Home Premium, or other media management/DVR software |
Home office worker
Graphics are less of a concern for most businesses, unless you run a design shop. At minimum, you'll want a system with enough power (read: dual-core CPU) for multitasking your daily office chores. The money you save on the graphics you can put toward a larger flat-panel display and a better warranty.
Key features:
| Midrange AMD Athlon 64 X2 or Intel Core 2 Duo processor |
| 1GB of DDR memory |
| 250GB or 300GB hard drive |
| DVD burner |
| 128MB ATI or Nvidia graphics card |
| 19- or 21-inch LCD |
| Windows XP Pro, Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows |
| Microsoft Office XP or Works Suite 2006, or Apple iWork '06 |
Top products
Best 5 desktops
- HP Pavilion Slimline S3330f
- Apple iMac (24-inch, 2.8GHz)
- Dell XPS 630
- Maingear Ephex (Intel and ATI)
- eMachines T5254
Top budget desktops
Top mainstream desktops
Top performance desktops
Dell XPS 730 H2CWednesday, May 28, 2008
PC Buying Guide
Before we proceed to the components, once again we will classify PC users into three categories based on the type of usage. The first category (Class 'A'): the basic user who uses his PC for word processing and accounting purposes and for surfing the Internet or listening to music or watching a movie, or for that matter doing a bit of coding in C, C++, Java etc. Gaming is far from being a necessity. The second category (Class 'B') is the casual gamer. Other than the above tasks, he is interested in playing recent 3D games. He doesn't mind gaming at a lower resolution with some of the visual options toned down as long as he gets playable (FPS) frames per second. The final category (Class 'C') is the power user or the hardcore gamer. He is someone who uses 3D animation software like 3D Studio Max or Maya and demands good FPS in the latest games at a high resolution and with all eye candy enabled. Now that we have defined our users, let's move on to the real thing.
The more adventurous Class A users, who would like to game a bit, can opt for an ATI RS480 motherboard (Rs. 4,500-4,700) from TUL or MSI which has respectable onboard graphics (ATI X300SE) and a PCI Express (PCI-E) slot for future upgrades. I would recommend at least an AMD Athlon 64 2800+ (Rs. 5,300) for the Class-B users. Couple that with a good nVidia nForce 3/4 chipset motherboard (Rs. 4,500-5,000) or the ATI RS480 and you have the foundation of a solid mid-range PC. For those who seek a little extra power and have a little more dough to spare can opt for a Socket-939 Athlon 64 3000+ (Rs 7,300) with a basic nForce 4 Ultra (Rs 5,500 - Rs 6,500) or a RS480 (Rs 5,200) motherboard. The 939 platform supports Dual Channel Memory interface that translated to more memory bandwidth. Now, other than the nForce 3 motherboards, all other boards have a PCI Express slot for graphics. So only those who already own a good AGP card and wish to retain it for a while should opt for the nForce 3; else PCI-E is the way to go. Why haven't I included an Intel CPU in the above categories? Simply because Intel does not have a CPU to match those mentioned above at that price point. To be precise, the Intel CPUs do not offer better value for money. Class-C users should opt for at least a Socket-939 AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (Rs 9,200) or the 3500+ (Rs 12,500) with an nForce 4 Ultra motherboard (Rs 6,500 and above). Those with a really hefty budget can think about a Dual Core Athlon 64 X2 (Rs 25,000+) with an nForce 4 Ultra or an Intel Pentium D with a 945 chipset board. However these CPUs sell with a fat premium and wouldn't be a bad idea to wait for a quarter or two for the prices to assume saner proportions. Especially those thinking of buying the Athlon 64 X2 have an option of opting for a standard Socket-939 CPU and upgrading to the X2 after a few months as they do not have to bother about a motherboard upgrade because the nForce 4 Ultra can play host to both those product lines. Memory 256 MB of DDR RAM should be a minimum for Class A users, while 512 MB is the starting point for Class B users. Class C users shouldn't think of anything lower than a GB. That's for the quantity. As for speeds, 400 MHz is recommended for all the categories as all the boards support it and the price difference between that and the lower clocked RAM is hardly anything. Those buying a Pentium D with a 945 chipset motherboard should go for the DDR-2 modules. The price of DDR-2 533 MHz is marginally higher than the standard DDR-400 modules with similar capacity. Those with the 939 or 945 platform, should opt for two memory sticks instead of one to take advantage of the dual channel memory interface that those boards support. The prices of RAM are extremely volatile in the PC market and are subject to change every now and then. Currently, the prices for DDR-400 RAM are as follows: 256 MB (Rs 1,200 - 1,600), 512 MB (Rs 2,200 - 2,600). 512 MB 533 MHz DDR-2 modules start at Rs- 2,750. Transcend, KingMax and Hynix are the more readily available reputed brands.
Monitor There haven't been any significant changes in the CRT monitors market except for the evolutionary drop in prices. A 17" monitor is recommended for Class A and B users. There are a few 19" monitors around and they sell for over twice the price of regular 17" models. They are not recommended unless you absolutely need them. A standard 17" monitor can be bought for Rs 5,500 while the pure flat variants sell for around Rs 6,800. Preferred models are Samsung 793S, ViewSonic E72f+, LG E700S-H. Not too many changes in the CRT market, but the scene in the LCD arena is significantly different. The prices of LCDs have been falling steadily this year and especially the 17" models. And along with prices, the response time is also getting lower (lower the better). Though they aren't exactly pushing the 17" CRTs, a price drop of over 5K in the past 8 months or so is welcome news. 15" LCDs can be bought for around 10K to 11K while the prices of 17" from major brands like Samsung and ViewSonic have dropped below 15K. Going by the current trend, I won't be surprised to see a price tag of around Rs 10,000 for 17" LCDs in another 6 months or so. Make sure you buy an LCD with a response time of 8 ms or lower, especially gamers. Recommended models ViewSonic VA712 and Samsung 713N. Both sell for around Rs 14,500 to Rs 15,000. Display Cards For the Class A users, the onboard graphics chip is good enough for their needs. If that's not all, you also have an AGP/PCI-E slot to plug in a better Video card if you happen to develop an interest in gaming at a later stage. The Class B users should opt for at least an nVidia GeForce 6600 or ATI X700 based card with 128 MB of DDR RAM. With the above cards you can enjoy all of today's games in medium to high settings at 1024x768 resolution. You should be able to find the above cards in a price range of Rs 6000 to Rs 7,500. If you have a bit more to spend, then the 6600GT based cards are the best option. Their PCI-E versions sell for as low as Rs 8,500 and the AGP versions are available for around 9K. The Class C users should look at nothing less than ATI X800 XL. You can get one for around Rs 16,000 to 18,000. If you really want to go for a kill, nVidia's 7800 series awaits you. But be ready to be lighter by at least Rs 25,000 for the GT version. The GTX can take away another 10K of your hard earned money. There are several vendors selling nVidia cards of which Gainward, BIG and XFX offer good performance and value. Options are limited when it comes to ATI but they are catching up. For now, PowerColor offers a good range of ATI cards.
Cabinet and Power Supply Choose a spacious cabinet with proper ventilation. Add a couple of fans for proper airflow. As for the SMPS, a good 300 Watts SMPS is good enough for standard usage, i.e. up to 3-4 IDE devices. If you plan to connect anything more than that or a Graphics card that draws more power, then a 400 Watts SMPS or better would be necessary. PowerSafe still remains our preferred brand. It is a quality product that is reasonably priced and comes with a 3-year warranty as compared to one year from other competing brands. Buy an Antec SMPS if you can afford it. Sound card and Speakers The classification of users does not apply to this section as sound enthusiasts can fall into either of the categories. For a casual listener, the onboard sound card and a pair of stereo speakers should be more than enough. For the rest (especially gamers and movie buffs), I would suggest that they first try out their onboard sound card before opting for the Creative Live or Audigy series of sound cards. The onboard sound has really matured and is certainly worth a look in, especially if you have a Realtek sound chip (ALC650 or better) integrated on your motherboard. Not only is the quality good but they also support 5.1-channel output and some of the recent ones provide you 8-channel output. For those who prefer a fair bit of thump, opt for a 2.1 channel system. The Artis S500 is one of the best in the entry level segment along with the Altec Lansing AVS 300. For music enthusiasts on a budget, I would recommend a good-quality 2.1 speaker system like the Altec Lansing ATP3 (Rs 3,300). For the serious music freaks with money to spare, the ideal choice would be the Altec Lansing MX-5021 (Rs 9,000) with an excellent high and mid-range reproduction and thumping bass. A good 5.1 channel system will serve gamers and DVD movie fanatics better. Those on an extremely tight budget, can opt for an entry level 5.1 channel system like the Artis S5500 (Rs. 3,500). For those with bigger budgets, check out the 5300 from Logitech or the Artis X10. The Logitech Z-680/5500, Creative Gigaworks S750 would suit those who seek the cream of multi-channel segment. These are undoubtedly the best speaker systems officially available in our country. Keyboard and Mouse Shopping for keyboards and mice shouldn't be an issue. Choose a sturdy keyboard with tactile keys and an optical mouse. Gamers should settle for nothing less than MS Wheel Mouse Optical (not the MS Basic Optical Mouse) as it has a much refined sensor that isn't plagued with tracking off issues. Hardcore gamers have a choice between the Logitech MX-310 and MX-518, the high sensitivity gaming mice. As for the rest of the components, I don't think you should have much trouble in choosing them. However, if you need any help, there are enough reviews on this site along with our experts on 'Ask Techtree' and 'Forums' to help you out. I hope the above tips will prove handy in choosing the optimal configuration for the PC that you seek.
How to choose a MotherBoard?
Within a family, a mother provides support to her children and facilitates their growth and performance in the world outside. She is the one responsible for her child's performance: good or bad. Ditto is the case with a PC motherboard, ie mother of all boards. If your system is able to offer all the features and performs well (it's stable and scalable), you would invariably end up praising the motherboard and if it has limited features, and is poor on performance, the poor board would be the first to receive flak. Though you can never replace your mother in real life, thankfully, this is not the case with PCs. So, in case you are planning to upgrade or buy a new motherboard, take out a few minutes from your hectic routine and read through the following. You'll find what's hot and what's not in the market. Here we go!
CPU supportA motherboard forms the base for any system. Each component is directly or indirectly connected to it. Invariably it's the type of motherboard that determines what CPU it can accommodate. The Intel-based motherboard will not accommodate CPU from competing vendors. In fact, there is even a possibility that it might not even accommodate a higher gigs CPU from the same vendor. Generally, all entry-level or budget-range motherboards don't have support for Quad cores; they only support single and dual core processors. Such is the need of various applications today, that you at least need a motherboard that has support for dual core processors. But the big question remains: what processor to go for? With Intel and AMD dishing out so many options, it's always difficult to pick the right one as per your need. Well, if your need is very basic and you simply need a system to run office applications and connect to the Net, then any budget range processor such as Intel Pentium IV, Intel Core Solo or AMD Sempron would suffice. But it's still advisable to opt for a motherboard that has support for dual core processors such as Intel Core 2 Duo, Pentium Dual Core, and AMD Athlon, so that tomorrow when your needs increase you can upgrade the processor rather than entirely changing your motherboard.
With the entry of Quad Core in the desktop segment, we even have motherboards with support for Quad Core processors. In case, you are a professional gamer or a high-end power user, then going for motherboards having support for a Quad Core processor makes sense. Also, there is a move towards the 45 nm technology, so checking whether your motherboard has support for that or not is also an intelligent move. We already have a quad core processor based on this technology from Intel, AMD will be joining the bandwagon soon, and we also believe that processors based on 45nm technology will rule the market in near future. So, this surely is an important criterion when we think in terms of upgradability.
Which chipset?A chipset is basically a group of ICs or several chips designed to work together. Since, the chipset controls communication amongst the processor and external devices, it plays a crucial role in determining the system's performance. We have two types of chipsets on the motherboard: Northbridge and Southbridge. The Northbridge links the CPU to high-speed devices, especially main memory and graphics controller while the Southbridge connects it to low-speed peripheral buses such as PCI. The chipset limits the CPU types and speeds that the board can take, the type of RAM you can install, and also limits the extras such as integrated graphics, sound and USB 2.0 ports that can be included on the board.
While opting for an entry level motherboard it's always advisable to go for the one with in-built graphics chipset, otherwise you might have to bear the additional cost of a graphics card. Chipset also allows you to configure RAID on your motherboard, but that's common across only high-end motherboards.
It you are planning for a high-end board and will insert your own gaming cards, then choose a board having the latest NVIDIA, Intel or ATI chipsets. This will improve the overall performance. Intel P35 and ATI 790FX are new chipsets that support Quad Core processors and are quite popular these days.
It's always an advantage to have all three display output options
RAM supportNot so long ago DDR2 replaced the DDR, which in turn replaced the SDRAM from the market. Now DDR3 is a threat to DDR2, which is slowly but surely finding its stake in the market. The move towards DDR3 is mainly a step towards Green IT. DDR3 promises to reduce power consumption by nearly 30% as compared to DDR2. It also offers higher bandwidth compared to DDR2, hence power users and gamers will go for DDR3. You will not find support for DDR3 in entry-level motherboards, it is mainly available in the high-end versions. For entry-level DDR2 is good enough.
It is always important to check how many DIMM slots are there in your motherboard. This could be a restricting factor in terms of expandability. Go for boards having at least 2 DIMM slots; they will provide you an economical expandability option. Usually 4 DIMM slots are common across medium and high- end motherboards, which enables them to have more expandability options in terms of total RAM.
Graphics supportYou won't need a graphics card if you choose a motherboard with an onboard graphics chipset and when gaming is not your major requirement. But in case you don't have built-in graphics chipset, you will need a graphics card to get display on your monitor. Entry-level or budget range motherboards won't support high-end graphics cards, so you can opt for either NVIDIA GeForce 8400 series, ATI Radeon 2400 series or the 3000 series. They won't be heavy on your pocket and will give you good Vista performance along with Direct X capability.
For medium range or high-end cards, it is beneficial to go for a motherboard that supports SLI or CrossFire, 'coz invariably with more and more challenging games being developed, you'll feel the need to have more than one card. So, look for the board which has SLI and CrossFire support. Also remember, if you are opting for the card having high capability, then invariably you would need a higher power supply. Do check how much power supply your motherboard can bear before buying an expensive card.
Expansion slotsExpansion slots are generally referred to as PCI and PCIe slots via which you can add an additional RAID card (if your chipset has support for it), graphics card, audio Card, LAN card, etc. So, it's important to have more onboard slots, so that your motherboard has more expansion options. We have seen motherboards with just single PCI and PCIe slots, and they are decent enough when it comes to entry-level boards, but for high-end motherboards you'll surely need more than that. For SLI and CrossFire to work you need at least two PCIe slots. So, if expandability is there on your mind, opt for a motherboard that has maximum expandability options.
Apart from the regular SATA port, some boards have additional SATA ports operated through a different chipset
Storage and IDESATA has replaced PATA completely across the entire range of motherboards. What matters is how many SATA connectors does the motherboard support? That will determine how many HDDs you can actually use with the board. Four is generally the norm, but we have seen boards supporting six as well, which is pretty cool. RAID is common across the entire range of motherboards and ensures an extra layer of stability. So while buying a motherboard it's important to consider whether your motherboard has support for RAID or not, as it ensures data safety and enhances performance.
One important thing that we noticed recently was the inability to load OS via your CD ROM drive which is connected to an IDE. Some IDEs don't allow you to boot up your system; you would need to connect an external drive via USB for being able to load your OS on to the HDD. This is a big demerit and should be avoided at all costs. Read the specifications carefully and check whether the motherboard's IDE supports booting or not.
Connectivity optionsAll motherboards come with a LAN port and some USB ports. See how many USB ports does the board supports? Does it support USB 2.0 connectivity? We have seen boards with about two to six USB ports. The more they have, the better it is, as most of the external peripherals can easily be connected via a USB.
In the high-end boards we have also seen support for WiFi which is a welcome change brought about by Asus. Even HDMI, DVI has become a common feature in the current motherboards, allowing you the opportunity to watch digitally enhanced displays. Just connect your LCDs and enjoy watching a superior digital display. FireWire and e-SATA are some of the other key features that are increasingly being incorporated across motherboards. They provide additional benefits and are a big plus to have in terms of future expandability and scalability.
How We TestedThis month we checked out motherboards that were priced between 2k to 8k. We divided these boards into two categories-those below 4k, we called them entry-level; and those between 4-8k, we called them as the budget boards. We checked out these boards for their performance, features, and pricing. Next month, we'll be featuring high-end motherboards.
PerformanceTo judge the performance of each board, we ran the following five benchmarks:PCMark05: A synthetic benchmark that tests 11 different parameters right from OS boot up to 2D tests, HDD tests, etc.
3D Mark 2006: A highly intensive graphics and gaming benchmark, designed to stress the board for its overall graphics capabilities.
POV Ray: To check how good was the CPU's response to render a particular numbers of pixels. Here, the lesser the CPU time, the better.
Cine Bench10: Checks multi-core functionality of boards, since all boards we received supported dual or Quad core.
Business Winston 2002: Runs several office productivity apps like Office suites, browsing, antivirus, etc.
FeaturesHere, we compared all boards for ten features. These included the number of PCI, and DIMM slots, number of USB ports, whether a board had onboard video or not, and whether it had additional video options like HDMI, and DVI, in addition to the standard VGA port. We also checked whether a board had a Gigabit LAN port, support for 45 nm CPUs, SATA, and audio support. In SATA, we checked the number of ports, whether they supported RAID, and whether there was a second SATA controller chip as well. In audio support, we looked for the number of channels supported as well as featured like high-definition audio, etc.
PricingHere, we simply considered the cost and warranty of each board. Lastly, we used the Brown Gibson model to arrive at the weightages for each aspect of performance, features, and price. The overall weightages assigned to these parameters have been given in the box above.
We feel that even at the entry-level today, price is not the most important criterion for selection. Performance and features are also equally important, which is why you will find that in our weightage we have taken into consideration the importance of performance and features almost equal to that of price.
Hardware SpecsWe used an Intel Core 2 Duo 1.8 GHz processor to test Intel-based boards, while an AMD Athlon 64 X2 1.6 GHz CPU was used to test AMD-based boards. The remaining configuration remained the same and comprised of 1 GB DDRII RAM (533 MHZ), 120 Seagate HDD (7200 RPM), LG Combo Drive, NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT/ 8800GT, and WinXP SP2.
Sub-4k Boards
The Winners
JIN73 M2-VSWhen it came to deciding the winner, it was a closely fought battle between Jetway JIN73 M2 – VS and XFX 6230i-7100 boards. The Jetway claimed the top spot largely due to its price; it costs around Rs 1,400 lower than the runner up board-the XFX 6301. The Jetway JIN73 M2-VS supports Intel Core 2 Duo/ Quad and also supports previous generation Intel Pentium 4. It comes with an NVIDIA GeForce 7050/nForce 610i chipset and has 2 DIMM slots for DDRII RAM. The best part about it is that it has all 3 video options available and comes with 6 USB slots, which is the maximum you can get in this range.
In performance, its score in PC Mark05 and 3D Mark06 was just decent. In fact its score of 4682 in PCMark05 was lower than what we have achieved from all three MSI motherboards or XFX 630i-7100. Even in 3D Mark06 its score was lower than the likes of MSI P35 Neo Combo and XFX 630i-7100. Nevertheless, these scores were decent for a board of this class, fetching it a score of 79/100 in performance.
In features, though it had almost everything one can ask for, where it actually lost to XFX was the lack of onboard RAID support. But even then, at this price, you can't expect to get anything better than this.
It's also priced cheaper than most of the other motherboards.
Overall, it's a clear cut winner because it doesn't compromise on features despite such a low price.
XFX 630i-7100With an overall performance score of 95/100, this board was the top performer in its range. It scored a mammoth 8304 in 3D Mark06, which is pretty high for an entry-level board. Even in PCMark05, a score of 5624 was the highest, with only the MSI Neo Combo coming anywhere close to it. Though its performance in POV Ray wasn't that great, its Business Winston score of 42 was the highest in the category, ensuring that it's good for bothgraphics and business productivity apps.
The board has support for Core 2 Duo and even Quad core processors. It's based on NVIDIA's MCP73U/PVV/D chipset. Though it has only 2 DIMM slots, it offers all three on board video options of VGA, HDMI, and DVI, which is a major plus. It has support for 6 channel audio output and RAID. Probably an additional x16 PCIe slot would have enabled it to offer SLI but then for an entry-level board that's something which is of least importance.
Overall, if you need a board that's a top performer and has all the features you could ask for in an entry-level board, then this board is definitely worth the deal.
Other ContendersThis segment is primarily targeted at users who are on a shoestring budget and aspire for satisfactory performance from a motherboard. While Jetway JIN73 M2 – VS won hands down scoring handsomely on all parameters, we put forward to you the 'also rans' who could not quite make it, but scored pretty well in a specified category. The top runner-up honour goes to our highly recommended test piece, the XFX 630i – 7100 which grabbed the top position in the performance category, scoring highly in PCMark and 3DMark benchmark tests.
PC enthusiasts looking for a motherboard, which is actually worth its price, then they may well have a look at Jetway JM2A 690 – VP. It scored a perfect 100 in the price parameter in our tests. Featuring 4 DIMM slots and USB ports each, with onboard support for audio channels (3), LAN and VGA; this may be a good deal. However, if features are your primary concern, then, at least in the entry level nobody can compete with the MSI P35 Neo Combo. It features 4 slots each for USB, SATA and DIMM. Additionally, it supports 6 audio channels, 2 LAN ports, 1 PCI express and 2 PCI slots. As far as performance is concerned, it returned impressive figures of 5228 and 7897 on PCMark and 3DMark respectively.
Priced at only Rs 2,250, the Jetway J945 GCD MS-A2 is another option you may consider if you are in a budget constraint and still demands good performance with basic features. It scored 3387 on PCMark and 3389 on 3DMark, which is decent enough for an entry- level board. Features are pretty basic with 4 ports for USB and 2 each for DIMM, LAN, SATA and PCI. One PCI express slot also finds a mention here and audio is supported onboard with 3 channels. The lone player from Asus, the M2N-VM DVI was going strong, but still could not perform well enough on all the parameters to claim the top spot. And two of the test boards from ECS lost out mainly due to lack of features and high pricing. If you compare the asked price v/s the features offered, you would inadvertently think it didn't interest you enough as its competitors did. However, performance wise it was at par with Jetway JIN73 M2-PHG-VT which is our overall winner in this category. In fact, it fared pretty well when compared to MSI 945GC M5-FV2 in terms of performance. MSI P35 Neo was the only board in this range which came with the support for 45nm processor, making it one of the most future ready board. So as soon as 45nm comes in this board will have support for it, whereas other might need an upgrade.
As stated earlier, the entry level is for the price conscious consumers who ask for maximum value for money with the least cost involved. We saw some boards like XFX 630i – 7100 which went ahead and offered all the three video ports, and some like the Jetway JM 26 GT3 – SVP which offered just a single SATA port, and the JHA-02 GTE which had absolutely no onboard support for video. In some cases, it may mean that you will have to shell out some extra cash to get an onboard video card. It was good to see RAID support in majority of the board with only some of the Jetway boards been the exception in this regard.
Overall, lots have changed in this segment and all these are welcome change.
Rs 4-8k Boards
The Winners
XFX 630i–7150While testing this board, somehow intuitively we knew it was going to win. Promising robust performance and features to kill for and yet being easy on your pocket is what the 630i–7150 is all about. It supports Intel's Core 2 Extreme (both quad and dual core) and Core 2 Duo processors. It is compatible with nVIDIA MCP73U/PV/V/D chipset. In features, it supports 4 USB ports, 6 Audio channels, 1 PCI-Express slot and 2 PCI slots, 2 slots each for DIMM and LAN and 3 slots for SATA. Video outlets are provided on board with HDMI, VGA and DVI. An added advantage of having an HDMI port is that you can transfer both audio and video signals to a desired device, and the XFX 630i – 7150 empowers you to do just that.
In PCMark05, it scores 5624, which was second best in this range, with MSI P6N SLI giving the best score of 6248. It scored 8304 3DMarks in 3DMark06 benchmark, which was the highest in this category. This goes to prove that XFX boards have been excellent with graphics capabilities. In fact the only close competitor to this board was MSI P965 Neo which scored 8288 3DMarks. In the other tests, XFX 630i-7150 fared well and overall its performance score was in close proximity to the MSI P6N SLI board.
MSI P965 NeoThe MSI P965 Neo supports Intel Dual Core and Pentium 4 processors, whereas Intel ICH8 and Intel P965 chipsets are compatible on it. It features 4 DIMM slots, 1 PCI-Express and 3 PCI slots, 4 USB ports, 6 audio support channels and 4 SATA and 2 LAN ports.
It scored 5088 in PCMark, which is slightly lower then XFX, but a good score nevertheless. In 3DMark06, it was second highest with a score of 8288 3DMarks. It performed better than the XFX board in the POV Ray benchmark, wherein its CPU response time was around 4 as compared to XFX's 5. Apart from that both were almost equal. It lost majorly due to a lack of features. Had it come with any one of the video options, either DVI or HDMI or even VGA, it would have given a tough fight for the top spot. Its pricing however is better than the XFX board, but you'll have to shell out extra for a video card to use this board.
Other ContendersBudget ranges includes the users who are ready to pay a bit extra, but not very much and still want to enjoy almost all the features and blazing performance from their motherboard. While in the entry level the first warrior from the XFX family, the 630i – 7100 just missed the top slot by a whisker, its sibling, the XFX 630i – 7150 manages to grab the honour of the overall best performer in all categories in the budget range of motherboards.
If features are of prime importance to you, you may consider the MSI G33M which offers 4 slots each for DIMM and SATA, 6 slots each for USB and Audio, 2 each for PCI and LAN, 1 PCI express slot and 1 VGA port for video output. Well, you couldn't have asked for more, at least in the budget range and is the only board which comes with 45nm processor support, which means its one of the most future ready board. You won't need to upgrade your motherboard if you want to migrate to 45nm processor.
There may still be some, who are unable to stretch their budget and demand the best possible features and performance in the least possible amount. For them, Simmtronics SIMM NV – 7050 would be the ideal choice as it costs a little over Rs. 4000/- and offers 4 slots each for DIMM and USB, 2 each for PCI, LAN and SATA, 3 video ports (HDMI, VGA and DVI), 6 audio channels and 1 PCI express slot.
The budget range starts from Rs. 4000 onwards. Hence people investing such amount of money would obviously expect performance and features a notch higher than the entry level range. However, we were quite disappointed to see some features synonymous with the sub 4K range like one or no PCI/video ports, 3 audio channels even in a budget range. All the three entrants from Gigabyte did manage to perform well in our score but where lacking in features in that price bracket. We have seen other boards offering more features at that price range.
Asus M2A-VM DVI was a strong contender in the competition. As it was priced brilliantly but again due to lack of features it was hit badly, but it should not be counted out simple coz of it's pricing. You get almost all features and decent performance at an attractive price, making it a board worth a look. Even the other Asus board M2R32-MVP scored very high in performance but eventually lack of features and higher price led to its downfall.
