Intel's Eaglelake Mini-ITX boards
March 06, 2008
Intel are showing a Mini-ITX board on their CeBIT stand with the DQ45EK moniker, suggesting it will utilise their Q45 "Eaglelake" 4-series chipset. 
The board looks to have an LGA-755 CPU socket; 2x DVI ports; 2x DDR2 DIMM slots; 4x SATA 2.0; 1x LAN; 3x Audio; 6x USB 2.0 and 1x eSATA port. 
This shorter PCIe x1 slot limits the board to the not at all shabby integrated DirectX 10 GMA 4500 graphics.
Also on display was a DG45FC board (codename "Fly Creek"). The G45 chipset has rather nice X4500HD integrated graphics, supporting High Def H264 and VC-1 decoding in hardware.
This one has an Intel G45 + ICH10-R chipset; LGA-755 socket supporting 65W FMB Intel Core 2 CPUs (Wolfdale and Conroe); Dual output through 1x DVI-I and 1x HDMI ports; 2x Dual Channel DDR2 800/667 DIMM slots; 4x SATA 2.0; 1x 82567LM Gigabit LAN; 5x Audio & S/PDIF out (10 channel audio with Dolby HT); 6x USB 2.0 + 4x USB 2.0 headers on the board; a PCIe x1 Slot and 1x eSATA port.
Photos from here and our friends at Hexus (maybe we'll actually go to CeBIT next year and take our own photos)
Intel planning Atom based Mini-ITX
March 06, 2008
Intel are planning to put their new Atom processor into at least two new low cost Mini-ITX boards later this year. The design, code named "Little Falls" is the first Intel-designed board to include a full Intel chipset, the tried and tested 945GC and ICH7 combination. Last year's initial foray into Mini-ITX ("Little Valley") used a chipset from SiS. The Atom brand incorporates the 45nm CPUs previously codenamed Silverthorne (slower, very low power consumption) and the tweaked and Silverthorne-derived Diamondville (faster, slightly higher power consumption). A dual core Diamondville is due in Q3 this year - this will be incorporated into "Little Falls 2", a few months after the first board. Modelling for us today is a Little Falls board from Gigabyte, which looks like it may have the following specifications: 1.87GHz Atom CPU with 533MHz FSB and 512MB L2 Cache; Intel 945GC+ICH7 Chipset; GMA950 Intel Integrated Graphics; 1x DDR2 800 slot supporting up to 2GB; 1x PCI; 4x USB 2.0; 1x IDE; 2x SATA; PS/2 Keyboard+Mouse; VGA; LAN; Serial; Parallel; 3x Audio. Other boards are likely from Intel, and possibly Asustek and MSI. Two quirks from Little Valley appear to remain with Little Falls. The board has a 12V P4 power connector (most Mini-ITX cases do not - including an adapter cable with the board would resolve this). But more importantly the CPU heatsink is taller than the backplate - severely limiting the choice of low-profile Mini-ITX cases available to it.
VIA launch ARTiGO Pico-ITX Builder Kit
December 10, 2007
VIA have launched the ARTiGO A1000 Builder Kit - a bundle of a 1GHz low power consumption EPIA PX 10000 Pico-ITX motherboard, and their new ARTiGO Pico-ITX chassis. The ARTiGO chassis measures just 150 x 110 x 40 mm (5.9 x 4.3 x 1.8in) and is supplied with an internal DC power board and 60W external power adapter. Builders can add their choice of DDR2 SODIMM (up to 1GB) and 2.5in IDE Hard Drive. The chassis weighs just 520g (1.14 lbs) and power consumption of the whole system is 15W idle or 20W under full load. 
"We have been overwhelmed by the positive response to the launch of the Pico-ITX boards from end-users and the embedded industry alike, so we are delighted to now make it easy for enthusiasts to build their own ultra small personal computer," said Daniel Wu, Assistant Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. "The VIA ARTiGO Builder Kit truly leverages the remarkable energy efficiency and power-performance-size ratio of the Pico-ITX form factor, and further cements VIA’s position as a leading innovator in the x86 space". EPIA PX 10000 Pico-ITX Review Buy an ARTiGO Kit at the Mini-ITX Store More pictures, information and a construction video...
Intel launches 45nm Penryn CPUs
November 12, 2007
Intel launched a new line of microprocessors on Sunday, code-named Penryn. Penryn represents a shrink of the Core 2 Duo architecture from a 65nm to 45nm manufacturing process, but far more interesting than the modest performance gains are the power consumption improvements. 
Penryn uses High-k metal gate transistors, which replaces traditional polysilicon transistor gates with a secret blend of metal alloys. A hafnium based mixture is used for the insulator in place of silicon dioxide. A High-k value means less unwanted current flow, and an easier manufacturing process - allowing the processor to be made smaller. 
Penryn saves power wherever possible. For instance if a 32-bit operation is being performed, the other 32-bits in the data path are temporarily switched off. Additionally, mobile variants of Penryn processors can enable a new Deep Power Down state (DPD) which allows them to idle at under 200 milliwatts many times every second, with a less than 200 microsecond exit latency. The end result is a more densely packed processor which runs cooler and therefore can be pushed to run faster. So when can we expect to see a Penryn Mini-ITX? Intel-based Mini-ITX boards are generally developed from the starting point of Intel's mobile Centrino platform. 1st generation (Intel 855 aka Carmel) and 2nd generation Centrino (Intel 915 aka Sonoma) boards are now rare. 3rd generation boards (Intel 945 aka Napa) and 4th generation (Intel 965 aka Santa Rosa) boards are currently popular - both using similar Merom Core 2 Duo processors. Penryn support will first be added to the Centrino platform in early 2008 (Santa Rosa Refresh), followed proper by the 5th generation Centrino (Montevina, due in Q2 2008).
$199 C7-powered PC at Wal-Mart
November 11, 2007
Everex - the US subsidiary of Taiwan's FIC - are retailing their TC2502 gPC at $199 through selected Wal-Mart stores, just in time for the holiday season.
The TC2502 is powered by the same 1.5GHz VIA C7 processor found in many Mini-ITX boards, with 512MB of DDR2 RAM, 80GB IDE hard drive and a CD-RW/DVD drive. The motherboard doesn't appear to be true 17 x 17cm Mini-ITX, but rather a variant on the 19cm x 23cm reference design from VIA's low cost pc-1 initiative. Photographs of the innards of a retail TC2502 most welcome!
The operating system used is an Ubuntu based distribution called gOS running the lightweight Enlightenment desktop manager, with Firefox and OpenOffice 2.2 installed, and with pre-configured links to many of Google's online applications. gOS was originally developed by FIC, who has now spun it off into a separate company. gOS is available for download here.
A $298 version of the same machine sports 1GB of memory, 80GB SATA HDD, a DVD±RW and runs Windows Home Vista Basic Edition. Everex have used a standard case design presumably to reduce tooling costs, but also because research indicates Wal-Mart shoppers equate the size of a system to its capability...
VIA EPIA PX 10000 Pico-ITX Review
June 02, 2007
The EPIA PX 10000 is the first motherboard from VIA Technologies to be released in their incredibly small 10cm x 7.2cm 'Pico-ITX' form factor, and is currently the 'world's smallest full-featured x86 mainboard designed for ultra compact embedded PCs, systems and appliances'. We tracked down a PX fresh off the production line and put it through its paces. Damn this thing is small.
World's First Pico-ITX Review
Dell targets emerging markets with EC280 Mini-ITX PC
May 23, 2007
Dell have introduced the EC280 desktop computer, a low cost Mini-ITX based PC aimed at emerging markets. Underneath the hood is a 1.2GHz Intel Celeron M 205, and a SiSM661GX chipset - presumably a very close relative of the recently announced "Little Valley" D201GLY motherboard from Intel. The EC280 measures 4.5 litres, comes with Windows XP Home installed and of course consumes just 65W. Our chinese isn't what it was, but pricing seems to start at around $340. EC280 product page
Intel to offer Mini-ITX desktop board
May 16, 2007
Intel will shortly add a Mini-ITX to its range of desktop boards, in their cost efficient "Essentials" range. The D201GLY features an Intel Celeron 200 series processor soldered directly to the motherboard, with a SiS662 Chipset providing integrated SiS Mirage 1 graphics. Intel are targetting the board at the high-growth "sub-entry" market - for use in PCs costing less than $US299 in both developing and mature markets. With a 1.33GHz single-core Celeron 215 fitted, the board requires less than 27W of power. The "Little Valley" D201GLY will not be the first foray into Mini-ITX for Intel - many Mini-ITX boards have used Intel CPUs, and their mobile chipsets are often appropriated for the form factor by board manufacturers. But the D201GLY is the first Intel-branded board to appear - albeit with a non-Intel chipset. Intel Desktop Boards Products List Detailed specifications...
VIA define Pico-ITX with VT6047 Reference Design
April 21, 2007
VIA Technologies have announced their VT6047 Pico-ITX form factor reference design, which packs a full featured x86 motherboard and processor into 50% the surface area of a Nano-ITX and 25% the area of a Mini-ITX board. 
The tiny 100 x 72 mm VT6047 was designed to be powered by a VIA C7 or fanless VIA Eden V4 bus processor in a 21 x 21 mm NanoBGA2 package at up to 1.5GHz. When running in optimised low voltage mode, the onboard CPU delivers power consumption below one watt. A Pico-ITX power supply is only required to provide 22W max and 25W peak power, giving an idea of the power consumption of a typical Pico-ITX system. 
The VX700 chipset combines core logic, multimedia, connectivity and storage capabilities within a single-chip package. The VX700 supports up to a 533MHz FSB; VIA's Unichrome Pro II graphics core with MPEG-2/4 and WMV9 hardware acceleration; LVDS/DVI connectivity with dual monitor support (in conjunction with the VGA connector); 7.1 channel high definition audio; and SATA, PATA, USB, PS/2, Ethernet and Serial connectivity. 
The Pico-ITX mainboard form factor was designed specifically for small footprint appliances such as the Embedded PC, Digital Signage, Thin Client, KIOSK, or VIA's reference Set Top Box design pictured here. VIA hope the Pico-ITX form factor will "enable system developers and OEMs to create smaller, lighter, quieter and even more mobile devices than ever before, opening up a new world of possibilities across multiple embedded PC, system and appliance segments". Attentive readers will have spotted the "VT" and not the "PX" moniker. VIA traditionally introduces their reference designs as an introduction for embedded computing builders, followed by retail product aimed at PC enthusiasts and smaller scale system builders. The EPIA 5000 and 800 were the first retail Mini-ITX motherboards back in 2002, but were preceded a few months earlier by the VT6010 reference design. VIA's press release More pictures and detailed specifications...
The "Digg" Case
April 14, 2007
Alex 'Qtip42' Wiley's latest creation isn't a Mini-ITX based project, but it does deserve an honourable mention and a link here. Why? Because Alex is a member of an elite group of people - he contributed not one but two projects to the site all the way back in 2003 - the ironically Mini-ITX (and not AMD) powered "AMD Case" and the rather marvellous "Spider Case". Alex now runs a case modding company based in Oregon, USA called Computer Choppers. Nice one Alex.
"Digg" Case Project Log and Gallery at Computer Choppers The "AMD Case"
The "Spider Case"
News Archive
* Back to Mini-ITX.com *
| 
