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ProdID: 1773 - Intel DP35DPM MotherboardManufactured byIntel | Product Score: 9.5 |
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The Intel Desktop Board DP35DP Media Series in the ATX form factor delivers improved performance and capabilities for multimedia creation and enjoyment. With support for Intel quad-core processors and Intel Viiv processor technology, this desktop board merges the energy-efficient power of the Intel Core2 Duo/Quad processor with enhanced expandability, and consumer electronics integration. The Intel Desktop Board DP35DP is Microsoft Windows Vista* Premium Ready. For full details and specifications, please visit the Intel product page. |
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With the new wave of 45nm chips flowing freely now, a board like this is still a handy entry-level board, even though it is about a year old. With a few eccentricities to be aware of, it's not a board for the home enthusiast, and may not suit everyone's needs, so be aware of a few key issues: On the plus side, the board comes with some serious, goodies... onboard soundcard with some serious grunt, and an optical out-port... great for the home-theatre crowd with the fancy amps etc... plenty of USB and SATA ports means plenty of compatible extras on the market (since there are now SATA DVD-RW units coming out at bargain prices)... and of course the big feature, it's big socket for an ultra-zippy 45nm CPU. A little trick I discovered while browsing that will help to soften the blow for RAID-desirers: This board will do floppy drive emulation through the USB port, which means you can download the driver from the Intel site, put it on a USB flashdrive and just press F6 during the WinXP install, as you would normally do with a floppy. It should work wonders. I had some trouble working with an older PCI videocard, and of course there was simply no place for my AGP card which I dearly loved playing with... so I had to opt for a low-end PCIe videocard just so I could see. This was quite a turn-off for me, but at least I guess I have taken another part-step up the upgrade ladder at least... but be ware that legacy hardware may have run it's day if you want a board like this. Another thing to note for newbies or the less-than-cognoscenti... there is no instruction manual, and the paperwork supplied is basic to say the least. Unless you have plenty of experience, or a mentor peering over your shoulder, you may want to leave the building to a pro. However, I did *love* the sticker-sheet that came with it, showing you the key layout, including important sockets, connectors and jumper racks. This is a stroke of genius, and I ask forgiveness if it's Intel's SOP... I am a recent convert from AMD, so... it's all new to me on that front. A couple of little installation issue we encountered: Overall, this board was primarily aimed at the Windows MediaCentre market, hence the lack of PS2 ports, the huge surplus of USB and SATA ports, the high-end sound capabilities, and the hassles with PCI videocards. If this is the system you are wanting, then this board will do an excellent job. For the home-user and gamer, this might not be your best option, with its limited tweak'ability and distinct lack of decent overclock options. Though the BIOS is uncomplicated and totally non-threatening to explore, it's lack of features make the limitations clear, and it's not AWARD brand so may be strange to wander for newbies. Take this board if you want something really stable and pretty much ready-to-run, but invest in a better board if you really want to push some boundaries. |
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Printed at 04:59:19am on Saturday 30th March 2024 |