BIOS: Technology Means Business

ASUS’s latest offering is a micro-ATX, Dolby and Viiv-certified motherboard. The Windows MCE-compatible N4L-VM DH (£110) is the first ASUS platform to feature support for Intel’s Core Duo Mobile CPU, while the quiet cooling sustains operation without compromising performance - perfect for digital homes!

The platform is targeted directly at desktop users and gamers who want an ultra-low noise, low-power system, in addition to the rapidly expanding home theatre PC market. As an added bonus, the N4L-VM is the least expensive Core Duo desktop platform to hit the market yet. Up to now Pentium-M/Core Duo desktop motherboards have been expensive compared to Athlon 64 and Pentium 4-based platforms.

The board incorporates Socket 479 for Intel’s Core Duo and Core Solo processors (Intel’s ViiV technology requires a Core Duo processor) and sports an Intel 945GM + ICH7-M DH chipset. The mainboard has a 667-/533MHz Front Side Bus (FSB) and supports up to 2GB of DDR2 667-/533MHz memory by way of two 240-pin DIMM sockets).

The CPU socket is situated towards the top of the motherboard, and uses an easy-to-use latch-based Socket-479 open/close mechanism. By comparison typical Socket-479 desktop motherboards require a flat-head screwdriver to install, whereas the N4L-VM DH requires no tools.

The board supports Core processors at 533MHz and 667MHz FSB, but does not support older Pentium-M processors. The reason for this is that Intel has changed the pin grid of its new Socket-479 processors so older Socket-479 Pentium-M processors will not fit.

The N4L-VM DH’s integrated graphics core is the first to be fully Windows Vista compliant, so it supports DirectX 9.0C class pixel/vertex shading abilities. The GPU’s core is certainly powerful enough for standard desktop PC's and for home theatres/media servers, but isn’t really powerful enough for high-end gaming. Thankfully there’s a full PCI-Express x16 graphics card slot, should you need more grunt.

Expansion ports offered are moderate and include PCI-Express x16, PCI-Express x1 and two PCI, along with a single analogue VGA port, four USB and one 6-pin FireWire port, external SATA, RJ45, PS/2 keyboard and PS/2 mouse, Gigabit Ethernet, optical S/PDIF out and coaxial S/PDIF out. 8-channel High Definition Audio is built-in (Realtek ALC 882M), along with a dual RAID controller (RAID 0/1).

Accessories supplied with the motherboard comprise a User’s manual, UltraDMA cable, FDD cable, two SATA cables, SATA power cable, USB 2.0 cable, FireWire port module, CPU Fan Heatsink, I/O shield, and a copy of InterVideo’s excellent WinDVD Suite (OEM version).

Aside from the Viiv-ready performance desktop that N4L-VM DH delivers, it also complies with RoHS regulations as an environmentally safe motherboard. And thanks to lower CPU power consumption, along with the Q-Fan technology and low-noise CPU cooler exclusively from ASUS, the N4L-VM DH desktop environment is quieter than ever.

Even with the compact size, the Intel Viiv-ready and Windows MCE-compatible N4L-VM DH comes with robust multimedia features. The TV-out connector embedded on the motherboard provides a gateway to view digital media on a big screen (such as your new HD-ready LCD TV), while the ALC 882M 8-CH high definition audio with S/PDIF-out completes the experience for overall audible pleasure with Dolby Master Studio.

Additionally, with the purchase of ASUS’s R-DVI-ADD2 card, DVI output is made available for high-quality output. The N4L-VM DH motherboard is further incorporated with Intel 82573L Gigabit Ethernet for fast networking. Having said that, it’s a real shame DVI isn’t incorporated onto the board.

A neat feature is that the mainboard supports instant on/off, and even installs a hardware driver for this ability. Instant on/off allows the system to go into a deep sleep mode, whereby the system is virtually turned off (fans don't turn, power consumption is dramatically cut). However, when the power button (or a remote control power button) is pressed, the system can wake from the sleep mode in just 2 to 3 seconds. This is a great feature for home theatre PCs as it allows you to use your system more like a television.

The SATA-II standard allows easy backup of entertainment content with 3Gbit/s transfer speed, providing enhanced scalability and doubling the bus bandwidth for high-speed data retrieval and saves. Externally situated, the SATA-II ports offer smart setup and hot-plug functionalities for easy photo, video, and other digital content backup.

Overall the N4L-VM DH is an ideal motherboard for Intel ViiV-based HTPCs - it’s ultra-low noise, ultra-low power and can still perform on par with hotter, noisier dual-core desktops. Its power on/off feature is great if you intend to use the motherboard in a MCE setup, and 7.1 Dolby Digital audio, Gigabit LAN and eSATA make it a versatile all-rounder. The only downside is that there’s no DVI video output and there are faster motherboards for high-end gamers. [7]

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