Looking for a 24/7 server?

The guys over at Overclockers Australia have been discussing kit for a 24/7 Linux server and one of the discussion group member's suggested the VIA ARTiGO A110. The ARTiGO is one of the easiest products to use for this sort of thing. Just add the HDD and RAM, install and OS and it's ready to serve!

VIA to release quad core Nanos by the end of next year

VIA's Nano processors are single core at the moment, they should be dual core by the end of the year and apparently they'll be quad core by the end of next year. When VIA released its monthly sales figures for August, the Press Release unsually included a few tid bits about future plans.
A VN11 chipset with DirectX support with support the new quad cores, providing more juice to the embedded computing space than ever before.
VIA's focus will still be on low power and I'd suggest the new chips will be aimed at enterprise level storage and server solutions and not at your next desktop.
Source: Thing.co.uk

Lian Li launches two new Mini-ITX cases

We all know that VIA invented the Mini-ITX platform, but Lian Li has been a huge supporter of it from the very beginning, offering quite a variety of case types.

This latest design has been made to fit behind a monitor making it ideal for point of sale, kiosks, etc. The VESA kit is just an option, however, as it can also be used as a desktop PC ... all be it a small one.

All VIA EPIA Mini-ITX boards would fit in the new Lian Li Mini-Q PC-Q09 and PC-Q09F chasis.

VIA releases new Mini-ITX board with HD everything

The new EPIA-M850 has HD audio, HD video playback and a HMDI port. It's not hard to tell that it's targetted at multimedia systems. Being in the Mini-ITX form factor, it's specifically aimed at embedded multimedia systems. At a consumer level, this board would also kick-ass for a lounge room PC.

Onboard is a 1.3 or 1.6GHz VIA Nano E-series processor and the VX900 single chip solution. The combination brings a lot of HD power to the table, whilst still retaining VIA's unique low profile, low noise and low power consumption traits.

"The VIA ChromotionHD 2.0 video engine boasts comprehensive hardware acceleration for the latest VC1, H.264, MPEG-2 and WMV9 HD formats at screen resolutions of up to 1080p without affecting CPU load. Display connectivity support includes onboard HDMI and VGA ports with pin headers for dual channel 24-bit LVDS.

The VIA VX900 boasts the VIA Chrome9™ HCM 3D integrated graphics core with full DirectX 9.0 support and a 128-bit 2D engine with hardware rotation capability. The VIA VX900 also features the VIA Vinyl HD audio codec. Storage includes ports for two SATA drives. "

The board can also handle up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM. The EPIA-M850 sure does pack a HD punch! More from the Press Release.

Finding an ARTiGO bargain in Oz

A quick search on the net this week shows that Scorpion Technology Computers is listing the cheapest VIA ARTiGO for Australian etailers, at AUD 479. The A110 is the latest version of the ARTiGO, featuring a 1.2GHz VIA Nano processor and fully HD and HDMI support, making it a great all rounder and multimedia capable. For 60 bucks less, however, head on over to eBay where you can pick up the older A1000 model for USD 379.95. This features a 1GHz C7 processor and whilst it has HD audio, it can not support HD video, just MP4 and WMV9. As a tiny storage computer, however, it's ideal.

ARTiGO kit on video

If you want to get a better picture of the ARTiGO kit and what it's like to build a system with one, check out this video on PCPer.com. If you Google ARTiGO A110 you'll find quite a few options of where you can get them in Australia.

VIA announces new COM Express Mobule. Uses Nano processor

VIA usualy expend their efforts on promoting their own embedded platforms. Their Mini-ITX especially, but also the Pico-ITX, are now industry standards in the embedded industry. So to is the COM Express form factor, developed by the PICMG (PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group).

VIA has just announced a new COM Express module which makes nice work of using the VIA Nano E-series processor and the VX800 digital media chip. The press release points out the products highlights:

* High performance, 64-bit VIA Nano E-Series processor
* 18/24-bit dual channel LVDS plus VGA support
* 3 PCI, and one x4 plus two x1 PCIe slots
* Up to 2GB of DDR2 SO-DIMM memory
* 10/100Mbps Fast Ethernet
* Up to six USB 2.0 ports
* Up to two SATA devices plus 1 IDE

In some ways this new module is an upgrade to the COME7N80 which uses the older VIA Eden processor.

The COME8X80 is available for OEM and ODM clients now, and for Australian companies, that probably means going direct to VIA's head office.