Attack of the Integrated Motherboards

Graphics chips aren't just for video cards anymore. When 3dfx formally announced its trio of Voodoo3 chipsets at last year's Comdex, it made no secret about its plans to integrate the low-end Voodoo3 2000 onto motherboards for value PC solutions. Neither did nVidia with its Vanta, a chip based on the TNT architecture designed specifically with the OEM in mind. Not surprisingly, both companies announced this morning from the Computex show floor in Taiwan a number of upcoming integrated products from five top-tier motherboard manufacturers.

The first such board comes from Abit, maker of the BX6 2.0 and the BH6, two particular favorites among gamers (and overclockers). Dubbed the ZX-21, this new BX/ZX board is embedded with an nVidia Vanta graphics chipset and, like all of Abit's latest motherboards, features Soft Menu II - a BIOS option that lets users adjust their bus speeds without fiddling with jumpers or DIP switches.

"Vanta's advanced graphics engine combined with Abit's industry leading motherboard design makes the ZX-21 an integrated graphics solution that is second to none,'' said Edwin Lin, director of R&D at Abit. "The ZX-21 will allow entry level and corporate customers access to next-generation-enabling technologies that meet budgetary concerns without compromising on performance or features.'' Pricing in quantity for the ZX-21 is unknown, but the board is expected to ship to systems integrators this summer.

Not to be outdone by its primary competitor, 3dfx also announced integrated design wins of its own this morning - six to be exact. The 143MHz Voodoo3 2000 will be featured on the Asus P3B-V; the A-Trend ATC6253M, ATC6254M, and ATC6264M; the Gigabyte 6BXM; and the MSI MS6168 motherboards. All six will sport 16MB of onboard SDRAM, the maximum amount of memory allowed by the Voodoo3's architecture.

"With broad acceptance among motherboard manufacturers in Asia, 3dfx is delivering on its promise from COMDEX '98 to establish Voodoo3 2000 as a high-volume graphics product ideal for motherboard-level integration,'' said Michael Howse, senior VP of worldwide marketing at 3dfx. "Following our earlier motherboard design wins in the US and Europe, these four announcements further solidify the Voodoo3 line as a volume leader both in retail and OEM channels, and strengthen 3dfx's role as a recognized leading graphics supplier.''

Pricing and availability is still unknown, although it's expected that the boards will ship sometime in the summer. These design wins come only a few weeks after Falcon Northwest announced it would integrate 3dfx's faster 166MHz Voodoo3 3000 into its Talon line of value gaming PCs.

These boards will undoubtedly find their way into sub-US$1,000 computer systems, making them very appealing for the casual or first-time gamer. Early adopters and gamers with a hard-core mentality, however, don't need to be told that the flurry of upcoming integrated boards isn't for them, no matter whose name is on the graphics chip.