On Fri, 28 Aug 2009 05:17:13 +0000, Wes Newell wrote:

On Thu, 27 Aug 2009 19:18:26 +0000, Dan Lenski wrote:

* Want DVI or HDMI output on a low-power Atom system? Tough luck! As
far as I can tell, all of the Atom chipsets only have VGA output,
because Intel doesn't want to cut into its pricier offerings. I would
like to build a compact, low-power media center. Atom seems to fit the
bill since you can get a motherboard, processor, and case for $100
these days. But none of them have DVI or HDMI output. (I would love
to be proved wrong on this!)

There are lots of Atom systems with HDMI output. They just don't use the
Intel chipset. The Nvidia ION chipset for one.

Yeah, since writing that I found out about the Nvidia Ion chipset, which
is pretty new. There are a bunch of good deals on Zotac boards with this
chipset, apparently (http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?
t=1504403). The problem is that NVidia has the worst open-source driver
support of the major GPU makers. And with 2D/3D graphics improving so
rapidly for ATI and Intel GPUs, I'm reluctant to go with NVidia.

It turns out that there *are* a few Atom motherboards with the Intel
chipset and DVI output! Here's one, rather pricey at around $200: http://
http://www.jetway.com.tw/jp/IPC_Boar...name=NF94-270-
LF And some mo http://www.google.com/products?q=intel+945gse+atom+dvi
+motherboard&aq=f For some reason, *all* of these use the N-series Atoms
rather than the better-spec'ed single-core 230 and dual-core 330.

So, what's going on here? I've heard it claimed and then refuted that
Intel won't unbundle the Atom from the 945 chipset: http://
http://www.internetnews.com/hardware...nies+Squeezing
+nVidia+Out+From+Atom.htm . Is it possible that Intel leans hard on
board makers not to provide DVI outputs for Atom boards??? Any other
news on this front that I haven't caught up on?

Dan