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Today we are checking out the new Gigabyte F2A85XN-WIFI, a rare Mini-ITX AMD A85X motherboard. Armed with all the latest features including dual band 802.11b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth this tiny motherboard packs a serious punch. The compact Mini-ITX design makes this the perfect motherboard for exploiting the rendering power of AMD’s A-Series APUs...
Small Form Factor (SFF) computing has become increasingly popular over the years and today it allows users to take relatively high-end computer hardware and shrink it down into a very small foot print. There are loads of applications for SFF computing and one of the most popular is Home Theater Personal Computer (HTPC) usage.
Gone are the days when tech savvy computer users had to stick a tower case next to their TV. There are now loads of sleek Mini-ITX computer cases such as the Lian Li PC-Q25B, BitFenix Prodigy, Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced, Fractal Design Node and Silverstone Sugo SG05 just to name a few. Combine any of these cases with the high-end Mini-ITX boards getting around these days and you can end up with a computer that puts some tower systems to shame. Motherboards such as the new Gigabyte F2A85XN-WIFI for example, which crams an unbelievable amount of features in the 17 x 17cm form factor. Helping bolster its feature set is the AMD A85X (Hudson D4) chipset which provides support for the very latest FM2 processors based on the Trinity and Richland architectures. Processors such as the A10-6800K and A10-6700 which cost just $150 are perfectly suited to life in a Mini-ITX system. Not only are they powerful enough to tackle even the most serious day to day tasks, but with their on-die Radeon HD 8670D at the ready they can also provide a decent gaming experience as well.
As well suited to use in a Mini-ITX system as AMD’s A-Series is we are surprised to find very few supporting motherboards. This makes the Gigabyte F2A85XN-WIFI a rather unique product, as the only other Mini-ITX motherboard based on the A85X chipset that we know of is the Asrock FM2A85X-ITX. Priced at $105 the F2A85XN-WIFI is actually quite expensive as far as A85X motherboards are concerned, as the vast majority are priced below $100. Gigabyte’s flagship ATX board, the F2A85X-UP4 costs just $120, though you might be surprised to find that the F2A85XN-WIFI offers nearly all the features found on the much bigger board, while it has a few unique to itself... |
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ProX |
Posted on: 10/01/2013 10:43 PM
Great little board. Good that it has a PCIe x16 slot but I am guessing most wont use it since the point of the APU's is the graphics. Otherwise you are better off with a Core i3/Core i5. |
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loki Posts: 2 Joined: 2013-10-03 |
Posted on: 10/03/2013 08:18 AM
Facts: - my Powerconsumption in IDLE ist far less than 48 Watt. Its about 26 Watt. The Asrock B75 ITX + i3 is around 23 Watt. - by using my thermalright macho i loose the pci-e slots. Prolimatech´s Samuel 17 fits, but you will need very low profile memory - the Gigabyte F2A85XN-WIFI is canceled. The Gigabyte F2A88XN-WIFI will arrive in a few weeks. |
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Steven Walton Posts: 104 Joined: 2010-02-08 |
Posted on: 10/03/2013 11:52 AM
Interesting facts, not sure they are all factual though. Also not quite sure why you brought some of them up. You say your power consumption is much less than 48 watt, that’s great news but what are your system specs. You then go on to say The Asrock B75 ITX + i3 (which i3 model?) uses around 23 watt, our H87 board with the Core i3-4130 used 26 watts so not entirely sure what your point is. Why are you talking about the Thermalright Macho on a Mini-ITX board and why did you bring up the Prolimatech Samuel 17? Are you just starting this for the hell of it or did we make a mistake somewhere? The Gigabyte F2A85XN-WIFI is not canceled, at least that is not what Gigabyte is telling me. That said you might have a better source. The board is also only a few months old, doubt they would axe it so soon. The A88X chipset is also not a replacement for the A85X, it introduced the AM2+ socket. Thanks for the comment but please provide a little more context, without all the information they aren’t exactly facts, more like loose statements. |
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loki Posts: 2 Joined: 2013-10-03 |
Posted on: 10/14/2013 03:31 PM
Sorry for my comment, but i needed some time to retest my power consumption: System Specs: 6800k 2x 4 Gbyte DDR3-2400 1x SSD 1x fan Windows 7 64bit standard settings in uefi and a fresh installtion of windows. by using a bequiet pure power 350 watt 7: 23 Watt Idle / 185 Watt Load (Prime + Furemark) by using a bequiet straight power 450 watt E9: 23 Watt Idle / 189 Watt Load (Prime + Furemark) I did some other tests using newest drivers, aggressive energy options and different testes like unplug lan cable, deaktivating onboard components. |