7/26/2004 – Picking out a good motherboard for your computer isn't exactly an easy job. The key point is to consider what kind of features you really need, and pay only for the features you do use instead of paying more for something you might not really have a use for. PC enthusiast magazine PCPlus recently had a chance to test ABIT's VT7 motherboard. Also positioned as a mainstream board, PCPlus editors quickly learned that the VT7 is an incredible value.

Here is PCPlus on VT7 features: "The ABIT VT7 is based off the VIA PT880 chipset which provides support for the latest Intel Pentium4 processors. The older PT800 chipset provided only single channel memory support while the newer PT880 brings dual channel memory support to the table. The motherboard comes with four memory slots, allowing the user to plug in up to a grand total of 4GB of DD400 memory...The VIA VT8237 chipset provides for SATA RAID functionality as well, allowing both striped or mirrored RAID configurations, but not both."

The VT7 is designed with an excellent layout: "Component layout is very well done, with the IDE connectors at a right angle to minimize cable clutter. The ATX power connector is also situated at the edge of the PCB. The memory slots are also placed at a nice distance from the graphics card, making it easy to add or remove both memory modules and your graphics card."

The PCPlus conclusion: "With the features ABIT has crammed into this motherboard, you would be hard pressed to find so many for the money you'd be paying for the ABIT VT7. You also get ABIT's reputation for quality and performance motherboards."

For more information on ABIT and BulletProof Technology, go here:
http://www.abit.com.tw