Hardware Review:
What it is/does: Mini itx computer
Reviewed by: Jamie Wilson
Manufacturer : Commell, AMD
Model: LV-668 -15
Specs: Minit itx motherboard and 1 gig 1500NX CPU
Price: $450 AUD approx $330 USD
Rating: 7/10
Manufacturer website:
www.commell.com
Purchased at:
http://www.thunderbirdcomputing.com....92&cat=miniitx
Pros: Good performance, quiet
Cons: Won't do 800x480
In the quest for something different I thought I might try one of the new Mini ITX AMD Geode NX setups. I couldn't really justify the price of an Intel system and I wanted someting will a little more power than the current VIA options. So I decided on this.
The Geode as I unerstand it is based on the older socket A mobile CPU. They come in 3 flavours. 1250, 1500 and 1750. The latter is hard to find, and isn't availble with the board. So I opted for the 1500, wich actually runs at 1ghz clock speed.
The motherboard uses a VIA KN400A chipset. Its older but mature. The graphics are S3 UniChrome Pro, the same as on most of the VIA boards if I am not mistaken. The board also accepts standard 184pin DDR ram.
Check here for the full specs
http://www.commell.com.tw/Product/SBC/LV-668.HTM
Installation of winxp was a breeze, no problems at all. None were expected!
Boot up and shut down times were very reasonable also. But hibernation times was what I was most interested in. With 512meg of ram and a 2.5inch HDD running Road Runner the PC goes into hibernation in about 15 seconds and resumes in about 10. This was impressive, and I can't see it getting much better, unless I tried a faster HDD and less ram. But then I might only gain (lose?) a couple seconds, which probably wouldn't be worth running with less ram.
Next I tried powerstrip. Detected everything as it should, but no custom resolutions for me!
I'm going to contact Commell and see if it is possible, but I doubt they will change anything just for me.
So I am stuck running 800x600 which is fine, but I still would like the option.
Onboard audio seems ok, but I don't plan on using it anyway.
The other thing that annoyed me a little was only having 2 USB ports on the back. They offer a USB onboard header for extra connections, but that means, on my case anyway, that I have to run USB devices off the front of the case as well as the back. Making for a slightly messy install.
On performance, the board runs CdrSkuLL's RAD flash roadrunner skin no problems at all. Same with DiNASTY's flashdeck. I would imagine it would run streetdeck with no problems at all either. With GPS and wmas playing the cpu load is around 30% Divx videos play without a hitch also.
So, would I buy this board over again? Possibly not. For $100 less I could have got a EN15000 that will do 800x480 and has 4 usb sockets on the back. As for performance the geode is faster, from what I have seen, but not having an EN15000 to test with I can't say by how much.
Incidentally if there are any benchmarks you would like me to run please let me know.
Cheers
Jamie
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