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VIA offers $89 processor and motherboard combo for custom HTPCs

If you're looking to craft a small form factor HTPC to an equally small budget, then VIA's own-brand internals deserve some serious consideration. The company's 1.4GHz dual-core Nano X2 CPU was recently put to good effect in Zotac's ZBOX Nano VD01 and is now available as part of a DIY combo called the VE-900, which puts the processor on a compact mini-ITX motherboard alongside a VX900 dedicated media accelerator for smooth video handling up to 1080p. The board has a single PCI slot, room for up to 8GB of DDR3, two SATA pin headers and four USB 2.0 ports. The rear panel adds to this with HDMI and VGA video outs, three analog audio jacks, Gigabit LAN, four more USB 2.0 ports and other standard fare -- but alas, it seems that the $89 price tag won't fetch you digital audio outs or USB 3.0. You'll find a full PR and promo video after the break, plus some Nano X2 benchmarks at the More Coverage link.




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VIA Releases VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard for Digital Home Media Enthusiasts

Power efficient, highly optimized platform is ideal for the creation of custom systems

Taipei, Taiwan, November 11, 2011 - VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard, available from the VIA Online Store (store.viatech.com) for US$89. The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX provides the ideal platform for DIY enthusiasts to custom build stylish home desktop and media center PCs.

VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX delivers stunning multimedia performance. Ideal affordable platform for enthusiasts and modder innovation.

Featuring a high-performance 1.4GHz VIA Nano™ X2 dual core processor and the VIA VX900 unified all-in-one media system processor, the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard delivers a highly optimized platform that boasts stunning HD video performance of the most demanding video formats at resolutions of up to 1080p. The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX also supports high fidelity surround sound through the VIA VT1708S HD audio codec which delivers amazing stereo 24-bit resolution and up to 192kHz sample rates and adds HDMI support in a compact, power-efficient package.

"November 6th marked the 10 year anniversary of the Mini-ITX form factor which spurred a revolution in the modding community," said Richard Brown, Vice President of Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. "The VIA VE-900 delivers an affordable, high performance Mini-ITX mainboard that will spur a new wave of inspiration and innovation in the next generation of enthusiasts."

VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX desktop board
The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard, measuring 17cm, x 17cm, pairs a 1.4 GHz VIA Nano™ X2 CPU with the VIA VX900 MSP. In addition to enabling support for up to 8GB of DDR3 system memory, the VIA VX900 MSP features the latest ChromotionHD 2.0 video engine, boasting comprehensive hardware acceleration for the latest VC1, H.264, MPEG-2 and WMV9 HD formats at screen resolutions of up to 1080p without incurring a heavy CPU load. Display connectivity support includes onboard HDMI and VGA.

Rear panel I/O includes a Gigabit LAN port, HDMI port, VGA port, four USB 2.0 ports, one PS/2 K/B and M/S port, one serial port and three audio jacks for line-out/in/Mic-in. An onboard PCI slot is accompanied with 2 SATA pin headers, four USB 2.0 ports and LPT support.

Pricing and availability:
The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard is currently available from the VIA Online store for US$89. To order your VIA VE-900Mini-ITX board please visit: http://store.viatech.com

For more information about the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard please visit:
http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/viamainboards/ve900/index.jsp

For images related to this press release please visit:
http://www.viagallery.com/index.php?option=com_flickr4j&Task=sets&Set=72157627916866897&Page=1

About VIA Technologies, Inc.
VIA Technologies, Inc is the foremost fabless supplier of power efficient x86 processor platforms that are driving system innovation in the PC, client, ultra mobile and embedded markets. Combining energy-saving processors with digital media chipsets and advanced connectivity, multimedia and networking silicon enables a broad spectrum of computing and communication platforms, including its widely acclaimed ultra compact mainboards. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, VIA's global network links the high tech centers of the US, Europe and Asia, and its customer base includes the world's top OEMs and system integrators. www.via.com.tw