The Rock APC ‘board itself has 4GB of flash storage and 512MB of DDR3 memory, along with hardware-accelerated graphics and video outputting through HDMI and VGA sockets at up to 1080p HD resolution. The A9 WonderMedia chip runs at 800MHz, and there’s a microSD slot for extra storage.

Ports include two USB 2.0 and a microUSB OTG, as well as a 10/100 ethernet, audio in/out, and a variety of header pins on board for extra connectivity. It’s worth noting that while Rock has a VGA output, the version in the Paper computer doesn’t.

Ice Cream Sandwich has been specially fettled to play nicely with USB keyboards and other peripherals, and all of the open-source software, documentation, pin-out guides, and other information is available here. APC Paper will go on sale in March, priced at $99, while APC Rock – the ‘board alone – is available now, priced at $79.

This is the first board from the company to use the VX11H MSP, which provides advances in graphics capability, including support for DirectX 11. The display hardware on the board also supports rich textures and 3-D stereoscopic displays. The QuadCore E-Series processor operates at 1 GHz, and the board promises high-performance computing in a very small and power miserly design.

Despite its small size, the little board has impressive connectivity options. It offers HD audio, HDMI out, VGA out, and a LVDS display connector. The board also has a high-performance hardware HD video decoder called the VIA Chromotion 5.0 video processor. The little board supports up to 8 GB of 1333MHz DDR3 memory.

The board also features pin headers and an expansion board-to-board connector that provides support for the addition of six more USB 2.0 ports, an LPC connector, SMBus connector, PS/2 port, audio ports, and more. Integrated back panel connectivity options include HDMI 1.4a, VGA, dual USB 3.0 ports, and a gigabit LAN port. Pricing and availability for the little board are unknown.

The tiny computer also has gigabit networking support and WiFi integrated along with five USB ports. The machine measures in at a compact 5.7″ x 3.9″ x 2″ and has 64-bit computing support. Along with the 1GHz CPU, the machine also has a VIA VX900H media system processor so it can handle HD video in multiple formats without taxing the CPU.

The little computer also has a SD card reader integrated. This would make a nice little HTPC that consumes little power and it should have very minimal heat output as well. The link to the official page for the computer isn’t working just yet. Pricing and availability are unknown. I would expect this to be a cheap machine though.

This little EPIA-P900 board is very small and packs in a dual-core CIA Eden X2 processor. The board also has a VIA VX900H media system processor. Combined the two chips allow machines based on the EPIA-P900 mainboard to process smooth video in 1080p resolution. This new version of the mainboard has 4GB of DDR3 RAM, HD audio, HDMI output, VGA, and LVDS connectivity.

The board uses the ChromotionHD 2.0 engine and has advanced filtering and post-processing. Other features include pin headers for five USB 2.0 ports, a LPC connector, PS/2 support, and a lot more. The board will support two SATA devices. This is the industry’s first Pico-ITX mainboard that has dual core processing.

The card is designed to operating in a PCI Express x1 slot and will work with PCIe 2.0 and 1.0 slots. The tech will work for PC host cards and add-in card applications as well. The VL800 is complaint with xHCI specifications and supports older USB ports so that gear not complying with USB 3.0 can still be plugged into the ports and used.

The controller also supports the Battery Charging Specification to allow for fast charging and the exchange of data with the computer while charging takes place. The new VL800 USB 3.0 host controllers is aimed at desktop and notebook use. The card is also able to be used in the server environment, docking stations, and as add-in cards for notebooks with PCI Card slots.

What that means is that when the user of the device running the VL811 controller hooks a USB device that is battery charging specification compatible it can charge more than three times as fast as a conventional hub or host is able to charge the device. Faster charging is one of the features that many people want out of their gadgets.

The charging downstream port allows the user to charge quickly and transfer data as well at the same rate the device would transfer when charging with an AC adapter. The VL811 allows for USB devices to be connected to a single downstream port on the host computer or another hub. The four ports are all backwards compatible for older devices. The new hub controller is also supported on all major OS’ including Windows 7 and it uses an in-house USB PHY with an advanced CMOS processor for low power consumption. It also supports low power states to conserve battier life.

Although S3 Graphics still produces its own range of desktop video cards, the company is perhaps best known for its GPUs found on VIA’s range of compact mainboards. These – targeted at embedded systems, HTPCs, small-form-factor desktops and other implementations where small dimensions are as important as media performance – have recently been joined by games consoles and smartphones in using S3 chipsets.

“The transaction would allow VIA to monetize a portion of its rich IP portfolio,” Tzu-mu Lin, Senior Vice President and Board Director of VIA said, ”yet retain its graphics capabilities to support the development and sale of its processors and chipsets.” HTC’s intentions with S3 Graphics are unknown, though the chips could obviously find a place in the company’s smartphone and tablet ranges, and previous rumors have suggested the firm is considering branching out into home electronics.

S3 Graphics made headlines earlier this week, after the US ITC judged that Apple had infringed on two of its patents.

The dual-core CPU inside the new Mini-PC will be offered in two versions with one running at 1.2GHz and another that runs at a faster 1.6GHz speed. Both of the processors offer native 64-bit support and are pin-to-pin compatible with VIA Nano, C7, C7-M, and Eden processors for future upgrades. The little machine is very compact measuring in at 12 x 12 x 4cm. That compact size will make the machine very easy to fit into a cramped entertainment center.

“The ZOTAC ZBOX is a great example of the kinds of innovations in form factor design that are possible on our low power VIA Nano X2 dual-core processor platform,” said Richard Brown, Vice President of Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “It provides an excellent solution for home and office users seeking a premium computing experience in an ultra compact size.” There is no word on pricing or availability on the VIA powered machines right now.

[via Akihabaranews]

VIA has been offering its Nano X2 dual core processor for a while now. The follow up to that X2 processor is a quad-core offering called simply enough QuadCore. The new processor packs a pair of dual core processors onto the same die. The first time we see these little processors will probably be on mini-ITX boards that come with the processor embedded from the factory according to Tech Report. We don’t see much of the VIA chips here in the US, but the brand is popular in developing countries where price is a major concern.

VIA offered up some benchmarks on the QuadCore processor compared to the AMD E-350 APU. The QuadCore had more performance in the SysMark benchmark with 5% more performance than the AMD offering and 28% more performance than the E-350 in CPUMark 99. When tested on the Cinebench R10 benchmark the QuadCore was 100% faster than the AMD E-350. The thing that will limit the usefulness of the QuadCore in some platforms is the 27.5W TDP. That is much higher than the Atom with about 13W TDP and the Brazos parts at 9-18W. Tech Report says expect to see the QuadCore in notebooks with 12-13″ screens.

[via The Tech Report]

The VIA VL701 is the first fully-integrated 5V switching regulator allowing it to achieve the highest power efficiency possible while offering data transfer rates of up to ten times that of USB 2.0 solutions. The device allowed VIA to be the first company to achieve USB-IF Bus-Power certification using a traditional HDD rather than a SSD. The adapter allows the end-user to connect any SATA HDD, SSD, or optical drive to their computer via a USB 3.0 port and get power directly from the port.

The VL701 will mean that we have more devices that can be used with a USB 3.0 port soon. “The VL701 is an advanced, highly-integrated USB 3.0 to SATA Bridge that lets users experience the benefits of USB 3.0 using hard drives, optical drives, and even SSDs,” said David Hsu, Associate Vice President, VIA Labs, Inc. “The low power aspect is compelling for both end-users and manufacturers by enabling lower operating temperatures and longer battery life without sacrificing performance.” The VL701 is shipping now.

[via VIA]

Like the Eden X2 dual-cores announced back in March, the new E-Series chips support processor-level AES encryption and virtualization. As well as Windows 7 they’ll happily run Linux and other platforms.

VIA is sampling the new chips now, and expects the first products and boards using the E-Series processors to hit the market later this quarter. Microsoft is rumored to be working with OEMs on a reference design for potential Microsoft TV hardware, though of course there’s no telling whose CPUs are at the heart of it.

Press Release:

VIA Announces New Nano™ X2 E-Series Dual Core Processors

VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors deliver a highly-optimized power-efficient dual core solution for advanced 64-bit x86 embedded system design applications

Taipei, Taiwan, 5 May, 2011 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced that it will release its latest edition to its new family of low power dual core VIA Nano X2 Series processors.

VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors combine a highly optimized, power-efficient dual-core architecture with advanced performance for the most demanding 64-bit x86 embedded system design applications. Available in two models running at speeds of 1.2+ GHz and 1.6+ GHz, VIA Nano X2 E-Series Processors also come with a component longevity guarantee of 7 years.

“The VIA Nano X2 E-Series demonstrates how VIA continues to lead the way in bringing highly optimized, power-efficient 64-bit x86 processors to the embedded market,” said Epan Wu, Head of the VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “With their advanced performance, these processors provide developers with exciting new embedded system design options.”

VIA Nano X2 E-Series

Leveraging the latest 40nm manufacturing process, VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors combine two 64-bit, superscalar VIA Nano cores on one die, offering enhanced multi-tasking and superb multimedia performance on a low power budget.

VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors bring additional features that include VIA VT virtualization, a technology that allows legacy software and applications to be used in virtual scenarios without impacting on performance. The unique VIA AES Security Engine offers hardware-based data encryption on the fly, an essential tool in content protection and system security.

VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors are natively 64-bit compatible, facilitating an essential transition for the future of the embedded industry as 64-bit operating systems such as Windows® Embedded Standard 7 allow for vastly improved data throughput per clock cycle. This makes it easier to manipulate large data sets and improves overall performance. VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors are also fully compatible with Windows CE and Linux operating systems.

VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors are based on the latest 40nm manufacturing process using a VIA NanoBGA2 package of 21mm x 21mm with a die size of 11mm x 6mm. They are also fully pin-to-pin compatible with VIA Eden, VIA C7 and VIA Nano E-Series, and VIA Eden X2 processors.

Product Highlights

• Industry-leading power-efficient architecture
• 7 year longevity guarantee
• Advanced multi-core processing
• Native support for 64-bit operating systems
• High-performance superscalar processing
• Out-of-order x86 architecture
• Most efficient speculative floating point algorithm
• Full processor virtualization support
• Advanced power and thermal management
• VIA AES hardware security features
• Pin-to-pin compatibility with VIA processors range

VIA Nano X2 E-Series Processors are sampling now to project customers. Systems and boards featuring VIA Nano X2 E-Series processors will be available in Q2 2011.

Two VIA Eden cores are used, in a package that’s actually the same size as the company’s existing single-core processors for pin-for-pin compatibility. While VIA is targeting embedded devices, we could certainly see the Eden X2 finding a space in a Google TV set-top box, bypassing the work needed to port the OS to ARM chips and offering a lower-power alternative to Intel’s Atom.

Press Release:

VIA Eden X2 Unveiled at Embedded Word 2011, World’s Most Power-Efficient Dual Core Processor

VIA Eden X2 processors bring unrivalled power efficiency and fanless stability to embedded markets without compromising on performance

Taipei, Taiwan, 1 March, 2011 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the new VIA Eden X2 processor, the industry’s lowest power dual-core processor, optimized for fanless implementation in a broad range of industrial and commercial embedded systems. VIA Eden X2 will debut at Embedded World 2011, Nuremberg, Hall 12, Booth No. 574

VIA Eden X2 processors combine VIA’s signature ‘Eden’ fanless design principles, in a highly optimized, power-efficient dual-core architecture. This guarantees rock-solid stability for mission critical embedded systems without compromising on performance or features. With a component longevity guarantee of 7 years, VIA Eden X2 processors are guaranteed to extend the reach of fanless system design for years to come.

“Eden X2 shows how once again VIA is setting the pace when it comes to highly optimized, power-efficient processing,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “Embedded developers will relish the opportunity to integrate a native 64-bit, dual-core processor in passively cooled, ultra stable systems.”

VIA Eden X2 – Dual-Core Processing on a Fanless Power Budget
Leveraging the latest 40nm manufacturing process, VIA Eden X2 processors combine two 64-bit, superscalar VIA Eden cores on one die, offering enhanced multi-tasking and superb multimedia performance on a rigidly low power budget. VIA Eden X2 processors are the most power-efficient processors on the market, designed to offer the ideal solution for fanless system design.

VIA Eden X2 processors bring additional features that include VIA VT virtualization, a technology that allows legacy software and applications to be used in virtual scenarios without impacting on performance. The unique VIA AES Security Engine offers hardware-based data encryption on the fly, and essential tool in content protection and system security.

VIA Eden X2 processors are natively 64-bit compatible, facilitating an essential transition for the future of the embedded industry as 64-bit operating systems such as Windows® Embedded Standard 7 allow for vastly improved data throughput per clock cycle. This makes it easier to manipulate large data sets and improves overall performance. VIA Eden X2 processors are also fully compatible with Windows CE and Linux operating systems.

VIA Eden X2 processors are based on the latest 40nm manufacturing process using a VIA NanoBGA2 package of 21mm x 21mm with a die size of 11mm x 6mm. All VIA Eden X2 processors and are fully pin-to-pin compatible with VIA Eden, VIA C7 and VIA Nano E-Series processors.

Product Highlights
l Industry-leading power-efficient architecture
l 7 year longevity guarantee
l Advanced multi-core processing
l Native support for 64-bit operating systems
l High-performance superscalar processing
l Out-of-order x86 architecture
l Most efficient speculative floating point algorithm
l Full processor virtualization support
l Advanced power and thermal management
l VIA AES hardware security features
l Pin-to-pin compatibility with VIA processors range

VIA Eden X2 Processors are sampling now to project customers. Systems and boards featuring the VIA Eden X2 will be available in Q2 2011.

For information about VIA Eden X2 processors, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/processors/edenX2/

The X2 pairs two of VIA’s Isaiah cores together, which promise to be more power efficient than rival chips as well as supporting, on-die, things like AES encryption and random number generation. What remains to be seen is how much impact on the mainstream market the company can manage, especially in the face of the hundreds of design wins that Intel and AMD are both claiming with their new platforms.

Press Release:

VIA Announces VIA Nano X2 Dual-Core Processor

Brings advanced multi-core performance to energy-efficient PCs without raising the heat

TAIPEI, TAIWAN, January 4, 2011 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced its latest VIA Nano X2 processor for mainstream PC markets. Based on a 40 nanometer fabrication process, the VIA Nano X2 delivers better computational performance and improved multi-tasking ability without consuming more power.

“The VIA Nano X2 processor arrives at a time when software architectures are now optimized to for multi-thread computing,” commented Richard Brown, VP International Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “Improvements in semi-conductor fabrication means we can now double the number of processor cores while maintaining the same low energy consumption levels that our customers are used to.”

VIA Nano X2 processors are targeting a range of PC products that include desktop, all-in-one and mobile notebook designs while extending the reach of VIA’s processor portfolio into multitasking and performance-oriented segments. VIA Nano X2 processors offer end-users the most optimized, power-efficient computing experience on the market today.

VIA Nano X2 Processor
VIA Nano X2 processors are built using the advanced 64-bit, superscalar ‘Isaiah’ architecture that powers previous single-core VIA Nano processors, adopted worldwide for a growing number of market-leading mini-note, small form factor desktop, and energy-efficient server designs.

Featuring two out-of-order x86 cores, VIA Nano X2 processors deliver up to double the performance on multi-thread optimized applications and also come with SSE4, native 64-bit support, VT CPU virtualization technology, and VIA PadLock™ hardware security features. VIA Nano X2 processors are also pin-to-pin compatible with previous VIA Nano, VIA C7, VIA C7-M and VIA Eden processors, facilitating easy upgrades of existing designs.

Product Highlights
· Advanced multi-core processing
· Power-efficient out-of-order x86 architecture
· Full support for 64-bit operating systems
· High-performance superscalar processing
· Most efficient speculative floating point algorithm
· Full processor virtualization support
· Advanced power and thermal management
· VIA PadLock™ hardware security features
· Pin-to-pin compatibility with other VIA processors

VIA Nano X2 processors are also compatible with all VIA media system processors and digital media chipsets including the latest VIA VX900 and VIA VN1000.

VIA Nano X2 Availability
VIA Nano X2 processors samples are currently available for OEMs and motherboard vendors, with systems featuring the processors expected to arrive in Q1 2011.

The video card supports multi-stream 1080p HD video and stereoscopic 3D rendering. The card plugs into a PCIe 2.0 x 16 slot and has 512MB of RAM. It uses a low profile design and has a DVI port with HDMI that supports HDCP. The card also supports Shader model 4.1 and fully programmable DX10.

Other features include support for OpenGL 3.1 and OpenGL ES 2.0. H.264 format video and VC-1 are supported along with Blu-ray and resolutions up to 2560 x 1600. The little card also supports dual screens and more. The GPU is the S3 Chrome 5400E unit and pricing is unknown at this time.

While onboard connectivity is minimal – though you do get plenty of pin-outs – you can add the P830-B I/O add-on-board to get a VGA port, gigabit LAN and two USB 2.0 ports. VIA Vinyl HD audio codec provides 6 channel, DTS capable audio with S/PDIF support, and there are two SATA ports.

VIA reckons the EPIA-P830 is ideal for embedded applications, but we can see it gaining favor among the DIY HTPC community. No word on pricing at this stage.

Press Release:

VIA EPIA-P830 Pico-ITX: Multimedia Prowess Meets Networking Versatility in the Smallest of Places

Latest Pico-ITX board offers incredible HD multimedia over HDMI plus dual Mini-PCIe slots for enhanced connectivity options, delivering the smartest, most connected Pico-ITX board ever

Taipei, Taiwan, December 15, 2010 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA EPIA-P830 Pico-ITX board for advanced portable and network connected embedded applications. The VIA EPIA-P830 features the VIA Nano E-Series processor and the latest VIA VX900 media system processor with additional support for dual Mini-PCIe modules, bringing a wealth of 3G and wireless connectivity options.

“Modern enterprise environments in healthcare, logistics and fleet management require more connected and portable devices that don’t hold back on multimedia ability,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “The VIA EPIA-P830 addresses these needs, creating the most complete Pico-ITX board on the market with great HD video performance and a variety of display and network connectivity options.”

The VIA EPIA-P830 extends the Pico-ITX form factor further than ever, using low profile expansion boards to provide easy on-board access to VGA, RJ45 and two USB ports plus dual Mini-PCie slots ideal for accommodating a range of Mini-PCIe modules.

The Ultimate Embedded Platform – VIA Nano E-Series & VIA VX900
The latest microprocessor platform from VIA is tailor-made for embedded applications, a potent combination that comprises the mature and optimized VIA Nano E-Series processor and the latest VIA VX900 media system processor. VIA embedded processor platforms have extended longevity support of up to seven years and offer the most compelling low power microprocessor design in the industry today.

The VIA Nano E-Series processor delivers out-of-order 64-bit processing that keeps in step with the need for raw performance while remaining within rigidly low energy, low heat parameters. The latest VIA VX900 MSP adds support for DDR3 memory, HD audio support, advanced display connectivity and a high performance hardware HD video decoder with the latest VIA ChromotionHD 2.0 video engine.

The VIA ChromotionHD 2.0 delivers advanced filtering and cutting edge post-processing to perform ultra smooth decoding of MPEG-4/AVC, H.264, MPEG-2, VC-1, WMV-HD, providing smooth playback of the most demanding multimedia titles at resolutions up to 1080p without incurring a heavy CPU load.

To learn more about VIA Nano architecture and the embedded focused E-Series processors, please go to:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/processors/nano/

For information about the VIA VX900 media system processor, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/chipsets/v-series/vx900/index.jsp

VIA EPIA-P830 Pico-ITX – Product Overview
Measuring a mere 10cm x 7.2cm the ultra compact VIA EPIA-P830 features a 1.2GHz VIA Nano E-Series processor and supports up to 4GB of DDR3 800/1066 SODIMM system memory. The highly integrated, all-in-one VIA VX900 Media System Processor provides flawless hardware acceleration for the latest HD video codecs at display resolutions of up to 1080p with very low CPU utilization. The VIA Chrome9™ HCM 3D integrated graphics core boasts full DirectX 9.0 support and a 128-bit 2D engine with hardware rotation capability.

The VIA EPIA-P830 uses a specially designed I/O add-on-board which supplements the native HDMI port to add a VGA port, a Gigabit LAN and two USB 2.0 ports. The VIA Vinyl HD audio codec provides 6 channel, DTS capable audio with S/PDIF support. Storage is provided via two SATA ports. On board pin headers provide support for 1 channel LVDS display support, an additional 5 x USB 2.0 ports, an LPC connector, SMBus connector, PS/2 support, audio jacks, LVDS, 4 pairs of DIO and two UART ports. A DC-in power connector is also provided.

To learn more about the VIA EPIA-P830 Pico-ITX board, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1310&tabs=1

The T10A has a 10.1-inch touchscreen, VIA C7-M 1.2GHz processor, VX700 graphics and a 32GB SSD. It also packs a front-facing webcam and runs Windows 7; no word on whether the touchscreen is resistive or capacitive.

As for the more interesting clamshell model, we know even less about its hardware but it apparently has twin 8-inch touchscreens and an unspecified VIA CPU. That makes it more in line with the Libretto W100 in terms of size than the Iconia; however, the low-power CPU could give it more battery life than the Toshiba, the usability of which was undermined by its sub-3hr runtimes. No word on when – or indeed if – we can expect to see either tablet reach the market.

It’s certainly compact enough to get lost under your HDTV, just 5.7 x 3.9 x 2.0 inches and made of sturdy metal and silver plastic. Although there are rubber feet for standalone use, you can also VESA mount it to the back of your display. Ports include audio in/out/microphone on the front, together with two USB 2.0 and a miniUSB, then VGA, HDMI, two further USB 2.0 and gigabit ethernet on the back. There’s also a DC power input – the external PSU is a reasonably small block – and a connector for the optional WiFi antenna.

Although described as barebones, there’s not a huge amount that the ARTiGO A1100 is missing. It comes with VIA’s single-core 1.2GHz U2500 Nano processor and the company’s VX855 MSP, the latter combining the GPU, Northbridge and Southbridge into a single chip. All the buyer need fit is a 2.5-inch SATA hard-drive and a stick of DDR2 SODIMM memory (up to 2GB). VIA don’t add WiFi as standard, but do offer an optional board which is easily connected, and there’s an optional SD card reader too.

Setup, then, is pretty straightforward, though you obviously also have to add the OS of your choice. Though the U2500 is happy with 64-bit platforms, don’t expect to get the full Windows 7 Ultimate experience from the A1100: the VX855 falls short of Aero compliance, meaning much of the graphical niceties in Microsoft’s flagship OS are absent, and multitasking with anything but the most basic of tasks is wishful thinking.

Opt for Windows XP or a Linux OS, however, and things are a whole lot slicker, though you might fall foul of VIA’s DirectX 9 limitations. We generally prefer the more flexible VLC over Microsoft’s own Windows Media Player app, but the VX855 lacks hardware acceleration for anything other than WMP. That leaves you at the mercy of the CPU.

In use, it’s a quiet system; not fanless, but the tiny 25mm fan is a discrete whirring and likely to be drowned out by whatever else is in the room. Unfortunately it’s also not especially capable, and the ARTiGO A1100 box gets very hot in use. We’d have happily accepted a little extra noise – and perhaps a slightly larger chassis – for a bigger, more effective fan. The miniUSB port is a neat addition, however, allowing you to hook the PC up to another computer and treat it as an external drive.

The CPU/GPU pairing was sufficient to play 720p HD video smoothly, but 1080p HD was less successful; at best we had some mild stuttering, while at worst there were multiple dropped frames and mis-matched audio. Obviously with no integrated optical drive or TV tuner, the ARTiGO’s HTPC credentials aren’t entirely solid. Office tasks and basic photo editing were more in line with the PC’s abilities, just as long as you’re content to do one thing at a time.

If the performance isn’t quite up to regular HTPC standards, neither is the basic functionality – at least not right now. We were unable to set the ARTiGO A1100 to boot up with its HDMI output active, instead finding it would always default to the VGA output. VIA is apparently working on a firmware update to fix this, but until that’s released it’s a frustrating flaw.

As with all barebones PCs, perhaps, the VIA ARTiGO A1100 isn’t really suited to a regular home user. With a street price of around $230 (budget $45 for the WiFi b/g adapter and $25 for the SD card reader) it’s cheaper than a prebuilt nettop, certainly, but factor in the time and money required to install an HDD, memory and OS, and then tweak the latter into giving the best performance with the CPU/GPU pairing, and you’re facing what’s obviously an enthusiast’s product.

If you’ve the patience and inclination, there’s plenty of potential for the VIA nettop. Its frugal power consumption makes it an ideal embedded device, as long as you’re willing to pretty much dedicate it to a single purpose: a simple file server, for instance. Unfortunately, what it won’t do is broaden VIA’s market among home users, at least until the company rolls out updated versions with faster, dual- and quad-core versions of the Nano CPU.

The new board is available in two versions with one using a fan and the Nano processor running at 1.6GHz. A version using no fan has the same Nano processor running at 1.2GHz. The board supports up to 8GB of RAM. The VX900 supports ChromotionHD 2.09 video engine with hardware acceleration for C1, H.264, MPEG-2 and WMV9 HD video formats.

Those formats are supported in up to 1080p resolution. The board has HDMI and VGA outputs with pin headers for dual channel 24-bit LVDS. Other features include a serial port connector, four USB 2.0 ports, onboard PCIe x4 slot, and three audio jacks.

The kits allow the developer to design for a broad range of application specific and fanless EM-ITX devices. The AMOS-5000 series dev kits offer specific expansion models for the VIA EM-IO line with extendable aluminum chassis kits. The kits allow the developer to design embedded OEM and ODM fanless embedded box computers.

The new dev kits include the VIA AMOS-5110 for advanced multimedia applications. The kit has advanced graphics and video processing with DirectX 10.1 graphics, 256MB of GDDR3 RAM, and support for VGA, dual DVI, and dual HDMI outputs. A number of other kits in the series are for other applications like connectivity and communications and a kit for industrial applications.

The board uses a 1.6GHz Nano E-Series CPU and has a VX800 media system processor. It can be fitted with dual DDR2 DIMMs for memory and has DirectX 9 complaint graphics. Other features include HD audio and Gigabit LAN.

The back panel of the board has support for VGA and dual channel LVDS displays. There are four PCIe slots and eight COM ports. The board also has six USB 2.0 ports and more. The CPU and chipsets are cooled with large passive solutions coupled with a small fan.

There’s also a VGA port, gigabit ethernet, dual COM ports, four USB ports, a USB device port and audio jacks, and then there are plenty of headers for hooking up other devices and display options.  VIA also offer a range of wireless modules and I/O cables, and the EITX-3001 also has a USB touchscreen driver onboard.

VIA reckon the EITX-3001 will be of most interest to kiosks, embedded and other relatively dull applications, but we can see home users drawn to its low-power requirements, fanless build and HD output; it would make for an interesting HTPC unit, certainly.  No word on pricing, though it’s apparently available to customers now.

Press Release:

VIA EITX-3001 Shows that ‘Thin is In’ for Embedded Devices

VIA announce VIA EITX-3001, a slim-line Em-ITX form factor board featuring VIA Nano E-Series and HD video over HDMI

Taipei, Taiwan, 9 June 2010 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA EITX-3001, its latest Em-ITX form factor board and the ideal solution for a range of durable and fanless next generation devices in kiosk, HMI, POI and POS embedded applications.

Combining the latest VIA Nano E-Series processor and the VIA VX855 media system processor, the VIA EITX-3001 offers a full featured I/O specification on a specially developed slim-line board. Fanless devices based on the VIA EITX-3001 can enjoy absolute stability within a wide temperature range in a low profile system of less than 35mm high.

“With the VIA EITX-3001 we’re offering a full-featured board that is the ideal starting point for much slimmer, fanless and rugged devices,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “The VIA EITX-3001 combines versatility with ruthless stability at extreme temperatures in a form factor that is ideal for space constrained industrial and commercial environments.”

The VIA EITX-3001: Slim, Stable and Fanless
The VIA EITX-3001 is powered by a 1.3GHz VIA Nano E-Series processor, bringing a performance optimized, 64-bit architecture to today’s modern embedded applications. The VIA EITX-3001 also takes advantage of the VIA VX855 media system processor, a feature packed all-in-one digital media chipset that brings excellent hardware acceleration for the latest HD video formats including MPEG-2, H.264, VC-1 and WMV9.

The VIA EITX-3001 is based on the unique Em-ITX form factor, placing both the VIA Nano E-Series processor and VIA VX855 MSP on the reverse side of the board, optimizing available board real estate and facilitating simple fanless chassis designs. The VIA EITX-3001 is guaranteed to be stable in passive cooling configurations at temperatures ranging from -10oC to 60oC.

The VIA EITX-3001 includes an onboard DC-to-DC converter that has both AT and ATX power modes, supporting a wide range of power input voltage from DC 7V to DC 36V, configurable through an onboard switch. An on board built-in 5-wire/4-wire USB Touch interface makes the EITX-3001 ideally suited for high-end interactive touch screen multimedia applications.
Dual I/O coastlines allow for a wealth of I/O ports including a HMDI port, VGA port, Gigabit Ethernet, dual COM ports, four USB ports, a USB device port, audio jacks and power and HDD activity LEDs. LVDS is supported through on board pin headers allowing for a range of multi-display options including CRT/LVDS, CRT/HDMI and LVDS/HDMI configurations.

The VIA EITX-3001 supports all 32-bit and 64-bit Microsoft Windows operating systems including the latest Windows Embedded Standard 7.

The VIA EMITX-30001 is available to customers now. To learn more about the VIA EITX-3001 please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1210

Rumors are still swirling that the iPhone will land on carriers other than AT&T this year. The latest is that Sprint will get a new iPhone in September. Intel has some new CPUs that are going to find their way into ultraportable machines this summer. The new CPUs are 32nm ULV Core i3, i5, and i7 parts.

AT&T has decided to allow all of the handsets it offers to be unlocked except the most popular smartphone the company offers — the iPhone. The unlock move comes on the heels of a class action suit against AT&T. We reviewed the HTC EVO 4G smartphone early in the week. In the end, we only wish there was more 4G coverage for the device to enjoy, the handset is one of the most capable on the market.

A gym worker found an unreleased version of the Motorola Droid Shadow at a Verizon corporate gym. Pics were leaked online, but later in the week, the person who found the device was fired. Rumors popped up early in the week that NVIDIA might be getting ready to kill off the GTX 470 after only a few months on the market. NVIDIA later said those rumors were untrue and the GTX 470 would continue on.

Canon announced that it has stopped developing SED TVs for the home market. The company will continue to develop SEDs for other markets like medical devices. VIA is set to get into the tablet hardware market. Tablets running Android and VIA hardware are expected in 2H 2010.

A new NVIDIA GPU for notebooks surfaced called the GTX 480M. The new GPU will surface first in a line of Clevo notebooks, but will end up in high-end machines everywhere. Sony showed off a sweet rollable OLED display mid-week. The display could be rolled to 4mm in diameter while showing moving images.

Project Natal pricing was rumored to be $149 for the camera alone this week. The Natal camera is also said to be coming in a bundle with an Xbox 360 for $299. Rumors surfaced later in the week that Steve Ballmer would be on-stage at WWDC 2010. Those rumors were later proven to be false, as if we didn’t know that was highly unlikely already.

AT&T has announced a new insurance plan for the iPhone called MobileProtect for $13.99 monthly. It’s not much of an insurance plan though and lets you buy a new handset at close to the rate you get them with a new contract. The last bit of iPhone rumor fluff this week claims that Verizon will have the device by November. That would mean the iPhone will land on the Sprint network in September, then Verizon in November if those rumors are true.

Some of the tablets are recognizable from earlier demos, such as the EKEN M001 and the EKEN M003.  Others, meanwhile, look merely like generic touchscreen slates of the sort we’ve seen gushing out of the Far East since tablets became fashionable; here they’re named as the G-Link A8 and the FirstView PC707.

They’re based on the WonderMedia PRIZM SoC which is what helps keep the price down; the SoC showed up in August 2009 as the grunt behind WonderMedia’s SmartFrame.  Before you get too excited at the price, though, check out SlashGear reader Chris Meredith’s review of the EKEN M001:

I have the Eken m001, and it is nearly unusable. The battery last a few hours if you’re lucky, the WiFi is week, it’s probably not going to be able to be updated to 2.1/2.2, since the proc is too slow, and even with streamlined firmware out there it is SLOW, though the touch screen is much better than with the firmware that shipped with it. If you just want to try out android, it’s not bad for a $100 device. For a day to day device it’s not great.

The controller is called the VL800 and is aimed at integration into desktops and notebooks, servers, docking systems, and add-in cards. In addition to supporting four USB 3.0 ports that can be used at the same time, the new host controller also supports USB Battery Charging Specification.

Support for the spec means that the ports can be used to charge and power external devices like phones and cameras. The controller maintains backwards compatibility with USB 2.0 and earlier devices. VIA Labs doesn’t offer any indication when we will see the new host controller in consumer devices.

Hardware specifications and manufacturer identities for the VIA-based tablets are currently unknown; however, given the price bracket Brown has indicated, we’re not expecting them to legitimately go up against Apple’s iPad.  Instead, we’d expect something more along the lines of Freescale’s recent tablet reference designs, which have resistive touchscreens and prioritise simple web access and multimedia playback.

Brown claims the first of the tablets will arrive in the US in the second half of 2010, with street prices of $100.  It’s unclear which version of Android the devices will run; Gingerbread is due out in Q4 2010, but it’s more likely that the touchscreen slates will get Android 2.2 Froyo at best.

[Image is VIA's WebPad reference design]

As you can see in the image above, the little machine is barely larger than your average mobile phone. Despite its small size, it crams in some nice hardware. The machine uses a 1.2GHz VIA Nano processor combined with a VIA VX855 media system processor.

The PC measures in at 5.7″ x 3.9″ x 2″ and has a gob of connectivity on the rear of the computer. The machine has front and back panel IO ports along with HDMI and VGA out. A gigabit Ethernet port is integrated along with five USB ports, three audio jacks, and optional WiFi connectivity. The tiny little PC would make a mean HTPC at a retail price of only $243 with the fits ten buyers getting the machine for $199.

Lenovo and Samsung are reportedly getting machines running VX900 ready for the mainstream. The launch date for both companies is said to be June 2010, which is only a few months away now.

The VX900 is expected to be on par with the Intel Atom processor line as far as power efficiency goes and will play 1080p HD video just as well. Reports also say that the netbooks using the VX900 chipset will use HD resolution screens, which would make sense to take advantage of the new platform.

The VX900 can filter and post-process video in MPEG-4/AVC, H.264, MPEG-2, VC-1, WMV-HD, and AVS video formats. It also offers support for connectivity standards like Display Port, HDMI, DVP, VGA, and LVDS/TMDS. DDR3 RAM is supported at up to 1066MHz and the VX900 is compatible with the VIA Nano, C7, and Eden processors.

Key features of the VX900 are high performance hardware HD video decoding, advanced display connectivity, DirectX 9 graphics support, DDR3 support, and integrated technology support for up to eight USB ports and more. The VX900 also supports VIA Vinyl HD audio with surround sound support and more. VIA offers no word on when we can expect to see devices using the VX900.

The computer is very small and has no fans inside. The machine is aimed at commercial and industrial applications. The complete computer is based on the VIA EITX-3000 board and it can be mounted in multiple configurations and via VESA mounts. The machine can withstand vibration up to 5G and is shock resistant up to 20G when CF storage is used.

The little machine is powered by a 1.3GHz VIA Nano processor and has VIA VX8000 media system processor. Up to 2GB of RAM can be used and graphics are via a Chrome 9 graphics core. The little computer can support up to three displays and has VGA out, and networking with dual Gigabit Ethernet ports. It can run XP Embedded, Windows CE 6.0, or Linux.

The FCC filings contain label pictures of the device, as well as a test report that reveals 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi support.  Further details have not been shown, but it has been previously noted to be equipped with a VIA C7-M processor running at double the speed as the XO-1, 1 GB of RAM, 4 GB of storage, and an upgraded Via chipset to feature a 3D graphics engine and HD video decoding.

Availability of the XO-15 has been kept mum, but the FCC filing is a marker that the device is soon to be released.

Video demo after the cut

There’s also a companion carrier I/O board onto which the T700 drops, in case the onboard LCD/CRT connection isn’t enough display flexibility.  The T700 also has PCI Express and Ultra DMA integrated, but companies are expected to develop custom carrier boards suited for specific compact installations.

VIA reckon the EPIA-T700 will find a place in industrial, educational and in-car systems, though we reckon there’ll be a few home users eyeing it for media PC purposes.  No word on how much it – or the carrier I/O board – will cost.

Press Release:

VIA Revolutionizes Compact Embedded Design with the World’s First Mobile-ITX Module

Introducing the VIA EPIA-T700, the first 6cm x 6cm computer-on-module based on the Mobile-ITX form factor

Taipei, Taiwan, January 19, 2010 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA EPIA-T700: the first product based on the recently announced Mobile-ITX form factor. Measuring a mere 6cm x 6cm, the VIA EPIA-T700 is a uniquely compact computer-on-module that is designed for a range of ultra-compact embedded devices in medical, military and in-vehicle applications.

Designed to deliver a simple modular approach to device design that precipitates greater miniaturization and portability, the Mobile-ITX-based VIA EPIA-T700 makes it easier than ever before to design and manufacture compact devices. With customized carrier boards connected using ultra low profile 3mm connectors, the VIA EPIA-T700 is in a class of its own.

“The VIA EPIA-T700 takes advantage of the modular design principles inherent in our Mobile-ITX form factor specification, making it easier than ever before to create astonishingly compact x86 devices that don’t compromise on features,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc.

VIA EPIA-T700
The VIA EPIA-T700 can be used with a variety of carrier boards that can be adapted and customized to meet the needs of a range of applications and is powered by a specially miniaturized 1GHz VIA Eden ULV processor and the compact VIA VX820 MSP that together offer industry-leading I/O flexibility in the most compact of available form factors. The VIA EPIA-T700 features 512MB of DDR2 on-board system memory, meaning compatibility and reliability are guaranteed.

The VIA VX820 media system processor adds a wealth of key features including the VIA Chrome9 DX9 integrated graphics core, the VIA Chromotion™ video engine with hardware acceleration of MPEG-2, MPEG-4, WMV9, and VC1video formats, and VIA Vinyl HD Audio supporting up to eight channels of HD audio.

An integrated multi-configuration transmitter enables display connection to TTL LCD panels and CRT monitors. Added flexibility is provided through carrier board configurations that integrate the DVP interface to include LVDS and DVI support. Other integrated data bus technologies include PCI Express and Ultra DMA.

The VIA EPIA-T700 uses two unique high density, low profile connectors on the under side of the module that can also withstand vibrations of up to 5Gs making Mobile-ITX systems suitable for in-vehicle and industrial machining applications.

For more information regarding the VIA EPIA-T700 computer-on-module please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1070&tabs=1

For images of the VIA EPIA-T700 please go to:

http://www.viagallery.com/index.php?option=com_flickr4j&Task=sets&Set=72157623114958829&Page=1

To view a video of the VIA EPIA-T700 please visit:

Mobile-ITX – The Science of Small
Extending VIA’s reputation as a leading innovator and creator of ultra-compact form factors, Mobile-ITX at 6cm x 6cm is currently the most compact computer-on-module form factor on the market; an incredible 50% smaller than the successful VIA-developed Pico-ITX form factor.

Mobile-ITX employs a modularized design that includes a CPU module card and an I/O carrier board. This offers greater flexibility for developers who can simply drop in the CPU module to a custom designed, application specific carrier board, negating lengthy developmental design and testing phases.

More details about the Mobile-ITX form factor may be found at the VIA website along with a detailed “Mobile-ITX Form Factor” white paper:
www.via.com.tw/en/initiatives/spearhead/mobile-itx/

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

In fact, VIA reckon the VT1730 is actually the first “highly-integrated single chip solution” for eight such channels.  It’ll mean you can record a band’s worth of instruments at the same time, or output to eight different speakers for a pretty impressive home cinema system.  Happily the board also supports the I2S standard for Blu-ray audio, which means 24-bit 192kHz audio tracks on such HD discs will sound as they’re meant to.

Connectivity includes six MIDI ports (three in, three out), sixteen I2S ports (eight in, eight out), three stereo S/PDIF ports (one in, two out) and of course USB 2.0.  It looks like we’ll have to wait for an external soundcard manufacturer to pick up the Vinyl Envy VT1730 before we can buy one ourselves, however; no word on when that might happen nor how much we should budget for one, either.

Press Release:

VIA Debuts World’s First USB 2.0 Audio Controller

Ideal for MIDI systems and USB soundcards, the new VIA Vinyl Envy VT1730 USB 2.0 Audio Controller brings studio-level performance to the home audio enthusiast

Taipei, Taiwan, January 14, 2010 – VIA Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of PC and prosumer audio silicon, today unveiled the VIA Vinyl Envy VT1730 USB 2.0 Audio Controller, the industry’s first highly-integrated single chip solution that leverages the broad USB 2.0 bandwidth (480 Mb/s) to deliver uncompromised audio quality.

The VIA Envy VT1730 is an 8-channel, 24-bit/192kHz audio controller specifically designed to achieve cinema-quality audio recording and playback in high fidelity USB and MIDI system applications. Whether it’s using the bandwidth capacity of USB 2.0 to simultaneously support audio streams from a guitar, bass, keyboard and microphone, or delivering true-to-life sound to multiple speakers in a home theatre set-up, the VIA Envy VT1730 offers outstanding audio performance and impressive application flexibility.

Providing a smooth interface between USB, analog and digital audio devices, the VIA Envy VT1730 is ideal for USB sound cards, headphones, audio hubs, recording consoles, and MIDI devices that require the streaming of considerable audio data between a host system and audio I/O system via the USB interface.

“Over 10 years of experience in the audio component industry and extensive knowledge of peripheral interfaces has enabled this technology breakthrough,” said Richard Brown, Vice President of Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “Audio enrichment, through our successful VIA Vinyl Audio line of controllers and codecs, has long been a core element of VIA’s multimedia product focus, and the VIA Envy VT1730 further extends our reach beyond the PC into high-end audio systems.”

Notably, the VIA Envy VT1730 also supports the I²S standard enabling Blu-ray Disc™ audio content protection; solutions without this feature dramatically reduce audio quality to that of a regular CD, with a sampling rate of only 16-bit/48kHz.

For further information on the VIA Vinyl Envy VT1730, please visit the VIA website at:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/audio/controllers/envyusb/

The M’SERV S2100 measures in at 10.2-inches long and 4.7-inches high, yet can be stuffed with up to 4TB of storage space.  There’s also a 1.3+GHz VIA Nano CPU, two memory slots, two SATA bays and an internal Compact Flash socket which the S2100 can boot from.  As for ports, you’re looking at dual gigabit ethernet, three USB 2.0 and a VGA output.

Rather than simply position the S2100 as yet another NAS, VIA reckon it’ll be sufficient for backup, “cloud-intermediary storage roles”, network video recording and – thanks to VT virtualization support – virtual server applications.  No word on exactly what sort of price the system will go for; we’ll have to wait until the first retailers and OEMs move to pick it up.

Press Release:

Big on the Inside, Small on the Outside: VIA M’SERV S2100 Addresses SOHO and SMB Server Needs

VIA M’SERV S2100 is a compact, versatile server system suitable for a range of essential applications geared towards the needs of modern small business and home office users

VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA M’SERV S2100: a compact and versatile server system suitable for a range of applications for SOHO and SMB customers. Available to OEM customers, the VIA M’SERV S2100 is a mere 10.2″ long by 4.7″ high and provides up to four terabytes of storage in a stylish, compact, low power and low noise system.

The VIA M’SERV S2100 is the first product of its kind to offer the unique advantages of the high-performance, 64-bit VIA Nano processor. This makes the VIA M’SERV S2100 capable of addressing many traditional and next-generation server applications including sophisticated backup, cloud-intermediary service roles along with other storage oriented server applications such as NVR (Network Video Recorder) systems and Log servers.

By selecting the VIA Nano processor, the VIA M’SERV S2100 brings a novel set of features to the compact server market. These include VT virtualization support for the latest virtual server applications and the VIA AES encryption engine that can be employed to offer an advanced and non intrusive on-the-fly data encryption service through hardware.

“The VIA M’SERV S2100 is uniquely positioned to offer a wide range of essential server applications for small business and home office users,” said Jerry Yuan, VIA Embedded Business Development Manager. “The VIA Nano processor brings with it an advanced set of features that makes the VIA M’SERV S2100 an exceptionally compelling mini-server product”.

VIA M’SERV S2100 Compact Server System
Measuring just 13.5cm by 12cm by 26cm (5.3″x4.7″x10.2″), the VIA M’SERV S2100 is powered by a 1.3+GHz VIA Nano processor and supports 2 slots of DDR2 SO-DIMM 667/533MHz memory. Two SATA bays with integrated power ports are mounted within the case, and a type I Compact Flash socket can be used as a bootable SSD for embedded OS/AP to improve the system reliability and enhance boot speed.

Connectivity includes dual Gigabit Ethernet ports while two USB 2.0 ports at the back are supplemented by one port at the front allowing easy accessibility for USB peripherals such as flash drives or memory card readers.

The VIA M’SERV S2100 supports Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 (x86 & x64), and Windows Server 2008 Foundation, as well a range of major Linux distributions including Ubuntu, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 (Service Pack 2) and FreeBSD.

For more details about the VIA M’SERV S2100 compact server system, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/mserv/s2100/

VIA M’SERV S2100 Availability
The VIA M’SERV S2100 system is available now for system integrators and OEMs. For pricing and availability, please send an email to: embedded@via.com.tw

The USB 3.0 to SATA controller is called the VIA VL700 and is a highly integrated single chip solution that lets users connect SATA HDDs, SSDs, and optical drives to the PC via USB 3.0 ports. The controller is capable of data transfer rates of up to 5Gbps.

The device is compatible with SATA 3Gbps and 1.5Gbps transfer rates and NCQ. The controller also supports data transfer from DVD and Blu-ray drives attached to USB 3.0 ports.

While VIA are positioning the AMOS-3001 as an industrial PC, with broad temperature range resilience, we’re thinking it would also make for a pretty impressive HTPC.  Thanks to the EPIA-P820 it can manage high-bitrate H.264, WMV, VC1 and MPEG 2/4 output, while connectivity includes HDMI, VGA, gigabit ethernet and two USB 2.0 ports via a dedicated I/O board.

Slotted into the AMOS-3001, meanwhile, and you also get COM ports together with two extra USB 2.0; the mini-PC measures just 15 x 4.6 x 10.8 cm.  No word on pricing right now, but both VIA products are currently sampling.

Press Release:

Most Powerful Pico-ITX Board Ever Packs the VIA Nano Processor, Powers VIA AMOS-3001, Industry’s Most Compact & Fanless IPC

VIA EPIA-P820 Pico-ITX board leverages the high performance 64-bit VIA Nano processor platform for next generation multimedia-intensive applications

Taipei, Taiwan, January 5, 2010 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA EPIA-P820, the first Pico-ITX form factor board to feature the high performance, 64-bit VIA Nano processor, bringing industry-leading digital multimedia performance and virtualization capabilities to the smallest of spaces with the VIA AMOS-3001 chassis system.

The choice of VIA Nano processor means that the VIA EPIA-P820 offers a range of advantages over competitor offerings, including full 64-bit software support, a high-performance superscalar architecture and full support of the latest virtualization technologies for next generation server and virtual machine applications. Paired with the VIA VX855 media system processor, the VIA EPIA-P820 is well equipped to handle smooth playback of the most demanding codecs at resolutions up to 1080p.

The VIA AMOS-3001 is an entirely fanless and thoroughly robust chassis system that is specially designed to work with the VIA EPIA-P820. Leveraging the digital prowess of the VIA EPIA-P820, the VIA AMOS-3001 offers a powerful, rugged and HD-ready industrial-class PC that combines all the benefits of high performance 64-bit computing and ruthless hardware acceleration of HD media across the latest display connectivity standards including native HDMI support.

“Never before have developers had the opportunity to harness full 64-bit, superscalar processing in spaces as small as the palm of your hand,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “The VIA EPIA-P820 combines with the VIA AMOS-3001 to create a complete embedded system that takes the latest features and digital media standards to the very smallest of places.”

The VIA EPIA-P820: Small yet Powerful
Measuring a mere 10cm x 7.2cm the ultra compact VIA EPIA-P820 supports 2GB of DDR2 system memory and leverages a power-efficient, high performance 1.2GHz U2500 VIA Nano processor to provide system developers with the most powerful Pico-ITX platform ever.
The VIA EPIA-P820 features the highly integrated, all-in-one VIA VX855 Media System Processor, specially designed to provide flawless hardware acceleration for the latest HD video codecs including H.264, WMV, VC1 and MPEG 2/4 at high bitrates and display resolutions of up to 1080p with very low CPU utilization. The VIA Chrome9™ HCM 3D integrated graphics core boasts full DirectX 9.0 support and a 128-bit 2D engine with hardware rotation capability.

The VIA EPIA-P820 uses a specially designed I/O add-on-board which supplements the native HDMI port to add a VGA port, a Gigabit LAN port and two USB 2.0 ports. The VIA Vinyl HD audio codec provides 6 channel, DTS capable audio with S/PDIF support. Storage is provided in the shape of an onboard 44-pin IDE connector and one S-ATA port. On board pin headers provide support for an additional 4 x USB 2.0 ports, an LPC connector, SMBus connector, PS/2 support, audio jacks, LVDS, 4 pairs of DIO and two UART ports.

For more details about the VIA EPIA-P820 please visit:
www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1050&tabs=1

VIA AMOS-3001: Strong, Silent and Powerful
The VIA AMOS-3001 is specially designed to support the VIA EPIA-P820 Pico-ITX board. Native HDMI is supported as well as an additional VGA port and USB ports through a daughter board. The VIA AMOS-3001 has a certified operating temperature of -20 to 70 degrees C, vibration tolerance of up to 7Grms and a shock tolerance of up to 70G. With dimensions of only 15.0 cm x 4.6cm x 10.8 cm, the VIA AMOS-3001 is approximately 20% more compact than the VIA AMOS-3000. The VIA AMOS-3001 is also available with the VIA EPIA-P720 featuring the fanless 1GHz VIA Eden ULV processor.

Storage is provided through a 44-pin IDE interface for Disk on Module Flash drive – an optional storage sub-system expansion chassis offers support for a standard 2.5″ S-ATA drive. An onboard RJ45 connector provides Gigabit networking while the VIA VT1708B brings HD audio. Additional features include 4 USB 2.0 ports, on board GPIO port, COM port and programmable Watchdog Timer. System LED indicators are provided for power and HDD activity.

For more details about the VIA AMOS-3001 please visit:
www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=2&id=1051&tabs=1

Samples of both the VIA EPIA-P820 Pico-ITX board and the VIA AMOS-3001 are available now to project developers upon request.

That VX800 means that, despite the relatively frugal specs and the compact size, the two VIA boards are capable of DirectX 9.0 3D graphics and HD video.  They’ll also handle six channels of surround sound, and are reasonably power frugal.

Both boards are intended for embedded platforms but could be an interesting starting point for unusual case mods or HTPCs since they’ll play nicely with Windows 7.  VIA are sampling the pair now; no word on pricing or general availability.

Press Release:

VIA Nano Processor Readies VIA EPIA Boards for Next Generation Embedded Applications and Windows 7 Technologies

VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800 boards featureVIA Nano processor for advanced multimedia performance in next generation embedded applications

Taipei, Taiwan, December 15, 2009 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the latest VIA EPIA-M800 Mini-ITX and VIA EPIA-N800 Nano-ITX boards. Featuring the 64-bit, high-performance VIA Nano processor, these new embedded boards bring advanced digital multimedia performance to the next wave of embedded devices on forthcoming Windows 7-based technologies.

Devices based on the VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800 leverage the performance enhancements of the VIA Nano processor, offering an improved user experience with advanced human to machine interaction and a visually stunning multimedia experience through the latest HD codecs and media streaming technologies. Specific applications include the latest media-centric designs in digital signage and advanced information, ticket and kiosk machines.

“By selecting the VIA Nano processor for the VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800, we’ve managed to build on a successful product line and address the needs of the market as we move in to 2010,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “These new board designs will help facilitate the gradual transition toward technologies that are creating a new breed of graphically sophisticated and digitally vibrant devices.”

VIA Nano Processor & VIA VX800 Media System Processor
The VIA Nano processor is based on the 64-bit, superscalar ‘Isaiah’ architecture, boasting as much as a four-fold performance boost over VIA C7 and VIA Eden processors while remaining within a similar thermal envelope. The VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800 represent an easy upgrade path for current system and device designs based on VIA EPIA-M700 and VIA EPIA-N700 boards.

The key to the outstanding multimedia performance of both the VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800 lies in the VIA VX800 unified chipset. The VIA VX800 features an VIA Chrome9™ IGP for DirectX™ 9.0 3D graphics, up to six-channels of VIA Vinyl HD Audio and the VIA Chromotion™ video engine, providing advanced hardware video acceleration for MPEG-2, MPEG-4, WMV9 and VC-1 video, plus a VMR capable HD video processor.

The VIA EPIA-M800 Mini-ITX board
The VIA EPIA-M800 is powered by a choice of 1.3+GHz U2250 or a fanless 1.2GHz U2500 VIA Nano processor, making it suitable for a wide range of applications including performance-intensive and mission critical applications.

The latest display technologies are supported via a front panel DVI port with pin-headers for an additional DVI or HDMI port through a daughterboard. Support for 18-bit TTL signal output as well as a digital video input is available through pin headers supporting CCIR-656/601/ transport stream video. An S/PDIF connector is also supported.

Storage includes both an IDE port with a shared Compact Flash port, 2 SATA II ports and up to 6 USB 2.0 ports, two through onboard connectors. Connectivity comes in the form of dual Gigabit LAN ports on the high speed PCI-Express bus. The VIA EPIA-M800 can withstand a wide temperature range from 0-60oC.

For more information about the VIA EPIA-M800 Mini-ITX board, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1010&tabs=1

The VIA EPIA-N800 Nano-ITX board
The VIA EPIA-N800 Nano-ITX features a 1.3+GHz U2250 VIA Nano processor and the VIA VX800 media system processor. Measuring only 12cm x 12cm, the VIA EPIA N800 features onboard VGA, USB, COM and Gigabit network ports to help reduce system foot-print size and eradicate cluttered cabling for improved air-flow and enhanced stability in always-on systems.

Aimed at compact digital display and signage applications the VIA EPIA-N800 offers VGA and a multi-configuration, 24-bit, dual channel LVDS transmitter, enabling display connection to embedded panels. As well as two onboard SATA connectors, expansion options include a Mini-PCI slot, with additional COM and USB ports and PS/2 support available through pin-headers. The DRAM slot has been relocated to the bottom side of the board for easy access and maintenance from system design perspective.

To learn more about the VIA EPIA-N800 Mini-ITX board, please visit:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/embedded/ProductDetail.jsp?productLine=1&id=1030&tabs=1

Images related to this announcement can be found here:

http://www.viagallery.com/index.php?option=com_flickr4j&Task=sets&Set=72157622997589406&Page=1

Samples of both the VIA EPIA-M800 and VIA EPIA-N800 are available to project customers now. Both boards include long term product manufacturing support of at least three years.

There’s also support for DDR3 memory, up to four SATA II hard-drives, a multi-format memory card reader and five PCI card slots, as well as a full twelve USB 2.0 ports.  It’ll also play nicely with the more advanced graphics features of Windows 7 and throws in dual channel support for DisplayPort, HDMI, VGA and others.

At its heart beats the VIA Chrome 520 graphics processor, with OpenGL 3.0 and OpenCL 1.0 compatibility, and the company say that, when you pair the VN1000 with their VT8261 southbridge, total power consumption for the two is 12W under load.  They’re compatible with VIA’s own Nano, C7, C7-M and Eden procesors, and are available to manufacturers now.

There’s also two USB 2.0 ports, 10/100 ethernet, VGA output, audio in/out, an SD card slot and stereo speakers.  Wireless connectivity includes standard WiFi b/g and optional Bluetooth and GPS.  A 1.3-megapixel webcam lurks up in the top left-hand corner, and as the image suggests you can use it in portrait or landscape mode (no word on whether there’s an accelerometer tucked inside for automatic orientation flips).

No word on runtime from the 4,800mAh battery, either, nor pricing.  If you have a need for ten of the HT560′s – that’s the minimum order amount – we’re sure Shenzhen Seed Industrial Co. would be happy to tell you some figures.

[via Gadgetmix]

That connectivity could include anything from CRT, DVP and TTL display support, HD Audio, IDE, USB 2.0, PCI Express, SMBus, GPIO, LPC, SDIO and PS2.  While separating the Mobile-ITX computer-on-system module from the IO board does seem a slightly disingenuous way of shrinking the CoS down, it means manufacturers will be able to create a job-specific IO adapter and then drop in a proven CoS without lengthy testing.

Meanwhile it’s a power-frugal setup, too, requiring as little as 5W.  The first commercial Mobile-ITX boards will show up in Q1 2010, though they’re really targeted at embedded systems rather than home users.

Press Release:

VIA Mobile-ITX Brings Further Miniaturization and Greater Flexibility to Embedded Devices

Incredibly compact, 6cm x 6cm Mobile-ITX form factor is 50% smaller than Pico-ITX, enables next-generation embedded devices

Taipei, Taiwan, 1 December 2009 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced Mobile-ITX, the latest VIA-developed open form factor specification for the creation of ultra-compact and portable embedded devices. Mobile-ITX defines a uniquely compact 6cm x 6cm computer-on-module specification designed to enable an easier and less resource intensive development cycle for a range of ultra-compact, portable embedded systems.

Vertical market segments including medical, transportation and military embedded markets have evolved to demand greater miniaturization and portability from today’s x86 platforms. Mobile-ITX addresses the need for a simple, modular approach to portable IPC design, making it easier than ever to bring to market ultra-compact and lightweight devices that offer comprehensive connectivity options and a rich, flexible feature set.

“With Mobile-ITX we have again pushed back the barriers that limit just how small an embedded industrial PC can be,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. “Mobile-ITX enables the creation of a new breed of ultra-compact, portable networked devices suitable for a range of applications, particularly in modern medical and military segments.”

Mobile-ITX – The Science of Small
Extending VIA’s reputation as a leading innovator and creator of ultra-compact form factors, Mobile-ITX at 6cm x 6cm, is currently the most compact computer-on-module form factor on the market, an incredible 50% smaller than the successful VIA-developed Pico-ITX form factor.

Mobile-ITX employs a modularized design that includes a CPU module card and an I/O carrier board. This offers greater flexibility for developers who can simply drop in the CPU module to a custom designed, application specific carrier board, negating lengthy developmental design and testing phases.

CPU modules based on the Mobile-ITX form factor integrate core CPU, chipset and memory functionality and I/O that includes the CRT, DVP and TTL display support, HD Audio, IDE, USB 2.0, as well as PCI Express, SMBus, GPIO, LPC, SDIO and PS2 signals, through customizable baseboards. In keeping with VIA’s signature low power philosophy, Mobile-ITX-based modules consume as little as 5 watts, ideal for always-on, mission critical systems.

This comprehensive range of advanced technologies can be implemented on a variety of Mobile-ITX compatible carrier board designs that can be adapted to suit almost any environment, or application specific criteria. The CPU module I/O signals are mapped to two unique high density, low profile connectors on the under side of the module, with a distance between the CPU module and the baseboard of only 3mm, making it ideal for ultra-slim system designs. The connectors can also withstand vibrations of up to 5Gs making Mobile-ITX systems suitable for in-vehicle and industrial machining applications.

More details about the Mobile-ITX form factor may be found at the VIA website where you can also find a detailed “Mobile-ITX Form Factor” white paper:
www.via.com.tw/en/initiatives/spearhead/mobile-itx/

The VIA Embedded Platform Division will announce the first commercial CPU module based on the Mobile-ITX form factor in Q1 2010.

Of the six initial 3000 Series SKUs – listed in the gallery below – four have an idle power draw of just 100mW; the two top-speed versions (at 1.8GHz and 2.0GHz) require 500mW.  The chips are pin-for-pin compatible with previous VIA CPU sockets, including the C7, C7-M and Eden.

Mass production is expected to kick off in Q1 2010, with sampling to manufacturers already taking place.  Given the rapid movement in the CULV/thin-and-light segment from both Intel and AMD, it’s looking like power-frugal ultraportables are the niche to watch in the new year.

Press Release:

VIA Introduces New VIA Nano 3000 Series Processors

VIA’s fastest and most power efficient processors yet deliver richest mobile and all-in-one desktop computing experience

Taipei, Taiwan, 3 November 2009 – VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today introduced its new VIA Nano 3000 Series processors, bringing enhanced digital media performance and lower power consumption to Windows 7 thin and light notebook and all-in-one desktop PC markets.

Based on the 64-bit superscalar ‘Isaiah’ architecture, VIA Nano 3000 Series processors deliver the most compelling thin and light notebook computing experience with their rich HD entertainment capabilities, including support for flawless playback of high bit-rate 1080p HD video, as well as low power consumption resulting in longer battery life.

With a host of advanced features including 64-bit support, advanced CPU virtualization technology, SSE4 for enhanced multimedia processing, and the industry-leading encryption and security capabilities integrated in the VIA PadLock™ Security Engine, VIA Nano 3000 Series processors also provide a secure, high-performance solution for emerging cloud-based computing environments.

“With the VIA Nano 3000 Series, we are launching our fastest and most power-efficient processors yet,” commented Richard Brown, VP International Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “Coupled with our market-leading digital media chipsets, they enable the richest experience across a broad range of mobile and all-in-one system designs.”

VIA Nano 3000 Series
VIA Nano 3000 Series processors are built on the successful 64-bit, superscalar architecture that powers the VIA Nano 1000 Series and 2000 Series processors, which have been adopted by leading OEMs worldwide for a growing number of market-leading mini-note, small form factor desktop, and energy-efficient server designs.

Available at speeds from 1.0GHz to 2.0GHz, VIA Nano 3000 Series processors deliver up to 20% higher performance using up to 20% less power than current VIA Nano processors and boast a number of new features including support for the SSE4 multimedia instruction set and VIA VT virtualization technology.

Fully compatible with all Microsoft operating systems, including the new Windows 7, as well as all popular Linux distributions, the VIA Nano 3000 Series processors use the NanoBGA2 package, making them pin-to-pin compatible with VIA Nano 1000 Series, VIA Nano 2000 Series, VIA C7, VIA C7-M and VIA Eden processors for easy upgrades of existing designs.

VIA Nano 3000 Series Availability
VIA Nano 3000 Series processor samples are currently available for OEMs and motherboard vendors, and will enter mass production in Q1 2010.