14 DAY TRIAL // If this little reading contest sounds like a d?j? vu, then you can skip it. As much as I'd like to add some new and interesting features about the board that Asus is said to be preparing, it seems that nothing new is coming up. Almost nothing. And that phrase alone says it all.
Ok, in case you're still reading this, be convinced that it's not totally pointless. First, what we know for sure is that DFI is almost ready with its version of RD600. And as I've said before, when DFI readies a board, they make sure that it will produce some serious results (there is however the exception regarding Nforce 590i SLI which was in fact a poor overclocker yet that had nothing to do with DFI's implementation but rather with the fact that the C19 version of the chipset could not sustain high FSBs).
Asus has switched sides about three times this year alone. The motherboard business is going well, they have an exclusive appearance with the 4x4 capable motherboard (they are the only producers that sell such a board) and it seems they want even more out of the motherboard division. At first, Asus said it will produce a RD600 motherboard. Then they changed their mind (I somehow think that INTEL was no stranger to this story). And now they have just announced (again) that they are in fact almost ready with an Asus implementation of the RD600. ATI has a license to continue making INTEL chipsets but the success of RD600 largely depends on its ability to push the Core 2 Duo architecture further than any other solution.
First early samples of this motherboard could come up in late December or maybe in the first days of January. The final product will also be shown at CES but we don't know when the official launch date will be. We also hope that it won't cost more than Nvidia's 680i SLI.