14 DAY TRIAL // The Santa-Rosa season is on and manufacturers don't want to miss the train. Today, it's AOpen's turn to adopt Intel's new platform that boasts FSB speeds of up to 800Mhz.
Aopen claims that the new miniPC Duo MP965-VDR is the tiniest "small form factor desktop PC" and for a moment there I thought they were lying. After all, let's not forget the Stealth LPC-450 PC, which is about the size of a hard cover novel. But Stealth computer is aimed at the mobile segment, while AOpen's is aimed at the desktop environment.
Anyway, the miniPC Duo MP965-VDR uses the 965GM chipset and equips one of Intel's new Core 2 Duo processors and the Viiv technology. It also boasts the Intel Turbo Memory, which can access frequently used software applications twice as fast and reduce the time it takes to turn on, or boot-up. The Intel Turbo Memory card simply slots into the side of the notebook via the express card slot and automatically updates the RAM of your system. Intel says this allows you to enjoy up to 20% faster boot time and up to 2x faster loading of applications & vastly improve run time when multi-tasking.
Memory wise, the small form factor desktop has two DDR II slots that can work up to 667Mhz. Again, although the Santa-Rosa platform supports 800Mhz FSB, the memory tops at 667Mhz, which can diminish the performance by a bit.
As expected, the graphics department is handled by a chipset solution, namely the Intel 965GM Express that sports the Intel Clear Video Technology. Aopen also provides optional built-in wireless, Bluetooth, analog/digital TV and has a limited version that incorporates a Blu-Ray drive. Unfortunately, pricing details have not been disclosed.
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