Today MSI announced a new motherboard for AMD enthusiasts which brings support for AMD’s Llano APU (Accelerated Processing Unit) and the latest SATA III 6 Gbps and USB 3.0 IO standards. The new board in question has been dubbed in typical leftover scrabble pieces fashion as the A75MA-G55.
Utilizing the A75 chipset, the new A75MA-G55 is a Micro-ATX form factor that does not skimp on features with 4 DIMM slots for up to 32GB of DDR3 memory and 2 PCI-Express 2.0 slots for discrete graphics cards. Further, a PCI-Express 2.0 x1 slot and a legacy PCI slot are also included on the PCB. Rear IO includes a PS/2 port, four USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.0 ports, an Ethernet port, HDMI, VGA, and DVI support along with 7.1 channel audio outputs.
The AMD APU that will be paired with this motherboard will features DirectX 11 graphics and a ‘Steady Video’ feature which utilizes the APU’s GPU to apply image stabilization to video to remove shaky images.
As other enthusiast class motherboards from MSI, the A75MA-G55 features Certified Military Class II components which amounts to solid state capacitors, and super ferrite chokes that seek to extend the longevity of the motherboard versus the old school non-solid capacitors that tended to “burst” after years of heavy use. As a mATX Llano board with lots of features, it is a motherboard that is sure to be right at home HTPC (home theater pc) and SFF (small form factor) enthusiasts.
In response to the Asus F1A75 series, it looks like MSI has a competitive offering on its hands. As always, stay tuned to PC Perspective for more Llano motherboard coverage. Which Llano motherboard are you most excited about?