MSI introduces the world's first AM2 based motherboard with onboard HDMI

INTRODUCTION

When MSI announced and introduced the world's 1st AM2 motherboard with onboard HDMI output, I thought to myself ... now that's a good idea. A motherboard that is HDMI-ready and can be used for your digital entertainment system (AM2-based Media Center PC). The K9AGM2 from MSI, is a motherboard that's designed for AMD's AM2 processors, it uses the AMD 690G chipset, SB600 southbridge and has onboard graphics in the form of a Radeon X1200 series.

Abit, Asus and Gigabyte have already released a load of microATX motherboards that's HDMI-ready. In fact we reviewed the Abit Fatal1ty F-190 HD, only a week ago. It was a good motherboard that performed well, and was ideal platform for a customised Media Center PC.

The K9AGM2 supports all dual core AMD processors upto and including the Athlon FX series. And uses the AMD 690G chipset, it also features the renowned HyperTransport technology supporting speeds of upto 1GHz (2000MT/s).

During this year we will see a lot more emphasis on Media Center PCs, using both micro and mini ATX motherboards with onboard HDMI and digital output. In fact, this year I plan to build one myself from scratch ... only using quality components.

It seems to me that the K9AGM2 is really aimed at the budget users who want something that will do the job as a standalone PC, but also want the added functionality of a Media Center PC. But, it lacks some of the more interesting features found on other MSI motherboards, such as the Dual Core Cell and silent heat-pipe cooling. However, it does include one 16x PCIe slot for a dedicated graphics card.

AMD have recently slashed their prices of their Athlon processors (socket AM2) to compete with Intel. This may not be enough as Intel have taken a huge chuck of the PC market with their Core 2 Duo processors. One of the reasons for this ... is that AMD have been busy with the acquisition of ATI, and there have been no new releases in terms of processors or GPUs.

Would this motherboard appeal to the budget user? I guess it might just be enough to attract their attention. A cheap AMD processor plus this motherboard ... equals a budget solution that can be used for a Media Center PC and/or standalone system.

OK, let's not waste anymore time, and take a closer look at MSI's K9AGM2-FIH motherboard ...