Abit puts out three P35 boards

A FEW DAYS ago, Abit released three Intel P35 based boards, the IP35 with Pro and -E variants. The Pro is the high end part, the -E the low end one, and they all look to be decent choices for mid-range boards.

It doesn't look like much has changed from when we first told you about these boards at CeBIT, but there are a number of things that make it worth revisiting.

The specs are pretty standard, P35, 1333FSB, dual/quad capable CPUs, 45nm support and two 16x PCIe slots, one being 4x electrically. There are 6 SATA ports and 2 eSATA on the Pro, the I35 loses the eSATA and the -E loses two SATAs on top of that. All have dual GigE ports.

One interesting thing to note, Abit only chose to put out DDR2 models of the board, the cost and availability of DDR3 was deemed unfavorable to launch with at the moment, but I would not be surprised to see a DDR3 variant in a few months once the initial price gouging subsides and supply eases up.

There are also a few more features you don't see too often anymore, and a few that you almost never see at all. The first is 2x 1394a ports on all but the -E, a nice thing to have if you use external drives. On the Pro model you have a pair of status LEDs and some reset switches.

The status LEDs sound like fluff, but if you are constantly screwing around with your PC like I do, they are lifesavers. On the older AMD Fatality boards, it saved me a lot of head scratching several times.

The other amazingly useful thing that I am surprised are not standard everywhere are three buttons, power, reset and CMOS clear. I know there are pinouts for all of them on every board, but between finding them in a dimly lit case and hitting the right ones with a screwdriver, they are a pain to do without. These little buttons make things life pleasant.

Other bits that you don't see all that often are SPDIF optical outs, and on the pro, SPDIF optical ins. Not huge, but again, nice to have. The audio is the usual Intel 7.1 from the ICH9R southbridge.

The last part is one that Abit makes a big deal about, but I can't say for sure if other people do the same because they don't tout it, solid state caps. If you remember the bad cap plague a couple of years ago, you will probably shudder when people mention bulging caps.

On the Pro, they are 100% solid state Japanese caps so this will never happen, not that it should with normal caps. On the normal IP35 the solid state parts are only around the CPU socket, and on the -E there are none to save money. This should not be a problem, but if you are paranoid, step up to the Pro.

Overall, Abit looks to have put out a nice range of P35 boards. There is no DDR3 but for the next quarter, I don't think anyone will miss that. Performance looks good as well, Abit has gotten them up to 580Mhz FSB in the labs, so the mobo will probably not be the limiting factor in your OCing efforts. The IP35 series is worth a look if you are in the market. µ