Nowadays, owing to heat, energy and space constraints, consumers are opting
for small form factor (SFF) PCs rather than full size ones. This is the reason
why more and more vendors are venturing into SFF. AMD DTX is one such small form
factor PC. The small form factor is usually because of the motherboard inside
the machine. DTX doesn't have a revolutionary design, but it can easily fit onto
any ATX chassis. It looks similar to the micro-ATX motherboard, but is smaller.
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It features two add-in slots, and is interestingly open to all i.e. it
supports AMD64 processors as well as other competitive solutions. AMD has also
included two expansion slots: PCI and PCI-E along with the Xpress card slot. In
addition to the normal VGA port for video output, DTX also has a DVI output.
But, what will make DTX popular amongst consumers is the fact that it consumes
less power. There are two versions of DTX: one that runs at 65W CPUs, and the
other dissipates 45W of heat while running at 45W CPUs.
Configuration and Test Results
The system is build upon the AMD diamond2 motherboard and ATI Radeon X1200
graphics chipset. The package contains a keyboard, mouse and Windows Vista Home
Premium DVD. It doesn't have WIFi, which we have seen in the Acer SSF based on
Intel platform. Probably, that would have been a plus point for DTX also.
The tool less chassis makes it easier for you to open it when required,
though one HDD slot restricts you from expanding your storage. Nevertheless, it
is quite neatly designed and the cables are well hidden beneath the casing.
The system we got came with AMD Athlon X2 Dual Core (BE2350) processor
running at 2.10 GHz with 1 GB RAM and 120 GB HDD (7200 rpm). Its performance was
not extraordinary, but it managed to get decent scores in all tests. In PCMark05
it scored 3462 PCMarks, which is very close to what we got from Acer L310 SSF
(3538 PC Marks, reviewed July07 issue).
The ATI Radeon X1200 graphics is not meant for high-end graphics, so a low
score in 3D Mark06 (349 3DMarks) is acceptable. In Cine Bench 10 it scored 1985
CB for single CPU and 4345 for multiple CPU, which is good for a CPU running at
2.1 GHz. With less er power consumption, lesser space requirements and being an
open standard design, AMD DTX is an
interesting option for both vendors and consumers to be excited about.
Bottom Line: If the price of the DTX system is
kept within the budget of small and medium businesses, it might get a strong
foothold in that segment