Biostar Introduces Trio Of AMD A70M Motherboards

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There seem to be very few Biostar boards left at Newegg now. On the one hand, that's kind of a shame, because at least one of their boards I reviewed recently was a notable step up from what one might expect. On the other hand, others among their current offerings are notably unpolished.
 
Seems like a mistake here. Two of the boards appear exactly the same but one of them has a name guaranteed to cause it to be mistaken for a different chip set.
 
I'm not sure I'd bother releasing new AMD boards until AM4 arrives. It's my understanding that the AM4 platform is just around the corner, and will have current-gen chips available for it but you'll naturally be able to drop in Zen-based chips later.

Of course in a budget system it may not matter. Only enthusiasts generally look for an upgrade path. I myself always like to have an upgrade path for at least one quick system overhaul on the cheap (CPU and GPU swap for example).
 
Budget builds actually take advantage of either lower costing current gen tech or mid-high end previous gen tech.Whichever way you look at it, its a good way to integrate someone on the fence about an upgrade for their HTPC or perhaps a very tight budget build to adopt such parts.

I would like to keep one point in reserve, that the cost hasn't been mentioned and my comment can be tossed out the window 😛
 
{"Biostar’s A70MD PRO, A70MG PRO and A68MD PRO motherboards all feature AMD’s A70M chipset, which supports AMD A4, A6, A8 and A10 APUs, as well as AMD E2 and Athlon II X4 processors."}

Please correct me if I'm wrong But last time I checked the Athlon II X4 CPU's are an AM3 socket CPU and not a FM2/FM2+ CPU?

Are you sure that this is not a typo that snuck in there?
 
Parents' P43/Q6600 Biostar combo still going strong after nearly 7 years. They may not be as overclocking friendly as ASUS/Gigabyte/MSI but build quality is apparently fine.
 
{"Biostar’s A70MD PRO, A70MG PRO and A68MD PRO motherboards all feature AMD’s A70M chipset, which supports AMD A4, A6, A8 and A10 APUs, as well as AMD E2 and Athlon II X4 processors."}

Please correct me if I'm wrong But last time I checked the Athlon II X4 CPU's are an AM3 socket CPU and not a FM2/FM2+ CPU?

Are you sure that this is not a typo that snuck in there?
Click to expand...

Your correct. The correct term is "Athlon X4"
 
Budget builds actually take advantage of either lower costing current gen tech or mid-high end previous gen tech.Whichever way you look at it, its a good way to integrate someone on the fence about an upgrade for their HTPC or perhaps a very tight budget build to adopt such parts.

I would like to keep one point in reserve, that the cost hasn't been mentioned and my comment can be tossed out the window 😛
Click to expand...

But why release NEW boards? You already have tons of existing FM2+ boards spanning the entire range. Unless they figured out how to cut costs without cutting quality with a new design, or add features relevant to HTPC or similar.

Personally I think the conventional-sized HTPC market is shrinking as various kinds of HDMI sticks and consoles gain more capabilities. I mean look at some of the newer Intel sticks, roughly $150 and Cherry Trail? That would handle the majority of use cases, outside of enthusiasts. Even HEVC is possible if you're using playback software that taps into the HEVC hardware decoding block.

The last bastions for larger-chassis HTPCs are things like combo gaming/media systems (and streaming games is gaining traction) and audiophile/videophile domains. If you're like me and you want discrete audio and the most accurate video rendering, then it still makes sense. Otherwise what's onboard something like Cherry Trail is good enough for many users.
 
Why three boards? They don't really seem different enough to justify the extra cost and complexity of producing two additional models; one would be enough, especially given the somewhat niche market for boards like these.
 


OK then in this case, don't you think a real quick edit should be in order to remove the "II" label since it is actually referring to a CPU that will not fit in these motherboards? This confusion could really mess up some one looking to build a budget PC and getting a used CPU or has a CPU and looking to replace a board. As many of us that frequent the forums often See the questions "What board will work with" and the CPU and board have different sockets or statements saying "I searched the forums and...". Having misinformation in your articles could really send a person with little tech experience down the wrong path and not only potentially cost them extra money but hurt the Tom's name known as a excellent source of tech information.

I don't want to tell you or the editor what to do but do want to bring it to your and there attention of a mistake that can cause confusion to the lower tech level readers. 😉
 
What I do not get is, why there is no HDMI port on this, and why VGA is still present.
And I agree with someone saying that one model will do , they do not need 3 models of praticlly the same thing.
Also, I just but cheap mini ARM/Android based device for my TV, so I watch everything with it. Kodi is working great. And will sell my FM+ setup as I do not need it anymore.
 
{"Biostar’s A70MD PRO, A70MG PRO and A68MD PRO motherboards all feature AMD’s A70M chipset, which supports AMD A4, A6, A8 and A10 APUs, as well as AMD E2 and Athlon II X4 processors."}

Please correct me if I'm wrong But last time I checked the Athlon II X4 CPU's are an AM3 socket CPU and not a FM2/FM2+ CPU?

Are you sure that this is not a typo that snuck in there?
Click to expand...

Your correct. The correct term is "Athlon X4"
Click to expand...


Good catch!
Biostars website lists Athlon II X4, but it seems you are correct about the name.
 
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