The 848P offers few innovations.

The specs offer system clock speeds of 400, 533 and 800 MHz, for which memory modules based on DDR266, DDR333 and DDR400 can be used. ECC memory is not supported - which is no great loss really in the lower price range as most applications in this sector would not see the benefit.

The choice of the Southbridge is interesting, as it determines both the kind and the number of hard drive interfaces. On the one hand, the well-known ICH4 with UltraATA/100 interface remains a sensible choice since the module is the best solution price wise. Beyond that, the ICH5 with additional Serial ATA controller is steadily gaining in popularity. Its two ports mean that it will continue to be able to operate new and newer hard drives.

Intel also offers the ICH5-R as an option to enable operation of two Serial ATA hard drives in RAID modes 0 and 1. While the ICH5-R taxes the processor that much more, it also opens the window of opportunity for more performance and data security.

Priced at $27.50, and $30.50 for the RAID version, when purchased in 1000-unit quantities, the 848P's performance is adequate for the majority of users.

This device should also do well commercially. In the chip business, after all, "Intel inside" holds much sway in the average consumers mind, often irrespective of quality.

We have dispensed with a specification chart this time since Intel already offers a comprehensive version .