Zotac Releases Tiny WiFi Motherboard

By Steve Seguin
published

For times when even micro-ATX motherboards are just too big, Zotac’s newly released mini-ITX motherboard could come in handy, featuring Nvidia’s Geforce 8200 mGPU and built-in WiFi.

The new Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFi motherboard looks like a decent choice for anyone planning to build a tiny media center PC, although serious gamers will look elsewhere. The main highlight of the motherboard is that it measures just 6.7-inch by 6.7-inch in size, considerably smaller than the 9.6-inch by 9.6-inch dimensions of many micro-ATX motherboards.

One of the highlights of the motherboard is the integrated Geforce 8200 graphics solution, which supports Nvidia CUDA technology, DirectX 10 and hardware video acceleration. The Geforce 8200 mGPU (opens in new tab) also supports Nvidia’s Geforce Boost technology and HybridPower technology; both useful features if a discrete graphics card were to be added to the system. However, since the Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFi motherboard lacks a x16 PCIe slot, instead opting for just a single x1 PCIe slot, most users will probably stick to using just the integrated graphics.

The motherboard supports AMD processors using the AM2+ socket, which might mean some of the upcoming AMD Phenom II processors could be supported, although that is not stated. While AMD may not quite offer the fastest processors around, they do offer excellent value. For example, the AMD Althon 64 X2 3800+ is currently rated as the best bang for the buck on Futuremark’s YouGamers.com. The motherboard also has support for HyperTransport 3.0 and includes two DIMM slots for up to 8 GB of DDR2-800/1066 memory.

The Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFi motherboard has both VGA and DVI outputs, with HDMI available via a dongle. It also includes six external USB ports, gigabit Ethernet, PS/2 ports, four SATA 3.0 ports, 5.1-channel HD audio and built-in 802.11g WiFi. According to the product images, there appears to be no chipset fan, which should help keep the system noise down.

Pricing for the new Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFi motherboard has yet to be revealed, but the following chart of comparable motherboards may help provide an idea of pricing. Going with a micro-ATX motherboard that includes a x16 PCIe slot may be the better choice for gamers, but for a media center PC, the Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFi seems like a great choice.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Row 0 - Cell 0 Form-FactormGPUPrice
Zotac Geforce 8200-ITX WiFiMini-ITXNvidia Geforce 8200TBA
Zotac GF8200-A-EMicro-ATXNvidia Geforce 8200$64.99
Jetway JNC62KMini-ITXNvidia Geforce 8200$155.99
XFX GeForce 8200Micro-ATXNvidia Geforce 8200$69.99
Steve Seguin
13 Comments Comment from the forums
  • jaragon13
    Cool.
    Reply
  • ozbibi
    This is quite an impressive Mini-ITX motherboard, especially the support of 8GB RAM!
    Reply
  • Pei-chen
    2 sticks of 4 GB DDR2 cost $150.00.

    I wish they would come out with a LGA775 socket + GeForce 9300 mGPU + 1x PCI Express 16x slot Mini-ITX board.
    Reply
  • MichaelC4
    Hmm. This would be great for a car-puter, do all your updates in the driveway before leaving home.
    Reply
  • IH8U
    Do I see a new entertainment PC running emulators, while in an old NES case in my future?
    Reply
  • thackstonns
    thats great, but will the 8200 output 1080p. without baking the system?
    Reply
  • JonnyDough
    IH8UDo I see a new entertainment PC running emulators, while in an old NES case in my future?
    Awesome. I had a top loading Nintendo and stupidly traded it in at GameStop for an XBox years ago. I'm still disgusted with myself. At least I'm holding on to my baseball/basketball card collection from the 90's.
    Reply
  • JonnyDough
    Pei-chen2 sticks of 4 GB DDR2 cost $150.00.I wish they would come out with a LGA775 socket + GeForce 9300 mGPU + 1x PCI Express 16x slot Mini-ITX board.
    8 GB's of ram isn't really needed IMO. I've been running 4 on XP for awhile and I've never run out.

    2 modules of 2GB's each = 4GB total. That's plenty for a small system.

    You'd probably want to get an efficient proc for it anyway. No real need for anything too high powered. Who uses their car PC to do heavy lifting anyway? Use your desktop for encoding and then transfer the smaller bit rate files to your car via wifi. Unless of course you have a 1TB drive and no video in your car.
    Reply
  • Pei-chen
    JonnyDough8 GB's of ram isn't really needed IMO. I've been running 4 on XP for awhile and I've never run out.2 modules of 2GB's each = 4GB total. That's plenty for a small system. You'd probably want to get an efficient proc for it anyway. No real need for anything too high powered. Who uses their car PC to do heavy lifting anyway? Use your desktop for encoding and then transfer the smaller bit rate files to your car via wifi. Unless of course you have a 1TB drive and no video in your car.I am thinking of a tiny gaming machine.
    Reply
  • JonnyDough
    Show me a modern game that utilizes more than 3GB's of ram.
    Reply