785G And H55: Two Powerful Mini-ITX-Based Desktop Solutions
When it's time to look into small form factor machines, do you pick AMD or Intel? With an increasing number of motherboard companies offering Mini-ITX platforms with powerful desktop performance in a diminutive footprint, we compared two modern options.
Intel Platform: Zotac H55-ITX WiFi (Intel H55 Express)
There are a few LGA 1156-based Mini-ITX options. DFI and Intel sell two of them, but Zotac is probably the most popular. Since Sapphire's board comes ready to support either built-in or discrete graphics, we decided to do the same for the Intel platform and got ourselves a Zotac H55-ITX WiFi. Armed with dual-band 802.11n (via a Mini PCIe module), DVI, and HDMI, Zotac obviously skews this board toward more flexible, demanding uses with the latest in connectivity options.
The H55-ITX WiFi features six SATA 3Gb/s ports, two DDR3 slots (8 GB maximum), and a x16 PCI Express 2.0 slot for add-on graphics. A four-phase voltage regulator supports most current LGA 1156-based processors. The I/O panel not only sports 10 (yes, ten—with another four optional) USB 2.0 ports, but also a system reset switch, gigabit Ethernet port, 7.1 analog and SPDIF audio connectors, and an eSATA port.
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