Gigabyte has officially launched its CMP 30HX board for cryptocurrency mining. The board uses the same components as the company's mid-range graphics cards, but naturally lacks display outputs. Perhaps, the most interesting detail about the product is that it comes with a three-months warranty.
Gigabyte's CMP 30HX D6 6G board is powered by Nvidia's TU116 graphics processor (possibly with some parts disabled) clocked at 1785 MHz and connected to 6GB of GDDR6 memory using a 192-bit interface. The board measures 224.5 × 121.2 × 39.6 mm and has one eight-pin auxiliary PCIe power connector, so expect its power rating to be at 125W, same as in case of Palit's CMP 30HX board.
To ensure longevity in tough conditions, Gigabyte uses Ultra Durable certified components for the card, a valuable feature for miners who run their boards 24/7. Gigabyte's WindForce 2X cooling system consists of an aluminum radiator, a composite copper heat pipe, and two fans that spin in opposite directions to exhaust hot air above the card, another valuable feature for miners.
What miners will not be happy about is the three-months warranty that Gigabyte offers with its CMP 30HX D6 6G board. The card is more than likely to survive longer if cooled properly, but Gigabyte wants to play it safe. Meanwhile, the EU mandates a two-year warranty on electronics, so in Europe this product could get the same warranty as regular graphics cards.
Nvidia introduced its Cryptocurrency Mining Processor (CMP) lineup in mid-February. Nvidia originally planned to earn $50 million selling GPUs for cryptocurrency mining, but now the company expects its CMP revenue to be about $150 million in the first quarter. Gigabyte is among the first makers of graphics cards to officially confirm that it sells a CMP product, but it will almost certainly not be the only manufacturer to do so.
