Review of ASRock ION 330HT-BD system with ATOM 1.6GHz processor based on NVIDIA ION chipset
Bluetooth 5 Nov 2009

First let's take a look at what is in store. The ASRock ION 330HT-BD just like it's predecessor is based on Intel Atom N330 processor clocked at 1.6GHz with NVIDIA ION chipset. The ION chipset which is basically a reinvention of the defunct MCP7A comes into play. This chipset is known as GeForce 9400M and comes with GPU Shader clock of 1.1GHz. It supports DX10, OpenGL 2.1, NVIDIA® CUDA™ and PhysX™ games with ease. With ION chipset, HD playback is not an issue at all.

With this new model, ASRock has added in more features. One of the important change is the adoption of EuP 2.0. With the help of the Nuvoton NCT6775F IC, these two models have achieved the EuP2.0 standard which indicates the total AC power consumption of the completed system is under 0.5W in off mode. ASRock NetTop also pass the Energy Star 5.0 standard, in order to avoid unnecessary power consumption.
 

ASRock ION 330HT-BD features the BD Combo which not only supports Blu-ray disc, but also capable of burning and reading DVD and CD. It definitely brings you the efficient, stable data transfer, the dazzling audio and visual experience. With DTS, you get cinematic sound effect right there in your living room. With the MCE Remote Controller, you can now remote control your system. With the press of a button, you can launch the MCE of Windows 7, go through the options and watch, listen your videos, audios easily.

On top of that, connectivity is now made simpler with the integrated 802.11 b/g/n wireless LAN built in. WIth 802.11n (150Mbps) for fast download, file transfer and media streaming is made possible.  If you are thinking of expansion, this new model now comes with an extra SATA port, you can now even do a RAID 0 to speed up data access. Configure RAID 1 if you want your system to be mirrored by introducing another 2.5" HDD. Something that we insisted is the Powered eSATA/USB port. ASRock ION 330HT-BD has that built right out of the box. You can now easily transfer files using both type of sticks.

For video out, there is the HDMI interface for best video quality. Other desktop board features also made it into this 2.5L box. They include the famous Instant Boot in 4 seconds, OC Tuner for overclocking. You can now even export your settings through different profiles.

The package comes with the support CD, Quick setup guide, AC power cord, AC/DC Adapter, HDMI->DVI adapter and a anti-slip pad. Below is a video of the package.

The software bundle includes ASRock OC Tuner, Instant Boot, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Norton Internet Security, Cyberlink DVD Suite and BADABOOM media converter (trial) for those who wants to use the ION to speed up media compression.

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