Iwill WS133-N i810E Slot-1 ATX

The Bad

In reference to motherboard layout, the placement of both the power and fan connectors can cause problems during installation by forcing you to stretch the cables over the rest of the motherboard in order to plug in. Such design problems are not disastrous, but it is nice to see a motherboard company catering to the user and allowing for easier installation.

Right now, the third DIMM slot is probably viewed as an advantage, but once the i810E chipset drifts from popularity, it could be more of a headache for anyone trying to get three double sided DIMMs to work.

As with almost every i810 or i810E motherboard, neither the audio CODEC nor the GMCH are the best choice for gamers or music enthusiasts -- the audio CODEC uses CPU power and the GMCH provides decent but below par video. However, both can be disabled, allowing for the addition of a PCI video card for better graphics or sound card to reduce CPU usage. Because of the low price of the AC 97 CODEC, it is not likely to disappear from the motherboard market.

USB Compatibility

• Number of Front Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 0

• Number of Rear Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

• USB IRQ Enable/Disable in BIOS: Yes

• USB Keyboard Support in BIOS: Yes

Recommended SDRAM

Recommended SDRAM: 1 x 64MB Mushkin SEC Original PC100 SDRAM; 1 x 64MB Memory-Man SEC Original PC100 SDRAM; 1 x 128MB Mushkin SEC Original PC133 SDRAM

SDRAM Tested: 1 x 128MB Mushkin SEC Original PC133 SDRAM

Manufacturer: The Memory Man
Purchase Web-Site: http://www.memory-man.com

Manufacturer: Mushkin
Purchase Website: http://www.mushkin.com