Available Chipsets
When discussing chipsets for value processors, versions with integrated graphics must be considered as well. We put together a short overview on chipsets with integrated and with discrete graphics, as well as their expected successors:
| Header Cell - Column 0 | ALi | NVIDIA | SiS | VIA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socket 462Discrete GFX | - | nForce2 Ultra400 / Gb | SiS748 (single channel) | KT880KT600 (single channel) |
| Socket 462Integrated | - | nForce2 IGP | SiS741 (single channel) | - |
| Socket 754Discrete GFX | M1689 (HT1600) | nForce3 family | SiS755/FX | K8T800 |
| Socket 754Integrated | - | - | SiS760 (HT1600) | K8M800 |
Among the Socket A chipsets available today, only NVIDIA offers a dual channel chipset with integrated graphics. In addition, NVIDIA's GeForce based engine is still one of the best choices, even though it is only DirectX 8. VIA has an equally powerful chipset with dual channel support, but the KT880 is for discrete graphics only. SiS offers the 748 with single channel support and for discrete graphics, too.
It's not that easy to decide what to use if you take a look at the Socket 754 arena. If you want integrated graphics, both SiS and VIA are ready with their SiS760 and K8M800 chipsets respectively. Regarding discrete graphics, there are products from all four manufacturers, each with their pros and cons.
