How to choose a good Mobo.... ?

Can you give me some tips on how to choose a mobo? and can you explain all the funny letter/number codes in the product. tnx.

 

I have a few suggestions for you. First off, you need to decide your price range. Budget Mobo's run around $40 and the high end ones are $100 and up.

Second, decide what kind of CPU you are going to use, AMD, or Intell. I am not familliar with the Intell chips, but AMD has several types of processors: Socket A (Athlon or AthlonXP CPU), Socket 754? (AMD 64 bit processor), Socket 939 (64 bit), and AM2 (the newest I think in the AMD line). A socket A CPU will not work in a 939 board, a 754 chip will not work in an AM2... you have to get a mobo that is compatable with the CPU you are going to use.

Also, do you want onboard graphics, or are you going to use a video card? Some boards come with onboard video, some do not.

I am sure there are plenty of motherboard reviews on this site. You can also do a Google search for motherboard reviews and see if that helps any.

Good luck!

E