ZOTAC have managed to put the D2700 on an altar, offering everything a user looking for a dedicated HTPC system could want. The combination of the Atom with the NVIDIA GT520 was an incredibly sensible move, the Atom is able to power the GPU without bottleneck, and the low power GPU gives the Atom a severely needed performance kick which offers everything from Blu-Ray 3D, 1080p24 playback, DX11 and some GPGPU benefits.
General usability is adequate, though I found during the playback of some high definition MKV files, that different media players had different outcomes. Windows Media Player felt clunky and would often time out and I was left having to wait for it to load in, GOM Media player suffered from audio lag, DIVX Player Plus was very capable and had little issues, the same with VLC player. Most of the 'clunkyness' is due to the Atom architecture. AMD's Bobcat architecture uses an 'out-of-order' execution which significantly increases the usability of the system. The Cedarview Atom, is still using an 'in order' execution, which is like giving a train an order to turn left. Of course, the train can't just turn left when you tell it to, you have to wait for it to reach a junction. The extra performance from the aging Atom comes merely from die shrink, higher clock speeds and the addition of HyperThreading Technology. Despite that, the Atom remains capable of delivering sufficient performance, beating out the AMD E-350 'Zacate' APU.
The 32nm 'Cedarview' Atom is the weakest point of this product. That being said, it is still capable of giving 'just enough' to create a satisfactory user experience in 2012. ZOTAC have done well to combine competent graphics with the Atom in an attractive, quiet, low power mini ITX form factor. With the option to install a mSATA SSD without any off board space requirements, this board screams to be used in the smallest and lowest profile enclosures available for an ITX motherboard. Some may prefer to have more SATA ports, some may prefer to have a higher performance CPU. The point is, there are other options for those situations and for this one, with the Intel Atom D2700, ZOTAC have offered the best.
The Gold award was a point of much debate and could have been a Silver, while the Atom's 'in order' approach causes a little niggle here and there, it doesn't change the fact that it does deliver a capable user experience in a low power envelope. The D2700-ITX WiFi Supreme delivers a reminder of ZOTAC's ingenuity and innovation which is why the ZOTAC D2700-ITX WiFi Supreme is given our Gold Award and our Creative Award.
Click here for an explanation of our awards at Vortez.net. Thanks to ZOTAC for providing today’s review sample.
The Atom can fuel the GPU without bottlenecks as seen while running Heaven 2.5
General usability is adequate, though I found during the playback of some high definition MKV files, that different media players had different outcomes. Windows Media Player felt clunky and would often time out and I was left having to wait for it to load in, GOM Media player suffered from audio lag, DIVX Player Plus was very capable and had little issues, the same with VLC player. Most of the 'clunkyness' is due to the Atom architecture. AMD's Bobcat architecture uses an 'out-of-order' execution which significantly increases the usability of the system. The Cedarview Atom, is still using an 'in order' execution, which is like giving a train an order to turn left. Of course, the train can't just turn left when you tell it to, you have to wait for it to reach a junction. The extra performance from the aging Atom comes merely from die shrink, higher clock speeds and the addition of HyperThreading Technology. Despite that, the Atom remains capable of delivering sufficient performance, beating out the AMD E-350 'Zacate' APU.
The 32nm 'Cedarview' Atom is the weakest point of this product. That being said, it is still capable of giving 'just enough' to create a satisfactory user experience in 2012. ZOTAC have done well to combine competent graphics with the Atom in an attractive, quiet, low power mini ITX form factor. With the option to install a mSATA SSD without any off board space requirements, this board screams to be used in the smallest and lowest profile enclosures available for an ITX motherboard. Some may prefer to have more SATA ports, some may prefer to have a higher performance CPU. The point is, there are other options for those situations and for this one, with the Intel Atom D2700, ZOTAC have offered the best.
The Gold award was a point of much debate and could have been a Silver, while the Atom's 'in order' approach causes a little niggle here and there, it doesn't change the fact that it does deliver a capable user experience in a low power envelope. The D2700-ITX WiFi Supreme delivers a reminder of ZOTAC's ingenuity and innovation which is why the ZOTAC D2700-ITX WiFi Supreme is given our Gold Award and our Creative Award.
Pros.
+ WiFi & Bluetooth
+ Onboard NVIDIA GT 520
+ Low power consumption
+ ITX form factor
+ Quiet
+ Extra mPCIe/mSATA port
Cons.
- Intel Atom
+ WiFi & Bluetooth
+ Onboard NVIDIA GT 520
+ Low power consumption
+ ITX form factor
+ Quiet
+ Extra mPCIe/mSATA port
Cons.
- Intel Atom
Click here for an explanation of our awards at Vortez.net. Thanks to ZOTAC for providing today’s review sample.
