Packaging and contents
What does the package look like and what do you get inside ?. The specifications seem impressive enough, now let's see if we have the appropriate extras to maximise the features on offer.
I'd show you the back of the box if it was any different, unfortunately it's a replica of the front. This may well not be the shipping design, though.
The contents are a far more interesting affair. The various drivers and utilities are contained on a CD-R, we can excuse this on the basis that this is a review sample. The same can be said of the main instruction manual as it's printed on A4 sheets. It is, however, well-written and easy to follow. All other items appear to be shipping material. We're provided with the ubiquitous IDE cables, two ATA100 cables in this case, and a floppy drive cable. Also provided are a USB2.0 bracket with 2 USB2.0 ports and a 1394a (Firewire) bracket, again with 2 usable ports. Naturally, the relevant headers are on the motherboard. We also have a sound centre / bass bracket to maximise the capability on the on-board sound chip, more on that later.
That little red cable in the above pictures is, in fact, a serial ATA cable. Serial ATA, or S-ATA, is the next evolution for IDE hard drives. Specified to be a faster standard than the current ATA133, it will become widespread in the coming months and years. One of its main attractions is the compactness of its cabling, as you can see just how thin the cable is in relation to a standard 80-pin ATA100 IDE cable. As the interface is completely different to the incumbent IDE, expect to see S-ATA drives to ship at the end of this year. The cable reminds me more of an USB lead than a conventional IDE cable.
