News Release
VIA Launches Ultra Low Profile EPIA MS Mini-ITX Mainboard
for Flat Panel Personal Electronics
Features onboard pin headers allowing greater freedom
of design for slimline digital entertainment systems
Taipei, Taiwan, 17th June, 2004 - VIA Technologies, Inc,
a leading innovator and developer of silicon chip technologies
and PC platform solutions, today announced the new VIA
EPIA MS Mini-ITX mainboard, which has been designed without
the standard I/O back plate to enable ultra low profile
designs for ergonomic and aesthetically pleasing digital
entertainment devices.
Providing greater design flexibility for integration
into flat panel or ultra compact personal electronics
devices, the new VIA EPIA MS allows developers to do more
with the limited space available without forfeiting functionality
or connectivity. The traditional PC I/O bracket has been
replaced by easily accessible onboard headers for the
6-channel audio, TV-out and USB 2.0 connectivity, with
a low profile SODIMM memory slot on the underside to further
enhance its ultra slim design
The first Mini-ITX mainboard to feature the fanless 1GHz
VIA Eden ESP as a processor option, the VIA EPIA MS boasts
increased digital media performance with very low power
consumption and quiet operation that is essential in the
living room and especially within low profile devices
such as flat panel TVs. The VIA EPIA MS is also available
with a 1.2GHz VIA C3 or an 800MHz VIA Eden ESP processor,
all offering unparalleled security features through the
on-die VIA PadLock Hardware Security Suite.
"The VIA EPIA MS is poised to meet the needs of
the fast-evolving market for personal electronics,"
said Steven S. Lee, Head of the VIA Embedded Platform
Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. "Its intuitive design
targets devices where aesthetics and ease of use can be
achieved without compromising on full digital media functionality."
With support for up to six USB 2.0 ports, the VIA VT1622A
TV-encoder and VIA Vinyl Six-TRAC 6-channel surround sound,
the VIA EPIA MS provides all the rich digital media capabilities
required for today's personal electronics devices. Adding
to its consumer market appeal, the VIA EPIA MS also incorporates
easily accessible CompactFlash and High-Speed LAN ports
for modern storage and connectivity options.
About The VIA PadLock Hardware Security Suite
The VIA PadLock Hardware Security Suite is integrated
into VIA C5P Nehemiah core processors and features the
VIA PadLock Random Number Generator (RNG) for high quality
key generation and the VIA PadLock Advanced Encryption
Engine (ACE) for high-speed performance of the US government
approved Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).
The VIA PadLock ACE is a powerful cryptography engine
that can encrypt or decrypt data at a sustained rate of
12.8Gb/s. In addition to a single application being able
to use the VIA PadLock ACE, any number of tasks can use
it concurrently without requiring supplemental task management
by the application or the operating system. The VIA PadLock
ACE has hardware support for all three AES key sizes (128-bits,
196-bits, and 256-bits) with the same levels of performance.
More information on the VIA PadLock ACE is available from
the VIA PadLock Hardware Security Suite website.
Download the VIA PadLock ACE preliminary evaluation report
from leading data security firm, Cryptography Research,
Inc. or visit
Dr. Brian Gladman's VIA PadLock ACE website for independent
review of the VIA PadLock ACE. For programmers, the VIA
Nehemiah Advanced Cryptography Engine Programmers Guide
is freely available for download.
About the VIA EPIA MS-Series Mini-ITX Mainboard
The VIA EPIA MS-Series Mini-ITX mainboard provides the
ultimate personal electronics platform with advanced connectivity
as well as digital video and audio features in an ultra
low profile, compact and quiet package. The VIA EPIA MS
achieves its ergonomic profile by employing onboard pin
headers rather than traditional PC I/O ports for connectivity
and expandability options. Contributing to its unique
design, the VIA EPIA MS incorporates a horizontal CompactFlash
slot for convenient download or transfer of digital content,
such as family photos. Measuring a mere 17cm by 17cm,
the native x86 based VIA EPIA MS is compatible with all
recent Microsoft® Windows® and a variety of Linux operating
systems.
In addition to the power efficient VIA C3 or fanless
VIA Eden ESP processor up to 1GHz, the board features
the VIA CLE266 chipset with integrated S3 Graphics Unichrome™
2D/3D graphics that includes embedded MPEG-2 decoding
acceleration to ensure smooth DVD playback for a rich
overall entertainment experience. With the sizable memory
bandwidth of DDR266 SDRAM and fast data transfer speeds
of ATA/133, the VIA EPIA MS ensures the high performance
levels required by today's most popular digital media
and productivity applications. The user's digital media
experience is further enhanced by support for 6-channel
surround sound, courtesy of the onboard VIA Vinyl Six-TRAC
Audio.
The latest in high-bandwidth connectivity is supported
with up to six USB 2.0 connections, as well as S-Video
and RCA TV-Out (NTSC & PAL) and 10/100 Mbps Fast Ethernet
for seamless broadband connectivity. The VIA EPIA MS also
offers support for a growing number of LVDS embedded LCD
panels, has a PCI slot for expandability options, and
is compatible with a full range of Mini-ITX chassis as
well as FlexATX and MicroATX enclosures.
VIA EPIA MS-Series Pricing and Availability
The VIA EPIA MS-Series Mini-ITX mainboard is available
now through VEPD global distribution partners. Please
contact your local VIA sales office or send an email to
mkt@via.com.tw for
further details. More information on the VIA EPIA MS-Series
can be found at: http://www.viaembedded.com/product/epia_ms_spec.jsp?motherboardId=281 |
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