ZOTAC announces the Z68-ITX WiFi series mini-ITX platforms

Today ZOTAC have announced the new Z68-ITX WiFi series mini-ITX platforms and they look very interesting indeed.

Z68-ITX WiFi

Z68-ITX WiFi Supreme

General details

• New ZOTAC Z68-ITX WiFi series mini-ITX platforms
• Intel Z68 Express chipset
• 2nd Generation Intel Core processor family compatible (i3, i5 & i7)
• LGA115 socket compatible
• ZOTAC Z68-ITX WiFi
  • 2 x DDR3-2133 DIMM slots
  • Support up to 16GB memory
  • Mini-DisplayPort & dual HDMI outputs
  • PCI Express x16 expansion
  • 1 Combo mini-PCIe / mSATA slot (occupied by WiFi)
  • 2 SATA 6.0 Gb/s
  • 2 SATA 3.0 Gb/s
  • RAID 0, 1, 0+1 & 5 support
  • 4 USB 3.0 ports (2 on back panel, 2 via pin header)
  • 8 USB 2.0 ports (4 on back panel, 4 via pin headers)
  • Dual Gigabit Ethernet
  • ZOTAC Z68-ITX WiFi Supreme
    • Integrated NVIDIA GeForce GT 430 GPU w/1GB DDR3
    • 2 x DDR3-1333 SO-DIMM slots
    • Support up to 16GB memory
    • Dual DVI, HDMI & DisplayPort outputs
    • PCI Express x4 (open-end) expansion
    • 1 mSATA slot
    • 2 SATA 6.0 Gb/s
    • 2 SATA 3.0 Gb/s
    • RAID 0, 1, 0+1 & 5 support
    • 1 eSATA 3.0 Gb/s
    • 4 USB 3.0 ports (2 on back panel, 2 via pin header)
    • 4 USB 2.0 ports (2 on back panel, 2 via pin headers)
    • Gigabit Ethernet
    • Hardware accelerated Blu-ray playback ready
    • Dolby TrueHD & DTS-HD Master Audio bitstream capable
    • Digital S/PDIF output (optical)
    • 8-channel high-definition audio
    • Microsoft DirectX 11 compliant
    • Onboard 802.11n WiFi
    • Lucid Virtu software bundle
    • Mini-ITX form factor

Here is the full press release:

HONG KONG – May 31, 2011 – ZOTAC® International, a leading innovator and the world’s largest channel manufacturer of graphics cards, motherboards and mini-PCs, today unleashes the Z68-ITX WiFi and Z68-ITX WiFi Supreme – a pair of mini-ITX platforms designed for the most adventurous and demanding enthusiasts. The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series enables users to take advantage of all features of 2^nd Generation Intel® Core™ family processors including integrated graphics, overclocking and Intel® Quick-Sync Video technology.

Powered by the latest Intel® Z68 Express chipset, the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series enables adventurous enthusiasts to extract every ounce of performance available from 2^nd Generation Intel® Core™ while maintaining use of Intel® GMA HD 2000/3000 series integrated graphics processors. Support for Intel® Quick-Sync Video technology enables lightning-fast video transcoding for virtually instant video conversions to popular portable media players with the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series.

Lucid Virtu software is bundled with the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series to let users combine the high-speed transcoding capabilities of Intel® Quick-Sync Video and discrete ZOTAC® GeForce® series graphics cards for the ultimate high-performance combination.

“The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series is our most ambitious mini-ITX offering to date – never before have we been able to match a full ATX board in features and overclocking capabilities.” said Carsten Berger, marketing director, ZOTAC® International.

The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series feature support for mSATA SSD drives for insanely-fast storage performance from a pint-size form factor. The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi features a switchable combo mSATA / mini-PCI Express slot, occupied by a WiFi card, while the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi Supreme has a dedicated mSATA slot on the backside of the board.

SATA 6.0 Gb/s and SATA 3.0 Gb/s ports are available on the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series for connectivity with standard 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch hard drives and SSDs. Intel® Smart Response Technology, or SRT, enables users to pair smaller capacity SSD drives with large hard disk drives for superior performance and system-responsiveness without sacrificing storage capacity with the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series.

“Storage performance is the greatest bottleneck for modern PCs. With the support for mSATA and Intel® SRT technology, our ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi boards substantially improve storage performance when paired with the right hardware,” Mr. Berger added.

The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi packs mini-DisplayPort and dual HDMI outputs for users that take advantage of the integrated Intel® GMA HD 2000 / 3000 graphics processors found on 2^nd Generation Intel® Core family processors. A full-speed PCI Express x16 slot is available on the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi for users that demand greater 3D performance.

The ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi Supreme improves 3D capabilities by integrating a GeForce® GT 430 graphics processor with 1GB of DDR3 memory to enable stunning DirectX® 11 visuals, NVIDIA® CUDA™ technology and the ability to drive four simultaneous independent displays. An open-ended PCI Express x4 slot is available for additional expansion as well.

It’s time to play with the ZOTAC® Z68-ITX WiFi series mini-ITX platforms.