Motherboard is the main part of any computer and you need to be highly concerned while choosing a motherboard for you computer. It is very simple to choose a motherboard. Motherboard is mainly integrated with number of devices.
It is highly recommended to select the motherboard with maximum number of ports with 2 serial, 1 parallel and 4 USB ports. It is also recommended to check the availability of upgrade options such as memory support and number of available PCI slots etc.
Here are some important tips to choose a motherboard when you decide to buy a new PC:
1. First thing you need to consider is the CPU you want to use because motherboard differs from CPU to CPU i.e. Intel and AMD CPUs both use different motherboards. This is because of socket type they use. The CPU needs the socket to communicate with motherboard components through the chipset.
2. Take a time to research on motherboards either from a computer magazine, online reviews, reading surveys, etc. And also look for some competitors on best motherboards online.
3. Do not go for costliest motherboard for unused additional features. Every time look cost for benefit ratio and select the motherboard assessing the utility value.
4. If you are looking motherboard for gaming purpose then you have to check for enough space around CPU to install larger heat sink-fan combination for cooling. So be sure to go for motherboard having facility to overclock Front Side Bus (FSB) in steps of 1 MHz and core voltage adjustment.
5. You also need to confirm the compatibility of chipset on motherboard with the speed of processor and FSB. It is very important step in order to improve the system performance.
6. Try to find out the feature rich motherboard for future upgrade and ensure about the extra PCI and memory slot for future expansion. This is important because the motherboard type you choose is sufficient for now but it may not always enough for latter.
7. Motherboard are also feature with onboard video chipset and an AGP slot. So if you are planning for expensive motherboard then be sure to check for such feature and also confirm whether AGP slot supports latest transfer rate.
8. Check the motherboard for onboard sound and integrated Ethernet because all the recent motherboard must features such thing otherwise you need to expense a bit more money to buy extra Ethernet chipset and sound card.
9. You need to consider on memory when selecting your motherboard. Most motherboard today comes with at least 2 memory slot and many with 4. If you are serious gamer then it is better to choose for 4 memory slots motherboard and 2GB memory card is enough if you like to add video graphic card.
10. Other things you need to consider while selecting a motherboard are the peripherals, such as keyboard, mouse, printer, flash drive, external drive and digital camera. You need to consider about battery ( you need to change it 4-5 years) and the preloaded BIOS (boots up computer)
There are still many things to consider while choosing the best motherboard. If you are still having a problem choosing a motherboard then you can look for some motherboard manufacturers for details on them. The best known motherboard manufacture is Kontron which deals with embedded motherboard the best for solution for wide variety of applications.