Anyone else noticed this?

[absic]

Just wondered if anybody else had noticed that Gigabyte have started upgrading existing motherboards with the AM3+ socket.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3519&dl=1#driver
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3789#ov

these are a couple of examples but it seems as if some of the 8 series boards are just being upgraded with new BIOS chips and the AM3+ Socket.

[Dark Mantis]

Slipping it in under the radar!

No I hadn't noticed either and the larger BIOS chips are necessary for the UEFI I suppose as it will take up more space than the old BIOS.

[absic]

Very quiet and no indication of any new boards with the new AMD 9 series chips yet.

Yes the bigger BIOS chips are needed for EFI.

[Dark Mantis]

Yes I don't understand how they thought they were going to be able to fit the new UEFI onto the same size chips, but they were saying that it would be possible to load the EFI onto the later series boards  Maybe they are planning to zip it up

[absic]

No idea what is going on. The lack of information is amazing really.

Knowing how interested users are for both EFI and AM3+ information you would have thought these changes would be widely announced. Of course, they are not new boards, just new revisions of existing ones and I suppose they want to clear existing stocks first.

[Dark Mantis]

Quite possibly and nothing wrong with that at all. Obviously the company would want to use up what stock they still had available first, that is good economics. If it is just a case of changing a couple of components on a production line to make a present motherboard compatible with a new upcoming line of CPUs they would be mad not to. I just don't understand why a marketing campaign hasn't made the most of these features as a sales pitch.

[absic]

Probably building up for the newer AMD 9 series chipset! 

[Dark Mantis]

Yes but I would have thought that they would want to sell as many of the current boards as possible first. To advertise them as future-proof is a big marketing plus.

[absic]

Let's be honest, if you're looking for a new motherboard most people will hold off for the latest technology, not just a revamped version of an older chipset.

[Dark Mantis]

True but there are plenty of customers who can't or don't want to wait, so there is always a market.

[absic]

Yes, of course you are correct in that assumption DM but....

If you're planning an upgrade to one of the new Bulldozer processors then you would want to make the most of it's power. For this you need to really wait for the full platform and the new chipset.

[Dark Mantis]

I am sure that you are right in general absic. If i was planning an upgrade I would wait until the optimum time to perform it. Mind you it doesn't matter when you jump in there is always something just a bit better around the corner

[absic]

Yes, the easy upgrade path offered by AMD makes it tempting to jump in but it is also an easier way to burn a hole in your pocket.

By an upgraded AM3 board £100+
Wait and buy a new AM3+ Motherboard with 9 Series chipset when released £???
Wait and buy a new AM3+ CPU when they are finally released £?

Or wait a little while and just buy a new AM3+ CPU and AM3+ 9 series Motherboard when they come along and you will probably save over £100 and be future proofed for at least 2 - 3 years.