Gigabyte Thunderbolt motherboards support 4K resolution displays

Gigabyte Technology has recently announced its dual Thunderbolt series of motherboards that support 4K resolution monitors in configurations derived from two Mini DisplayPort connectors, each capable of 2K resolution output. Gigabyte states that testing was successfully carried out at its regional facility in Tokyo, Japan with the EIZO FDH3601 high resolution colour monitor that is designed for air traffic control and geophysical services.

“Desktop PC motherboards are all about cutting edge features, performance, and upgradeability, and this is why Gigabyte was the first motherboard company to adopt dual Thunderbolt ports instead of the single port option,” commented Tim Handley, deputy director of Motherboard Marketing at Gigabyte. “When combined with other innovative products, such as EIZO’s 4K resolution FDH3601 monitor, Gigabyte Thunderbolt motherboard users can enjoy next generation display options with their existing platform, without having to wait for future 4K resolution standards.”

Gigabyte states that as the first motherboards to be certified by Intel featuring dual Thunderbolt ports, the ‘TH’ models offer up to 10Gbps data transfer speeds from each port. This means one can transfer HD graphics and data simultaneously. Gigabyte explains that each Thunderbolt port complies with the DisplayPort 1.1 standard (with support for 2K resolutions from each port), and therefore provide a combined resolution of up to 4K.

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In July, Gigabyte announced the latest 7 series motherboards, with fully-certified dual onboard Thunderbolt ports. The motherboards are capable of connecting up to 12 devices and three digital displays simultaneously, with data transfer speeds that can transfer 1TB of data in only five minutes. Thunderbolt combines both DisplayPort and PCI Express protocols over a single cable so that users can connect a multitude of device types in tandem with HD streaming video and 8-channel audio, simultaneously in one specially developed cable. Users can also enjoy improved flexibility by ‘daisy-chaining’ several devices while still enjoying low latency and industry-leading data transfer speeds.

In related Gigabyte news in October, the company had announced its latest FM2 series motherboards that support the next generation AMD A-Series accelerated processing units (APUs). The Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4, the flagship of the Gigabyte FM2 series, incorporates Gigabyte Ultra Durable 5 technology, digital power delivery, and other exclusive features to tap into AMD’s new ‘Trinity’ technology.

“A number of new features and technologies make their debut on the AMD platform, including Ultra Durable 5 technology, Dual UEFI 3D BIOS, Digital Power delivery, triple display support and Lucid Virtu MVP,” commented Handley. “These new FM2 series motherboards offer outstanding value for any DIY builder looking to harness the improved performance of AMD’s Trinity APUs."

In the Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4 motherboard, digital power controllers are used to get the most out of the onboard AMD 7000 series graphics processor. Renowned overclocker and HWBot.com aficionado, Massman, managed to push the AMD A10 5800K APU to achieve a 3DMark Vantage Performance score of over 10,000 points, which is better performance than many discrete graphics cards available today.

Non-K Model AMD APUs have a locked multiplier, which can severely limit potential overclocking. Gigabyte FM2 series motherboards are equipped with an additional APU bus frequency generator that allows a much higher clock ceiling.